endowment fund was established in 1925 to assist students continuing into higher education. By 1926 the school was listed as one of the top three secondary schools for girls in Kent, along with Bromley High School and Chatham Grammar School. By 1930 the number of pupils had risen to 400. Four years later, Erith Grammar School became an all-boys school and their 73 female students were sent to Dartford County School. Construction began in January 1937 for a new wing. New classrooms were completed by September 1937, and the new hall was finished the following year to replace the huts which had served as canteen and kitchen, though it was not officially opened until 1939. In the late 1930s 50% of the students were fee-paying, while the others attended for free. The cost at this time was £4 per term. School legend states that during the Second World War teachers would sit on the top of the school buildings to watch for enemy aircraft. If something were spotted then the girls would go to the air raid shelter where lessons were taken and meals were eaten. Between 1939 and 1947, three bombs fell on the school, and between 1940 and 1942 40 girls and two teachers were evacuated to a small village near Exeter. Butler Act In 1944 the school was shaken by one of the first Doodlebugs, leading to the school examinations being cancelled. In the same year, the Butler Education Act abolished fees and introduced new admission agreements. The school was renamed in this year as Dartford County Grammar School for Girls. In 1951 all staff were female and the number of pupils was to 730. In 1956, the school became the only school in the North West division that was legally entitled to bear a coat of arms. During 1958–1959, two additional classrooms and a craft room were added. The uniform was also adjusted to require all girls to change into indoor shoes upon arrival, wear a beret, and the wearing of 60-denier lisle stockings. In 1972 construction began on Dartford West Secondary Girls School. The new school was built on the playing fields of the old one, leaving Dartford County with only one hockey pitch. Male staff were re-introduced in the 1970s. During that decade, the wearing of hats was abolished, as well as the requirement to change into indoor shoes. The uniform was also changed