Perhaps this is a good point to recall the services of those who were in charge of the Girls’ School.  We have already mentioned Mrs. Mckay and Mrs. Evans.  In 1880 Miss Whittle was appointed Headmistress, and she continued with her job even after her marriage to Mr. Bailey, till 1890.   Subsequently, the management of the School was put in charge of the Sisters of the All Saints’ Community.  Their selfless service was greatly appreciated.  In May 1926 Sister Petronilla reported, “The system by which one Mistress is responsible for all subjects in her class is considered inadvisable.  Each Mistress now specializes according to her qualifications.”  She also mentioned that the placing of permanent partitions between the top floor class rooms “had added very much to the comfort of both Staff and girls.”  Gymnastics apparatus had been re-organized.  The girls had kept to the names of colours for their houses.  In fact it was only in 1967 when the school became co-educational that the Girls’ Houses also took on the name allotted to the Boys’ Houses.

Each House in the Girls’ School had its own motto:

Red – Service Before Self.
Green – Excellence.
Blue – He who Deserves The Palm.
Orange – Zeal in Everything.

Miss Nora White field joined the school in the mid-twenties and built it up from a small establishment of 200 girls to a leading school with over 500 girls.  She also introduced Prefects into the School.  In 1943 her place was taken by Miss Dorothy King whose motto was “Work together for the good of each other.”  Miss King saw the school through the difficult transition period following the war, leaving in 1949.

The Girls’ School celebrated the Golden Jubilee of the Napier Road establishment in 1950 under Miss Margery Green.  She was a strict disciplinarian and supervised the progress reports with an eagle eye, urging the teachers to be more explicit and meaningful in their remarks.  The girls were kept busy, and the cultural activities included Country Dancing with an annual competition.  One can conjure up images of rollicking tunes and saucily intricate steps punctuated by graceful curtsies.  The very names are evocative:   Merry, Merry Milkmaids;  Gathering Peasecods; Rufty Tufty and Black Nag.  Housecraft comprised housewifery, laundry and cooking.  Even though they must have had an army of servants at home, the girls learned to wash clothes and swab floors with nary a murmur.   A beginner's’ cookery class is described:  “Three or four girls bend over a saucepan over a stove, one holding the pan, the others stirring vigorously with both hands, the third adding the ingredients, while the fourth calls out to another girl to come to her aid.”

Mrs. E. France Wanstall, Headmistress in 1953-54, was impressed by the cosmopolitan nature of the school.  Because of this she said, “our girls develop wide interests and wide sympathies.”  The girls hailed from a rich cultural background, representing over 20 diverse nations, and yet worked and played together in a harmony which she found “happy and hopeful”.  She herself found it impossible to distinguish the various communities represented owing to the wise custom of the school uniform.

Mrs. Zoe Bebbington, who had joined the school as a four year old, and had been Head Girl under Miss White field, came back to her Alma Mater to teach and in 1955 was appointed Headmistress.  She brought to her job a wealth of experience and understanding of girls.  She had a very strong personality and was particularly good at elocution and dramatics.

In 1958 Miss Jean Irvine – to be better know as Mrs. Jean Cabral – took over as Headmistress.  She insisted that every girl participate in every sport.  This policy may not have earned many cups and medals but “everybody is treated equally, giving them more confidence and putting them on a better footing when they grow up.”  She was also responsible for replacing the stiflingly hot gray canvas pinafore and white blouse with the very practical and cool uniform which the girls still wear.  When co-education came she moved to Outram Road as Lady Vice-Principal and when Rev. Ridding left the school, she acted as Principal for six months, after which she had to leave as her husband was transferred out of the country.