Northampton High School GDST

A girl can join Northampton High School at two and leave at eighteen without ever changing schools, moving from a Forest School with a mud kitchen to A-levels in Latin and Further Mathematics on the same Hardingstone campus. This is a selective girls' independent for ages 2 to 18, part of the Girls' Day School Trust (GDST), with a whole-school roll of around 480 across nursery, junior and senior phases. Dr May Lee has led the school since July 2022. At its most recent ISI inspection, in February 2024, every Independent School Standard was found met. At GCSE the school ranks first in Northampton and sits in the top 8.5% of schools in England for results; its sixth form is similarly the strongest locally. It is a day school, with an extensive bus network reaching well beyond the town.

Single-sex education is the organising idea here, not an afterthought. As a GDST school, Northampton High belongs to one of the longest-established families of girls' schools in England, and the girls-only setting runs unbroken from the youngest nursery children up to Year 13. The stated ethos is captured in a single word, "Undivided", which the school describes as an inclusive environment built around a sense of authentic belonging. In practice that shows up in whole-school focus days celebrating the school's multi-ethnic diversity, and in a culture where pupils say they feel genuinely included.

The school's roots run deep. It opened on 2 May 1878 when Miss Pearson took in the first 20 pupils at 83 Abington Street, in the centre of Northampton. It became The Clevedon School the following year, joined the Church Schools Company in 1887, and moved through a succession of town-centre homes, among them Castilian House and 44 Derngate, before acquiring Towerfield for its junior department in 1941 and Springhill in 1947. The Cyril Thomas Cripps Hall, adding an assembly hall, gymnasium and library, followed in 1957, and the school became fully independent in 1976. Today it occupies a single, spacious campus at Hardingstone on the southern edge of the town, which is what makes the seamless two-to-eighteen journey possible.

The tone across the two constituent schools is coherent rather than fragmented. Leadership is effective across the junior and senior teams, and pupils are actively engaged and well supported as they move up. Behaviour is calm. Girls conduct themselves well both in lessons and informally, and an anti-bullying policy is applied consistently, with pupils reporting that sanctions feel fair and reasonable.

Underpinning daily life is the school's Learn-Reach-Coach model, a framework that pushes collaboration, curiosity, perseverance, independence and a willingness to take intellectual risks. It is not marketing shorthand. The Coach programme gives each girl individualised pastoral attention, and a friendly school dog on duty in the pastoral hub is part of how the school signals that wellbeing sits alongside achievement. Dr Lee has kept that balance central since arriving in 2022, and pupils value that their views count: the school makes demonstrable changes in response to their suggestions.

The senior school delivers results that place it clearly among the stronger schools in England. At GCSE, 42% of grades were awarded at 8 or 9, and 60% reached grade 7 or above, a profile that would be competitive in any selective setting. That distribution matters for what follows, because it feeds a sixth form pitched at demanding university courses.

In a dedicated figure, the school ranks 330th of 3,895 in England for GCSE results, placing it in the top 8.5% (ranked against all schools in England with published secondary results, state and independent). This is a proprietary FindMySchool ranking built from official data. On the blended overall measure, which combines results with the FindMySchool inspection score, it sits 276th of 3,887. Locally there is no contest: it is the top-ranked school in Northampton for GCSE outcomes.

The sixth form maintains that standing. At A-level, 16.2% of entries were graded A*, four in ten reached A or A* (40.1%), and just over seven in ten (72.5%) achieved A* to B. Both figures sit well clear of the England averages of 23.6% at A* to A and 47.2% at A* to B, so the school roughly doubles the typical share of top grades. For A-level results it ranks 344th of 2,562 in England, in the top 13.4% (ranked against all schools in England with published A-level results, state and independent). On the overall measure it places 298th of 2,561, and once again first in Northampton. These are proprietary FindMySchool rankings built from official data.

The Extended Project Qualification is a particular strength at sixth form. The 2025 cohort achieved marks at the highest levels across the board, which is exactly the independent-research habit that helps girls stand out in applications to research-heavy degrees.

The curriculum is broad and deliberately balanced. It is challenging and well matched to individual needs, and pupils make good progress and achieve well in both examinations and internal assessments. Practically-based subjects draw enthusiastic participation, with corridor displays reflecting genuine pupil talent and pupil-led groups shaping how work is presented around the school.

Support for girls who learn differently is handled through the Learning Enhancement team. Pupils with special educational needs and disabilities are given targeted learning enhancement profiles, and a single Learning Enhancement Coordinator works across both the junior and senior schools so that provision carries through as girls move up rather than resetting at each transition. SEND pupils make good progress with well-targeted individual help, which is the kind of continuity an all-through structure is well placed to provide.

Class sizes are small, a natural consequence of a whole-school roll near 480 on a site built for many more, and teaching leans on that intimacy rather than working against it. Girls are known individually by the staff who teach them, and the coherence between junior and senior teaching means a girl's academic trajectory is tracked by people who have often known her for years. Prep in the junior school is deliberately shaped to prepare girls for the pace of the senior years, so the step up to Year 7 is one of expectation rather than of an unfamiliar environment. That single-institution continuity is one of the quiet advantages of an all-through school, and it shows in how settled the older girls are.

Progression inside the school is smooth but not unconditional. Girls move up from the junior school into Year 7 within the same institution, and the senior years feed a sixth form that most stay on for, provided they meet the academic bar. That threshold is a minimum of six GCSEs at grades 7 to 9, including at least a grade 6 in English and Mathematics, so sixth-form places reward the results the school is built to produce rather than being automatic. The senior school also recruits externally at the main entry points, so the sixth form is not composed solely of continuing pupils.

At the end of Year 13, university is the overwhelming route. In the 2023 to 2024 leaving cohort of 50, 82% progressed to university, with a further slice moving into employment and a small number into further education. The published destinations span demanding courses at Oxford, Imperial College London, King's College London, Durham, Bristol, Nottingham, Birmingham and Bath. Medicine features most years, with recent cohorts sending students on to medical school. Oxbridge places arrive in ones and twos rather than in a stream, which is consistent with a small sixth form: from a handful of applications, offers come through and are taken up, most recently at Cambridge.

The 23 A-level subjects on offer give leavers unusually wide scope to build a coherent application. Alongside the sciences and humanities sit Latin, Classical Civilisation, Further Mathematics, Computer Science, Economics, and Fashion and Textiles, and an Electives programme covering Politics, International Relations and Film lets students read around their chosen fields before they specialise at university. For girls aiming at competitive courses, that breadth plus the EPQ is a deliberate part of the preparation.

Entry is by registration and assessment rather than catchment, so distance from the school carries no weight and there is no geographic priority to navigate. Families register for a specific entry point, and the assessment scales with age.

The main gateways are Reception, which involves no formal assessment, and taster days for girls joining in Years 1 to 4. From Years 5 and 6, applicants sit computer-based assessments in English, Mathematics and Reasoning lasting around an hour. The principal senior entry points, Years 7 and 9, use online assessments covering English, Mathematics, Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning, Comprehension and Puzzles. Sixth-form entry, as above, is pegged to GCSE performance, with the Reach, Flair and Spirit scholarships offered for entry into Year 12 and above.

A registration fee of £120 applies at all entry points, and a deposit of £500 secures a place once one is offered. Because the school is single-sex throughout, admission is for girls only across every phase, including the nursery, which takes children from age two and feeds directly into Reception within the same setting. Open events run through the year rather than on a single fixed date, so families should contact the school for current timings rather than relying on past listings. The FindMySchool map and saved-schools shortlist can help weigh Northampton High against other Northamptonshire options side by side while visits are planned.

Pastoral provision is one of the school's most developed features and a clear reason parents choose it. The Coach programme sits at the centre, giving every girl a consistent point of individualised support, and leaders monitor mental health and emotional wellbeing closely. Wellbeing hubs give pupils easy and discreet access to help, and the resident school dog stationed in the pastoral hub is there specifically to offer comfort. Professional support is on hand too, with first aiders, counsellors and psychotherapists available when a girl needs more than day-to-day care.

Older girls mentor younger ones through the Big Sister Little Sister programme, which brings sixth formers into junior classrooms to help with reading, art or simply conversation, reinforcing the all-through sense that this is one community rather than three. The Umbrella Project raises awareness of neurodiversity across the school, and FemSoc gives girls a forum that incorporates LGBTQ+ voices. Together these are the fabric of a school that treats belonging, its stated ethos, as something to be built rather than simply assumed.

Inspectors judged safeguarding effective, describing a thorough and comprehensive policy that is well implemented, with pupils properly supervised and with governors and senior managers undertaking regular safer-recruitment training backed by comprehensive audits. A local advisory board keeps oversight of safeguarding incidents, so accountability does not rest on a single point.

Sport is serious and well resourced. Hockey, netball and cricket are the core team sports, with A to D teams regularly fielded across age groups and fixtures reaching local, regional and national level. The facilities support that ambition: a 25-metre, six-lane indoor heated swimming pool, a sports hall marked for badminton, basketball, netball and tennis, a full-sized floodlit all-weather pitch line-marked for hockey, and a fitness suite with cardio and strength equipment. Swimming has a strong following, and a partnership with a local pony club has pushed equestrian sport forward, with up to 20 girls competing regularly. Athletics, gymnastics, tag rugby, volleyball, handball, rounders, tennis and badminton widen the offer, and yoga and pilates give a gentler alternative for girls who want to stay active without competing. The Duke of Edinburgh's Award runs from Bronze in Year 10 through Silver and Gold.

Music runs deep. Girls can play in the Orchestra, sing in the Senior Choir or the Ladies' Chamber Choir, and join specialist ensembles including a Flute Choir, a Wind Quintet and a String Quartet, with a Jazz and Pop Club for those drawn to a different repertoire. The performance infrastructure is substantial for a school of this size: a 550-seat main theatre and hall, a smaller Junior Hall for younger performers, a Wake Wing studio for flexible staging, and a dedicated Ballet Studio with sprung wood flooring and a mirrored wall.

Drama has its own footing alongside the music. LAMDA acting classes give girls a recognised route into performance technique, and a Drama Club, a Senior Drama Company and a Performing Arts Club stage work across the main theatre and a well-used black box studio, so productions range from full-scale shows to intimate studio pieces.

The co-curricular reach extends well past the arts and the pitch. A coding club teaches girls to build real programs in Python and web apps in HTML, CSS and JavaScript. The Zombie Club approaches biology from an unexpected angle, an Eco Club channels environmental interest, and Debating sharpens argument for the girls likely to need it at interview. Residential experiences add to the mix, from netball weekends at Condover Hall to the school's wider enrichment programme, so the calendar beyond lessons is genuinely full.

Fees for 2026/27 are charged per term. Senior tuition, covering Years 7 to 13, is £7,080 a term, roughly £21,240 across the year before extras, with a termly lunch charge of £336. Junior fees scale down by age: Reception is £4,935 a term, Years 1 and 2 are £5,149, and Years 3 to 6 are £5,582, each with a modest lunch charge. Nursery and pre-school fees are also charged; for those, and for the funded early-years hours that eligible families can claim, see the school website and government funding guidance.

Financial support is a genuine feature rather than a token. Through the GDST, means-tested bursaries of up to 100% of fees are available, which can open the school to families who could not otherwise consider it. Merit awards come through the Reach, Flair and Spirit scholarships for entry into Year 12 and above, recognising academic and wider talent. The distinction is worth keeping clear: bursaries turn on family income, scholarships on demonstrated ability, and the two can in principle be combined for a girl who qualifies on both counts.

The school runs as a full day school with no boarding provision. It does not publish standard daily start and finish times prominently, so families should confirm hours and any wraparound or holiday care directly with the school, particularly for the nursery and junior phases where working parents will want the detail.

The early-years setting is a draw in its own right. Children join from age two and progress into Reception without changing schools, and a Forest School gives them a genuine outdoor classroom with a mud kitchen, a fire area and an enclosed pond, set away from the main building. That outdoor, exploratory start sits naturally with the school's emphasis on curiosity and independence.

Transport is a real strength for a school drawing from across the county and beyond. A dedicated coach network run with Vectare reaches Kettering, Wellingborough, Brackley, Buckingham, Towcester, Milton Keynes, Olney, Rushden, Wicken, Woburn Sands and Northampton itself, with well over 190 stops. For many families outside the immediate area, those routes are what make a Hardingstone school practical on a daily basis.

Careers guidance in the middle years is still developing. Careers education for Years 7 to 10 is narrower and less coherent than elsewhere in the school, and it is a current focus for leaders. Families of younger girls should ask how that provision has progressed since the February 2024 inspection flagged it.

Fees are a substantial commitment. Senior fees of around £21,240 a year before extras put the school beyond many budgets, and lunch and other costs sit on top. The GDST bursary scheme, worth up to 100%, is the route worth exploring for families who need it, but places are finite and demand is real.

Single-sex throughout suits some girls and not others. Education here is girls-only from age two to eighteen. That is a deliberate strength for many families and the wrong fit for those who want a co-educational environment, so it is worth deciding early rather than late.

The sixth form is small. A whole-school roll near 480 means A-level cohorts and Oxbridge numbers are modest in absolute terms. That brings small classes and close attention, but a narrower peer group and subject pool than a large sixth form can offer.

Northampton High School GDST is the strongest school in Northampton at both GCSE and A-level, and comfortably among the better girls' independents in England, with results in the top 8.5% at GCSE and a sixth form built for research-focused university routes. Its real distinction, though, is the join between serious academics and unusually developed pastoral care: the Coach programme, the wellbeing hubs, the school dog and the Big Sister Little Sister mentoring add up to a school that knows its girls individually. Backed by GDST bursaries of up to 100% and a county-wide coach network, it is best suited to academically able girls, from age two upward, whose families want a single-sex, all-through education with genuine breadth in sport, music and drama, and who value pastoral depth as much as league-table standing. The main caveats are cost, the small scale of the sixth form, and careers guidance in the middle years that the school itself is still building out.