Parents' fight for changes to Horsham school: head speaks out

Parents are fighting for Horsham’s Millais school to become co-educational because of a lack of school places for boys in the district.

Some children in Southwater have been allocated school places 16 miles away in Burgess Hill – prompting parents to launch a petition calling for Millais School to switch from girls-only.

But Millais headteacher Dr Alison Lodwick says: “Girls secondary schools were originally established to equalise educational opportunities with males; however, even in today’s more equal world, there is still a need for a single sex girls school, while society and often co-educational schools, are still far from gender equal.”

She added: “We whole-heartedly believe in and advocate for single-sex girls’ education as girls deserve a level playing field.”

And West Sussex County Council has said: “There are no current plans to change the school in this way.”

Dr Lodwick said single-sex girls’ schools encouraged pupils to study “subjects and careers often perceived to be more male orientated such as mathematics, science and engineering. Sometimes within co-educational settings, girls often adopt roles that reflect others’ views of them and which can narrow their choices. In a single sex school, girls are less likely to conform to priori gender stereotypes, make their own choices, free of any sense that the script has been written for them.

“In co-educational context, girls are more likely than boys to participate in extra-curricular groups and activities, but less likely to assume leadership roles. “But in a single sex setting, girls are more likely to put themselves forward for leadership roles within the school community and beyond.”

She said that, unlike co-educational schoolls, girls also had access to a full range of sports in single sex settings and were more able to progress to gain regional, national and international recognition.

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“Single sex girls schools provide a learning environment, specially designed for and dedicated to the development of confident, courageous, creative and resilient learners and leaders.

"We seek to challenge traditional gender stereotypes and therefore, this gives girls the space to develop a strong sense of themselves and their values. This will complement their lives outside school and prepare fully to greet the wider world, beyond education.”

A spokesperson for West Sussex County Council added: “Millais has been an established all girls school for many years and lots of parents in Horsham choose it because it is a single sex school.

"While we are aware that there is some local interest in Millais becoming co-educational, there are no current plans to change the school in this way.

"For that to happen, the county council would require a full consultation to be undertaken to scope the views of the local community, the school, stakeholders and partners as a whole.”

But parents are not giving up their fight for change. A petition calling for Millais to become co-educational now has more than 500 signatures. Organiser Craig Woodford said: “There is a lot of discontent with Southwater parents at the moment and we believe that West Sussex County Council need to act soon to safeguard the children of the future.”

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