St Columba’s College in St Albans has welcomed its first girls into Reception class.

Last summer, the school announced that it would be moving to co-education and welcoming girls for the first time in 2021.

From September, St Columba’s will also welcome girls into Lower Prep (Year 1 and Year 2) and the Lower Sixth (Year 12).

This will be followed by a phased transition which will eventually see St Columba’s offering its unique, high-quality Catholic education to boys and girls from ages four to 18. The school will become the only co-educational four to 18 independent school in St Albans.

Parent Matthew Finn is a former student of St Columba’s College and said he was delighted to have enrolled his daughter into Reception.

Herts Advertiser: St Columba's College has welcomed its first girls into Reception.St Columba's College has welcomed its first girls into Reception. (Image: St Columba's College)

“I strongly believe there is no school like St Columba’s, it gives its students opportunities in life that they would not experience anywhere else. St Columba’s takes ordinary children, and both educates and morally guides them with a personal touch so that they can live as extraordinary adults.”

Brooke and James Veitch, who already have a son at the school, also chose St Columba’s College for their daughter who started in Reception in January. They said: “When we discovered that the school was accepting girls this year, we were ecstatic. It’s a place we know that both our children will get the focus and attention they deserve to grow as individuals.”

Head of the Prep School Richard McCann said: “We are absolutely thrilled to open a new and exciting chapter at St Columba's College. We know that our values and ethos are equally applicable to boys and girls, and that we will continue to provide an outstanding holistic education that gears every child up for the skills that are needed in the future. Our first pioneer girls have settled in brilliantly and we look forward to welcoming many more.”

Founded in 1939, the college has been under the care of The Brothers of the Sacred Heart since 1955, when they came from New England in the US to establish St Columba’s as a unique school within a worldwide community.