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Private school goes co-ed

Posted on 26th June 2008

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An independent school is ditching its all-girls status to become co-educational.

The Catholic Our Lady's Abingdon in Oxfordshire has been single sex for almost 150 years, since it opened in 1860, reports the Oxford Mail.

But from next year, boys will be welcomed into the school, with the aim of making it entirely mixed by 2013.

"We will be the first school in Abingdon to offer families the choice of independent secondary co-education. We know many families will be delighted," chairman of governors Patrick Tobin told the paper.

Headmistress Lynne Renwick added that the move is "very exciting", noting: "Brothers and sisters can be educated together, strengthening the family feel of our school. The wheel has gone full circle."

Last year, 96 per cent of the 69 pupils taking GCSE exams at the school achieved five A* - C grades including English and maths, a figure that is over 50 per cent higher than the national average. ADNFCR-921-ID-18656948-ADNFCR