Explore Heep Yunn

Ms. Margaret Johnstone, a missionary of the Female Education Society, founded Fairlea Girls’ School on Bonham Road (the present site of St. Paul’s College) to provide basic education for orphans, rescued servants, and daughters of Chinese Christians. With the support of the Anglican Church, the building was subsequently purchased, and Ms. Johnstone was appointed Headmistress of Fairlea Girls’ School.

The Anglican Church established Victoria Home and Orphanage next to Fairlea Girls’ School on Bonham Road to provide shelter for homeless orphans and underprivileged girls.

As the Anglican Church planned to establish St. John’s Hall on Bonham Road, Fairlea Girls’ School was relocated to Babington Path. (Note: Meanwhile, the premises of St. Stephen’s Girls’ College on Caine Road were damaged, and in 1918, the school moved into Fairlea’s premises on Babington Path. The two schools operated independently.)

Fairlea Girls’ School and St. Stephen’s Girls’ College relocated to 2 Lyttelton Road and shared the same premises.

By order of the Director of Education and the Anglican Diocese, Fairlea Girls’ School was amalgamated with the Victoria Home and Orphanage at Sung Wong Toi and named Heep Yunn School. The present site (1 Farm Road) was granted by the government for the construction of the school building. Mrs Cheung Chinn Yee Ching, then Headmistress of Fairlea Girls’ School, was appointed the first Headmistress of Heep Yunn School.

On 23 October, Sir Andrew Caldecott, then Governor of Hong Kong, laid the foundation stone.

On 19 May, the Main Building was completed. The dedication service was officiated by Bishop Mok Sau Tseng, the first Chinese Anglican bishop in Hong Kong. Classes formally commenced under the Chinese-school “6-3-3” system. The school also admitted boarders, which accounted for about one third of the student body.

During the summer holidays, a free school was organised. Students served as volunteer teachers, teaching children living in the To Kwa Wan and Ho Man Tin districts.

The work of the free school was expanded, with volunteer teaching activities held on Wednesday and Saturday afternoons.

With the outbreak of the Pacific War and the fall of Hong Kong, the school was forced into suspension. The campus was occupied by the Japanese army and was used in turn as quarters for the Japanese Navy and Army.

Upon Hong Kong’s liberation after the war, Headmistress Mrs. Cheung Chinn Yee Ching, together with Rev. Canon George She, negotiated with the British forces on 18 January, and the campus was returned to the school. The school officially resumed classes on 8 February, initially admitting a total of 309 boys and girls before later returning to a girls’ school.

The school held its first post-war Speech Day after its reopening.

The gymnasium was opened.

Senior Middle II English-stream students began sitting the Hong Kong School Certificate Examination.

The free school was resumed. The school allocated part of the day-school students’ donations to fund its operation. Students of the free school only needed to pay a deposit of 50 cents for admission. Around 40 students were enrolled in the early stage.

The double-stream system was formally implemented. From Junior Middle I onwards, students were divided into Chinese-medium and English-medium classes, with the arrangement extended annually, level by level.

Senior Middle II Chinese-stream students began sitting the Hong Kong Chinese School Certificate Examination.

The Christian Association was reformed and renamed ‘Heep Kwong Tuen’ (Light of Heep Yunn Fellowship).

The double-stream system was implemented across all levels of the school.

The Chapel of St. Clare of Assisi was dedicated.

Mrs. Cheung Chinn Yee Ching retired after 22 years of heading Heep Yunn School. Mrs. Cheung Lo Pok Hing was appointed the second Headmistress.

The squatter huts and shanty areas in Ho Man Tin were demolished, leading to a sharp decline in both attendance and enrolment at the free school for the public. (Note: The free school might have been discontinued in the 1960s, but no relevant documentary record has been found to date.)

The school gradually transitioned into an English-medium secondary school and introduced Arts and Science classes in Form Six.

The expansion works for the School Hall and the Main Building were completed.

The first cohort of Advanced Level graduates were admitted into the University of Hong Kong.

For the first time, the choir won the overall championship at the Hong Kong Schools Music Festival. Since then, the choir has won the Hong Kong Schools Music Festival championship and the Best Girls’ Choir award on various occasions.

The library was opened.

The hostel on the upper floors of the Main Building was closed.

To prepare students for admission to the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Hong Kong, a Social Science class was offered in Form Six. Together with the Arts and Science streams, there were a total of three classes.

After serving as Headmistress for 20 years, Mrs. Cheung Lo Pok Hing retired. Mrs. Minnie Lai Wei Kit Lin was appointed the third Headmistress.

The 25-metre outdoor swimming pool was opened.

Two tennis courts and one volleyball court were added to the campus.

The school won the Omega Rose Bowl for the first time (renamed the Bank of China (Hong Kong) Bauhinia Bowl in 2002, and the Laurel Cup in 2026). Since then, the school has continuously clinched the overall championship in the Hong Kong Inter-School Division One girls’ category.

The Jubilee Building was opened.

To mark the school’s 50^th anniversary, thanksgiving services were held at the school and St. John’s Cathedral on 23^rd and 24^th October, in addition to a two-day Golden Jubilee exhibition. A concert was held at Hong Kong City Hall. The Old Girls’ Association also assisted the school in organising the 50^th anniversary dinner, with 41 tables.

The English Debating Team won the championship of the Inter-school Debating Contest for the first time.

For the first time, Heep Yunn School produced a top scorer in the Hong Kong Advanced Level Examination.

The library was expanded.

To celebrate the school’s 60^th anniversary, a concert was held at the Cultural Centre Concert Hall. The Student Association assisted the school in organising the “Diamond Jubilee Banquet”, with more than 80 tables set up on the tennis and basketball courts. Around 1,000 school managers, teachers and alumni attended, including the first cohort of boys admitted when the school resumed after the war.

The school invested HK$2.5 million in the LAN system, installing 16 computers in the library and 72 computers in various special rooms.

Mrs. Minnie Lai Wei Kit Lin retired after 24 years of heading the school.  Mrs. Clara Lau Li Kwok Kin was appointed the fourth headmistress.

The School Improvement Project (SIP) building was opened. The building houses the Mrs. Winnie Man Sports Centre, the Mrs. Ip Lo Hing Yuen Student Activity Centre, a multimedia classroom and multiple classrooms. In addition, the Mrs. Minnie Lai Theatre was opened in the Jubilee Building.

The Chinese Debating Team won the first Chinese debating championship in the Joint-School Debating Competition. Since then, the Chinese Debating Team has won various debating competitions in Hong Kong and overseas.

To celebrate the school’s 70^th anniversary, the drama production ‘The Muse of Spring’ was staged in March, the concert ‘Gloria’ was held at Sha Tin Town Hall in July, and a thanksgiving service and reunion dinner were held in October. After refurbishment, the library was renamed the Au Lam Shui Lan Memorial Library.

Headmistress Mrs. Clara Lau Li Kwok Kin applied to the School Management Committee for one year of leave, and Vice-Principal Mr. Dave Lee Chun Hung served as Acting Principal.

The Main Building and the Chapel of St. Clare of Assisi were officially graded as Grade III historic buildings in Hong Kong by the Antiquities Advisory Board.

Several classrooms on the third floor of the Jubilee Building were converted into the Madam Chan Ma Hau Fung Lecture Theatre.

The Old Girls’ Association assisted the school in organising the 75^th anniversary dinner at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.

After serving as Headmistress for nine years, Mrs. Clara Lau Li Kwok Kin retired. Mr. Dave Lee Chun Hung was appointed the fifth Headmaster, and was the school’s first male Principal.

In September, the school changed from a grant school to a Direct Subsidy Scheme (DSS) school.

For the first time, a Form Six student became a ‘Super Top Scorer’ in the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education (HKDSE) Examination. Since then, students have attained ‘Super Top Scorer’ or top scorer results in the HKDSE on multiple occasions.

After serving as Headmaster for six years (including one year as Acting Principal), Mr. Dave Lee Chun Hung retired. Ms. Bella Leung Siu Yi was appointed the sixth Headmistress.

The Main Building was renamed the Lau Cheung Suet Ming Building.

The Old Girls’ Association assisted the school in organising the 80^th anniversary dinner at the Kowloon Bay International Trade & Exhibition Centre.

The SIP Building was renamed the Mr. and Mrs. Au Shue Hung Building.

The School won the Hong Kong Sports Federation Division 1 Overall Girls’ Championship for the 35^th consecutive year.

The Extension Building of the Main Building (Lau Cheung Suet Ming Building) was renamed the Chow Hau Leung and Li Shiu Ching Building.

During the pandemic, the school held its 85^th Anniversary Thanksgiving Service and School Concert on campus.

The school was approved by the Education Bureau to introduce a double-stream senior secondary curriculum, comprising the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education (HKDSE) curriculum and the International Advanced Level (IAL) curriculum.