As Chair of Trustees and a parent I am delighted to welcome you to Hitchin Girls' School. In 2013 the school was rated as 'Outstanding' by Ofsted. This was a tremendous achievement by everyone involved in the life of the school. Since then the Head and Trustees have been very aware of the need to build on this success and continually look to improve the fabric of the school and the learning outcomes for all students. 2014 saw the opening of the new Sixth Form Centre, and our new Sports Hall facility opened in January 2018.  Supporting the expansion of the school from September 2018, we have added a new ten-classroom teaching block and two new science laboratories, and expanded our dining facilities.

We have a vision of what lies beyond ‘Outstanding’. We think this is about fostering a culture that puts teaching and learning at the centre of everything we do, thus enabling all – students, staff and governors – to grow as learners, be resilient and develop a love of learning that will last a lifetime.

With this objective, and together with staff and parents, we commit to deliver positive changes and reinforcement of the ‘Outstanding’ criteria in all aspects of the school. These criteria embrace getting the curriculum right to meet the needs of every student at all Key Stages; implementing opportunities for sharing strategies and resources for teaching and learning; and developing student independence in learning.

We keep a clear distinction between the responsibilities of Academy governance and those of management. There is a strongly supportive, productive and challenging relationship between the Board of Trustees and the Headteacher. We are also supported by our Members who provide oversight of the governance of the Academy Trust.  In going forward the Trustees will be ensuring that the resources are the best that can be provided.

Hitchin Girls’ School is a successful and popular school with a great tradition in preparing its students for life. With these commitments, we firmly believe that the coming years will add to that proud tradition.

Chris Hall
Chairman of Governors

August 2021