Sir Walter St John's Grammar School for Boys
Sir Walter St John's Grammar School For Boys | |
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Address | |
Battersea High Street , , SW11 3JB England | |
Coordinates | 51°28′26″N 0°10′26″W / 51.474°N 0.174°W |
Information | |
Motto | Rather Deathe than False of Faythe |
Established | 1700 |
Closed | 1978 |
Local authority | ILEA |
Staff | c. 30 |
Gender | Boys |
Age | 11 to 18 |
Enrolment | c. 500 |
Houses | 6 |
Publication | The Sinjun |
Sir Walter St John's was founded in 1700 for twenty boys of the village of Battersea. As the population and the English educational system changed, so did the school. The school was colloquially known as "Sinjuns" and was finally closed in 1986-7.
Early history
In September 1700, Sir
Development
During the first 150 years the name Sir Walter St John was seldom used and the school was called the "Battersea School" or the "Battersea Charity School". By 1832 the school had grown to hold 90 boys and 30 girls. In 1853 the Charitable Trust Act was enacted and the school passed under the control of the Charity Commissioners. The girls were soon transferred to the nearby Mrs Champion's School. The number of boys had increased to over 200, so the school was split into an Upper School and a Lower School. A new building was constructed in 1859 on Battersea High Street designed by William Butterfield. The entry arch of this building still exists.
By 1860 the name "Sir Walter St John's School" was being used. The Elementary Education Act 1870 had the result of splitting off the Upper School to form the newly founded Battersea Grammar School and in 1880 the Elementary School (part of the Lower School) was closed. The next change occurred in 1902, when the school was reorganised as a Secondary School.
Buildings
Little is known of the early buildings before the William Butterfield wing was built. Enlargement occurred in 1898 when the old science block was built. The Great Hall together with the West Block was opened in 1915, while the modified library and laboratory block started operation in 1926. Temporary classrooms were assembled in 1918 but remained in use until the north extension became available in 1938. A Luftwaffe bomb destroyed the west wing in 1941 but it was rebuilt in 1952. The final change in the school's buildings happened in 1961, when the Science Block was replaced.
Operation in the first half of the 20th century
The school was organised by the start of the 20th century into six levels or forms. The Intermediate Degree Examination of the
Houses
The six houses in the school were named after honours granted to members of the St John family. A colour was associated with each house, and students were required to wear a cap with the school badge on the front and a small button in the colour of their house on the crown. The colours were also used in sportswear, shirts for soccer and a sash for Fives and boxing. Both were used in other sports.
- Beauchamp (Pronounced "Beecham") had blue as its colour. Oliver St John was also Baron Beauchamp.
- Bletsoe used Brown. Bletsoe Manor was also owned by the St John's family.
- Bolingbroke was the red house. Henry St John was made the first Viscount Bolingbroke in 1712.
- Grandison had yellow as its identifier. Commemorating Oliver St John, 1st Viscount Grandison
- Lydiard used the violet colour. Oliver St John was also created Baron St John of Lydiard Tregoze
- Tregoze had the green for its use. See above in Lydiard
Prior to Sir Walter St John's Boys Grammar School being amalgamated with William Blake School, there were only three houses in the School, the names were as stated above but were actually together: Grandison Bletsoe (GB), Beauchamp Bolingbroke (BB) and Lydiard Tregoze (LT).
Post-war
After the return to Battersea, the school became Sir Walter St John's
Comprehensive
Such an amalgamation was planned in 1978 with the lower school (classes 1 to 3) going with the William Blake School and the Upper School remaining in Battersea High Street. The combined school was designated the Sir Walter St John's
Closure
The school was finally closed in 1986, when the students were transferred to the new
The School had an uncommon status, operated by the local authority but legally a charity, which led to its being mentioned by name in several Education Acts, a highly unusual procedure. This meant that when it closed the assets of the school, principally property, did not revert to the Education Authority upon closure. Instead the Sir Walter St John's Educational Charity was formed in 1992 and continues to support disadvantaged children in the former London Boroughs of Battersea and Lambeth.
An Old Boys Association continues, with a golf society, football and cricket clubs and a masonic lodge.
Notable Old Boys
This article's list of alumni may not follow Wikipedia's verifiability policy. (December 2017) |
See also Category:People educated at Sir Walter St John's Grammar School For Boys
- Martin Amis (1949–), British novelist[1]
- Roger Glover, musician, Deep Purple
- Paul Bailey, writer
- Clifford Chapman, Dean of Exeter
- Francis Cole (1872–1959), British zoologist
- Marcel Escudier (1942–), Harrison Professor of Mechanical Engineering from 1989 to 2008 at the University of Liverpool, co-author (with A G Atkins) of A Dictionary of Mechanical Engineering, OUP, 2013
- Melvyn Hayes (1935–), British actor
- Colonel Commandant from 1973 to 1981 of the Royal Artillery
- Fred Landeg (born 1948), Chief Veterinary Officer from 2007 to 2008
- Buster Merryfield, actor, played Uncle Albert in Only Fools and Horses.
- Albert Samuels, Chairman from 1958 to 1959 of London County Council
- Stanley Whitehead (1902–56), British physicist
References
- ^ Jones, Lewis (26 January 2001). "The living V-sign". The Telegraph. Retrieved 4 July 2018.
- Smallwood, Frank T. (1998). A History of Sir Walter St. John's School Battersea: 1700–1986. edited and with additional material by Roy D. McNamara. Edinburgh: Pentland. ISBN 978-1-85821-558-7.