[3] Red Maids' school was founded in 1634 from the bequest of John Whitson,[4] Mayor of Bristol 1603–4 and 1615–16 and in November 1605 he was returned to parliament for Bristol at a by-election, subsequently representing the town in the assemblies of 1614, 1621, 1625, and 1626, making it the oldest surviving girls' school in England.

The entrance lodge of the existing site in Westbury-on-Trym dates from 1830 and has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade II listed building.

Governors of Redland's school included Agnes Beddoe, Elizabeth and Emily Sturge, who were leading suffragists and campaigners for women's higher education in Victorian times.

[10] Numerous collections of records of Red Maids' School and John Whitson are held at Bristol Archives, including (Ref.

The event is timed to commemorate the attempted murder of Whitson on 7 November 1626, when Christopher Callowhill stabbed him in the face with a dagger.

On Founders' Commemoration Day all the girls march through Bristol City centre accompanied by police and a rolling road closure, from Welsh Back to the cathedral, where a service takes place.

Attached to Redland Hall is the Sixth Form Centre, which has recently undergone refurbishment.

There is an artificial turf (AstroTurf), opened in 2005, an indoor sports hall and two additional netball/tennis courts.

The school has a house system with competitions in activities such as dance, music, hockey, netball and drama.

The four houses are named after four of John Whitson's major ships: Each year the school hosts a careers conference for girls from across the south-west of the UK and beyond.