Notre Dame School is an independent Catholic

Catholic

The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...

 girls day school

Day school

A day school—as opposed to a boarding school—is an institution where children are given educational instruction during the day and after which children/teens return to their homes...

 located in Cobham

Cobham, Surrey

Cobham is a town in the Borough of Elmbridge in Surrey, England, about south-west of central London and north of Leatherhead. Elmbridge has been acclaimed by the Daily Mail as the best place to live in the UK, and Cobham is a prosperous part of the London commuter belt...

, Surrey

Surrey

Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. The school includes both a preparatory school

Preparatory school (UK)

In English language usage in the former British Empire, the present-day Commonwealth, a preparatory school is an independent school preparing children up to the age of eleven or thirteen for entry into fee-paying, secondary independent schools, some of which are known as public schools...

 and a senior school.

History

Notre Dame School was founded at Burwood House in 1937, as a member of the Company of Mary Our Lady (a Catholic

Catholic

The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...

 Foundation founded by St Jeanne de Lestonnac

Jeanne de Lestonnac

Saint Jeanne de Lestonnac , alternately known as Joan of Lestonnac, was a Roman Catholic saint and founderess of the order The Company of Mary Our Lady. Though she lived in the 17th century her body remains incorrupt....

 in 1607). In 2003 the school’s ownership passed from The Company of Mary Our Lady to a
charitable trust, and is now managed by the trustees and a board of governors, several of whom are Sisters

Nun

A nun is a woman who has taken vows committing her to live a spiritual life. She may be an ascetic who voluntarily chooses to leave mainstream society and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent...

 from the Order

Religious order

A religious order is a lineage of communities and organizations of people who live in some way set apart from society in accordance with their specific religious devotion, usually characterized by the principles of its founder's religious practice. The order is composed of initiates and, in some...

. The present headmistress was appointed in 2003.

Anniversary

Cardinal

Cardinal (Catholicism)

A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...

 Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, Archbishop of Westminster

Archbishop of Westminster

The Archbishop of Westminster heads the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Westminster, in England. The incumbent is the Metropolitan of the Province of Westminster and, as a matter of custom, is elected President of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales, and therefore de facto spokesman...

, was the main celebrant at a special Mass held at the school to celebrate both the 70th anniversary of the school and 400 years of the Company of Mary Our Lady on Tuesday 15 May 2007. The Mass was also attended by His Excellency Archbishop Faustino Sainz Muñoz

Faustino Sainz Muñoz

Faustino Sainz Muñoz is a Spanish prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the Nuncio to Great Britain from 2004 until December 2010, having been appointed by Pope John Paul II in 2004.-Biography:...

, Apostolic Nuncio, Bishop Kieran Conry

Kieran Conry

Kieran Thomas Conry is the Roman Catholic Bishop of Arundel and Brighton.-Early life and ordination:...

 and Bishop Bernard Longley

Bernard Longley

Bernard Longley is an English prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He was named the Archbishop of Birmingham on 1 October 2009, and installed by Bishop David McGough and presented with his crozier by Archbishop Vincent Nichols, his predecessor, in St Chad's Cathedral at a Solemn Mass on 8...

.

Houses

The pupils of both schools are divided into four Houses, which compete in such things as sport and drama. The Houses are named as follows:

• Jeanne (Prep) Arundel (Senior)
• Michel (Prep) Burwood (Senior)
• Richard (Prep) D'abernon (Senior)
• Gaston (Prep) Ellesmere (Senior)

Associations

The school has membership of the Girls' Schools Association

Girls' Schools Association

The Girls' Schools Association is the professional association of the heads of independent girls' schools in the UK and overseas and is a constituent member of the Independent Schools Council .-History:...

, the Incorporated Association of Preparatory Schools and the Catholic Independent Schools' Conference.

Notable former pupils

• Sacha Mascolo-Tarbuck, head of hairdressing company Toni & Guy
  Toni & Guy
  - History :Toni & Guy is a global hairdressing and education business founded in London, United Kingdom in 1963 by brothers Giuseppe and Gaetano Mascolo. They were later joined by younger brothers Bruno and Anthony...
  
  and daughter of co-founder Toni Mascolo.