Watford Grammar School for Girls (commonly abbreviated WGGS) is an academy for girls in

Watford Watford () is a town and non-metropolitan district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Hertfordshire, England, northwest of Central London, on the banks of the River Colne, Hertfordshire, River Colne. Initially a smal ...

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...

, UK. Despite its name, it is only a partially selective school, with 25% of entrants admitted on academic ability and 10% on musical aptitude. Its

GCSE The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a range of subjects taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, having been introduced in September 1986 and its first exams taken in 1988. State schools ...

results were the highest achieved by non-

grammar In linguistics, grammar is the set of rules for how a natural language is structured, as demonstrated by its speakers or writers. Grammar rules may concern the use of clauses, phrases, and words. The term may also refer to the study of such rul ...

state schools A state school, public school, or government school is a primary or secondary school that educates all students without charge. They are funded in whole or in part by taxation and operated by the government of the state. State-funded schools a ...

in England in 2007.

History

The school and its brother school, Watford Grammar School for Boys, descend from a free school founded as a

charity school Charity schools, sometimes called blue coat schools, or simply the Blue School, were significant in the history of education in England. They were built and maintained in various parishes by the voluntary contributions of the inhabitants to ...

for boys and girls by Elizabeth Fuller in 1704 and refounded as a secondary school in 1884. The school has occupied its present site in central Watford since 1907. The name Watford Grammar School for Girls dates from 1903. Although the school ceased to be a

tripartite system The Tripartite System was the selective school system of State school#United Kingdom, state-funded secondary education between 1945 and the 1970s in England and Wales, and from 1947 onwards in Northern Ireland. It was an administrative implementa ...

grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a Latin school, school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented Se ...

in 1975, it retains some features of the grammar school tradition. The school site is divided in two by a public footpath, with a footbridge spanning the path to connect the two parts. The northern part includes a former private house, Lady's Close now used as the English block. Also in the northern part is the PE block and Fuller Life Gym (with a swimming pool), open to members of the public in non-school hours. A new building, Hyde House, is also situated in the northern part. Except during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, when it was taken over by the

Red Cross The organized International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 16million volunteering, volunteers, members, and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ...

as an auxiliary hospital, the building served as the school's preparatory department until that department was closed in 1944. Since then it has served as the home of the entry form to the school.

The school today

Watford Girls has been partially selective since 1995, though the proportion of selection has been reduced over this period. The school also gives priority to sisters of current pupils at the school. Prior to 2008 it also gave extra consideration during the selection process to sisters of pupils of Watford Grammar School for Boys. Its admission area reaches out about , including some northern parts of the London boroughs of Harrow and

Hillingdon Hillingdon is an area of Uxbridge within the London Borough of Hillingdon, centred 14.2 miles (22.8 km) west of Charing Cross. It was an ancient parish in Middlesex that included the market town of Uxbridge. During the 1920s the civil pari ...

. In comparison with the national average, its intake has significantly higher academic attainment, greater ethnic diversity and fewer children receiving free school meals.,

Ofsted The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) is a non-ministerial department of His Majesty's government, reporting to Parliament. Ofsted's role is to make sure that organisations providing education, training ...

. An inspection in 2007 by the

Office for Standards in Education The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) is a non-ministerial government department, non-ministerial department of Government of the United Kingdom, His Majesty's government, reporting to Parliament of the U ...

rated the school as outstanding in all categories. It has long been near the top of performance tables for

comprehensive school A comprehensive school is a secondary school for pupils aged 11–16 or 11–18, that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude, in contrast to a selective school system where admission is restricted on the basis ...

s, but when the key measure at

was changed in 2007 to include English and mathematics the school moved to the top position. The then-headmistress, Dame Helen Hyde, attributed part of their success to De Bono Thinking Tools, for which the school was one of the first in the United Kingdom to receive accreditation as a national training school.

Notable former pupils

* Claire Hallissey, British distance runner * Geri Halliwell (pop singer and former Spice Girl) attended the school up to

. *

Liz Kendall Elizabeth Louise Kendall (born 11 June 1971) is a British politician who has served as Secretary of State for Work and Pensions since July 2024. A member of the Labour Party, she has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Leicester West sinc ...

, Member of Parliament (MP) for Leicester West from 2010 onwards. * Rebecca Saire, actress * Rita Simons, actress in ''

EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...

'' * Emma Wiggs, canoeist, and Paralympic gold medallist * Sarah Wollaston, Member of Parliament from 2010 until 2019 *

Priti Patel Dame Priti Sushil Patel (born 29 March 1972) is a British politician who has served as Shadow Foreign Secretary since November 2024, having previously served as Home Secretary from 2019 to 2022. A member of the Conservative Party, she was Secr ...

, Member of Parliament (2010–present). There is notable uncertainty around the legitimacy of Patel's attendance to WGGS, as well as a vagueness on Patel's own account. Among locals, it is believed she attended the school for the duration of her

sixth form In the education systems of Barbados, England, Jamaica, Northern Ireland, Trinidad and Tobago, Wales, and some other Commonwealth countries, sixth form represents the final two years of secondary education, ages 16 to 18. Pupils typically prepa ...

studies, having previously attended Westfield Academy. According to senior members of teaching staff at WGGS, Patel categorically did not attend the school.

Headmistresses

(since the founding of the secondary school in 1884) * 1884 Louise Walsh * 1884–1895 Julia Anne Kennaby (married name Rogers from 1893) * 1895–1913 Ann Coless * 1913–1938 Grace Fergie * 1938–1956 Jean Davidson * 1957–1973 Jessie Tennet * 1974–1987 Margaret Rhodes * 1987–2016 Dame Helen Hyde * 2016–2017 Clare Wagner * 2017–present Sylvia Tai

Forms

*7A - Red *7B - Yellow *7C - Blue *7D - Purple *7E - White *7F - Pink *7G - Green

References

External links

Watford Grammar School For Girls
{{authority control Educational institutions established in 1704 1704 establishments in England Schools in Watford Academies in Hertfordshire Girls' schools in Hertfordshire Secondary schools in Hertfordshire