Located in Chai Wan Gap, the school was founded in 1961 and its medium of instruction is English.

The current school campus on Chai Wan Road opened in the autumn of 1964.

[2] The school building was designed by the Architectural Office of the former Public Works Department, and cost HK$2,707,200.

[4] In February 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, around 130 form six students and 10 staff members of Shau Kei Wan Government Secondary School were sent to quarantine after spending time in an examination hall with two students who were later found to be infected.

[5] The incident prompted some Hong Kong educators to question whether schools should aim to fully reopen.