Kincoppal School


Kincoppal-Rose Bay, School of the Sacred Heart, is an independent Roman Catholic early learning, primary and secondary day and boarding school, predominantly for girls, located in Rose Bay, an eastern suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Established in 1883 through the amalgamation of the Convent of the Sacred Heart and Kincoppal, today the school is non-selective, with a co-educational primary school and a girls' only secondary school, catering for approximately 971 students from kindergarten to year 12, including 150 boarders.
Kincoppal-Rose Bay is a member of an international group of schools conducted by the Society of the Sacred Heart, a Catholic teaching order, established by Saint Madeleine Sophie Barat in France in 1800. The school is affiliated with the Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia, the Junior School Heads Association of Australia, the Australian Boarding Schools' Association, and is a member of the Association of Heads of Independent Girls' Schools.

History

Kincoppal traces its origins to the establishment of two schools. The first, the Convent of the Sacred Heart, Rose Bay, was founded in 1882. The other, named Kincoppal was established at Elizabeth Bay in 1909. In 1971 these two schools were amalgamated on the Convent of the Sacred Heart campus and became known as Kincoppal-Rose Bay, School of the Sacred Heart.
In 1882, five religious from the Society of the Sacred Heart travelled from England on SS Orient to establish a school of the Sacred Heart in Sydney. They selected the residence of Claremont on the Vaucluse, New South Wales peninsula, to begin their task of offering students the educational vision of St. Madeleine Sophie Barat, the founder of their Society.
The original building, leased in 1882 and later purchased by the Society of the Sacred Heart, was a private home, built in 1851. The first permanent school building, completed in 1888, was the five-level central facade. The Chapel, by the architect John Horbury Hunt, was begun in 1897 and completed in 1900. Buildings were gradually added to meet the needs of school, community and novitiate. The secondary school was solely a boarding school until the 1960s, when day students were admitted.
The primary day school was located in the main school building until 1951 when an adjoining property, was purchased. The building was set up as a primary school and named Barat-Burn. This building was demolished and replaced with the present Junior school in 1966.
In 1982 the school celebrated the centenary of its foundation and the arrival of the first religious in Australia. To commemorate the occasion Sister Leila Barlow wrote and published "Living Stones", a book reviewing the spirit, tradition and events of the school's first hundred years. In 2007, the school celebrated 125 years of Cor Unum.
The school's name derives from John Hughes's 'Kincoppal' property at Elizabeth Bay, named after a rock in Sydney Harbour that from a certain viewing position looks like a horse's head., the anglicisation of 'ceann' and 'capall'
Today, Kincoppal comprises a fully co-educational Junior School P-6 for day students, and a Senior School for girls 7-12, with both day and boarding students attending from metropolitan, rural and international destinations.

Principals

Campus

Kincoppal-Rose Bay is situated on a single campus in suburban Rose Bay, overlooking Sydney Harbour. The school features a mix of 19th century and modern buildings, gardens and fields.
facilities of the school included:
There are four primary houses at Kincoppal Rose Bay, all with aboriginal names. Each year separate junior school and high school carnivals are held for both swimming and athletics, and all students compete for their house. There are house captains in both the junior school and high school, who arrange cheers for the students to participate in. At the carnivals, there is a spirited cup and a points cup. In house colours, students also participate in inter-house singing competitions.
The boarding school has three primary houses, each named after a significant contributor to the Society of the Sacred Heart. Throughout the school year, inter-house competitions are undertaken, where all girls wear their house shirt. During the first term, an 'In-Weekend' is held, during which all boarders must stay in the boarding house. The first competition takes place here with a trivia night for all boarders from years 7-12, with house points awarded, and a trophy for the winning house at the end of the year.
Kincoppal-Rose Bay has been used as a set for a number of films including Looking for Alibrandi and Our Lips Are Sealed. The school has also featured in numerous television series', including "Spirited" and "Spyforce".

Notable alumnae