Bradford Girls' Grammar School

Bradford Girls' Grammar School (BGGS)

Motto	Aspire. Succeed. Lead
Established	1875
Type	Free school
Principal	Mrs K.T.M Matthews
Location	Squire Lane Bradford West Yorkshire BD9 6RB England 53°48′14″N 1°47′47″W / 53.8038°N 1.7965°W / 53.8038; -1.7965Coordinates: 53°48′14″N 1°47′47″W / 53.8038°N 1.7965°W / 53.8038; -1.7965
DfE number	380/6102
DfE URN	140204 Tables
Ofsted	Reports
Gender	Girls and boys 5-11 yrs, Girls only 11-18 yrs
Ages	5–18
Houses	Castle, Nightingale, Tomlinson and Bronte
Colours	Navy, Black, Yellow
Publication	The Leader (termly)
Website	www.bggs.com

Bradford Girls' Grammar School is a free school for girls aged 5 – 18 and boys aged 5 – 11. Founded in 1875, the school is on the outskirts of Bradford city centre in West Yorkshire, England. Recent public examination results put the school top in Bradford and among the top three in Yorkshire. Bradford Girls has a debating society, which Barbara Castle went to when at the school.

Previously an independent school, it became a free school in 2013, and no longer charges for admission.^[1]

An outline history of the school, with photographs, is available on the BGGS website.^[2] For many years, the school publication was known as The Chronicle. The school celebrated its centenary in 1975.

Head teachers

Miss Porter, Headmistress from 1875; Miss Stocker; Miss Roberts, 1894-1927; Miss Hooke, 1927–1955; Miss M.M. Black, 1955-1975; Miss R.M. Gleave, 1975-1986; Mrs L. Warrington, 1986-2009; Mrs K. Matthews, 2009-.^[3]

Notable former pupils

• Juliet Barker, British historian.
• Linda Barker, English interior designer and television presenter.
• Betty Beaty, writer (pen-names: Karen Campbell and Catherine Ross).^[4]
• Marion Bidder, British physiologist.
• Linda Campbell, OBE, Chief executive, United Kingdom Accreditation Service.^[5]
• Barbara Castle, Baroness Castle of Blackburn (1910-2002), British Labour Party politician.
• Ann Clark, President at KEHS.^[6]
• Katy Deacon, Young Woman Engineer of the Year 2007.^[7]
• Thangam Debbonaire, British Labour Party politician.
• Elizabeth Denby (1894–1965), English social housing expert and consultant.
• Eleanor Duncan MBE, community healthwork in Afghanistan.^[8]
• Patricia Eve, Owner, Seafarer Books.^[9]
• Ruby Ferguson (1899–1966), née Rubie Constance Ashby, writer of popular fiction, including children's books.
• Isabel Hilton, journalist.^[10]
• Carole Howorth, Dean of University of Bradford Faculty of Management and Law.^[11]
• Melanie Kilburn, English actress.
• Natalia Kills, English singer-songwriter.
• Jo Laycock, OBE, physiotherapist.^[12]
• Jill McGivering, journalist and novelist.^[13]
• Lizzie Mickery, British writer and former actress.
• Maureen O'Connor, journalist and crime-fiction writer (pen-name Patricia Hall).^[14]
• Louisa Frances Pesel (1870-1947), embroiderer.
• Anita Rani, English radio and television presenter, and journalist.
• Mary Tamm, Actress.
• Nancy Trenaman (1919-2002), university administrator and civil servant.^[15]
• Alberta Vickridge (1890-1963), poet and printer.^[16]
• Pippa Wells, Physicist at CERN.^[17]
• Jill Wren, Lecturer in Agricultural Biology, University of Leeds.^[18]

References

External links

• Bradford Girls' Grammar School web site