In 2013, 2017 and 2022, Ofsted inspectors described Varndean as a 'Good' school. Varndean shares the Surrenden Campus with Balfour Primary School,[1]Dorothy Stringer School, Varndean College[2] and Downs View Link college.
History
Varndean was founded in 1884 in central Brighton as York Place Higher Grade School. An Organised Science School was added in 1894. The name changed to Brighton Municipal Secondary School for Girls in 1905. During World War I, the York Place buildings were taken over for use as an Indian Military Hospital and not returned until 1919.
In 1926, the school moved to a new site on the outskirts of Brighton. It was renamed 'Varndean' School for Girls, after the nearby farm. The new building was opened by the Duchess of Atholl.
During World War II half the school evacuated to Yorkshire.[citation needed]
The School was a Grammar school for girls until the comprehensive movement and the take-over of Brighton by East Sussex County Council saw the educational system reorganised. Between 1975 and 1979, Varndean Grammar School for Girls became Varndean High School, a coeducational comprehensive. The Boys' Grammar School became Varndean Sixth Form College.
The school’s position on Ditchling Road provides far reaching views across Brighton and Hove, and equally the school is visible from much of the City. The original building design from 1926 has been both modified and expanded since to accommodate increased pupil numbers. In the original building, several rooms have been converted into IT suites and extensions made to house new Mathematics rooms, a Music suite and extra PE facilities, such as a Fitness Suite and a Dance Studio. A Sports hall, astro-turf and 3G pitches have also been added.
The Balfour Building, opened in 1993, houses Art and Design Technology. The Friar Building, in use since 2000, accommodates English and Humanities. In 2008, a new expanded Library opened in the Ditchling building, which was refurbished in 2013 as the new Reading Room. Further expansion works within the existing building footprint in 2021-22 brought a second floor to the canteen, new classrooms for Mathematics, Art and Philosophy, and an IT office. The creation of the new Art classroom made way for one of the existing Art rooms in Balfour building to be repurposed as a dedicated clay studio complete with a kiln. Upgrading of the exterior multi-sports surfaces was completed in 2023-24 and regeneration of two classrooms on the Balfour hardcourt took pkace in 2024.
Varndean was the first specialist school in the city, being granted a specialism in Technology in 1998. In 2005 it went on to be designated a high-performing specialist school; in 2006 Varndean obtained its second specialism in Music, followed by a third specialism in Applied Learning in 2007.
Several Pygmy goats were introduced in September 2016 and were cared for by students. The goats were initially being rehomed and intended to control grass, but their therapeutic effects and recreational benefits were recognised.[3][4] In April 2021, the goats were moved to Ferring Country Centre during construction works at the school, but are now there permanently.[5]
In the summer of 2022 several Continental Giant Rabbits were introduced as the school's new therapy animals, followed by a herd of guinea pigs in the autumn.
Headteachers
Below is a list of all the headteachers of the school.[6]
1884–1894 M. Brion
1894–1901 A. North
1901–1909 L. Hilton
1909–1937 E. Ellis
1937–1961 M. Warmington (Varndean School for Girls)
This article's list of alumni may not follow Wikipedia's verifiability policy. Please improve this article by removing names that do not have independent reliable sources showing they merit inclusion in this article AND are alumni, or by incorporating the relevant publications into the body of the article through appropriate citations.(October 2018)
Helena Normanton, the first woman to join an institution of the legal profession, second woman to be called to the Bar of England and Wales, first British married woman to have a passport in the name she was born with. Pupil when school called York Place Higher Grade School.[8]
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