School Life
Types of facilities
01
Opened in 2000, the Creativity Centre, or CC as our girls call it, is designed to enhance our girls‘ education through research and creativity. This unique and inviting centre is beautifully decorated with interesting murals, mosaics and brightly coloured walls, and includes an open foyer, small amphitheatre, open-plan science lab and art area, as well as a sizeable kitchenette.
We are proud to offer our girls the benefit of our SMART Centre (St Mary‘s Accelerated Remedial and Therapy Centre). Academic gaps are identified and addressed, and our highly qualified and experienced remedial teachers and therapists offer expert support to our girls and their parents.
For more information, please contact: Ann Meyer – ameyer@stmarysdsg.co.za
With an impressive collection of over 14 000 items, including fiction and non-fiction books, charts, posters, DVDs, audiobooks and games, the Primary School Library provides ample resources for the eager and enquiring mind.
This spacious 3-story building offers a host of facilities to our girls, including the High School Library, IT Department, Counselling, classrooms, lecture theatre, Beanbag Room, Maker space with 3D Laser Printer, and learning areas equipped with high-speed broadband, Apple TVs and mobile learning devices.
02
Since its creation in 1999 our Sports Hall has set the scene for sporting excellence across all ages and disciplines. With two squash courts, an indoor hockey arena, netball courts, four badminton courts, a dedicated dance studio, an upstairs gymnastics area and ample space for a variety of additional indoor sporting disciplines, the popularity and practicality of our Sports Hall continues to grow.
We are fortunate enough to offer our girls two excellent swimming pools. The Primary School pool is heated and has 6 x 25-yard lanes with anti-ripple lane ropes, and also includes a diving board. Our state-of-the-art High School pool provides the ultimate in aquatics training with 12 x 25-metre lanes with anti-ripple lane ropes and professional starting blocks. This pool caters for swimming, waterpolo, and underwater hockey.
With 7 hard courts, we are able to offer our girls the use of 5 dedicated tennis courts and 2 netball courts.
Our world-class full-field water-based Astroturf can be set-up as 2 x 8-a-side fields and can also be converted to 4 x 6-a-side fields.
Our full-sized grass fields are used for athletics, softball, soccer, netball, cross-country, Physical Education lessons and rounders.
03
Built in 1939, our beautiful Chapel seats 320 girls and is often hired by members of the Guild of St Mary‘s Old Girls for weddings.
Seating 500 people, our world-class, all-weather venue is used for High School assemblies, play productions and musical and cultural evenings.
The High School Drama Studio seats between 180 and 200 guests. With its state-of-the-art lighting and versatile space offering, it is used for a variety of events and shows.
St Mary‘s Soundscapes, as our Music Department is known, is a vibrant and energetic learning and practice space. As one of the first schools to have its own recording studio, we provide a host of opportunities to those girls keen on the magic of music. The Sabine Wing, our teaching and practice facility, consists of 22 teaching venues that are all sound-proof and available for hire to the wider St Mary‘s community.
The School Hall is rich in heritage and memories. Today, it seats 350 pupils and has excellent lighting and sound equipment. It is used for a number of events such as formal dances, exam venue, interhouse cultural events, plays, and external productions and performances.
04
The Blues Uniform Shop is open 5 days a week from Mon – Thurs 07:00-15:30, Fri 07:00 – 14:45 during school terms. Parents are welcome to pop in to buy selected items or to make an appointment for personal assistance in preparing their daughter for the school year. The Blues carries the full range of school and sporting uniforms, as well as school and book bags.
Mrs Liesel Schirmer – The Blues Manager. 031 764 2412 · theblues@stmarysdsg.co.za
Manned by a professional day nurse from Mon – Thurs 07:00-15:30, Fri 07:00 – 14:45, and by a professional night nurse after hours, our 5-bed Sanatorium (San) provides assistance in the event that any of our girls injure themselves or feel unwell. The nurses in the San oversee all sporting events, carry out yearly checks on our girls, and also arrange professional first aid training for staff members that require it.
We offer a daily morning bus service from Hillcrest and Westville to St Mary’s for pupils who live locally. We also offer a bus service from Ballito every Monday morning to bring Boarders back to school for the week.
If you are interested in your daughter catching the bus then please contact Mrs Natalie Sokhela on admin@stmarysdsg.co.za for the relevant forms.
Catering for both junior and senior primary girls, our Saint Kids aftercare programme provides a warm and caring environment for our girls. Our attentive and thoughtful staff members ensure there is a balance between work and play – giving our girls the opportunity to have fun and ensuring their homework is completed. Contact your phase secretary if you wish to enrol your daughter.
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