st margaret's school prospectus
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Independent Day and Boarding School for GirlsIndependent Day and Boarding School for Girls
Welcome from the HeadWelcome to St Margaret’s Bushey, a
leading independent school for girls
aged 4 to 18. As well as day places for
all age groups, we offer a range of
flexible boarding options for both UK
and international pupils from the age
of 11. Since its foundation in 1749,
St Margaret’s has believed that an
excellent education is the foundation
of a child’s route to the realisation of
their potential.
We are a school with a proven record of academic success in
public examinations and our pupils move onto competitive
courses at universities and institutions both here in the UK
and around the world. Our outward looking ethos aims to
encourage a genuine enthusiasm for learning and an ability
to independently explore subjects beyond the classroom.
Our curriculum addresses a rapidly changing world filled with
complex challenges as well as exciting new possibilities.
The pastoral care at St Margaret is the central pillar upon which
the success of the school is based and we are proud of the quality
of care and opportunity given to every one of our pupils no
matter what stage of their education. We offer a rich programme
of extra-curricular activities and girls are encouraged to find their
talent whatever that may be. There is no typical St Margaret’s
girl; all are valued individually by our qualified and committed
staff. That quality of care enables girls to grow in an atmosphere
of tolerance and understanding and leave equipped with the
confidence, aptitude and skills they need for life and for work.
Our beautiful 74 acre site boasts a combination of superbly
resourced historic and modern buildings and we are easily
accessible from both London and the Home Counties. If you
have not yet visited us, please do and we will show you the love
of learning, culture of achievement and relish of challenge that is
the essence of St Margaret’s.
Mrs Rose Hardy - Headmistress
MA MEd PGCE FRSA
p3
At St Margaret’s girls achieve in a myriad of
ways. We work to ensure that each girl fulfils
her academic potential whether her strengths
lie in mathematics, science, the creative arts,
humanities, languages or business studies and
economics. However, we offer so much more.
Extra-curricular activities such as music, drama,
dance, The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme
and Young Enterprise produce outstanding
successes and develop a range of skills and
teamwork to a high level.
Girls from St Margaret’s go on to a wide variety
of careers from medicine to fashion management,
architecture to television presenting, and en route
they study at all of the major institutions of
higher education in the United Kingdom, and
at many abroad.
Achievement
Creative thinking underpins so much of what
individuals can achieve. Opportunities to
perform, to make music, to design and to
express oneself, abound at St Margaret’s.
There are times to develop individuality, times
to work together, times to appreciate what others
have to offer. Regular visits to theatres, galleries
and concerts enhance the extensive curricular
and extra-curricular programme in school.
Music making starts with the violin tuition
included for all in the infant curriculum.
Throughout the school a large team of experts
offer individual tuition in instrumental playing,
singing and speech and drama to develop
confidence and maximise potential.
Creativity
p5
p7
There are so many opportunities to show initiative
and take the lead at St Margaret’s. Head Girls,
Deputies, Games Captains and House Captains in
all sections of the school practise real leadership
among their peers. Fundraisers and inter-house
events are organised by the girls and the School
Council has an important voice in school affairs.
Day trips and team building challenges allow even
the most timid to enjoy new experiences, and for
the more adventurous there is a wide range of
residential visits and field trips within the United
Kingdom and further afield, from Vietnam to
Norway and Barcelona to Brussels, on which girls
hone linguistic, sporting and cultural skills.
School productions from reception to the
senior school enable those first timid steps on
the stage to develop into confident performances,
and those who prefer can take responsibility for
lighting, props or sound. Concerts featuring
choirs, orchestral groups and soloists from all
sections of the school, public speaking
competitions, Young Enterprise, and the Duke
of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme all present
opportunities eagerly seized and show confidence
growing through the years.
Opportunitiesto develop confidence
p9
an education for life...
p11
Each girl is encouraged to find a set of values
by which to live. Assemblies and our personal,
social and health education programme promote
consistently high expectations with regard to
manners and morals. Our Church of England
foundation ensures a respect for all faiths and
encourages inter-faith dialogue, understanding
and tolerance. High standards of behaviour from
reception to the sixth form are underpinned at
St Margaret’s by mutual respect and
consideration for others.
A rich and diverse mixture of cultures makes
St Margaret’s a stimulating and instructive
place in which to learn and grow. International
boarders add an exciting dimension to our
community and are quickly involved in school life
whether singing in the choir, representing the
school in sport or taking part in debates at the
Model United Nations.
Values for life
p13
Fun is an integral part of life at St Margaret’s
and nowhere is that more evident than in the
many and varied sporting activities offered here.
Participation is the watchword and girls
encourage each other while each strives to
achieve her personal best.
From dance to judo, badminton to ultimate
frisbee, there is something for everyone, from
the youngest to the most senior member of the
school community. Staff, parents and friends are
welcome to take up membership of the sports
centre where superb facilities for swimming,
personal fitness, dance and indoor sport
complement the school’s extensive range of
outdoor pitches and courts.
A busy programme of fixtures against other
schools runs throughout the year in sports such as
netball, lacrosse, football, swimming, badminton,
rounders, tennis and athletics.
Sport for all
p15
Caring for others comes naturally at St Margaret’s
both within our community and beyond its
confines. Between staff and pupils a relationship
of mutual respect is the basis for getting the best
out of everyone and pastoral care is given a high
priority in the shared belief that happy girls will
get the most out of life.
Girls here form firm bonds of friendship which
last long after they have left school. When joining
year 7 each girl has a ‘Senior Sister’ from her
House to befriend her and to provide an
understanding ear.
Each year girls at St Margaret’s support a wide
range of national and local charities, often chosen
because of a link to a girl or member of staff.
Sponsored events, competitions, concerts, fetes
and mufti days are keenly supported and enjoyed
by all.
Boarders learn to live together sharing joys and
aspirations whether as full or weekly boarders, and
day girls can share in this experience as occasional
boarders or even day boarders.
Compassion
p17
St Margaret’s offers a first rate education for
today, with high academic standards, superb
teaching across all key stages and curriculum
areas and excellent pastoral care. All of this is
built on a tradition stretching back to the school’s
foundation in 1749 to care for the orphaned
children of the clergy, making it one of the oldest
girls’ schools in the country. The main building
was designed for the school by the distinguished
Victorian architect, Alfred Waterhouse, and its
glowing brickwork still takes the breath away.
Newer buildings on our 74 acre site range from
a 1920s listed building for the lower school to a
state of the art sports centre. The Infant and
Preparatory Departments are based in their own
Edwardian premises.
Tucked away behind Bushey on the edge of
Hertfordshire, but within easy reach of London
and major transport routes including airports,
St Margaret’s has been called “a hidden gem”.
We invite you to come and discover it for yourself.
Tradition for the 21st century
GR
AN
GE RD
THE AVENUE
Bushey BusheyHeathWatford
A409 from HarrowA4008 from Pinner
B462 from Adlenham and Radlett
A411 from Elstree, Borehamwood and Barnet
M1 from london
A4140 from Stanmore
M25 Jct 21A from M1
B468 from Oxhey
A411from Watford
M25from Jct 19
JCT 5 M1
A41
B462
A411
M40
M4
M1
A1(M) M11
M25
M26M25
M23M3
M27
M20
M2
A411
Brighton
Gatwick
WatfordSouthend
Canterbury
Ramsgate
Dover
Folkestone
Ashford
Stanstead
Bushey
Cambridge
LutonOxford
Reading
Winchester
Southampton
Portsmouth
Windsor
Heathrow
MERRY HILL ROAD
BUSHEY HIGH STREET
LONDON ROAD
GR
AN
GE RD
THE AVENUE
Bushey BusheyHeathWatford
A409 from HarrowA4008 from Pinner
B462 from Adlenham and Radlett
A411 from Elstree, Borehamwood and Barnet
M1 from london
A4140 from Stanmore
M25 Jct 21A from M1
B468 from Oxhey
A411from Watford
M25from Jct 19
JCT 5 M1
A41
B462
A411
M40
M4
M1
A1(M) M11
M25
M26M25
M23M3
M27
M20
M2
A411
Brighton
Gatwick
WatfordSouthend
Canterbury
Ramsgate
Dover
Folkestone
Ashford
Stanstead
Bushey
Cambridge
LutonOxford
Reading
Winchester
Southampton
Portsmouth
Windsor
Heathrow
MERRY HILL ROAD
BUSHEY HIGH STREET
LONDON ROAD
How to find us...
St Margaret’s School Merry Hill RoadBusheyHertfordshire WD23 1DTUnited Kingdom
Telephone UK. 020 8416 4400Overseas. +44 20 8416 4400
Fax UK. 020 8416 4401Overseas. +44 20 8416 4401
Email [email protected]
stmargaretsbushey.org.uk
By Underground from LondonTake the northbound Jubilee Line to Stanmore
(taxi service available).
By RailEuston to Watford Junction. Gatwick (South Terminal) to Watford
Junction (taxi Service available)
By RoadFrom M25 Motorway (Heathrow Airport)
Exit at Junction 19 (Watford) on to A41 southbound (London).
After 4 miles turn right at roundabout (B462) signposted Watford
(South), Bushey and Oxhey B462. Follow M1 instructions from*.
From M25 Motorway (Gatwick Airport
and Dartford Tunnel)
Exit at Junction 21A (London) southbound.
Join M1 southbound (Junction 6).
From M1 Motorway
Exit at Junction 5. Take A41 southbound signposted Harrow.
Enter dual carriageway with caution; there is no slip road.
Move immediately into right-hand lane. Turn right at first roundabout
(100 yards) signposted Watford (South) and Oxhey B462. *Proceed
across set of traffic lights and ignore mini-roundabout to Sports
Centre. Turn left at first main roundabout signposted Bushey into
The Avenue (sleeping policemen). Turn first right into Grange Road.
At the T-junction turn left and proceed 200 yards. After the pedestrian
crossing turn right into Merry Hill Road. Proceed for about 3/4 mile.
The main school entrance is on the left hand side near the top of
the hill.
From Elstree or Barnet
Proceed on A411 crossing the junction with the A41 and following
signs to Bushey. At the traffic lights (St Peter’s Church) turn right.
Proceed for 200 yards. After the pedestrian crossing turn left into
Merry Hill Road. Proceed for approximately 1/ 2 mile. The main school
entrance is on the right.
From Stanmore
Proceed on A4140 to Bushey. Join A411 in direction of Watford.
Proceed for 200 yards. After the pedestrian crossing turn left into
Merry Hill Road. Proceed for approximately 1/ 2 mile. The main school
entrance is on the right.