Mill Hill School is a 13–18 co-educational private, day and boarding school in Mill Hill, London, England that was established in 1807. It is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference.
Contents
History
A committee of Nonconformist merchants and ministers, including John Pye-Smith founded the school, originally called Mill Hill Grammar School, for boys on 25 January 1807. They located it sufficiently distant of London at that time, because of "dangers both physical and moral awaiting youth while passing through the streets of a large, crowded and corrupt city". A boarding house was opened in the residence once occupied by Peter Collinson, with about 20 boys. John Atkinson was the first headmaster and chaplain until 1810.
Mill Hill School occupies a 120-acre (49 ha) site, part of which formed the gardens of Ridgeway House, the house of the botanist Peter Collinson. He was one of the most important importers of rare and exotic plants into English gardens. Many of the species that he introduced to Mill Hill in the 18th century continue to grow today in the grounds of the School. In 1746 Collinson planted Britain's first hydrangea on the grounds, now located adjacent to School House.
The estate was purchased by the botanist Richard Salisbury in 1802, Ridgeway House became the setting for a long-running scientific dispute between the new owner and his guest, James Edward Smith. The flora of Mill Hill was supplemented by the work of the amateur botanist Richard William Bowry Buckland (died 1947), governor of the foundation from 1878 to 1889, who cultivated a garden in the south-west of the school's grounds for the enjoyment of future generations. He wrote in his diary:
In 1939, Mill Hill School's premises became a hospital. The school was evacuated to St. Bees School in Cumberland for the duration of the Second World War. Collinson House, a school for girls, was named for it. A St Bees Association was founded in commemoration of this period of evacuation in the school's history by Michael Berry and David Smith.
Mill Hill first admitted sixth form girls in 1975 and became fully co-educational in 1997. The BBC news website usually uses a picture taken at Mill Hill School for articles about boarding schools.
In 2005 the school was one of 50 of the country's leading independent schools which were found guilty of running an illegal price-fixing cartel, exposed by The Times. Together they had driven up fees for thousands of parents. Each school was required to pay a nominal penalty of £10,000, and all agreed to make ex-gratia payments totalling three million pounds into a trust. It is to benefit persons who were students at the schools during the cartel period.
In March 2007, Mill Hill celebrated its bicentenary. To mark the occasion, the school was granted a new coat of arms by Robert Noel, Her Majesty's Lancaster Herald.
Patrick Radden Keefe, in The New Yorker, stated that circa the 2010s, the school had "a less academic reputation than its peers". He added that the cost to send a student there was "hefty".
In 2018, the school experienced controversy when it was featured in the music video of London rapper Stefflon Don. In it, she was shown nude in the changing room showers, dancing on tables in classrooms, and smoking marijuana in the dormitories.
Houses
Boarding houses
Burton Bank – Named to commemorate its original position on Burton Hole Lane
Collinson – Named after Peter Collinson, who once owned what is now the estate
Macgregor – Named after Mary Macgregor, the founder and first head of The Mount, Mill Hill International
Ridgeway – Peter Collinson's original house on the site
Winterstoke House was converted into Grimsdell Mill Hill Pre-Preparatory School, in 1995.
Day houses
Atkinson – Named after the first headmaster, John Atkinson
Cedars – Named in honour of the cedars planted by Peter Collinson
McClure – Named after Sir John McClure, headmaster at the turn of the 20th century
Murray – Named in honour of Sir James Murray, teacher and longtime editor of the Oxford English Dictionary; who began compiling his dictionary while a master at Mill Hill
Priestley – Named after headmaster Thomas Priestley
School House – Named after Tite's famous building constructed in the 1820s
Weymouth – Named after headmaster Richard Weymouth
Winfield – Named after headmaster William Winfield
Heads
In January 2016, Frances King became the school's first female Head.
The following people have served as Head:
Architecture
The chapel was opened in 1896. Designed by Basil Champneys, it is a basilica in form. The School House was designed by Sir William Tite, famous for his work on the London Royal Exchange. The School House was erected in 1825 and is described as being in the Greco-Roman style. Other buildings within the site are of both traditional and modern styling. The cricket house was used as a set in the tenth episode of Inspector Morse. In honour of Patrick Troughton the Mill Hill theatre was dedicated to the actor and named the Patrick Troughton Theatre in 2007.
The Mill Hill Education Group
The school is run by the Mill Hill School Foundation (now known as The Mill Hill Education Group), a registered charity under English law. The Education Group offers education to boys and girls aged 3 to 18 in seven schools.
The Mill Hill Education Group's other schools are:
Belmont – a day school for pupils aged 7 to 13. Head: Susannah Abbott
Grimsdell – a pre-preparatory day school for pupils aged 3 to 7. Head: Kate Simon
The Mount, Mill Hill International – a mixed day and boarding school for international pupils aged 11 to 16. Head: Sarah Bellotti
Cobham Hall – an independent day and boarding school for girls aged 11 to 18. Head: Wendy Barrett
Lyonsdown – an independent preparatory school for girls aged 3 to 11. Head: Rittu Hall
Keble Prep – an independent preparatory school for boys and girls aged 4 to 13. Head: Perran Gill
St Joseph's In The Park – an independent preparatory school for boys and girls aged 2 to 11. Head: Douglas Brown
Kingshott – an independent co-educational day school in Hitchin for pupils aged 3 to 16. Head: David Weston
Abbot's Hill – an independent co-educational day school in Hemel Hempstead for pupils aged 3 to 16. Head: Sharon Schanschieff
Heathfield School – an independent day and boarding school in Ascot for pupils aged 11 to 18; predominantly a girls' school, with a co-educational sixth form. Head: Sarah Wilson
Notable alumni
Nick Auterac, rugby union player
Ethan Bamber, English county cricketer
John Batten, physician to Queen Elizabeth II
Richard Berengarten, poet
Michael Bishop, Baron Glendonbrook, businessman
Jasper Britton, actor
Russell Brain, 1st Baron Brain, neurologist
David Buck, actor
Noah Caluori, rugby union player
Francis Cammaerts, Special Operations Executive (SOE) operative
James Challis, astronomer
Ernest Cook, English philanthropist and businessman (grandson of Thomas Cook)
Chris Corner, producer and songwriter
Francis Crick, molecular biologist, biophysicist and neuroscientist; Nobel Prize, 1962
Misha Crosby, director, actor and producer
Richard Dimbleby, broadcaster
Sophia Dunkley, international cricketer
John Richard Easonsmith, officer
Sir Eric Errington, Bt., British barrister and Conservative Party politician