Haberdashers’ Girls’ School is situated on a site of over 100 acres, shared with their brother school Habs Boys, and has an excellent reputation for academic, sporting and musical achievements. Entry to the Junior School is at 4+ or at 7+; and to the Senior School, at 11+ and Sixth Form. The academic results are outstanding, a reflection of able pupils who enjoy learning and thrive on a full and challenging curriculum.
Facilities are first-class with a STEM building and Drama studio and a very wide range of co-curricular activities. Sport, music, drama, art and debating thrive and there are many other opportunities for leadership within the school community, including the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award and Arts Award schemes and a very active community service programme. Life at Habs is busy and challenging, embracing new technology alongside old traditions, which include the celebration of St Catherine’s Day as patron of the Haberdashers’ Company and an annual Carol Service held at St Martin-in-the-Fields in London.
Over 110 coach routes, shared with Habs Boys, bring pupils to school from a thirty-mile radius covering north London, Hertfordshire and Middlesex. The provision of a late coach service ensures that pupils can take part safely in the wide range of the many clubs and societies organised after school. The St Catherine Parents’ Guild, the school’s parents’ association, provides enormous support to the school through fundraising and social events.
Junior School. There are approximately 323 day pupils in the Junior School, with two parallel classes from Reception to Year 6.
Pastoral Care: Class teachers and Learning Support assistants maintain close contact with pupils and their parents. It is very important that our pupils feel happy and comfortable. Every adult has a responsibility for the pupils’ welfare and security and there are many layers of care in place. From the outset, through the behaviour code, pupils are encouraged to be friendly, polite and caring to everyone else in the community, whether adults or children, and there is strong peer support. There are two nurses, a counsellor and two individual needs specialists, all of whom are able to provide support and to ensure each pupil understands her unique importance in the school community. Where appropriate, older pupils have responsibility for younger ones and Senior School Sixth Formers regularly help Juniors in the classroom. A programme of PSHCE (personal, social, health and citizenship education) lessons covers important issues of self-development and allows pupils to reflect on their responsibilities to each other and the wider community. Many parents are involved in the classroom, clubs and outings.
Spiritual and Moral Education: Habs is a school with a Christian tradition which welcomes the rich diversity of faiths within the community. Assemblies are held for the whole school at least twice a week and on other days are separate for Key Stage One and Key Stage Two. Values, themes, stories and reflections are drawn from a range of sources including cultures, traditions and faiths. Once a year selected classes perform an assembly to which their parents are invited. Parents are also very welcome to attend assemblies on major occasions such as St Catherine’s Day and are often invited to speak to the pupils in assemblies on an area of their expertise or experience relevant to the pupils. Pupils also take part in many charitable ventures throughout the year, raising money and enhancing their awareness of lives in the wider world.
Enrichment: There is a wide range of clubs covering our pupils’ interests in sport, music, arts and crafts, languages, science, maths, creative writing, reading, games and puzzles, cookery and gardening. Visits linked to the curriculum are arranged for every class and there are regular visitors to school such as theatre companies, historical re-creations, authors, illustrators, musicians and scientists. Joint events with the Boys’ School occur at intervals throughout the year for the different age groups.
Sport: We have first-class sports facilities, including a sports hall, gymnasia, netball and tennis courts, a swimming pool and ample playing fields. The curriculum provides a core of gymnastics, dance, swimming, netball, tennis, athletics and rounders. Teams in netball, cricket, football, gymnastics, rounders and pop lacrosse compete against other schools.
Performance Arts: Concerts and drama productions are a major part of school life, showcasing the wide range of creative talent amongst our pupils. Our Performance Space provides many opportunities to explore and extend their interests in the performance arts. There are two major drama productions annually: an Infant production for all those in Reception and Key Stage One, and a dramatic production for Year 6. The annual Spring Concert showcases all the musical groups and ensembles as well as a massed choir of all Key Stage Two pupils. The summer Chamber Concert features performances from many of our musical ensembles. Informal lunchtime concerts occur at least once a term for Year 4 to 6 soloists or duets. Our pupils’ own art and design work is displayed around the school.
Curriculum: There is a broad and challenging curriculum with the provision of opportunities for outdoor, active and independent learning, with plenty of practical tasks and problem solving, to enable pupils to develop their bright young minds. Fun is a vital ingredient. There are curriculum evenings for parents to learn about the school’s approach to particular subject areas and how they can best support their daughters at home and work in true partnership with the school.
The Early Learning Goals of the Foundation Stage are met through a balance of child-initiated opportunities and teacher-led activities. There is a daily range of stimulating, play-based activities which prompts pupils to ask questions, to discover, to wonder and to learn new skills. No homework is set in Reception or Year 1 so that pupils can enjoy the precious childhood pleasures of imaginative play and being read to by a parent when they get home. Music, French and daily PE lessons are taught by specialist teachers. Phonics teaching enables pupils to make rapid progress with reading and to gain an easy independence in their writing, while the foundations of mathematical thinking are laid through carefully selected practical tasks.
Extensive use is made of IT throughout the Junior School, with a dedicated IT Suite enabling an exciting Computing curriculum, including coding and robotics. In addition, all pupils have an iPad which they can use in class under the supervision of the teacher. The use of mobile technology is not meant to replace traditional learning but to supplement and enhance it and, in some cases, to open up whole new ways of learning for the pupils.
Creativity is fostered in music and dance, in art, design technology, literacy activities, drama and role play. The school grounds provide a rich environment for building knowledge about the world of nature as well as space to develop physical skills and pupils spend one afternoon a week in our on-site Forest School.
At Key Stage One, curriculum subjects are English, Mathematics, Science, History, Geography, Religious Studies, French, Spanish, ICT, Art, Design Technology, Music, PSHCE and Physical Education, including swimming. Fostering a love of reading is paramount.
As pupils progress through Key Stage Two they encounter more subject specialists. Science lessons, which are taught in the well-equipped laboratory, strongly feature practical and investigative work. The Art Room is a magnificent space for the creation of stunning works of art, while pupils can feel transported to another culture as soon as they step into the Languages Room and they are introduced to German for the first time.
Senior School. There are approximately 847 students aged 11–18 in the Senior School.
Pastoral Care: In such a big and busy school, care for each individual is deeply important so that all can flourish and fulfil themselves in every way. Looking after them is a pastoral team consisting of the Deputy Head (Pastoral), Assistant Head (Pastoral), Heads of Year, Form Tutors, a School Nurse, a Counsellor and an Individual Needs Specialist. The provision of pastoral care is designed to help students make decisions and to care about others within the framework of a very diverse community. There is an outstanding range of opportunities for their personal development and to help them consolidate a system of spiritual beliefs and a moral code. The welfare of students is of paramount importance and it is the responsibility of all members of staff, teaching and support staff, to safeguard and promote this. From the moment a student joins the school, emphasis is placed on the partnership with parents so that, hand-in-hand, school and parents can support each child, operating on a basis of trust and with people they know from the start.
Spiritual and Moral Education: Haberdashers’ is a school with a Christian tradition which welcomes the rich diversity of faiths within the community. The day begins with the whole school assembly or House meeting to reinforce the school’s values and its sense of community. These meetings are often led by the students themselves. Once a week there are separate faith assemblies: Christian, Hindu, Jain and Sikh, Humanist, Jewish or Muslim. Students can choose which one they attend. Holy Communion takes place at the Boys’ School. Roman Catholic Mass is celebrated each half term, either in the Girls’ or the Boys’ School. Students may pray at lunchtime in a room set aside for them to do so. Students organise and run many charitable events within their Houses throughout the year. This enhances their awareness of the wider world as well as raising funds for charities small and large, at home and abroad.
Enrichment: There is a wide range of clubs on offer in the Senior School, including Art, creative writing, Dance, debating, Design Technology, Drama, football, Maths, Philosophy, Science, and synchronised swimming. Trips and visits include a Year 7 adventure holiday and various trips abroad, with language exchanges, work experience, and study visits. Subject specific trips in the UK and abroad include field trips, theatre visits, trips to sites of historical importance, museums and art galleries, music and sports tours.
Sport and Performance Arts: The core curriculum includes gymnastics, dance, swimming, lacrosse, netball, tennis, athletics and rounders. For older students, there are additional options in self-defence, badminton, football, trampolining, etc. There are clubs in a range of sports for recreational enjoyment as well as for the teams. There are major drama productions in all sections of the school and symphonic concerts showcasing a variety of ensembles, including three orchestras, wind and jazz bands, percussion groups, flute choirs, and rock bands, as well as recitals and chamber concerts. There are annual Drama and Music Festivals; occasionally, there are joint productions and orchestral concerts with the Boys’ School. Students’ painting, sculpture and design installations are displayed around the school.
Opportunities for leadership and challenge are valued and encouraged. Activities include: The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award; Community Service; European Youth Parliament; Model United Nations; etc.
Curriculum: The school follows its own wide-ranging academic curriculum tailored to the needs of its very able pupils. It preserves the best of a traditional education whilst responding positively to curricular developments. Much emphasis is placed on developing the students’ ability to think and learn independently, nurturing an intellectual resilience and self confidence which will prepare them for the world beyond school. In all subjects, the curriculum aims to be something that inspires the students and stimulates discussion and ideas. A high value is placed upon creativity, imagination and the opportunity to pursue topics beyond the confines of the exam specifications. The school is not required to follow the National Curriculum but draws upon the best practice of what is happening nationally and in other schools. In the first three years of the Senior School, students follow a set curriculum, studying French, Spanish and German on a carousel and then choosing two to continue with into Year 8. As they progress through the school they are given greater choice and the opportunity to personalise their curriculum to suit their needs and interests. Thus the GCSE curriculum has space for up to four optional subjects. In the Sixth Form the students have a free choice of subjects from the subjects on offer. At each level, the curriculum is designed to prepare them for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of the next stage of their education and their lives.
Scholarships and Bursaries. A number of Academic Scholarships are awarded annually to pupils entering the Senior School. A smaller number of Creative Writing, Music, Art, Drama and Sports Scholarships are awarded each year to students who show additional special promise in these specific areas.
A significant number of means-tested Governors’ Bursaries are awarded at age 11+, valued from a few hundred pounds to full fees, depending upon financial need. Open equally to boys progressing from the Prep School and to those applying from other Schools.
Full details of all these awards are included in the prospectus available from the School Registrar who is happy to answer enquiries.
Fees per annum (2023-2024). Senior £23,613–23,745 exc. lunch; Junior £20,310 (R–Y2) inc. lunch, £21,642 (Y3–Y6) inc. lunch. A number of scholarships are awarded annually and means-tested financial assistance (up to full fees) is also available for students entering at 11+ or 16+.
Charitable status. The Haberdashers’ Aske’s Charity is a Registered Charity, number 313996. It exists to promote education.
Governors & Staff:
Chair of the Board of Governors: Simon Cartmell, OBE
Executive Principal: Mr A R Lock, MA
Headmistress: Dr H Bagworth-Mann, PhD Brunel
Head of the Junior School: Mrs C Brown, BSc Newcastle
Principal Deputy Head: Mrs S Wright, MEd Cantab
Deputy Head (Academic): Mr D Sabato, BA Nottingham
Deputy Head (Admissions, Co-Curricular and Events): Mr T Scott, MA Cantab
Deputy Head (Pastoral) and Designated Safeguarding Lead: Mrs L Simson, MA Cantab
Acting Assistant Heads (Academic): Mrs I Barrett Walsh, BSc Manchester and Mr R Yarlett, BA Leicester
Assistant Head (Pastoral): Mrs C Milsom, BA Brunel
Chief Operating Officer: R Dunn, MA
Head of Sixth Form: Mrs L Mee, BSc London
Joint Schools Director of Development: W Friar, MS
Director of Foundation: R de H Llewellyn, MA
Joint Schools Director of Marketing and Communications: A Tooley, BA
Director of People: Dr R McKenzie-Young, PhD
Director of Partnerships: Mr J Plotkin, MA Oxon
Director of STEM: Miss N Percy, BSc Leeds
Head of Habs Diploma: Dr K Bridge, BSc Loughborough
Director of Finance and Resources. L Karfoot, BA
Heads of Department:
Art: Miss K Shaw, BA Manchester [maternity leave], Mrs D Hobbs, BA Lancaster [maternity cover]
Classics: Mrs A Saunders, MA Oxon
Computing: Ms M Durmus-Ergul, BSc Brunel
Design Technology: Mr M Squire, BSc Southbank
Economics: Ms K Healer
English: Miss I Condon, BA Manchester
Drama: Miss A Murphy
Geography: Miss S Nanji, BA London
History: Mr R Yarlett, BA Leicester
Mathematics: Mrs I Barrett-Walsh, BSc Manchester
Modern Languages: Mrs S Bromley, BA Birmingham (Head of French), Mr D Foster, MEd Cantab (Head of German), Ms J Curtis, MA Kings College London (Head of Spanish)
Music: Ms M Jenkins, BMus London
Performance Music: T Taylor, MMus
Director of Sport: Miss T Dawson, BEd Greenwich
Politics: Mrs C Wilding, BA Bristol
PSHCE: Mr D Heyman, BA Oxon
Science: Dr J Havery-Barrett, BSc Newcastle (Head of Biology), Dr C Ruddick, BSc Exeter (Head of Chemistry), Dr K Bridge, BSc Loughborough (Head of Physics)
Religion and Philosophy: Mrs K Opie, MA London
Junior School:
Head: Mrs C Brown, BSc Newcastle
Deputy Head: Ms D Lansdown, BEd Cantab
Acting Assistant Head (Pastoral): Ms U Elliott