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Our view
As this historic all-girls’ boarding prep heads towards its 125th anniversary year, it’s clearly lost none of the magic that has made it so successful since the turn of the last century. And while it might not have changed much on the outside over the years (it’s not hard to believe the rumour that it was Enid Blyton’s inspiration for Malory Towers), Godstowe’s inner workings are bang up-to-date, with confident, happy and successful girls energetically embracing everything each new day at school has to offer.
Where?
Founded in 1900 (the school lays claim to being the first British prep school for girls), Godstowe sits on a hill overlooking High Wycombe in a 12-acre site. The main building is covered with Virginia creeper, with a bright and airy atrium decorated in the school’s red and grey colours housing the main reception. A superb sports hall has a large viewing balcony, there’s a theatre and music recital room with excellent acoustics, and a 25-metre indoor swimming pool which was opened by former Olympic swimmer Rebecca Adlington in 2019. Also in the grounds are the nursery and pre-prep, known as the Lodge. The school has four local bus routes, as well as a daily service from Hammersmith.
Head
The very upbeat Kate Bailey had a girls’ independent school education herself and takes an all-in attitude to the headship, which she took up in September 2022. It’s hard to know when she sleeps, what with dining with boarders on Mondays and Thursdays, joining them for weekend activities, running boarding councils for the girls and attending as many sports fixtures as possible (‘It’s when I have the best quality parent conversations,’ she says). Passionate and energetic, she exudes positivity and talks excitedly about the Big Anniversary to mark 125 years of Godstowe. The year-long celebration will include a huge musical gala, a specially commissioned film including an interview with the oldest living alumni, and a Glastonbury-style Godstowe Rocks festival open to the whole community.
Over the last three years, as well as making a big push on STEAM, she’s also been busy forming partnerships with other schools. A local state primary makes use of the swimming pool and Godstowe teams up with local boys’ prep schools for everything from socials with Caldicott and Summer Fields, maths Olympiads at The Beacon and history days at Davenies Prep School. The girls have even started playing fixtures against boys and there are plans for joint ski trips in the future.
Admissions
The school is proud to be non-selective. The main entry points are at nursery, Reception, and Years 3, 5 and 7. New joiners in other years come for an informal assessment, which is mainly for organising which sets they will join. There are around 400 girls. The school is pushing for pupils to stay on for Years 7 and 8; Miss Bailey believes the last two years are critical in the girls' development.
Academics and senior school destinations
There is a very positive, caring academic environment at the school. Teachers are, says the head, ‘steps ahead, partnering, innovating and knowing their girls and families really well. Assiduous tracking means interventions are prompt, with teachers quick to pick up the phone to parents. It’s evident that every pupil is celebrated for achieving her best. On our visit we saw lively – and well-mannered – girls eagerly engaging in learning, interacting easily with each other.
Classrooms are large and airy, as well as incredibly tidy, with colourful wall displays. There are purpose-built labs for each of the sciences. The girls also do robotics and coding, and team up with Stowe and Haileybury for collaborative science projects. The school has gained a good reputation among senior schools for the excellent grounding in science that pupils get. From Year 5, there are specialist teachers in each subject. Girls are set for English and maths from Year 5 and everything else from Year 6. In Year 6, they can add Spanish or Latin as a second language to French. In Year 7, they spend a week at Downe House’s Sauveterre chateau near Toulouse. This immersive experience makes a real difference to their confidence in spoken French, the head tells us.
In Years 7 and 8, pupils follow the Common Entrance in all subjects, as well as relevant scholarship syllabus requirements. They do a careers module too, with parents coming in to talk about their professions – this year Gabby Logan spoke about her career in television. Pupils also complete the DofE-style Dove Diploma, learning life skills, doing charity work and getting involved in Young Enterprise.
Girls go onto senior schools including Wellington, Marlborough and Rugby, as well as all-girls’ boarding schools such as Downe House, Cheltenham Ladies’ College and Wycombe Abbey, though co-ed is becoming increasingly popular.
Co-curricular
A new director of sport has brought in a more inclusive approach to ensure everyone benefits from the sense of belonging that playing in a team engenders. The school is renowned for its prowess at lacrosse, gymnastics and netball, and has recently been making a name for itself in hockey too. Dance is also hugely popular and there is a senior dance academy for girls shooting for senior school dance scholarships. The school makes a good showing in swimming too. From Reception onwards, the girls have weekly swimming lessons and there are swim squads and development squads before and after school. The pool is open to boarders on weekends.
The school is very musical with more than 80 per cent of the pupils learning an instrument – plenty are on offer, from fiddle and flute to harp and euphonium. Miss Bailey believes music helps build confidence and resilience and there is always an opportunity for the girls to perform, in choirs, recitals, orchestras (juniors now have their own symphony orchestra) and concerts.
Art is also brilliantly strong, with a spacious studio – complete with pottery wheels and kiln – that inspires the girls, whose artwork is of an extremely high standard. It’s not surprising that many leave with an art scholarship. Every May, all the pupils take part in an annual art exhibition and fashion show. Clubs are plentiful; 100 no less, including LAMDA, riding, filmmaking and knitting.
Boarding
There are currently 75 full boarders, with 100 boarding a week when the flexi boarders are totted up. Around a third are international, mainly from Spain, China, Nigeria and Turkey. The three boarding houses are divided by year groups – Highlands for Years 3 to 5, and Walker and Turner for Years 6 to 8. Individual needs are catered for – say, if a child needs to sleep with a light on or in complete darkness. The girls muck in changing their own bedding and helping with the laundry. Mobile phones aren’t allowed in the boarding houses or on site at all. Day pupils who use them to commute hand them in when they arrive. In the boarding houses, old-fashioned communal phones are available to call home.
School community
There is a dedicated ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Assistant) at the school, and lots of dogs, which the girls love. The pupils also have a strong voice; they recently had a brainstorming session about core values, identifying kindness, respect, integrity and balance as paramount. Knowing they are listened to clearly imbues the girls with self-belief and they truly embody the school’s motto: Confident, Happy, Successful.
And finally....
This is a school where girls can shine – in the classroom, on the sports field, on the stage or in the art studio. Academics are important, yes, but more than that, girls are given free rein to discover their own creativity. A happy place with grounded, thriving pupils.