View source for Mill Hill School

{{short description|Public school in Mill Hill, London}}
{{Distinguish|Mill Hill County High School|Mill Hill School, Derbyshire}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2014}}
{{Use British English|date=June 2014}}
{{Infobox school
 | name                    = Mill Hill School
 | logo                    = Mill Hill School Coat of Arms (2017).png
 | logo_size               = 125px
 | logo_alt                = Mill Hill School Coat of Arms, as redesigned in 2017.
 | image                   = Mill_Hill_School_May_6th_2004(2).jpg
 | motto                   = {{Langx|la|Et virtutem et musas}}
 | motto_translation       = Instilling values, inspiring minds
 | address                 = The Ridgeway, [[Mill Hill]]
 | city                    = [[London]]
 | county                  = 
 | postcode                = NW7 1QS
 | country                 = England
 | coordinates             = {{Coord|51.6190|-0.2305|type:edu_region:GB_dim:100|format=dec|display=inline,title}}
 | other_name              = <!-- or | other_names = -->
 | former_name             = <!-- or | former_names = -->
 | type                    = [[Public school (UK)|Public school]]<br>[[Private schools in the United Kingdom|Private]] [[Day school|day]] and [[boarding school]]
 | religious_affiliation   = 
 | established             = {{Start date and age|1807}}
 | founders                = Committee of [[Nonconformist (Protestantism)|Nonconformist]] merchants and ministers, including [[John Pye-Smith]]
 | closed                  = 
 | local_authority         = [[Barnet London Borough Council]]
 | oversight               = <!-- use | oversight_label = to override the default label -->
 | trust                   = 
 | urn                     = 101367
 | ofsted                  = 
 | chair                   = Elliot Lipton
 | chair_label             = Chair of Governors
 | head                    = David Benson<ref name="Mill Hill School">{{cite web |title=Mill Hill School |url=https://www.millhill.org.uk/ |access-date=3 May 2024}}</ref>
 | head_label              = [[#Heads|Head]]
 | staff                   = 
 | gender                  = [[Mixed-sex education|Mixed]]
 | age_range               = 13–18
 | enrolment               = 1,495<ref name="GOV.UK">{{cite web |title=Mill Hill School Foundation |url=https://get-information-schools.service.gov.uk/Establishments/Establishment/Details/101367 |website=Get information about schools |publisher=GOV.UK |access-date=29 December 2018}}</ref>
 | enrolment_as_of         = 
 | capacity                = 1,661<ref name="GOV.UK" />
 | campus_size             = {{Convert|120|acre}}
 | campus_type             = 
 | houses                  = [[#Houses|12]]
 | colours                 = Blue and red {{Color box|Blue}}{{Color box|Red}}
 | accreditation           = <!-- or | accreditations = -->
 | publication             = 
 | newspaper               = 
 | yearbook                = 
 | affiliation             = [[Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference]]
 | alumni                  = [[#Notable alumni|Old Millhillians]]
 | website                 = {{URL|www.millhill.org.uk}}
 | footnotes               = 
}}

'''Mill Hill School''' is a 13–18 [[co-educational]] [[Private schools in the United Kingdom|private]], [[Day school|day]] and [[boarding school]] in [[Mill Hill]], [[London]], England that was established in 1807. It is a member of the [[Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference]].

==History==
A committee of [[Nonconformist (Protestantism)|Nonconformist]] merchants and ministers, including [[John Pye-Smith]] founded the school,<ref>[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=22138 A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 1]</ref> originally called Mill Hill Grammar School,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mhps.org.uk/collinson/pch-articles_3_419351791.pdf|title=The remaining Peter Collinson trees at Mill Hill|publisher=Mill Hill Preservation Society|first=Trevor |last=Chilton|date=March 2016}}</ref> for boys on 25 January 1807. They located it sufficiently distant of [[London]] at that time, because of "dangers both physical and moral awaiting youth while passing through the streets of a large, crowded and corrupt city". A boarding house was opened in the residence once occupied by [[Peter Collinson (botanist)|Peter Collinson]], with about 20 boys. John Atkinson was the first headmaster and chaplain until 1810.{{citation needed|date=February 2019}}{{efn|John Atkinson was later head of [[Wymondley College]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Wymondley Academy (1799–1833)|url=https://dissacad.english.qmul.ac.uk/sample1.php?parameter=academyretrieve&alpha=172|work=Dissenting Academies Online|publisher=Queen Mary Centre for Religion and Literature in English|access-date=2019-02-03}}</ref>}}

{{anchor|Ridgeway House (Mill Hill Village)}}
Mill Hill School occupies a {{convert|120|acre|adj=on}} site, part of which formed the gardens of '''Ridgeway House''', the house of the botanist [[Peter Collinson FRS|Peter Collinson]]. He was one of the most important importers of rare and exotic plants into English gardens. Many of the species that he introduced to Mill Hill in the 18th century continue to grow today in the grounds of the School.{{citation needed|date=January 2022}} In 1746 Collinson planted Britain's first [[hydrangea]] on the grounds, now located adjacent to School House.

The estate was purchased by the botanist [[Richard Anthony Salisbury|Richard Salisbury]] in 1802, Ridgeway House became the setting for a long-running scientific dispute between the new owner and his guest, [[James Edward Smith (botanist)|James Edward Smith]].<ref name=DNB00>{{cite DNB|wstitle =Salisbury, Richard Anthony|first=George Simonds|last=Boulger|author-link=George Simonds Boulger|volume=50|quote=''sources: [[Journal of Botany, British and Foreign|Journal of Botany]]'', 1886.}}</ref> The flora of Mill Hill was supplemented by the work of the amateur botanist Richard William Bowry Buckland (died 1947), governor of the foundation from 1878 to 1889, who cultivated a garden in the south-west of the school's grounds for the enjoyment of future generations. He wrote in his diary:
{{poemquote|
In years bygone I pray to thee,
This willow here, my legacy
As I have sat, pray sit thee.
In shaded splendour
Millhillians; rest hither.|author=(signed Richard Buckland)|source=}}

In 1939, Mill Hill School's premises became a hospital. The school was evacuated to [[St. Bees School]] in [[Cumberland]] for the duration of the [[Second World War]]. Collinson House, a school for girls, was named for it. A St Bees Association was founded in commemoration of this period of evacuation in the school's history by Michael Berry and David Smith.<ref name="StBees">{{cite news|url=http://www.stbees.org.uk/history/hist_mill_hill.htm|title=Evacuation of Mill Hill School to St Bees|publisher=The St Bees Association|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050525024938/http://www.stbees.org.uk/history/hist_mill_hill.htm|archive-date=25 May 2005|df=dmy-all}}</ref>

Mill Hill first admitted sixth form girls in 1975 and became fully co-educational in 1997. The [[BBC]] news website usually uses a picture taken at Mill Hill School for articles about boarding schools.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/6694215.stm|work=BBC News|title=Private sector 'to loan teachers'|date=26 May 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/education/7987938.stm|work=BBC News|first=Alison|last=Smith|title=Private schools 'feel downturn|date=3 January 2015}}</ref>

In 2005 the school was one of 50 of the country's leading independent schools which were found guilty of running an illegal price-fixing cartel, exposed by ''[[The Times]]''. Together they had driven up fees for thousands of parents.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/education/article588559.ece|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070310233300/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/education/article588559.ece|url-status=dead|archive-date=10 March 2007|work=The Times|location=London, UK|title=Independent schools face huge fines over cartel to fix fees|first=Tony|last=Halpin|date=10 November 2005|access-date=12 May 2010}}</ref> Each school was required to pay a nominal penalty of £10,000, and all agreed to make ex-gratia payments totalling three million pounds into a trust. It is to benefit persons who were students at the schools during the cartel period.<ref>[http://www.oft.gov.uk/news/press/2006/182-06 The Office of Fair Trading: OFT names further trustees as part of the independent schools settlement] {{webarchive|url=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20140402142426/http://www.oft.gov.uk/news/press/2006/182-06 |date=2 April 2014 }}, oft.gov.uk; accessed 3 January 2014.</ref>

In March 2007, Mill Hill celebrated its [[wikt:bicentenary|bicentenary]]. To mark the occasion, the school was granted a new [[coat of arms]] by [[Robert Noel (officer of arms)|Robert Noel]], Her Majesty's Lancaster Herald.<ref>[https://www.millhill.org.uk/senior/our-school/history-of-the-school/coat-of-arms/ "The Coat of Arms of Mill Hill School"], millhill.org.uk; accessed 13 December 2020.</ref>

In 2018, the school experienced controversy when it was featured in the music video of London rapper [[Stefflon Don]]. In it, she was shown nude in the changing room showers, dancing on tables in classrooms, and smoking [[marijuana]] in the dormitories.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://news.sky.com/story/mill-hill-school-seeks-legal-action-over-rapper-stefflon-dons-explicit-music-video-11479413|title=Mill Hill school seeks legal action over rapper Stefflon Don's explicit music video}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat-45283275|title = Stefflon Don music video forces Mill Hill School apology|work = BBC News|date = 23 August 2018}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/shortcuts/2018/aug/22/stefflon-don-video-teaches-private-school-a-lesson|title=Stefflon Don – how the rapper's new video taught a private school a lesson|website=[[TheGuardian.com]]|date=22 August 2018}}</ref>

==Houses==
{{unsourcedsection|date=August 2025}}
Mill Hill School is divided into houses. These are:

===Boarding houses===
* Burton Bank&nbsp;– Named to commemorate its original position on Burton Hole Lane
* Collinson&nbsp;– Named after [[Peter Collinson (botanist)|Peter Collinson]], who once owned what is now the estate
* Macgregor&nbsp;– Named after Mary Macgregor, the founder and first head of [[The Mount, Mill Hill International]]
* Ridgeway&nbsp;– Peter Collinson's original house on the site

Winterstoke House was converted into Grimsdell Mill Hill Pre-Preparatory School, in 1995.

===Day houses===
* Atkinson&nbsp;– Named after the first headmaster, John Atkinson
* Cedars&nbsp;– Named in honour of the cedars planted by Peter Collinson
* McClure&nbsp;– Named after Sir John McClure, headmaster at the turn of the 20th century
* Murray&nbsp;– Named in honour of [[James Murray (lexicographer)|Sir James Murray]], teacher and longtime editor of the [[Oxford English Dictionary]]; who began compiling his dictionary while a master at Mill Hill
* Priestley&nbsp;– Named after headmaster Thomas Priestley
* School House&nbsp;– Named after Tite's famous building constructed in the 1820s
* Weymouth&nbsp;– Named after headmaster Richard Weymouth
* Winfield&nbsp;– Named after headmaster William Winfield

==Heads==
In January 2016, Frances King became the school's first female Head.<ref>{{cite web|last1=King|first1=Frances|title=Mrs Frances King|url=http://www.millhill.org.uk/popups/FrancesKing.html|publisher=Mill Hill School|access-date=22 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160319045418/http://www.millhill.org.uk/popups/FrancesKing.html|archive-date=19 March 2016|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}</ref>

The following people have served as Head:{{cn|date=August 2025}}
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Name || Tenure
|-
| John Atkinson || 1807–1810
|-
| Maurice Phillips || 1811–1818
|-
| John Humphreys || 1819–1825
|-
| James Corrie || 1825–1827
|-
| George Samuel Evans || 1828{{ref|reference_name_A|1}}
|-
| Robert Cullen || 1829–1831
|-
| H. L. Berry || 1831–1834
|-
| Thomas Priestley || 1834–1852
|-
| Philip Smith || 1852–1860
|-
| William Flavel || 1860–1863
|-
| Philip Chapman Barker || 1863–1864
|-
| George Donald Bartlet || 1864–1868
|-
| Richard Francis Weymouth || 1869–1886
|-
| Charles Arthur Vince || 1886–1891
|-
| John David McClure (later Sir) || 1891–1922
|-
| Maurice Leonard Jacks || 1922–1937
|-
| Thomas Kingston Derry || 1938–1940
|-
| Arthur Rooker Roberts || 1940–1943
|-
| Maurice Leonard Jacks || 1943–1944
|-	
| John Seldon Whale || 1944–1951
|-
| Roy Moore || 1951–1967
|-
| Michael Hart || 1967–1974
|-
| Alan Fraser Elliot || 1974–1978
|-
| William Allan Phimester || 1978–1979
|-
| Alastair Carew Graham || 1979–1992
|-
| Euan Archibald MacFarlane MacAlpine || 1992–1995
|-
| William Winfield || 1995–2007
|-
| Dominic Luckett || 2007–2015
|-
| Frances King || 2016–2018
|-
| Jane Sanchez || 2018–2023 
|-
| David Benson || 2023– 
|}
{{note|reference_name_A|1}}Evans served as head from January 1828 to June 1828.

==Architecture==
{{unsourcedsection|date=August 2025}}
The chapel was opened in 1896. Designed by [[Basil Champneys]], it is a [[basilica]] in form. The School House was designed by Sir [[William Tite]], famous for his work on the London [[Royal Exchange, London|Royal Exchange]]. The School House was erected in 1825 and is described as being in the [[classical architecture|Greco-Roman]] style. Other buildings within the site are of both traditional and modern styling. The cricket house was used as a set in the [[List of Inspector Morse episodes#Series 3 (1989)|tenth episode]] of ''[[Inspector Morse (TV series)|Inspector Morse]]''.{{cn|date=January 2024}} In honour of [[Patrick Troughton]] the Mill Hill [[theatre]] was dedicated to the actor and named the Patrick Troughton Theatre in 2007.{{cn|date=January 2024}}

==The Mill Hill Education Group==
The school is run by the Mill Hill School Foundation (now known as The Mill Hill Education Group),<ref>{{cite web |title=Mill Hill School Education Group |url=https://millhilleducationgroup.com/}}</ref> a [[Charitable organisation|registered charity]] under English law.<ref>{{EW charity|1064758|THE MILL HILL SCHOOL FOUNDATION}}</ref> The Education Group offers education to boys and girls aged 3 to 18 in seven schools.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Mill Hill School Foundation Announces More School Mergers |date=8 February 2022 |url=https://www.millhill.org.uk/2022/02/the-mill-hill-school-foundation-announces-more-school-mergers/ |access-date=10 March 2022}}</ref>
The Mill Hill Education Group's other schools are:
*Belmont&nbsp;– a day school for pupils aged 7 to 13. Head: Susannah Abbott<ref>[https://belmont.millhill.org.uk/about-us About Us]. Belmont, Mill Hill Prep School. Accessed: June 28, 2025.</ref>
*Grimsdell&nbsp;– a pre-preparatory day school for pupils aged 3 to 7.<ref name="obs">{{cite news |last1=Adonis |first1=Andrew |last2=Bright |first2=Martin |title=A through train for the monied |url=https://www.theguardian.com/observer/education/story/0,,846716,00.html |access-date=21 January 2022 |work=The Observer |date=15 February 1998}}</ref> Head: Kate Simon
*[[The Mount, Mill Hill International]]&nbsp;– a mixed day and boarding school for international pupils aged 11 to 16. Head: Sarah Bellotti
*[[Cobham Hall School|Cobham Hall]] –  an independent day and boarding school for girls aged 11 to 18. Head: Wendy Barrett<ref>{{cite web |title=Cobham School |url=https://alumni.millhill.org.uk/uploads/default/files/7815_603521f561c2e.pdf |access-date=23 February 2021}}</ref>
*Lyonsdown&nbsp;– an independent preparatory school for girls aged 3 to 11. Head: Rittu Hall
*Keble Prep&nbsp;– an independent preparatory school for boys and girls aged 4 to 13. Head: Perran Gill
*St Joseph's In The Park&nbsp;– an independent preparatory school for boys and girls aged 2 to 11. Head: Douglas Brown

==Notable alumni==
{{See also|Category:People educated at Mill Hill School}}
{{alumni|date=August 2021}}
* [[Nick Auterac]], rugby union player
* [[Ethan Bamber]], English county cricketer
* [[John Batten (physician)|John Batten]], physician to Queen Elizabeth II<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sir John Batten |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/10400058/Sir-John-Batten.html |access-date=2023-01-23 |website=www.telegraph.co.uk|date=23 October 2013 }}</ref>
* [[Richard Berengarten]], poet
* [[Michael Bishop, Baron Glendonbrook]], businessman
* [[Jasper Britton]], actor
* [[Russell Brain, 1st Baron Brain]], neurologist
* [[David Buck]], actor
* [[Noah Caluori]], rugby union player
* [[Francis Cammaerts]], [[Special Operations Executive]] (SOE) operative
* [[James Challis]], astronomer
* [[Ernest Cook]], English philanthropist and businessman (grandson of [[Thomas Cook]])
* [[Chris Corner]], producer and songwriter
* [[Francis Crick]], molecular biologist, biophysicist and neuroscientist
* [[Misha Crosby]], director, actor and producer
* [[Richard Dimbleby]], broadcaster
* [[Sophia Dunkley]], international cricketer
* [[John Richard Easonsmith]], officer
* [[Eric Errington|Sir Eric Errington, Bt.]], British [[barrister]] and [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative Party]] [[politician]]
* [[Ivor Malcolm Haddon Etherington]], mathematician
* [[David Dayan Fisher]], actor
* [[Seb Fontaine]], house music DJ
* [[Felix Francis]], author of the 'Dick Francis' novels
* [[Nicholas Franks]], professor of biophysics and anaesthetics at [[Imperial College London]]
* [[Ben Glassberg]], conductor<ref>{{cite web |last1=Alumni |first1=Mill Hill School |title=Ben Glassberg New Principal Conductor At Glyndebourne |url=https://alumni.millhill.org.uk/news/where-are-they-now/49/49-Ben-Glassberg |website=Mill Hill Alumni |date=11 February 2019 |publisher=Mill Hill School |access-date=22 August 2021}}</ref>
* [[Sarvepalli Gopal]], Indian historian
* [[Inglis Gundry]], composer, novelist, musicologist, music pedagogue and writer
* [[Tanika Gupta]], playwright and scriptwriter
* [[Joseph Hardcastle (politician)|Joseph Hardcastle]], liberal member of Parliament
* [[Sir Norman Hartnell]], fashion designer
* [[Hartley Heard]], cricketer
* [[Thomas Helmore]], choirmaster and choral historian and writer
* [[Francis Heron]], [[England national football team|England]] footballer and [[FA Cup]] winner
* [[Hubert Heron]], England footballer and FA Cup winner
* [[Stanislav Ianevski]], actor
* [[Chaz Jankel]], musician
* [[Simon Jenkins]], newspaper columnist, editor and author
* [[Robert Evan Kendell]], psychiatrist
* [[Evgeny Lebedev]], owner of ''[[The Independent|Independent]]'' and ''[[Evening Standard]]'' newspapers
* [[Nick Leslau]], businessman
* [[Keith Levene]], musician, [[Public Image Limited]]
* [[Tom Lindsay (rugby union)|Tom Lindsay]], Rugby Union player
* [[Malcolm Mackintosh]], Special Operations Executive (SOE) operative and intelligence analyst
* [[Norman Macrae]], British journalist, former deputy editor of ''[[The Economist]]''
* [[Ernest Maddox]], eye surgeon and inventor of numerous optical instruments such as [[Maddox rod]] and [[Maddox wing]]
* [[Bob Marshall-Andrews]], politician
* [[Harry Melling (actor)|Harry Melling]], actor
* [[Thanos Papalexis]], convicted murderer
* [[Sajith Premadasa]], Sri Lankan politician (Leader of the opposition)
* [[Adam Rossington]], Middlesex cricketer
* [[Paul Sandifer]], neurologist
* [[Vir Sanghvi]], journalist, columnist, and talk show host
* [[Ernest Satow]], British scholar, diplomat and Japanologist
* [[Daniel Sharman]], actor
* [[Henry Shaw (botanist)|Henry Shaw]], botanist
* [[Tulip Siddiq]], Labour Member of Parliament<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://alumni.millhill.org.uk/news/where-are-they-now/47/47-Tulip-Siddiq|title=Tulip Siddiq|date=11 February 2019}}</ref>
* [[George Spencer-Brown]], mathematician
* [[Roger Spong]], international rugby union footballer, England and Great Britain
* [[Mitchell Symons]], journalist and writer
* [[Denis Thatcher|Sir Denis Thatcher Bt.]], husband of the former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher
* [[David Tinker]], Royal Navy officer killed in the Falklands War
* [[Lord Toulson]], Justice of the Supreme Court
* [[Patrick Troughton]], actor
* [[Austin Vince]], long distance adventure motorcyclist
* [[Eric A. Walker (historian)|Eric A. Walker]], Professor Emeritus of Imperial History at the University of Cambridge
* [[Herbert Ward (sculptor)|Herbert Ward]], explorer, writer and sculptor, whose statue ''Grief'' was presented to the school by the artist<ref>[https://archive.today/20130731113835/http://web802.pavilion.net/popups/creative-art1.html ''Grief'' at Mill Hill]</ref>
* [[Sir Frank William Wills|Sir Frank William Wills Kt.]], architect, surveyor and [[Lord Mayor of Bristol]]; member of the [[Wills tobacco]] family
* [[George Alfred Wills|Sir George Alfred Wills Bt.]] businessman and chairman  of [[Imperial Tobacco]]
* [[William Wills, 1st Baron Winterstoke]], businessman, [[Liberal Party (UK)|Liberal]] politician, [[High Sheriff of Bristol]] & 1st chairman of [[Imperial Tobacco]]

==References==
'''Notes'''
{{notelist}}
'''Citations'''
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite book|first=Roderick |last=Braithwaite|title='Strikingly Alive': The History of the Mill Hill School Foundation 1807–2007|publisher= Phillimore & Co.|isbn=978-1-86077-330-3|date=2006|location=Chichester}}
* Brett-James, Norman G. ''The Book of Remembrance and War Record of Mill Hill School 1914-1918'' (1919)
* Brett-James, Norman G. ''The Book of Remembrance and War Record of Mill Hill School 1939-1945'' (1948)
* Brett-James, Norman G. ''The History of Mill Hill School 1807-1923'' (revised ed. 1923)

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
{{Public schools (United Kingdom)}}
* {{Official website|https://www.millhill.org.uk/}}
* [http://www.isc.co.uk/schools/england/london-area/mill-hill/mill-hill-school Profile] on [[Independent Schools Council|ISC]] website
* [http://www.omclub.co.uk/ Old Millhillians Club]
* {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140516202139/http://www.millhillatwar.org.uk/ |date=16 May 2014 |title=Mill Hill at War, 1914–1919 }}
* [http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=22138 Institute of Historical Research and the History of Parliament Trust's early history of Mill Hill School]

{{Schools and colleges in Barnet}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:1807 establishments in England]]
[[Category:Boarding schools in London]]
[[Category:Educational institutions established in 1807]]
[[Category:Private co-educational schools in London]]
[[Category:Private schools in the London Borough of Barnet]]
[[Category:Member schools of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference]]
[[Category:Mill Hill]]
[[Category:People educated at Mill Hill School|*]]