Unsurprisingly there are those on the other side of the argument! They point to complexity and nuance in the evidence base and suggest that there are many other factors explaining the predominance of girls’ schools at the top of the league tables. However, the more closely the question is studied and, more importantly, the more it is lived and experienced, the clearer the benefits become. The recent research, by FTT Datalab, looked very hard at controls, and sought to eliminate all possible variables that might explain why girls do better in single-sex – from the background of students, to prior attainment, to the type of education on offer. Once they have done that a clear and significant advantage remained.
So, why is this the case?
Some have sought to explain this by suggesting negative factors may push girls onwards: intensity and competition, or the so-called “hot-housing” effect. But spend even ten minutes in a girls’ school – particularly one like Northampton High – and that theory quickly falls apart. I have worked in three girls’ schools before joining this one, and what you find is not intensity, but energy; not pressure, but purpose. You hear laughter echoing through the corridors and see camaraderie at every turn.
Take this week, for example. Our Senior Student Leadership Team and Year 12 students led a joyful Easter Egg Hunt Extravaganza during lunchtime. Pupils from Years 5 to 7 roamed our beautiful school grounds in search of thousands of carefully hidden chocolate eggs and other treats, and the joy on their faces was unmistakable. Or consider Tuesday’s exhilarating Dance Festival – a vibrant celebration of creativity, confidence, inclusivity and the High School spirit of being 10% braver.
When I meet families considering Northampton High, I always encourage them to visit us on an ordinary school day – not just for open events, but to walk the corridors, step into lessons and observe the rhythm of everyday life. What they typically notice are two qualities that seem at first contradictory, but in fact beautifully coexist: a sense of calm and a sense of buzz.
Calm, because there is a palpable focus – curious engagement, thoughtful discussion and an authentic appetite for learning. Girls listen deeply to each other and to their teachers. They question with sincerity, take intellectual risks and step out of their comfort zones to meet new challenges. And buzz, because energy is everywhere – whether in collaborative group work, the lunch queue or an extracurricular club. There is a spark of wit, imagination and enthusiasm that animates every corner of the school.
All of this, I believe, explains why girls’ schools work so well. Girls flourish in an environment where they feel seen, heard and valued; where their voices carry without hesitation, and where they are free to be themselves without fear of judgment. It is a place where the challenges of adolescence are met with empathy and where achievement is celebrated openly and without apology.
This was beautifully evident in Thursday’s magnificent Year 7 Showcase. Through poetry, song and speech, the girls reflected on their time so far in Senior School. The showcase was a testament to their creativity, confidence and camaraderie – but most of all, it was a celebration of the genuine friendships they have formed and the strong community they have built. It also spoke volumes about the respect and affection they feel for Mrs Fordham, Head of Year 7.
At Northampton High, we nurture a culture where girls champion each other’s successes and take pride in their achievements. Our mission is not just to educate them for today, but to equip them for life. I hope that all of our girls feel that their High School education provides them with the foundations to be confident in overcoming any obstacles that they may encounter and to believe that there are no limits to what they can achieve. Indeed, that spirit was captured beautifully in the rhyming couplets performed during the showcase – written by Year 7 on the theme of girl power. I leave you with their words:
Girl Power
Girls stand proud
We will speak loud
Not just princesses
Locked in a tower
Standing strong
Where we forever belong
Girls together
Empowered forever
Girl Power!
Dr Lee
Headteacher
The week ahead
Thursday 3 April
End of Spring term 12pm finish
Book Review: Smile by Raina Telgmeier
Raina just wanted to be a normal girl, but one night after Girl Scouts she trips and falls severely injuring her two front teeth.
What follows is a long and frustrating journey with on-again, off-again braces, surgery, embarrassing headgear and even a retainer with fake teeth attached. And on top of all that, there’s still more to deal with: a major earthquake, boy confusion and friends who turn out to not to be so friendly.
Author Visit – Tamsin Winter
We were lucky to welcome author Tamsin Winter into school last Friday, a real treat to the end week. Tamsin writes stories which highlight the many real life situations that teenagers might find themselves in, for example related to social media, in a very honest and non-judgmental way. Both girls and staff were thoroughly engaged, the girls asking many interesting and searching questions.
‘When Tamsin came to visit on Friday I loved it! I think she was so engaging and spoke with such energy, it was so enjoyable. She explained her books in an amazing way which left me wanting to read all of them! It was so amazing and I enjoyed it so much!.’ Vivi – Year 7
Dance Festival
Tuesday evening we hosted our annual Dance Festival bringing our dancing community together. Pupils from across the Junior School and Senior School took part showcasing their talents to songs from many different musicals. It really was a wonderful celebration of creativity, confidence, inclusivity and the High School spirit of being 10% braver. Well done to all involved.
Mrs Blake
Director of Sport
GDST Lead
On Tuesday 25 March, a few of the Year 12’s (Tanishqa, Olivia, Lilia, Sonya) went to the London School of Economics to present their business plan to around 30 schools in the GDST which they competed against in a business enterprise competition called GDST Lead. The girls came out of that day highly successful as they won the Best Business Plan award, and this has been a great success for every one of them as they gained so much valuable experience and skills from that project.
Tanishqa, Year 12
Maths Feast Competition
On Wednesday, 8 Year 10 girls attended the Maths Feast Competition run by the AMSP at Northampton School for Boys. Maths Feast is a fun educational challenge for Year 10 students which tests problem-solving and teamwork skills. Teams of four students tested their maths skills with an all-you-can-eat feast of problems! There were several rounds requiring different skills and strategies for success, with awards given for good teamwork and for the winning team of each round. Both of our teams won a round and were awarded certificates for that achievement, and the team consisting of Ying, Veronica, Elaine and Maysha finished in 3rd place overall which was a fabulous achievement. Well done to them all.
Horseriding success for Year 11 student Indi
Indi in Year 11 competed at Offchurch, Bury last weekend on Maggie May. They started the eventing season with a gentle run at 90cm with a view to step back up to 100cm next competition. A nice relaxed dressage, 30.3, and double clear jumping (showjumping and cross country), but too fast and fit for the placings this time. Indi and Maggie have Riding Club Winter Showjumping Championships coming up and more One Day Events in the diary. All in all, a good start to the season and we congratulate Indi on her performance at this exceptionally high level in her sport.
Year 7 Showcase 2025
On Thursday afternoon it was my privilege, as Head of Year 7, to invite parents and friends of the school to be entertained by our Year 7 girls.
Their soulful rendition of a medley of songs from the musical, ‘The Lion King’, sparked fond recollections of an academic year that has gone by so quickly and original performance poetry left us all in no doubt that our girls are indeed very special individuals and have bright futures ahead of them.
Karen Fordham
Head of Year 7
Clerihew
New Beginnings
A fresh start, a new start, anxiety hiding
Excitement? Nervousness? Emptiness sliding.
Head held high, Stomach in knots,
The sun appearing behind dark clouds
As life unknots.
Personification
The Earth
I sit suspended in mid air
Gazing at the orbs spinning and dancing around me.
I watch in awe as they orbit our master,
The lord of the flame, how the great Jupiter cowers before him.
My breath catches on the exposed gasses trapped in the air
Sitting, locked in a cage of evil, I face my greatest fears.
I dream, I dream of a peaceful world,
I dream, I dream of a happier world,
I dream, I dream of sinking into a peaceful sleep
Trusting you to take care of me for eternity.
I dream, I dream of this becoming a reality and no longer a cruel tragedy.
I hear the sound of the sun sizzling on my skin,
The sound of screaming trees deafening my ears,
The crackling wildfires mingle with the groans of the rivers as they fill with waste,
Turtles languish, trapped in the snare of a plastic bag.
The end of the Dodo runs to the back of my mind
A timely reminder of what you’ve done over time.
I dream, I dream of a peaceful world,
I dream, I dream of a happier world full of harmony and bliss.
I dream, I dream of sinking into a peaceful sleep
Trusting you to take care of me for eternity.
I dream, I dream of this becoming a reality and no longer a cruel tragedy.
I feel broken inside, betrayed by all,
I feel waves of emotion, sad, angry, distraught,
I feel a longing for peace, a longing for life,
I feel a twinkle of hope whispering to be let in.
I’m broken and shattered but all that can change
With one united action I can be remade.
Cinquain
Diversity
Versatile
Unique girls
Confident or shy
So make people aware
Difference is precious and beautiful
Rhyming Couplets
Girl Power
Girls stand proud
We will speak loud
Not just princesses
Locked in a tower
Standing strong
Where we forever belong
Girls together
Empowered forever
Girl Power!
This Week's Sports
Throughout this week there have been multiple sports fixtures, ranging from netball to gymnastics. Read below to find out how the matches went, and more about this weeks fixtures.
