Thomas Howell was a Bristol-born merchant of Welsh origins, who became a Draper of the city of London and made his fortune trading with Spain and Portugal from 1507 to 1537.

[5] When he died in 1537, he bestowed in his will 12,000 golden ducats (about £2,200,000 today) to the Drapers' Company, the proceeds of which were to be given every year forever to four maiden orphans of his lineage.

In 1853, more than 300 years after the death of Howell, an Act of Parliament was passed, empowering the Court of Chancery to extend the trust to the establishment of girls' schools in Wales.

[7] The school had extensive grounds backing onto the Denbighshire countryside including a sports hall with climbing and abseiling facilities, caving, orienteering and an outdoor swimming pool.

[9] In June 2012, Rebecca Raven, an art teacher, won an unfair dismissal case against the school after an application for maternity leave.

[11] Dr Philip Dixon, of ATL Cymru, stated, "This is an appalling example to give to pupils who are, hopefully, being educated to be young, independent women with fulfilling careers and lives.

He described the disciplinary procedure undergone by Routledge (which was carried out by the brother of Robbie Locke, a school trustee) as "cack-handed" and "chaotic", saying the panel felt the dismissals were as a result of issues raised by Routledge regarding the conduct of a member of staff who was a good friend of Robbie and Nicola Locke (both trustees of the school) who allegedly pressured staff to fill in inspection questionnaires dishonestly.

Another member of staff, senior mistress Morwen Murray, was awarded damages in September 2013 for unlawful deduction of earnings after she took sick leave.

On 22 August, the school went into liquidation,[17] calling into question the payment of awards still owing to staff (Rebecca Raven, Bernie Routledge and Helen Price among others) and other creditors.

The NASUWT alleged that the bankruptcy was brought about because the school had been operating rent-free until the Lockes insisted on charging rent, changing the balance sheet substantially.