Abbot's Hill School

Abbot's Hill School is an independent day school for girls aged 4–16 years and a day nursery and pre-school for girls and boys from 6 months in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire in the United Kingdom. From September 2025, the school will be co-educational from Reception to Year 6.^{[citation needed]}

Abbot's Hill School
Address
Bunkers Lane Hemel Hempstead , Hertfordshire , HP3 8RP England
Coordinates	51.729407°N 0.443509°W / 51.729407; -0.443509
Information
Type	Independent School
Religious affiliation(s)	CofE
Established	1912
Local authority	Hertfordshire
Department for Education URN	117600 Tables
Chairman of Governors	Elliot Lipton
Head	Sharon Schanschieff
Staff	200[1]
Gender	Girls: 0 to 16 Boys: 0 to 4
Enrolment	540
Houses	Cameron, MacDonald and Macneil
Website	www.abbotshill.herts.sch.uk

History

The School celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2012, having been founded on the present site by Alice, Katrine and Mary Baird who also ran a school in the Malverns. The school's central building was built in 1836 by the paper manufacturer, John Dickinson, as a home for him and his family; he named it Abbot's Hill. John Dickinson's grandson sold Abbot's Hill to the Baird sisters.

In 1969 St Nicholas House School moved to the Abbot's Hill site to form the junior department, and in 2003 boarding at the school ended.

Abbot's Hill House

It had been the home of the inventor and entrepreneur John Dickinson (1782–1869) who was his own architect in its building, just east of his paper mill, Nash Mill. Construction commenced in 1836. The building material was unusual, being dark grey stone setts, taken from the railway lines when replaced by wooden sleepers. The house design was unusual, having only a single door to the outside despite its size. John Dickinson's youngest daughter Harriet Ann (1823–1858) married Sir John Evans, KCB (1823–1908), and their son Sir Arthur John Evans (1851–1941) inherited Abbot's Hill but never lived there.

Structure

The school is an all-through school, although for the purposes of educational and pastoral management it is divided into two parts, the senior school and the prep school, which are on the same site.

The senior school educates about 260 girls from Years 7 to 11. The normal size of a year group is around 50 girls. About two-thirds of the girls joining Year 7 come from the prep school, although the proportion fluctuates from year to year. The prep school educates about 190 pupils from nursery to Year 6.

Notable former pupils

See also: Category:People educated at Abbot's Hill School

• Jane Scott, Duchess of Buccleuch, model
• Katharine Elliot, Baroness Elliot of Harwood, public servant and politician
• Marilyn Okoro, British 800m and 4 × 400 m Athlete
• Montana Brown, Love Island Star
• Honor Salmon (née Pitman), Air Transport Auxiliary pilot killed in service in Second World War.