Leading Catholic Girls’ School changes, yet remains the same!
We are proud to announce another landmark in the history of St Leonards-Mayfield School. Thursday 19th March marks the long anticipated step of dropping ‘St Leonards’ from the School name. Henceforth it will simply be known as Mayfield School.
So why make the change? From its opening in 1872, the School in Mayfield was distinct from its sister School in St Leonards on Sea, established in 1848. While many of the Sisters moved seamlessly between schools, the girls themselves were great rivals: it is frequently been brought to our attention by old girls from St Leonards who, even after eighty years, were defiantly Old Cornelians not Mayfield girls! Relations became infinitely more cordial when the schools merged in 1953 and St Leonards became the Junior School with girls moving up to the Senior School in Mayfield. When the School in St Leonards closed in 1976, the School in Mayfield remained St Leonards-Mayfield School. Sufficient time has passed that the School feels able to take the next step in its journey by focusing on Mayfield as the School name.
Governors have decided that this is an auspicious time to make the change. A School which is dynamically embracing the 21st century, Mayfield owes its strength to its founder’s Catholic values: and retains a strong sense of pride in its history, mindful that a school with vision must build on its heritage to provide the best possible future for its pupils. When Cornelia Connelly founded St Leonards-Mayfield almost 150 years ago she had a vision of a girls’ school that combined traditional Catholic values with a thoroughly modern attitude to learning and personal development. Her vision is as true today as it was when she took over the ruins of the Archbishop’s Palace in 1863.
The School’s brand new Sixth Form Centre is a case in point: cutting edge IT fits harmoniously against the backdrop of the ancient stonework of the beautiful 14th Century Chapel. With a proud reputation for high academic achievement, exceptional pastoral care and an impressive range of high quality extra-curricular activities, Mayfield has nurtured a succession of confident, enterprising and multi-talented young women who are well equipped and prepared for taking their place in the modern world.
At the same time a small, but significant, alteration has been made to the School logo, which is based on the insignia of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus. This outline is shared with sister schools across the world: each School has its own distinctive version, reflecting the history of the particular institution. The SHCJ recently revised the cross at the centre of their medal. This cross is now reflected in the Mayfield sign.
Chairman of Governors, Lady Davies of Stanford, herself a product of St Leonards and Mayfield commented: “We are proud of our heritage as a Catholic and particularly a Holy Child School, so to reflect this visually, Governors decided to place the same cross at the centre of our logo and assume our new identity.”
Headmistress, Miss Antonia Beary added “For 150 years we have been challenging girls to become creative, independent, confident and well-informed individuals; young women of faith and reason, ready to make a difference – whether as scientist, artist or both –and supported by a network of likeminded friends. Our School name is now clearer and reflects more accurately the school we are today: the breadth and depth of education and opportunities afforded to Mayfield girls remain the same.”