A Home-from-home
The first handful of boarders at Queenstown Girls’ High School stayed in the private home of the first headmistress, Miss Agnes Burt.
Today’s boarders live in hostels, but the cosy home-from-home atmosphere has been retained.
There is School House, the senior hostel with its impressive rose garden, and Berry House, which is home to the juniors. Both of the hostels are small enough to ensure a feeling of intimacy and both are situated in a pleasant residential area close to the school and sports facilities.
“Flatlets” have replaced dormitories thus providing a more congenial environment for the boarders.
Each of the hostels is managed by a team of experienced “hostel mothers” who are dedicated to their girls and able to provide the necessary balance of caring individual attention and no-nonsense discipline. True to the personal growth philosophy of Girls’ High, the girls are given ample scope to participate in the leadership and organisation of their hostels. In this way they have an opportunity to ensure that their personal comfort, aesthetic and practical needs are respected.
Good food, friendship, work and leisure, as well as bed time, are all part of hostel life, which is itself an extension of the total educational framework of the school.
A unique feature of Girls’ High is that all the school buildings are open from 06:00 to 16:30. Hostel girls take full advantage of the opportunity to use the many facilities for after-hours study and cultural activities.