On the 14th September 2024, Croydon High School celebrated its 150th birthday with visits from alumni, a week packed with activities related to the theme of ‘150’ and even the launch of our very own Croydon High School rubber ducks!
Croydon High School, an independent day school for girls, was founded in 1874 by Dorinda Neligan who was a firm believer that girls deserved the same right to education as their brothers.
Ms Neligan was part of the suffragette movement and remained as the head of Croydon High for 27 years, before eventually retiring.
However, her retirement did not stop her protests for the suffragette movement; Ms Neligan refused to pay rates, assaulted a police officer and even went to prison!
When Croydon High School had first been founded, only 88 pupils were attending; six years later (after a rapid increase in numbers).
A student who I spoke to told me that she that loved “the celebration and it was so interesting to hear stories from alumni who visited the school on that day”.
The alumni shared accounts of their time at school and it was fascinating to hear about their time here and the differences between our school lived.