Walford has been a school for girls for 130 years. This year, they celebrate the special milestone and the extraordinary Walford graduates who have excelled in non-traditional areas of education.

Walford girls have always been encouraged to achieve their best; inspired by the trailblazers who have come before them, they’re not afraid of breaking new ground. As the esteemed school celebrates its 130th year, the encouragement of women in traditionally male-dominated fields is still as relevant now as it was when the school was founded in 1893 – in fact, over 70 percent of Walford’s Year 12 graduates last year chose a university pathway in STEM-related fields.

But this progressiveness started many years earlier. Educator and suffragette, Miss Lydia Adamson founded Walford Girls School in 1893. South Australia was the first state in the country and only the fourth in the world to grant women the right to vote and Miss Adamson was vocal to the cause, spearheading a school that enabled and fiercely encouraged advanced education for women.

The success of the school was swift, and as early as 1906 two of her students, May Williams and Mary Langman, were the first Walford girls to graduate from Adelaide University, both with Honours Degrees in Classics.

At around the same time, another young woman was making her mark in education. Miss Ellen Benham was the eighth woman to graduate from the University of Adelaide in 1892 with a Science Degree, and the first female academic to lecture students in Botany at the University. In December 1912, Ellen Benham bought Walford School, introducing Science to the curriculum, along with Mathematics, Physiology and Botany. Jean Murray was just one of many outstanding students; she won a scholarship to the University of Adelaide in 1918, gaining her Bachelor of Science in 1921 and later a Master of Science. Walford girls, even then, were at the forefront of education, studying non-traditional subjects and pursuing careers of their choice.

Walford was privately owned by its first three headmistresses. The third of these was Miss Mabel Jewell Baker, who also purchased ‘Woodlyn’, the heritage home on the current Walford site. ‘Woodlyn’ has provided accommodation to boarding students since 1920.

Since its early days, Walford has benefited from the exemplary visions of extraordinary women who have been devoted to Walford and girls’ education. And in 2023, the 130th year of Walford, the tradition continues as the school welcomes the ninth Principal, esteemed educator, Dr Deborah Netolicky.

A New Era

This year, as Walford celebrates its 130th year, it also welcomes its ninth skilled and highly experienced educational leader, principal Dr Deborah Netolicky.

New to the school and to the state, Dr Netolicky brings extensive experience in teaching and school leadership from a number of schools in Perth, Melbourne and London. She was also recently named by The Educator Australia as one of Australia’s most influential and innovative educators.

Walford Anglican School for Girls
316 Unley Road, Hyde Park
08 8272 6555
walford.sa.edu.au
@walfordschool