What was the name of the school Stephen Hawking attended?

Stephen Hawking attended St Albans School in Hertfordshire, England.

After his family moved to St Albans, Hawking attended local schools before entering St Albans School in September 1952. He had passed the eleven-plus examination a year early. His father wanted him to attend Westminster School, but Hawking was ill on the day of the scholarship examination; without the scholarship, the family could not afford the fees, so he remained at St Albans.

The school became an important part of his early intellectual life. Hawking enjoyed mathematics and science, and he formed a close group of friends there who built model aircraft and boats, made fireworks, played games, and held long discussions. His mathematics teacher Dikran Tahta later became an especially important influence, helping encourage Hawking’s interest in physics and mathematics.

A common confusion comes from Hawking’s earlier education. As a young child in St Albans, he briefly attended St Albans High School for Girls, where boys could then attend one of the younger houses. He also attended Radlett School before St Albans School. Westminster School was the school he hoped to attend, not the one he ultimately attended.