St Helen and St Katharine

Last updated

St Helen & St Katharine
Location
St Helen and St Katharine
Faringdon Road

Abingdon
,
Oxfordshire
,
OX14 1BE

England
Information
Type Private day school
Religious affiliation Church of England
Established1903
1938 (current school)
Local authorityOxfordshire
Department for Education URN 123313 Tables
HeadmistressSarah Rollings
GenderGirls
Age9to 18
Enrolment700
ColoursMaroon, Pink & Navy
Website shsk.org.uk
St Helen and St Katharine.jpg

St. Helen and St. Katharine is a private girls' day school in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, the United Kingdom.

Contents

History

St. Helen's School, Abingdon was founded in 1903 by the Community of St Mary the Virgin to provide a Christian education for girls. In 1938, St Helen's merged with Wantage-based St. Katharine's School, which had been founded in 1894. [1] The merged schools became St. Helen & St. Katharine, in Abingdon. [2]

The present school

St. Helen and St. Katharine is an independent day school for girls on the outskirts of Abingdon. 720 pupils, aged 9 to 18, study on a campus of Edwardian and modern buildings, set in 22 acres. [3] [ better source needed ]

Buildings

The original school building dates from 1906, and there were building programmes in the late 20th and early 21st century.[ citation needed ] In 2023, the school opened a sixth form centre, the Benedict Building, with nine classrooms, a higher education Library, independent and group study spaces, a lecture hall and café. [4]

Curriculum

The curriculum includes Art and Ceramics, Biology, A level Business, Chemistry, Classics, Computer Science, Drama, Design and Technology, A level Economics, English, Food and Nutrition, French, Geography, German, History, Learning skills, Learning support, Mandarin, Mathematics, Music, Outdoor Learning, Physics, Physical Education, A level Politics, A level Psychology, RPE (Religion, Philosophy and Ethics), and Spanish. [5]

Together with Abingdon School, students in year 10 studying German can participate in an exchange program with the Ratsgymnasium Bielefeld in the German city of Bielefeld. [6] [7] [8]

The school has a chapel, built in 1922, in which a weekly Eucharist is offered to staff and pupils. [9]

Sport

St Helen and St Katherine has been in the Top 200 Sport Schools rankings since 2016 [10] and was ranked the top girls school for sport in Oxfordshire and fourth in the UK by School Sport Magazine 2024. [11] Over 50 students at the school are involved in county, regional or national teams for their respective sports. [12] In addition to this the Director of PE and sport, Charlotte Barras, is a previous English rugby union player.

The Sports Centre, which was built in 2016, includes two sports halls, a dance studio, a fitness suite, an ergo room and a spin room. These facilities are used for sports such as indoor hockey, netball, badminton, cricket, basketball, fencing, trampolining, dance and gymnastics. All girls also take part in fitness and conditioning. Outdoor facilities include three lacrosse pitches, six netball and tennis courts, sports fields and a sports pavilion, located at Church Farm. [13] Other sports include athletics, cross country and swimming.

Awards and recognition

St Helen and St Katherine won the Independent Girls School of the year award 2025. [14] They have also been ranked the top independent girls school in Oxfordshire and fifth in the South East by The Times Parent Power in 2025, 2024, 2023 and 2022. [15]

Alumnae

References

  1. ↑ "Girls school pushes back to town rival's co-ed move". This is Oxfordshire. 16 May 2024. Retrieved 26 November 2025.
  2. ↑ "St Helen and St Katharine". Independent Schools Council. Retrieved 21 November 2025.
  3. ↑ "St Helen & St Katharine, Abingdon - Bucks & Oxon | Muddy Stilettos". St Helen & St Katharine, Abingdon - Bucks & Oxon | Muddy Stilettos. Retrieved 9 October 2025.
  4. ↑ "New sixth form centre opens at St Helen and St Katharine school". Oxford Mail. 26 January 2023. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
  5. ↑ "Our curriculum | St Helen and St Katharine". St Helen and St Katharine. Archived from the original on 24 June 2025. Retrieved 28 November 2025.
  6. ↑ "Abingdon 2009: The School of St Helen und St Katherine – Ratsgymnasium Bielefeld". ratsgymnasium-bielefeld.de. Retrieved 25 January 2025.
  7. ↑ "German | St Helen and St Katharine". St Helen and St Katharine. Archived from the original on 19 July 2025. Retrieved 30 November 2025.
  8. ↑ "Berichte (Englisch) – Ratsgymnasium Bielefeld". ratsgymnasium-bielefeld.de. Retrieved 30 November 2025.
  9. ↑ SHSK. "Chapel - St Helen and St Katharine". shsk.org.uk. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  10. ↑ "Top 200 sports schools Archives - School Sport Magazine". School Sport Magazine. Archived from the original on 13 December 2024. Retrieved 25 November 2025.
  11. ↑ "Private girls' school picks up national award". Oxford Mail. 16 October 2025. Retrieved 28 November 2025.
  12. ↑ "St Helen & St Katharine, Abingdon - Bucks & Oxon | Muddy Stilettos". St Helen & St Katharine, Abingdon - Bucks & Oxon | Muddy Stilettos. Retrieved 25 November 2025.
  13. ↑ "Sport | St Helen and St Katharine". St Helen and St Katharine. Archived from the original on 25 April 2025. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
  14. ↑ "Winners 2025 | Independent Schools of the Year" . Retrieved 25 November 2025.
  15. ↑ "Private girls' school picks up national award". Oxford Mail. 16 October 2025. Retrieved 25 November 2025.
  16. ↑ "High Court Judges 2018". Judicial Appointments Commission. 21 September 2020. Archived from the original on 21 September 2020. Retrieved 26 November 2025.

Further reading

51°40′35″N1°17′49″W / 51.67639°N 1.29694°W / 51.67639; -1.29694

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.