Award-winning Perthshire school sees girls boarding bucking trend and booming

A PERTHSHIRE all-girls school has been crowned *UK Independent School of the Year*…and its Head says this Scottish success shows it’s bucking the trend of girls going to English boarding schools for their education.

“Boarding is booming here,” said Mike Farmer who was speaking for the first time after Kilgraston School beat off competition from twenty-seven other UK independent schools to lift the prestigious accolade.

The fastest-growing girls school in the UK, Kilgraston is in Bridge of Earn, three miles south of Perth. It has some 340 girls from nursery to S6, half of whom are boarders and half are day pupils. It’s a Catholic school and welcomes girls of all faiths. As a member of the International Network of Sacred Heart schools, it attracts boarders from all over the world and currently there are girls from Scotland and England as well as from China, Mexico, Russia, USA, Germany, France, Spain and Nigeria.

“Kilgraston is thriving,” said Mr Farmer, “and our record numbers confirm we are seeing a pleasing revival in girls boarding north of the border. In recent years, the trend has been for parents to place their daughters in more prominent English schools but that trend has been reversed through proactive recruitment and marketing.”

He added: “Scottish boarding schools are every bit as good as their English counterparts and parents no longer see the need to pack their children off down south.”

At the Independent School Awards, Kilgraston was nominated for the Outstanding Strategic Initiative Award in recognition of the changes the school has made to achieve 55% growth in the last five years. It also received the Outstanding Financial Initiative prize for its £2m investment in facilities and the introduction of a number of Sports Academies.

The judges said it was “an example to others schools” while a recent HMI report said the school was “sector-leading”.

Mr Farmer, who came to Kilgraston eight years ago from Oxford’s Headington School, said: “The award is a testament to the hard work of all staff and pupils over the last few years and the transformation of Kilgraston into Scotland’s leading girls boarding school. I believe there are four main reasons for our success.

“The happiness and well-being of girls living away from home is absolutely paramount. We have gone to great lengths to ensure our facilities are home-like and comfortable and we take full account of our pupils’ opinions and wishes.

“We encourage a love of learning; in my view it is, and always should be, cool to be intellectual. We have consistently achieved outstanding academic results, such as a new record for the Lower Sixth in last year’s SQA exams. They achieved 57% A grades (95% A-C) in their Highers while the Upper Sixth achieved 54% A grades (92% A-C) at Advanced Higher. One of our girls, Poppy Deards, gained top marks in the whole of Scotland for Higher Human Biology, coming first out of 4037 candidates who sat the paper.

“We are defined by our Sacred Heart ethos which creates a happy and loving community. In an aggressively secular society, we continue to uphold the strength of Catholic and Christian tradition and values.

“And finally we give our girls horizon-broadening, life-enhancing opportunities – from songwriting and ceramics to rock-climbing, swimming, horse-riding, karate and music. To paraphrase Kipling, at Kilgraston, “lives catch fire”.”

Chairman of the Board of Governors Tim Hall commented: “Mike Farmer has provided firm leadership over the last eight years, blending the strong traditions and pedigree of Kilgraston with a sense of ambition and appetite for change. This is reflected in an energetic and vibrant staff, with a focus on achieving excellence in all activities, not just in the academic arena.

“The girls at Kilgraston grasp the opportunities available to them and remain outstanding ambassadors for the school, both during their time here and in the many avenues pursued once they leave. That sense of independent thinking and gentle confidence is the hallmark of both the school and our girls.”

Kilgraston’s alumnae include celebrity artists Leonie Gibbs and Miranda Moncreiffe. And former pupil Lucy Alexander has become Scotland’s first female professional jumps jockey at the age of 21.

← Back to list