Originally dual schools for girls and boys were envisaged for the site, which had been occupied by a substantial derelict house with spacious grounds, Bowdon Lodge.

The building was designed to accommodate one hundred and eighty children, thirty of whom were at nursery age, and the school was opened on Monday, 4 July 1910.

The school motto, which can still be seen on an illuminated light-oak board in the main hall, is Fortiter, Fideliter, Feliciter: Bravely, Faithfully and Cheerfully.

During the late 1960s the school expanded further, across Cavendish Road and into a large Victorian Villa known as 'Breeze Hill'.

The villa had extensive grounds, which the school put to good use with a number of Portakabin like classroom structures.

Speakman has since retired and the new head, Miss Stephanie Gill, took over her role at the start of the school year beginning 2014.

In December 2017, the school announced it was introducing a gender-neutral policy in communications for the sake of transgender and gender-questioning students, and would transition away from describing pupils as "girls".

After students received threats and abuse online in response to the pictures, school management, which had initially been supportive, asked that they be taken down.