Dame Alice Owen's School
Dame Alice Owen's School (DAOS, or simply Dame Alice Owen's or Owen's) is an 11–18 mixed, partially selective secondary school and sixth form with academy status in Potters Bar, Hertfordshire, England. It is part of the Dame Alice Owen's Foundation; its trustees are the Worshipful Company of Brewers.
| Dame Alice Owen's School | |
|---|---|
| Address | |
Dugdale Hill Lane Potters Bar , , EN6 2DU England | |
| Coordinates | 51.6907°N 0.2070°W |
| Information | |
| Other names |
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| Type | Academy |
| Motto | In God is All Our Trust The Owen's Way |
| Established | 1613 |
| Founder | Alice Owen |
| Local authority | Hertfordshire County Council |
| Trust | Dame Alice Owen's Foundation |
| Specialists | Languages, Science, Music |
| Department for Education URN | 136554 Tables |
| Ofsted | Reports |
| Headteacher | Hannah Nemko |
| Gender | Mixed |
| Age range | 11–18 |
| Enrolment | 1,454 (2018) |
| Capacity | 1,416 |
| Colour(s) | Red and Black |
| Publication | The Arrow |
| Alumni | Old Owenians |
| Website | www |
It was founded in Islington as a boys' school for 30 students in 1613, which makes it one of the oldest schools in the United Kingdom, and is named after its founder, the 17th-century philanthropist Alice Owen. Over time, the boys' school expanded. A girls' school was built in 1886, and the two schools were merged in 1973; the mixed school moved to its current location at Dugdale Hill Lane in Potters Bar in stages between 1973 and 1976.
The school is one of the highest performing state schools in England and Wales in terms of the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) and GCE Advanced Level (A-Level) results, and is considered one of the best schools in the UK. In 2016, it was named the State Secondary School of the Year by The Sunday Times in the newspaper's rankings for the 2016–17 school year, and also received praise from Tatler and The Daily Telegraph. In 2020, it was named Regional State School of the Decade for the South East of England by The Sunday Times. The latest Ofsted Inspection Report was published in 2023 with the inspection team judging Dame Alice Owen's School Outstanding in all areas.