Bridgnorth Endowed School

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Coordinates: 52°32′17″N 2°25′19″W / 52.538°N 2.422°W / 52.538; -2.422
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52°32′17″N 2°25′19″W / 52.538°N 2.422°W / 52.538; -2.422

Bridgnorth Endowed School
Address
Map
Northgate

Coeducational
Age11 to 16
Enrolment1,014 (2009)[1]
HousesScientia, Veritas, Virtus, Invictus
Former pupilsOld Bridgnorthians
Websitehttp://www.bridgnorthendowed.co.uk/

Bridgnorth Endowed School is a

Peter Bullock, a soil scientist who was a member of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).[2]

History

16th, 17th and 18th centuries

The 'Old Grammar School' in St Leonard's Close with the tower of St Leonard's Church in the background

Bridgnorth Endowed School was founded in 1503, in the reign of

Edward VI. A barn, which had been used as the chapel of St John the Baptist (the new Bridgnorth Town Hall was also built in 1652 using material from a dismantled barn), first housed the school. This stood on the north side of St Leonard's churchyard outside St Leonard's Church. By the end of the sixteenth century the former chapel of St John the Baptist was being described as the 'old school-house'. The former chapel of St John the Baptist was replaced in 1595, in the reign of Elizabeth I, by the present building in St Leonard's Close known as the 'Old Grammar School' which now houses a firm of accountants. This building appears to have been erected by Sir Rowland Hayward, a sixteenth-century inhabitant of Bridgnorth who made a name for himself in business in London and became Lord Mayor of London and a Member of Parliament for the City of London. Indeed, Sir John Hayward in his will of 1635 refers to the school as having been founded by his father, Sir Rowland. Sir Rowland appears to have charged a property at Bridgnorth with an annual payment of £20 to the school, a payment later rendered by the Apley estate after Sir William Whitmore's purchase of the land in question in 1623. In 1785, during the reign of George III, the 'Old Grammar School' was renovated with gifts of £200 each given by the town's members of Parliament, Major Whitmore and Admiral Pigot.[4]
The 'Old Grammar School' building still stands in St Leonard's Close and is currently occupied by a firm of accountants.

Headmaster's House in St Leonard's Close

In 1639 during the reign of

Oxford University. These Careswell Exhibitions were first awarded in 1746, during the reign of George II. For 160 years Bridgnorth shared in the resulting close connexion between Shropshire and Christ Church, Oxford, until in 1905 the Exhibitions became tenable elsewhere.[5]

Sir John Josiah Guest, 1st Baronet, MP

The school was kept clean by the labour of 'a poor boy of the said School' who was paid 4 pence annually by each of his fellows; normal repairs were paid for by the town; the town also added a further £10 to the school's annual income, but when that income had to be divided between the headmaster and the usher (who took the younger boys) it was naturally difficult to find and still more so to keep good masters. In 1635, for instance, the school contained only six boys. The reason for the long headmasterships of Rev. Richard Cornes from 1677 to 1726 and of Rev. Hugh Stackhouse from 1726 to 1743 was that they were both also incumbents of

William IV and author of The Gold-Headed Cane.[11]

Statue of Bishop James Fraser

19th century

In 1817 the Town increased its subsidy to £30, but in 1821 there were only ten boys, when the Dean of

Francis Henry Thicknesse, the inaugural Suffragan Bishop of Leicester.[18]

General Sir Charles Warren, GCMG, KCB, FRS

20th century

In 1909 the school passed into the control of

Shropshire County Council
, the new Grammar School building at Northgate having been built in 1908. (This building still forms the core of present-day school and in 2003 a clock was placed on the outside of the building to mark the school's 500th anniversary.) In the years immediately previous to 1908 classes were held in three places – the Headmaster's House in St Leonard's Close, the Foster Memorial Institute in the High Street, and the 'Old Grammar School' building in St Leonard's Close. Until 1929 the Bridgnorth Girl's Public High School led an independent existence in the new Grammar School building at Northgate.

During the

First World War some 250 old boys of the Grammar School served, of whom 39 – including three masters of the school – died. In their memory a carved oak tablet listing the dead was unveiled in the entrance hall of the Northgate building, and a further memorial in form of the school library was opened in 1930.[19]

The Grammar School and the Bridgnorth Girl's Public High School were finally combined in 1929. The mixed school was 'transitionally aided' under the

voluntary controlled.[12]

Sir Cedric Hardwicke, KBE

The school's name was changed from Bridgnorth Grammar School to Bridgnorth Endowed School in 1974 when it began the transition from a selective to a comprehensive intake. The new name reflected the Endowed School's history, referring to the endowments it had received. In the nineteenth century the terms endowed school and grammar school were used interchangeably as in the Endowed Schools Act 1869. In the second half of the twentieth century the Endowed School's buildings and sporting facilities on the Northgate site were greatly expanded with a new Lower School complex and a new Leisure Centre which the Endowed School had sole use of during the school day. Famous twentieth-century alumni of the school include Sir Cedric Hardwicke, the Hollywood and stage actor,[20] Cyril Washbrook, the cricketer who played for Lancashire and England and who gained a famous record as batsman,[21] Professor Peter Bullock, the inspirational soil scientist who was a member of the IPCC (the work of the IPCC, including the contributions of many scientists, was recognised by the joint award of the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize),[2] and the historian John Mason.

1908 New Grammar School Building at Northgate

The Contemporary School

The House System

There are inter-house sporting and other activities with prizes. Until 1983, the Endowed School's four houses named Clive (green), Darwin (yellow), Hayward (pale red), and Talbot (azure blue) after Shropshire notables. Between 1983 and 2021, the houses were reduced to three and renamed Hardwicke (yellow), Rowley (pale red), and Washbrook (green), after former headmaster Thomas Rowley, and alumni Sir Cedric Hardwicke and Cyril Washbrook, CBE.[22] In 2021, there was a return to four houses renamed again: invictus (unconquerable - blue), scientia (knowledge - green), veritas (truth - red), and virtus (courage - yellow).[23]

Extracurricular activities

The Endowed School offers a wide range of extracurricular activities. Pupils can partake in modern, classical and musical drama productions. Instrumental lessons are also available to pupils. Pupils can take part in

RMA Sandhurst subject to clearances and examination results.[24]

Bridgnorth Endowed School 500th Anniversary Clock.

The Lower and Middle Schools

The curriculum followed throughout years seven, eight and nine (Key Stage 3 of the National Curriculum) includes the full range of National Curriculum subjects plus a second foreign language and PHSE. In years nine, ten and eleven (Key Stage 4 of the National Curriculum) all pupils follow an extended core curriculum allowing all pupils to experience a broad range of subject areas up to the age of sixteen as well as reflecting the requirements of the National Curriculum. All pupils in years seven to eleven are expected to wear the school uniform which includes a navy blue blazer with school badge and a house tie. They are extremely tough on your uniform.[22]

The Sixth Form

There was a sixth form of 150 students until recent years. AS and A2 subjects offered to 6th form students in years 12 and 13 included Art, Biology, Business Studies, Chemistry, Design, Drama and Theatre Studies, English Language, English Literature, French, Further Maths, geography, History, Information Technology, Maths, Music, Music Technology, Physical Education, Physics, Psychology, Religious Education, and Spanish. Year 12 students took four subjects at AS, and continued with three subjects at A2 in year 13. Sixth form pupils did not need to wear school uniform.[25]

OFSTED Inspections

The Endowed School was inspected by

OFSTED in 2003 and 2008. In 2003 the inspectors' overall evaluation was that 'this is a very good school.' In 2008 the inspectors agreed with the school's own self-evaluation that the school is providing 'a satisfactory standard of education' and that 'many elements are good'.[26] The 2003 OFSTED inspection had identified modern foreign languages as unsatisfactory.[27] However, in 2008 the inspectors noted that there had been a 'great improvement in the leadership of modern foreign languages since the last inspection.'[26] An OFSTED inspection has recently[when?
] taken place, the school received a 'satisfactory' in most areas, pupil's behavior being one of the best, rated as 'good', while the maths department was the least achievable. OFSTED stated that the improvement in maths and English was a minor improvement and more work should be done to improve. From parents, they noted that many teachers have been on leave, saying that it disrupts their child's learning capabilities.

In 2011 the school got satisfactory (3), many of the student categories earning good, (2).

Notable former pupils

See also: Category:People educated at Bridgnorth Endowed School

Former pupils are known as 'Old Bridgnorthians'.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Bridgnorth Endowed School". Retrieved 16 April 2009.
  2. ^ a b c "Professor Peter Bullock". The Times. London. 19 May 2008. Archived from the original on 23 May 2010. Retrieved 16 April 2009.
  3. ^ Mason, pp. 12, 36
  4. ^ Mason, 12, 36
  5. ^ a b Mason, 36
  6. ^ "Rev. Hugh Stackhouse". Retrieved 16 April 2009.
  7. ^ Mason, 37
  8. ^ a b "Bishop Thomas Percy". Archived from the original on 7 September 2008. Retrieved 16 April 2009.
  9. ^ a b "GUEST family, iron-masters, coal owners, etc.". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
  10. ^ a b "Dr Thomas Beddoes". Retrieved 16 April 2009. [dead link‍]
  11. ^ a b "Dr William Macmichael". Retrieved 16 April 2009.
  12. ^ a b Mason, 38
  13. ^ a b Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Fraser, James" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 11 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 39.
  14. ^ a b Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Lingen, Ralph Robert Wheeler Lingen, Baron" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 16 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 729.
  15. ^ a b "Henry John Roby". Archived from the original on 8 August 2010. Retrieved 16 April 2009.
  16. ^ a b "General Sir Charles Warren". Retrieved 16 April 2009.
  17. ^ "Rev. Osbourne Gordon". Retrieved 16 April 2009.
  18. ^ a b Who was Who 1897–1990 (London, 1991)
  19. ISBN 978-1-909644-11-3
    .
  20. ^ a b "Sir Cedric Hardwicke". Retrieved 16 April 2009.
  21. ^ "Cyril Washbrooke". Retrieved 16 April 2009.
  22. ^ a b c "General School Prospectus" (PDF). Retrieved 16 April 2009. [dead link‍]
  23. ^ Bridgnorth Endowed School Prospectus [1]
  24. ^ "Army Scholarship". The Times. London. 14 November 2008. Retrieved 27 July 2009.</
  25. ^ "Bridgnorth Endowed School Prospectus". s
  26. ^ a b "OFSTED Inspection Report 2008" (PDF). Retrieved 16 April 2009.[permanent dead link‍]
  27. ^ "OFSTED Inspection Report 2003" (PDF). Retrieved 16 April 2009.[permanent dead link‍]
  28. ^ "Chris Thorp appointed Chief of Staff". Jaguar Land Rover. Coventry. 1 June 2021. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
  29. ^ "How Ross Antony became Germany's biggest showbiz star". The Telegraph. London. 26 November 2010. Retrieved 18 February 2014.
  30. ISBN 1-902171-17-9
    .Published by Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians.
  31. ^ "Rev. Osborne Gordon". Retrieved 16 April 2009.
  32. ^ "Shropshire ace Rob Hornby on the fast track to success". Shropshire Star. 22 November 2021.
  33. ^ Shropshire Cricketers 1844–1998, p.35.
  34. ^ "Max Rafferty". Retrieved 26 July 2009.
  35. ^ a b Shropshire Cricketers 1844–1998, p.39.
  36. ^ "Cyril Washbrook". Retrieved 16 April 2009.

Further reading

  • Jones, Maureen, ed. (2003). Bridgnorth Grammar and Endowed Schools: five hundred years of change 1503–2003. Bridgnorth: B.G.S. 500th Anniversary Group.
  • Mason, J. F. A. (1957). The Borough of Bridgnorth, 1157–1957. Bridgnorth: Bridgnorth Borough Council.
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