# Calrossy Anglican School

The Calrossy Anglican School (Calrossy) is an independent, Anglican, day and boarding school for boys and girls and incorporates a primary and preschool. Calrossy is located in East Tamworth, a suburb of Tamworth, a city in the New England region of New South Wales, Australia.
Established in 1919, the school has a non-selective enrolment policy, and caters for 470 secondary girls and 155 secondary boys and 375 primary students. With 180 boarders, Calrossy has one of the largest boarding enrolments among New South Wales boarding schools. In 2006, Calrossy joined with William Cowper Anglican Boys High School and William Cowper Primary School, to create the Calrossy Anglican School. The school now incorporates a secondary day and boarding school for girls (Calrossy), a secondary day and boarding school for boys, a co-educational prep and primary school, and a co-educational preschool, with total enrolments of 1000.
The school is affiliated with the Junior School Heads Association of Australia (JSHAA), the Australian Boarding Schools' Association (ABSA), the Alliance of Girls' Schools Australasia (AGSA), and is an affiliate member of the Association of Heads of Independent Girls' Schools (AHIGS). Calrossy is administered by the Anglican Diocese of Armidale.

## History

The school was named as the Tamworth Church of England Girls' School (TCEGS), by a group of parishioners from St John's Parish Church, Tamworth, led by the Vicar, Canon Rupert Fairbrother with seventeen foundation students. The school occupied a site close to the church in East Tamworth. Lessons were held in the church hall, and the boarding house was an old building on the corner of Brisbane and Carthage Streets.
The school moved to its present site in Brisbane Street in 1923, to a property formerly owned by John Patterson. His home, the centrepiece of the new school, was named 'Calrossy' after his family property in Scotland. The school adopted the name in 1969.
TCEGS remained a parish school until 1936, when it was taken over by the Diocese of Armidale and administered in a similar way to the diocese's other schools, The Armidale School and the New England Girls' School.
William Cowper Anglican Secondary Boys' School, Tamworth NSW
William Cowper Anglican (Primary) School opened, with Ann Brown as Principal in 1999 on the grounds of Calrossy where the secondary boys' school also started in 2001.
William Cowper Anglican Secondary Boys' School was opened in 2001. It was in existence from 2001–2005 before amalgamating with the girls school, Calrossy Anglican School to become Tamworth Anglican College (2006–2007). In 2008 the school changed its name to Calrossy Anglican School. The primary school and the secondary boys' school moved to the William Cowper Campus on Moore Creek Road in 2002.
The inaugural Principal of William Cowper Anglican Secondary Boys' School was Mr Nicholas Brown, who resigned at the end of Term 1, 2001. Mr Graham Payne acted as Master in Charge of the school until the appointment of Mr Stephen Laurence in August 2001. Mr Stephen Laurence remained in this position until April 2005. Mr Joseph Goldsworthy took on the role of Acting Head of William Cowper Anglican Secondary Boys' School until the amalgamation and then filled the role of Head of Secondary Boys until his retirement in 2016.
In 2006, Calrossy joined with William Cowper Anglican Boys High School and William Cowper Primary School, to create the Tamworth Anglican College (TAC), subsequently the school's name was changed to Tamworth Anglican College – Calrossy Campus. The amalgamation created a Pre-school to Year 12 with school, with a co-educational primary school and two single-sex high schools (Secondary Girls and Secondary Boys). Each sub-school has retained its own crest and traditions. In 2007, the name "Tamworth Anglican College" was changed to Calrossy Anglican School. The senior school for girls is now therefore named Calrossy Anglican School – Brisbane Street Campus.

## Principals

| Period | Details |
| 1919–1921 | Matilda Stockfeld |
| 1921 | Florence Suiter |
| 1922–1925 | Katharine Bedford |
| 1926 | Muriel Hammond |
| 1926 | Sidney Warren |
| 1927–1929 | Annie Dannevig |
| 1930–1940 | Annie Parr |
| 1941–1951 | Gwendoline Horton |
| 1951 | Rita Allen (Acting) |
| 1952–1961 | Audrie Stafford Smith |
| 1961–1968 | Winifred Wetherall |
| 1968–1976 | Frances Stacey |
| 1976–1988 | Peter Smart |
| 1989–2001 | Graham Hilder |
| 1999–2006 (William Cowper Anglican School Primary) | Ann Brown |
| 2001–2005 (William Cowper Anglican School Boys) | Stephen Laurence |
| 2001–2016 | Elisabeth Jackson |
| 2016–present | David Smith |

## Curriculum

Calrossy Anglican School is registered and accredited with the New South Wales Board of Studies, and therefore follows the mandated curriculum for all years. The school offers core and elective subjects designed to prepare students for a range of opportunities in tertiary studies and career pathways.
Students in Years 11 and 12 may follow different Higher School Certificate (HSC) pathways, and complete vocational courses at TAFE or at school. Students may also undertake school-based traineeships, linking HSC studies with workplace developed competencies. Current subject choices include Agriculture, Agricultural Technology, Modern and Ancient History, Australian History, Geography, Civics and Citizenship, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Business Studies, Christian Studies, Commerce, Design and Technology, Drama, Earth Sciences, Economics, English, Food Technology, French, Hospitality, Information and Software Technology and Design, Japanese, Music, Personal Development, Health and Physical Education (PDHPE), Photography, Society and Culture, Studies in Religion, Technology, Textiles Technology, Textiles and Design and Visual Arts.
Extra-curriculum activities include music groups, sporting teams, public speaking, debating and drama.

### Music

The school offers music ensembles, such as orchestra, jazz band, string ensemble, cello choir, woodwind ensemble and choir. Links with the Tamworth Regional Conservatorium of Music enable the school to provide private tuition in piano, guitar, violin, clarinet, flute, cello and drums on the school grounds.
Music activities include a house music competition, carol service, Creative Skills week and recital evenings.

### Sport

Calrossy offers sports, from beginners to advanced level, and offers pathways into professional sporting accolades. The school participates in local community sporting associations, where competition takes place throughout the week outside school hours.
Calrossy is an affiliate member of the Hunter Region Independent Schools group which provides a sporting pathway to state and national levels as part of the Combined Independent School Sporting Association. There is an opportunity for students to represent HRIS and AICES in hockey, netball, waterpolo, swimming, athletics, cross-country, tennis and tennis. Other sports available include touch football, basketball, soccer, equestrian and softball.
Calrossy holds annual inter-house competitions in swimming and athletics, and a Sports Day involving a range of sports in term three.

### Public speaking

Students may participate and compete in public speaking activities, including Mock Trials, Model United Nations, local, state and national debating and public speaking.

### Exchange

An overseas exchange program is in place for students in Years 11 and 12, whereby students may attend schools in England or Canada. Some students arrange short term stays at the completion of their Year 10 School Certificate course.

## Academic Results

Calrossy has had stable academic results over the years with the exception of a few students performing extraordinarily well including Larissa Smyth in 2023 who achieved an ATAR of 99.90, the schools highest ever and Ella Ward who achieved first in the state for Primary Industries.

## Fees

Calrossy is the most expensive in Tamworth with fees starting at over $6,500 for Kindergarten to just under $20,000 for year 12 day students, the fees for boarding in year 12 in 2024 are over $40,000. Calrossy offers bursaries and sibling discounts.

## Notable alumnae

Alumnae of Calrossy were previously known as Old Girls and were part of the school's alumni association, the Old Girls' Union (OGU). Given the amalgamation with William Cowper Anglican School in 2005, the group has been renamed Calrossy alumni association and it incorporates ex-students from each of the schools that were combined to form Calrossy.
Some notable Calrossy Old Girls include:

### Academic

* Bronwyn Davies – Professor of Education at the University of Western Sydney; author

### Media, entertainment and the arts

* Belinda Giblin – actress
* Jennifer Hoy – First Violin with the Sydney Symphony
* Liz Tomkins – filmmaker
* Chad Morgan – Country Music Singer