New Hall School

History

The school was founded in Liège, Belgium in 1642 by Susan Hawley, who also formed the English Community of the Canonesses Regular of the Holy Sepulchre. The founding Religious Order, the Canonesses Regular of the Holy Sepulchre, is one of the most ancient in the Church and was established in Europe long before the English Religious Community was founded in 1642. The school offered a Catholic education to girls who were denied this in England in the Post-Protestant Reformation period. In 1794, the French Revolutionary Wars forced the nuns to leave the Low Countries. The school reopened on its present site in 1799.

In 1994, the Preparatory School was re-established on the campus at New Hall. Opening with 40 pupils, the school grew rapidly over the following years. In 2003, the Preparatory School welcomed its first boarders and the boarding programme was later extended to boys as well.

In 2001, New Hall appointed its first lay principal, Mrs Katherine Jeffrey. In April 2005, the administration made a landmark decision to go fully coeducational, ending over 360 years of single-sex education. The announcement was made that the Senior School would be embarking on a period of further expansion, with the establishment of a separate Boys’ Division (11-16) and a co-educational Sixth Form. The Senior School now accepts boys throughout the 11-18 age range and there are 3 boys’ boarding houses fully established, in addition to the 3 girls’ boarding houses.

The move towards coeducation using the "diamond format" proved extremely successful. New Hall was commended by judges at the 2011 Independent School Awards for the "ambitious and pioneering move" and won the award for "outstanding strategic initiative".

Buildings

In 1517, the estate was acquired by King Henry VIII, who greatly enlarged and enhanced the building and called it Beaulieu. The Royal Arms of Henry VIII are now to be seen in the school Chapel. For many years the home of Mary Tudor, New Hall was subsequently granted to the Earl of Sussex by Queen Elizabeth I. Oliver Cromwell later procured the estate for 5 shillings.

Houses

There are eight vertical houses named after Catholic Martyrs:

The Preparatory School Houses are named after Saints from the Four Gospels:

The boarding houses follow a horizontal structure and are named as follows:

Academic

New Hall has a strong academic record and regularly tops the exam results table for Essex county. In the 2013 A Levels, it achieved a 100% pass rate and a record 52% of grades at A*-A at GCSE. In A Levels 76% of A level grades were at A*-B.

Pastoral care

Pupils are required to attend regular chapel services. Practicing Catholic pupils may choose to actively participate in spiritual activities such as Bible studies and the annual pilgrimage to Lourdes. The school chapel runs weekly Sunday mass which are open to the public and serves the Parish of St Augustine of Canterbury, Springfield. Pupils and staff often serve as musicians, choristers, altar servers, sacristans and readers.

Sport

Students compete at county, regional, national and international level in a wide range of sports and have met with success. In recent years, there has been a significant investment in the sports facilities on campus. The first-class provision now includes: The Waltham Centre 25m 6-lane indoor swimming pool; a national standard athletics track and floodlit Astroturf; 10 floodlit tennis/netball courts; two sports halls; Parsons Hall dance studio; junior and senior cricket wickets and indoor training nets; hockey, rugby and football pitches. New Hall also has well-established links with a local riding school and a golf club.

The more popular sports are cricket, hockey, netball, rugby, and tennis. There is a wide variety of other sports, including aerobics & pilates, athletics, badminton, basketball, cross country, fencing, football, golf, riding, swimming, volleyball and triathlon.

Performing arts

The Walkfares Performing Arts Centre is the home of thriving Music, Dance and Drama Departments. Performances, from Shakespeare to modern plays and musicals, give students the opportunity to develop their confidence and creative talents.

All students are encouraged to participate in the English Speaking Board (ESB) or London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) programmes. Students take individual lessons in orchestral instruments, piano, singing, drums and electric guitars. A growing number of students take lessons on the newly restored Norman & Beard organ in the Chapel.

There is a host of performing groups, including senior and junior choirs, chamber choirs, a chapel choir, a senior orchestra, a strings academy, wind bands, a guitar ensemble, and chamber groups. Students are also encouraged to form jazz and pop bands and specialist support and facilities are available.

Regular performances are given by students in assemblies, lunchtime recitals and formal concerts. Students take part in regional and national musical festivals and competitions, and groups tour regularly to perform in major venues in Europe.

New Hall School Choir, directed by Andrew Fardell, has performed at St. Peters, Rome, St. Marks, Venice, Westminster Cathedral, London as well as on BBC Television. The choir sings a wide range of music from sacred to secular, classic to modern.

The Dance Company was founded in September 2003 to facilitate the increased demand from students who wanted more opportunities to train and perform. The Company has students from Year 10 upwards. The Company has taken parts in a variety of events in and around Chelmsford and has an important role in supporting the Dance Department within the School.

Drama forms a part of student activity at New Hall. Each year the Senior School produces a large scale production just before Christmas during which many students experience the exhilaration of being part of this tradition. Recent productions have included ‘Oliver’, ‘High School Musical’, ‘Othello’ and ‘West Side Story’ and pupils from all age groups play the leading parts. Other notable productions are provided by the Drama and Theatre Studies students whose productions have included Woyzeck, Waiting for Godot, Teechers, Arabian Nights and Grimm Tales. Students have the option to do GCSE and A Levels drama.

The Eaton Theatre, equipped with lighting and sound technology, provides a traditional performance venue whilst in Walkfares, two well equipped, versatile studios provide the environment for both teaching and for a range of performances. The nearby Jubilee Hall also was fitted with lights and retractable seating and is where weekly assemblies are held.

Past headmistresses and principals

At Liege and then in England it can be assumed that the Prioress was also in charge of the school. At some unknown stage a First Mistress became a quasi-Headmistress in the school under the Prioress. The term headmistress was first used in 1942 and the term principal from 2005.

Notable former pupils

Former pupils are known as "Old Fishes" or "New Hallians". The term Old Fishes has been used for former pupils from as early as 1799. At the time of Catholic persecution in mainland Europe, the founding Religious Community were forced to leave the Low Countries and to move to England. Whilst they were seeking a suitable venue in England, the nuns used the word "Fishes" as a code word for students and the term eventually stuck.

Notable staff