Presdales School
Encyclopedia
Presdales School is a secondary school for girls located in Ware, Hertfordshire in the East of England
.
It has been awarded specialist college status three times by the Secretary of State for Education and Skills
, namely as: a Language College
, since 1995; an English and Music College, since 2003; and most recently as a Mathematics & Computing College, since 2009.
The elaborate, hand-carved wooden furniture in the Reading Room at Presdales House until the late 1990s, was made by children from the former Barnardo's
home at Goldings in Hertford
.
and Richard Hale School
.
Maxine Barker- former head girl, solicitor.
East of England
The East of England is one of the nine official regions of England. It was created in 1994 and was adopted for statistics from 1999. It includes the ceremonial counties of Essex, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk and Suffolk. Essex has the highest population in the region.Its...
.
Admissions
The sixth form centre at Presdales House is co-educational. The current headmistress is Mrs J Robinson, who has held the post since 1988.History
It was founded as Ware Grammar School for girls in 1906 at nearby Amwell House, and moved to its present site of Presdales House in 1964. It became a comprehensive in 1975.It has been awarded specialist college status three times by the Secretary of State for Education and Skills
Secretary of State for Education and Skills
The Secretary of State for Education is the chief minister of the Department for Education in the United Kingdom government. The position was re-established on 12 May 2010, held by Michael Gove....
, namely as: a Language College
Language College
Language Colleges were introduced in 1995 as part of the Specialist Schools Programme in the United Kingdom. The system enables secondary schools to specialise in certain fields, in this case, modern foreign languages...
, since 1995; an English and Music College, since 2003; and most recently as a Mathematics & Computing College, since 2009.
The elaborate, hand-carved wooden furniture in the Reading Room at Presdales House until the late 1990s, was made by children from the former Barnardo's
Barnardo's
Barnardo's is a British charity founded by Thomas John Barnardo in 1866, to care for vulnerable children and young people. As of 2010, it spends over £190 million each year on more than 400 local services aimed at helping these same groups...
home at Goldings in Hertford
Hertford
Hertford is the county town of Hertfordshire, England, and is also a civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district of the county. Forming a civil parish, the 2001 census put the population of Hertford at about 24,180. Recent estimates are that it is now around 28,000...
.
Academic performance
It's GCSE results are usually very pleasing, some of the best in Hertfordshire. At A level, results are still high, however not as good as neighbouring schools such as The Chauncy SchoolThe Chauncy School
The Chauncy School is a secondary school located in Ware, Hertfordshire in the East of England. It is the only mixed secondary school in Ware. The current headmaster is Dennis O'Sullivan. The school pride themselves on accepting students of any ability...
and Richard Hale School
Richard Hale School
Richard Hale School is a boys' school located in Hertford, Hertfordshire, in the south east of England. In the 2007 – 2008 academic year the school had over 1,000 pupils, including students attending the optional sixth form, which is also open to girls....
.
Language Specialism
Presdales specialises in languages. It teaches French, German, Russian, Italian, Spanish, Japanese, Czech, Dutch and Latin.Notable Alumnae/Alumni
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- Nicola Fibbens - Olympic Swimmer, Los Angeles 1984
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- Singer/Songwriter, Best Female Artist, BRIT Awards 1983; Landscape Gardener, Gold Medal award, RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2003
Maxine Barker- former head girl, solicitor.
Ware Grammar School for Girls
- Baroness Tessa Blackstone of Stoke Newington - Life Peer (Labour), House of Lords
- Ann Dummett (nee Chesney), Director from 1984-7 of the Runnymede TrustRunnymede TrustThe Runnymede Trust is a leading pro-multiculturalism think tank., Its aim is to generate intelligence for a "multi-ethnic" Britain through research, network building and policy engagement...
, and wife of Sir Michael DummettMichael DummettSir Michael Anthony Eardley Dummett FBA D.Litt is a British philosopher. He was, until 1992, Wykeham Professor of Logic at the University of Oxford... - Fiona Harrison, Chief Executive of Liberty & Co.