Manchester High School for Girls turns 150

One of the first academic girls' schools in England has celebrated a milestone birthday.

Manchester High School for Girls has been empowering young women to be the very best they can be and created a very proud legacy.

On January 19, 2024, the school celebrated its 150th anniversary with a series of events and a huge concert at Bridgewater Hall.

The school, an independent girls' day school in South Manchester, for ages 4 to 18, has a long and proud history of educating women who have gone on to change the world.

The people of Manchester – leading figures in the academic, cultural and business life of the city – founded the first academic school for girls in the North of England. Manchester High School for Girls opened for the first time on 19 January 1874.

It was a time when many regarded the education of girls as unnecessary or undesirable. Yet MHSG’s founders knew that society would be better for this investment.

They aimed to ‘impart to the girls the very best education which can be given, and fit them for any future before them.’ And, after 150 years, Manchester High has built quite a legacy.

Having outgrown two of their original school sites, the School’s third and final home on Grangethorpe Road was bombed during an air raid in 1940. Yet positive change grew out of this setback.

Throughout Manchester High School’s 150-year journey, the School has focused on creating a place where talented girls of any faith and background can flourish.

The School’s alumnae include all three of renowned suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst’s daughters, BBC Radio 4’s Women’s Hour host Emma Barnett, former BBC Two Dragon Jenny Campbell and Kotska Wallace, Principal Engineer of the European Space Agency.

The School celebrated its 150th