| Sheffield High School | |
| Coordinates: | 53.375°N -1.497°W |
| Established: | 1878 |
| Type: | Private day school |
| Head Label: | Headmistress |
| Head: | N. Gunson |
| Address: | Rutland Park |
| City: | Sheffield |
| County: | South Yorkshire |
| Country: | England |
| Postcode: | S10 2PE |
| Local Authority: | Sheffield |
| Dfeno: | 373/6021 |
| Urn: | 107166 |
| Staff: | 80 full-time & 31 part-time[1] |
| Enrolment: | 1008[2] |
| Lower Age: | 4 |
| Upper Age: | 18 |
| Gender: | Girls |
| Houses: | Grey, Gurney, Shirreff, Stanley |
| Colours: | Navy Blue Jade Green |
| Publication: | High Times |
| Fees: | £9,216 – £12,975 |
| Website: | http://www.sheffieldhighschool.org.uk/ |
Sheffield High School (SHS) is a private girls' day school in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, part of the Girls' Day School Trust (GDST).
In February 1878 a meeting was held at the Cutlers' Hall seeking support for a proposal to set up a girls' school in Sheffield. On 12 March 1878 the school accepted its first 39 pupils in its town-centre premises, the old Surrey Street Music Hall. The first head was Mary Alger and the founders were credited as Lady Stanley of Alderley, Maria Grey, Mary Gurney and Emily Shirreff.[3]
In 1884 the school moved its premises to 10 Rutland Park.
In 1917 the school purchased Moor Lodge to be used as a girls' boarding house.
In 1939 with the onset of war, the school was evacuated to Cliff College, Calver, Derbyshire.
To celebrate the school's 125th Birthday in 2003, the school held a party. A calendar was made with a different photo for each month. Each pupil was given a bone china mug with a cartoon (called 'Girls Through The Ages') of different uniforms worn in the high school. A ceremony was held at the Octagon Centre, Sheffield on 11 March 2003.
In 2007 the school acquired No.4 Melbourne Avenue as a new infant building thus enlarging the Junior building to incorporate a new library. Also in 2007 the science block underwent a total refurbishment of the chemistry, physics and biology laboratories.
In 2006–7 the Art department within Moor Lodge was refurbished and extended; two new art rooms and a new ICT suite were created.
In the summer of 2010 an extension to the Sixth Form Centre was completed, providing additional classrooms and an Independent Learning Centre.[4] [5] Since then the Main reception area has been redesigned and a number of classrooms refurbished including an additional ICT suite.
In 2018, the school merged with Ashdell Preparatory school. The infant school moved to be housed at the former Ashdell site, whilst the Junior school spread over the former Junior and Infant site at Melbourne Avenue. In 2022 the school closed the Ashdell site and moved the Infant School back to Melbourne Avenue.
Also in 2018, headmistress Mrs Dunsford announced her retirement, to be replaced by Nina Gunson.
The school premises are split between three sites; the site on Melbourne Avenue consists of the canteen, school uniform shop, Infant and Junior School, the Sixth Form Centre which is located further up Melbourne Avenue overlooking the astroturf, and the main site at Rutland Park.
The Senior School is on Rutland Park, consisting of the sports hall, 'old gym', School House, Ash Grove, Moor Lodge and Main School. Both sites share the sports facilities and canteen.
The school has around 1,000 pupils aged four to eighteen. As of 2009, the school has examination pass rates of over 99% at A-level, AS level and GCSE.[6]
The school was the winner of Norwich Union's 'Best Independent School for Sport' 2005–2006, and currently has many successful teams[7] in a range of sports. The sports that are offered by the senior school include:[8]
Home matches are held at the school on Saturdays for both hockey and netball, and league matches are regularly played after school during the week.
The Senior school is split into four houses named after the four founding members of the school Maria Grey, Mary Gurney, Emily Shirreff and Lady Stanley of Alderley. Their portraits are displayed on the stairs by the reception.
Numerous events and competitions are organised each year; these include netball, rounders and athletics events, art competitions, Year 7 Mathematics Day and House Charities Week.House captains for the year are appointed by the school's Senior Management Team following consultation with members of staff. Captains for winter and summer sports are also chosen and take a leading role in the annual sports day which is held at Woodburn Road Stadium.[11]
Annual fees at the school in 2019 ranged from £9,216 (for reception to year 2 pupils), to £12,975 (year 7 to year 13. Lunch is also mandatory from reception to year 7, incurring a further charge of £542.50 per year.[12]
Approximately 200 pupils attend years 12 and 13. Girls study for academic AS and A2 levels, including more specialist subjects such as Geology, Latin and Russian. In year 12, girls undergo an enrichment process where they can choose which activities they wish to participate in including:
Sixth form pupils do not wear uniform and, upon signing out, may leave school during the day if they do not have any timetabled lessons - a privilege not granted to younger pupils. A new Kitchen/Diner was created in late 2009 for use by all Sixth Form pupils, to provide basic cooking and dining facilities. Each year has its own common room and a sixth form assembly is held in the hall once every two weeks. This extension was completed in the summer of 2010 and now provides additional teaching classrooms and an 'Independent Learning Centre' with a library and ICT facilities.
Each year girls from the school help to write and publish the magazine, High Times. The magazine is published towards the end of the autumn term each year and features articles about recent school events, interviews with new or departing teachers, photos and art work from the pupils. Volunteers from Years 12 and 13 write and edit the magazine as part of their enrichment programme with assistance from girls in younger years 7 through 10.
An annual awards ceremony is held at the Octagon Centre to celebrate the school's achievements.[18] Awards are given for a range of sporting and academic achievements such as 'Loyalty to School Sport' and the 'Mrs Ames' Spoken English Prize'.[19] [20] Each year a speech is given by an external speaker, the Headmistress, the Chairman of Governors and a 'Vote of Thanks' is given by the incoming Head Girl.