The Presbyterian Ladies' College (informally known as PLC), is an independent, day and boarding school predominantly for girls, situated in Peppermint Grove, a western suburb of Perth, Western Australia.
Established in 1915 by the Presbyterian Church of Australia, PLC came under the control of the Uniting Church in Australia in 1977 following church union. The college moved to the current 8-acre (32,000 m2) property in 1917. PLC's grounds consist of a junior school for years Pre-Kindy to Year 6, a middle school for Years 7 to 9, a senior school for Years 10 to 12, sporting grounds, arts centres and boarding facilities. The school currently caters for approximately 1200 students, with boys and girls enrolled from pre-kindergarten to pre-primary and girls only from Year 1 to Year 12. PLC also provides accommodation for up to 150 boarders in Years 7 to 12.
The college has been an IB World School since December 2006, and is authorised to offer the IB Primary Years Programme and IB Middle Years Programme and the IB Diploma Programme. PLC is also registered to offer the Western Australian state curriculum to Years 11 and 12. PLC is affiliated with the Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia, the Junior School Heads Association of Australia, the Australian Boarding Schools' Association, and the Alliance of Girls' Schools Australia.
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History
On 19 August 1915, George Nisbet Dods, Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Western Australia, called together a group of ministers and church elders to discuss the proposal of establishing a Presbyterian college for girls, since the Church had already established the Scotch College, Perth for boys. Present at this meeting were Rev Dods, Rev Alexander Crow, Principal Oxer, Rev Daniel Ross, Peter Corsair Anderson (principal of Scotch College, Perth), John Maxwell Ferguson, Donald John Carmichael, Inspector of Schools James Klein and Alexander David Ross.
Ormiston College had been established in 1907 by Constance Wilson and her two sisters in Palmerston Street, North Perth. The newly formed committee agreed to purchase Ormiston College, and the school was named Presbyterian Ladies' College and Kindergarten (Ormiston House). Wilson was taken up on her offer to continue acting as principal until a permanent one was appointed. The successful applicant was Agnes Scorgie, a certified teacher from Glasgow University. She had also studied modern language at three European universities, and had taught for twelve years at Glasgow High School. Scorgie arrived in Fremantle on 24 February 1916 and took up her duties immediately.
In January 1917, the school's committee was constituted as the first College Council. After considering several permanent locations for the school, it eventually settled on the purchase of William Gerald Lefroy's property on the corner of View and McNeil Streets, Peppermint Grove. After modifications and additions to the property, all boarders were transferred from North Perth, and the first classes began on the new campus in July. The school was officially opened by the Governor of Western Australia, William Ellison-Macartney, on 11 August 1917. The North Perth campus remained operating as a day school until the end of 1918.
Academic performance
The school has traditionally performed well in the Western Australian Certificate of Education examinations and appear regularly among the top 10 schools in the state.
House system
As with most Australian schools, PLC utilises a house system through which students participate in Inter-House activities and competitions. The House system was introduced in 1934 by Vera Summers OBE, in her first year as principal, with three houses: Carmichael, Stewart and Ferguson. The colours chosen were those of the new uniform; navy, green and white. McNeil was added in 1943 and further expanded in 1977 with the addition of Summers and Baird. Celebrating the centenary of the school in 2015 a seventh House, Ross, was created. The House was named after Professor Alexander David Ross.
Carmichael
Colour: blue. Named for founder, past treasurer and past chair of council Donald John Carmichael. Emblem: Scottish thistle
Stewart
Colour: green. Named for benefactor and council member John Stewart. Emblem: royal acorn
Ferguson
Colour: red (changed from white in 1957). Named for founder John Maxwell Ferguson. Emblem: sunflower
McNeil
Colour: yellow. Named for early local resident, PLC council member and benefactor Neil McNeil. Emblem: dryas
Summers
Colour: initially white but changed to purple in 1999. Named for Vera Summers, who was on teaching staff from 1920 and principal from 1934 to 1961. Emblem: white heather
Baird
Colour: orange. Named for the Baird family from which two past chairs of council, one teacher and many students came. Emblem: white cotton grass
Ross
Co-curriculum
Music
PLC offers music ensembles to both junior and senior students, including a stage band, three concert bands, three string orchestras, several string quartets, a combined chorale with Trinity College, a combined string chamber orchestra with Scotch College as well as a combined symphonic wind ensemble and vocal ensemble with PLC's brother school, Scotch College.
The school also features an all female pipe band, one of only a small number throughout Australia. The pipe band is a long-standing tradition of the school and reflects PLC's Scottish heritage.
Visual art
At PLC there is an annual visual art exhibition exhibiting works of current students done during the school year ranging from sculpture to textiles and painting. Works from PLC have been selected over the years and in 2012 to be shown in the annual "Year 12 Visual Art Perspectives" at the Art Gallery of Western Australia.
Performing arts
PLC also offers performing arts subjects, such as drama and dance. Dance and drama performances are shown annually at the school, as well as year based curriculum performances. The school's Hazel Day Drama Centre is a professional-standard theatre venue.
Sport
The Presbyterian Ladies' College physical education programme provides students of all abilities with opportunities to partake in recreational activities such as yoga and aerobics, and team sports such as netball, basketball, cricket, tennis, hockey, volleyball, soccer, softball, rowing, and water polo.
Inter-school competition is enabled through PLC's membership of the Junior School Heads Association of Australia for primary students, and the Independent Girls Schools Sports Association for middle and senior students.
Notable alumnae
Alumnae of the Presbyterian Ladies' College are known as Old Collegians, and may elect to join the schools alumni association, the PLC Old Collegians' Association. Some notable Old Collegians include:
Academic
Gillian Moore – Principal of Pymble Ladies' College (1989–2007); deputy principal of Methodist Ladies' College, Perth (1983–88)
Entertainment, media and the arts
Claire van der Boom – Actress
Estelle Blackburn – Journalist and author
Katharine Brisbane – Theatre critic; publisher; co-founder of Currency Press Pty Ltd
Jill Alison Crommelin – Journalist for The West Australian, The Australian Women's Weekly, The Straits Times (Singapore) and the Sunday Independent (also attended St Mary's Anglican Girls' School)
Diane Dunbar – Curator of fine art at the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery, Launceston
Dame Alexandra Hasluck née Darker – Author and social historian
Melissa Hasluck – Film producer
Jacinta John – Actor, director, producer
Mary-Ellen Murdoch King – Director of Orchestra Victoria; director of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival
Sara Macliver – Classical soprano
Judy Nunn – Author and actress