ABSTRACT
In 1906 the Girls' Public Day School Company (GPDSC), which had experienced problems about its status as a commercial company paying dividends, was converted into a trust (L.Magnus 1923:28–30; Kamm 1971:110). By that time a number of other high schools, established on similar lines by local groups, had been flourishing for a generation. A few examples will illustrate different aspects of the movement. Worcester High School opened in 1883 as the result of the efforts of W.J.Butler, a canon of the cathedral and earlier founder of the sisterhood of St Mary's, Wantage, who had been impressed by the success of the GPDSC Oxford High School. The Worcester school had a religious basis with definite church teaching, and it developed successfully under an outstanding head, Alice Ottley (1883–1912), who resembled Miss Beale in her mixture of deep, rather mystical religious feeling and strong practical talent (James 1914; Noake 1952).
