Wesley Girls' Senior High School

Wesley Girls' Senior High School
Cape Coast, Ghana
Information
TypeMission Secondary/High School
MottoLive Pure, Speak True, Right Wrong, Follow the King
Established1836 (1836)
Mfantsipim School
Head of school
Ms. Evelyn Nana Efua Assan
Staff68
GenderFemale
Enrollment3000
ColorsGreen   and yellow  
AffiliationWesleyan - Methodist Church
AddressP.O. Box 61
Cape Coast, Ghana Ghana
Telephone+233 3321 32218
HousesBellamy, Ellis, Waldron, Wrigley, Wardbrew, Compton, Abban, Garnett Acheampong, Thompson Djokoto, Oppong-Ankomah Siameh
Websitewesleygirls.edu.gh

Wesley Girls' High School (WGHS) is an educational institution for girls in Cape Coast in the Central region of Ghana.[1] It was founded in 1836 by Harriet Wrigley, the wife of a Methodist minister.[2] The school is named after the founder of Methodism, John Wesley.

History

Founding Years

On 15 September 1836, Harriet Wrigley arrived in Cape Coast accompanying her husband Reverend George Wrigley (the second Methodist missionary to be posted to the Gold Coast).[3] Upon her arrival, she founded the school 25 girls. She offered classes to the girls in catechism, reading, writing, sewing and general housekeeping at the Manse in Standfast Hall near Victoria Park in Cape Coast.

[4]5 months after her arrival, on 8 February 1837, she died of malaria[5] and it was not till later on that year in 1837 that the school found another head; Elizabeth Waldron. She remained at the helm for a total of 43 years and laid the foundation for what would become The Wesleyan Girls' School and Training Home.[6]

By 1884, the school had garnered a reputation for its academic achievements. This incentivised the Methodist Church to make arrangements for the creation of a secondary division of Wesley Girls'. As a result, the then headmaster of Mfantsipim School, Reverend W.M Canell established the secondary section with 20 girls. Both the primary and secondary divisions experienced periods of closure due to financial difficulties. For a time, the secondary part was combined with Mfantsipim to become the Collegiate School before regaining independence in 1900.[7]

Development in the Early 20th Century (1900s – 1920s)

Shortly after regaining its identity, the school was led by H. J. Ellis until 1913. During the transition period following her departure, it was administered by a group of deaconesses before Evelyn Bellamy assumed headship in 1914 until 1943. During her tenure, on 8 June 1925 Kwegyir Aggrey visited the school grounds at the Manse and penned in the logbook the now famous words, " to educate a boy is to educate and individual to educate a girl is to educate a family".[7]

Mid-Century Expansion

In 1951, the headmistress at the time Olive Compton permanently separated the secondary section and moved to its present location at Kakumdo.The design of the new school grounds was conceptualised by Compton herself and was inspired by the appearance of the HMS Excellence, a ship.[8]

The last missionary headmistress, Clarice Garnett, took over the leadership of the school up from 1960 until 1981.[7] She oversaw the establishment of a Science Sixth Form in the school. Although an Arts Sixth Form was established under Olive Compton, the addition of the Science Sixth Form meant that students could complete Advanced Levels in the school eliminating the need for students to transfer to other schools.[9]

Wesley Girls' High School was ranked 68th out of the top 100 best high schools in Africa by Africa Almanac in 2003, based upon quality of education, student engagement, strength and activities of alumnae, school profile, internet and news visibility.[10]

Past and Present Headmistresses

HeadmistressTenureYear group
Harriet Wrigley1836 – 1837— (Missionary/Founder)
Elizabeth Waldron1837 – 1880— (Missionary)
H. J. Ellis1900 – 1913— (Missionary)
Methodist Deaconesses1913 – 1914— (Missionary)
Evelyn Bellamy1914 – 1943— (Missionary)
Olive Compton1943 – 1960— (Missionary)
Clarice Garnett1960 – 1981— (Missionary)
Rosina Acheampong1981 – 19971958
Nancy Thompson1997 – 20031960
Betty Djokoto2003 – 20171975
Kay Oppong-Ankomah2018 – 20231980
Jeanette Ruby Siameh2023 – 20261983
Evelyn Nana Afua Assan2026 – present1995

[7]

Curriculum

  • Home Economics
  • Business
  • General Science
  • Visual Arts
  • General Arts[11]

Campus and Architecture

Location and Architectural Origins

The school is situated in the suburb of Kakumdo in Cape Coast, roughly 5 kilometres inland from the Atlantic coastline among several other academic institutions, including the nearby University of Cape Coast.[12]

The earliest buildings on the Kakumdo campus, including the chapel, Wallisberg ( Waldron, Ellis Bellamy and Wrigley) Houses and the original classroom blocks were designed by the British architect duo Maxwell Fry and Jane Drew in Tropical Modernism,[13] an architectural movement that adapted European modernist building styles to fit the hot and humid climate of the then Gold Coast. Other prominent schools with buildings designed by them include Wesley Girls' sister school, Mfantsipim,[14] and Aburi Girls' Senior High School.[13]

Layout

The Kakumdo campus was planned around an open-ended rectangular courtyard inspired by both the British collegiate quadrangle and traditional West African compounds. On the left side of the arrangement, the Wrigley House dormitory block connected directly into single-story classrooms and teacher accommodation. At the end of this line of interconnected houses on the left stood the three-storey structure housing Bellamy House, where the top two storeys served as student dormitories while the ground floor underneath contained the original administrative offices (the Old Admin Block).[15]

These dormitory blocks joined directly to the combined chapel, belfry and water tower which served as the architectural and communal focal point of the campus. Positioned at the highest and central section of the campus, the structure was in line with Fry and Drew’s design principle of creating focal elements within educational complexes. The chapel also featured a Greek Cross tracery pattern on its ventilating wall, made from concrete mullions and transoms, which allowed airflow while incorporating Christian symbolism into the design.[15]

The layout of the school features walkways connecting the first four houses, and prominent public structures like the assembly hall, chapel, and old administrative block (located beneath Bellamy House). The school features long colonial-era classroom blocks with wide verandas, pitched roofs typical of mid-20th-century Ghanaian institutional architecture.[16]

To enable cooling, the buildings were built with high-level wall vents made of wooden slats, brise-soleils to effect cooling in the girls' accommodations, and natural ventilation throughout. [16]The buildings themselves incorporated reinforced concrete, local stone, and Tyrollean cement finishes [14]and high-traffic areas like corridors featured terrazzo or polished concrete. Some of these features were later incorporated into the later Comabrew ( Compton, Abban and Wardbrew) Houses built in the late 1950s to 1960s.

The newest housing option; that is, the Valley Houses, Thompson-Djokoto , Garnett Acheapong, and Oppong Ankomah-Siameh—take their own turn, being primarily built throughout the 21st century and reflect more contemporary building styles in Ghana.

Facilities

Named Facility Notes
Barbara Bowman Sick Bay Named in honour of Miss Barbara Bowman, who taught English from 1956 and served as assistant headmistress from 1961 to 1972.[17]

[18]

  • Physics, Biology and Chemistry Labs
  • Book Store
  • Basketball Court
  • Football Field
  • Old Assembly Hall
  • New Assembly Hall
  • Dining Hall
  • English Lab[18]

Controversy

In December 2024, the school was sued by Shafic Osman, a private legal practitioner for allegedly denying Muslim students the right to practice their faith in the school.[19][20]

Notable alumni

References

  1. ↑ "We've made progress in Wesley Girls' school impasse— Peace Council". Daily Graphic. Accra, Ghana. 18 May 2021. Retrieved 2021-05-20.
  2. ↑ Abyna-Ansaa Adjei (2007). Ghana at 50. National Planning Committee, Ghana at 50. p. 95. ISBN 978-9988-0-9707-3.
  3. ↑ Micots, Courtnay (December 2015). "Age of Elegance: An Italianate Sobrado on the Gold Coast" (PDF). African Studies Quarterly. 16 (1): 20.
  4. ↑ "Wesley Girls Senior High, Cape Coast". SchoolsInGH.
  5. ↑ Amoako-Gyampah, Akwasi Kwarteng (2023-03-29). Education in Ghana: History and Politics. African Books Collective. ISBN 978-9956-553-16-7.
  6. ↑ Pritchard, John (2016-04-22). Methodists and their Missionary Societies 1760-1900. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-317-09706-8.
  7. 1 2 3 4 188th Speech & Prize- Giving Day Magazine. Ghana. 2025. p. 4.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  8. ↑ Wesley Girls' High School Handbook. February 2023.
  9. ↑ "wey gey hey 96 yearbook - Flip eBook Pages 1-50 | AnyFlip". anyflip.com. Retrieved 2026-07-21.
  10. ↑ "top20highschools". Africa Almanac. 1 October 2003. Archived from the original on 14 January 2007. Retrieved 19 June 2016. The research leading up to the publication of the 100 Best High Schools in Africa began with the launching of the website in December 2000.
  11. ↑ "Wesley Girls Senior High, Cape Coast". GhanaHighSchools.com. Retrieved 2025-05-03.
  12. ↑ "Google Maps". Google Maps. Retrieved 2026-07-21.
  13. 1 2 akadimag (2024-03-23). "Tropical Modernism: Ghana's architecture and independence". AKADi Magazine. Retrieved 2026-07-21.
  14. 1 2 Holland, Jessica (2013-02-08). "Fry and Drew: Buildings Now". Transnational Architecture Group. Retrieved 2026-07-21.
  15. 1 2 Liscombe, Rhodri (June 2006). "Modernism in Late Imperial British West Africa: The Work of Maxwell Fry and Jane Drew, 1946–56". Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians. 65 (2): 14–15. doi:10.2307/25068264. JSTOR 25068264.
  16. 1 2 "What is Tropical Modernism? · V&A". Victoria and Albert Museum. Retrieved 2026-07-21.
  17. ↑ Timpo, Emelia (2023). Perseverance: A Memoir — One Woman's Journey from Ghana to the United Nations & Beyond. Adinkra Publications. p. 41.
  18. 1 2 "Wesley Girls Senior High, Cape Coast". GhanaHighSchools.com. Retrieved 2025-05-03.
  19. ↑ "Wesley Girls SHS sued for allegedly denying Muslim students Islamic practices". 2024-12-24. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
  20. ↑ "Lawyer sues Wesley Girls SHS for alleged religious discrimination - MyJoyOnline". www.myjoyonline.com. 2024-12-24. Retrieved 2024-12-24.
  21. ↑ "Art: Betty Acquah | Maple Tree Literary Supplement -issue17". www.mtls.ca. 2014. Retrieved 1 January 2025.
  22. ↑ "NPP Candidate Sure Of Winning Lower Manya Krobo Seat". Peace FM Online. 9 November 2012. Archived from the original on 4 December 2021. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
  23. ↑ "President Akufo-Addo Swears In 4 Ambassadors, 1 High Commissioner". Presidency of Ghana. Communications Bureau. 2 August 2017. Archived from the original on 4 December 2021. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
  24. ↑ "Governor Dakin announces new judicial appointments". GOV.UK. Retrieved 2021-01-09.
  25. ↑ "Patience Akyianu". Who's Who in Ghana. Retrieved 1 January 2025.
  26. ↑ "Profile of new Police CID Director-General DCOP Lydia Yaako Donkor". Citi Newsroom. 19 March 2025. Retrieved 17 July 2025.
  27. ↑ Online, Peace FM. "Mahama Picks Joyce Bawa Mogtari As His Special Aide". Peacefmonline.com - Ghana news. Archived from the original on 2020-10-27. Retrieved 2021-03-01.
  28. ↑ "Emma on the ball". Modern Ghana. 16 October 2009. Retrieved 1 January 2025.
  29. ↑ "Hannah Tetteh, Foreign Affairs Minister". GhanaWeb. Retrieved 1 January 2025.
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