Yuying Secondary was founded by the Hainanese Community in 1910 as a Chinese medium high school. At that time, it was located at Prinsep Street and named Yock Eng High School.
The school began with an enrollment of 15 pupils. However, it soon outgrew her premises as enrollment continued to climb. In 1939, the School Management Board initiated a campaign to raise funds for new premises. In 1941, the school moved to a new campus at 65 Tanjong Katong Road.
The school programme was disrupted by the outbreak of World War II. During the War, the school premises were occupied by the Japanese armed forces. The school reopened her doors to pupils in July 1946 with an enrolment of 600. The post-war years were a period of rapid growth for the school in terms of enrollment and recognition. In 1958, enrollment stood at a peak of 2400 pupils.
During the 1960s and 70s, there was a shift towards English medium education vis a vis Chinese medium education. Thus, the school admitted its first batch of English stream pupils in 1981. In 1988, the last batch of Chinese stream pupils graduated.
On 9 December 1985, the school was relocated to her present premises at 47 Hougang Avenue 1. The school was renamed Yuying Secondary School and was officially opened on 13 August 1987.
Today, Yuying continues as a Government-Aided secondary school. It is a single session school with an enrollment of 989 pupils and 51 teachers. The School Management Committee and School Alumni Association (founded in 1994) continue to actively support the school programme. It is with their support that the school has been able to upgrade its facilities, notably the addition of several special rooms such as the PE, ECA and EOA Rooms in 1996 and the air conditioning of the school hall in 1998.
The school also serves the surrounding Hougang community as a CDAC Tuition Centre in the evenings and on Saturdays. Several teachers are serving in this centre.
As the school looks toward the future, it will continue to strive to meet the needs of its pupils and to foster close ties with its alumni and the community. The formation of the M.P.T.A. on 28 August 1998 and the school's active collaboration with grassroots leaders in its Community Involvement Programme (CIP), the Love Hougang Movement, are good examples of this commitment.