Loughborough Grammar School

Loughborough Grammar School
Loughborough Grammar School Crest
Motto	Vires Acquirit Eundo (Latin: "We Gather Strength As We Go")
Established	1495
School type	Independent
Headmaster	Paul B. Fisher MA (Oxon)
Location	Loughborough, Leicestershire, UK
Chaplain	Canon Tony Cox
Enrollment	circa. 1020 students
Faculty	circa. 100 (full-time)
Founder	Thomas Burton
Colours	Navy Blue and Red
Homepage	[1]

Loughborough Grammar School (commonly LGS) is a fee-paying independent boys' secondary school in Loughborough, Leicestershire, UK. It is one of three schools known as the Loughborough Endowed Schools, along with Loughborough High School and Fairfield Preparatory School. The Endowed Schools share a board of governors.

History

Founding

LGS was founded after Thomas Burton, a prosperous wool merchant from Loughborough, willed money for priests to pray for his soul upon is death in 1495; these priests went on to found the school that would become LGS.

The school moved to its present location in 1850, coinciding with the founding of the High School.

The school celebrated its quincentenary in 1995, when it was visited by HM Queen Elizabeth II.

Campus

Loughborough Grammar School's quadrangle

LGS is based on a multi-acre campus on the south side of Loughborough town centre; the three Endowed Schools are adjacent to one another, laid out along Burton Walks. The core of the campus is the quadrangle, on the eastern side of the Walks. Dating from 1850, the Victorian Gothic tower, gymnasium and hall are at the head of the quadrangle, nowadays accommodating the History department, Chapel and Sixth Form common room, and are the oldest buildings on the current site. The quadrangle is completed by School House (the senior boarding house), the Queen's Building (1994, English and Drama), the Barrow Building (c. 1910, Classics and Modern Languages), the Cope Building (2000, Modern Languages) on the north side and the Library and old laboratory buildings (now housing Computing and Religion and Philosophy) on the south side.

On the western side of Burton Walks are located the Science building (Chemistry and Physics), Murray Building (Biology), Pullinger Building (Mathematics) as well as the Hodson Hall, where most school functions and assemblies are held, the Burton Hall, primarily a dining hall, and the Art and Design department, Sports Hall, swimming hall and the Combined Cadet Force's buildings. A number of houses on this side of the Walks are now owned by the School, including Buckland House, the administrative hub of the School, containing the Headmaster and Deputy Headmasters' offices as well as the general office and reprographics. Others include Red House, formerly used for music lessons but now largely occupied by the Business Studies and Economics departments, Friesland House and others, containing Network Services and the Bursary. Both the Headmaster of the Grammar School and the Headmistress of the High School traditionally reside in properties on the Walks.

The astroturf tennis and hockey pitches are not strictly part of the Grammar School, but are shared with the High School. The Music School (2006), is also another of these shared buildings, it includes a performance space as well as practice rooms and recording facilities.

In addition to the main campus, the School owns a 70-acre site at the nearby village of Quorn, consisting of sports facilities, primarily rugby and cricket pitches.

The school has repeatedly tried to get the public right of way along Burton Walks revoked, citing security concerns; this connects the council estate of Shelthorpe with Loughborough town centre. To date these efforts have been unsuccessful.

Academics

Candidates sit an entrance examination to gain admission to the school, usually at the age of 10, so as to enter Year 7 at the age of 11. However, the middle school system that still prevails in North West Leicestershire led the School to introduce a smaller Year 6 intake for pupils leaving their primary schools after Year 5, as happens in a middle school system. There is also a 13+ exam, for those wishing to enter at Year 9, and a 16+ exam for boys wishing to enter at Sixth Form level.

Boys are entered for Key Stage 3 examinations in Year 9, GCSE examinations in Year 11, AS-levels in Year 12 and A2-levels in year 13. Boys usually take 9 subjects for GCSE, 4 for AS-level and 3 for A-level.

The choice of subjects tends to be more traditional however the school does offer Drama Studies and PE courses at AS-level and A-level. Perhaps a wider choice of less traditional subjects such as Music Technology, Sociology and Photography would not be wise choices for the boys. On the other hand, it allows more freedom to the boys, these subjects are also smiled upon by employers by whom the subjects concern.

Extracurricular activities

Combined Cadet Force

The School runs a large and successful Combined Cadet Force (CCF), comprising Army, Navy and RAF sections. Major events include the annual Remembrance Parade in Loughborough in November, and the Annual Review in May. In 2003, Lt Col George Beazley was awarded the MBE in recognition of his work with the CCF. The CCF used to occupy a number of old Nissen-style huts, but these have been replaced with a purpose-built Cadet Force building, part sponsored by the MOD. This was opened in 2005.

Music and Drama

The Construction of a new Music School by the Endowed Schools in 2006 enabled a greater level of cooperation than had previously been possible. An orchestra, a choir and a number of swing/jazz bands are amongst the ensembles run at the Music School, and these perform regularly at school concerts and elsewhere. The Endowed Schools Big Band and Concert Band have competed nationally at the English Concert Band Festival, and these bands also tour abroad regularly.

High quality dramatic productions have become a signature of the Grammar School in recent years, and another area of cooperation between the Endowed Schools. The 182-seat Drama Studio, located within the Queen's Building, plays host to a number of plays every year. Recent productions have included Andrew Lloyd Webber's Jesus Christ Superstar and Eclipse. In addition to purely extra-curricular productions, the English Department's teaching of A-level Theatre Studies produces further theatrical output.

Sport

The major sports at the School are rugby, hockey, cricket, tennis, athletics and cross country. Boys in 1st-3rd year have a 60 minute PE lesson and a 90 minute 'games' session per week, with extra training for those representing their school or houses. Boys in 4th-5th year have a 90 minute 'games' session each week. The School competes in national competitions in these sports, and has a full structure of teams from U12 to U18 level. The senior rugby, cricket and hockey teams have all toured abroad in recent years, including a cricket tour to South Africa. Boys also partake in other sports at a lesser, often recreational, level or represent their houses. These include basketball, badminton, fencing, football, golf, sailing, table tennis and swimming.

There has been a limited introduction of soccer in recent years. Originally, soccer was only played in lunch breaks and by members of the sixth form in 'games'. However, a 1st XI Soccer Team was formed in 2005 and soccer may soon filter down to lower years. This policy has not been without its detractors; many view rugby as a more 'gentlemanly' sport that is thoroughly enshrined in the school's ethos. However, given the popularity of soccer, the decision to introduce it was probably made to encourage soccer playing boys to apply.

Other

The school runs an active Duke of Edinburgh's Award scheme, a Scout Troop and biannual expeditions, which have visited areas such as the High Atlas Mountains of Morocco, the Himalayas and Greenland. A number of clubs and societies run regularly, including a Debating Society and a school magazine, entitled Vox. The school also plays Bridge to an extremely high level, and has produced numerous players who have represented the UK in international competitions.

The school engages in regular charity fund-raising events, including non-uniform days and concerts.

House System

The school operates a house system; every boy is placed in one of four houses: Abney (Green), Yates (Yellow), Pulteney (Purple) and Davys (Sky blue) and boys below the Upper Sixth have a small line in one of these colours on their school tie, between larger stripes for the school's blue and navy colours. The houses are named after alumni. The house system provides internal competition in a number of sporting disciplines as well as quiz, chess, bridge and music competitions, with a points system (40 for winning an event down to 10 for finishing fourth) calculating the eventual winner of the Stamper Cup. The Eagle trophy is awarded to the house that wins the most points in non-sporting house competitions.

Alumni

The School has an old boys' association, the Old Loughburian's Association (OLA). Notable Old Loughburians include:

• Rev. George Davys educator of Queen Victoria, later Dean of Chester and Bishop of Peterborough.
• Richard Pulteney (1730 - 1801), botanist.
• Johnnie Johnson (1915-2001) WWII flying ace
• Charles McCurdy (1870 – 1941), Liberal MP and government minister.
• Peter Preston journalist
• Bruce Woolley performer/songwriter
• Marcus Rose, (born 1957) former England rugby union international full-back
• Ben Hammersley, journalist.
• Felix Buxton, one half of the dance duo Basement Jaxx
• Mark Collett, neo-nazi, former leader of the Young BNP
• Danny Wallace (writer), Writer and Comedian
• William Sorby, Treasurer and Vice-President of Trinity Hall JCR, Cambridge and Treasurer of the Crescent Club, Cambridge
• David Wainwright

Trivia

• On 24 March 2006, the school hosted BBC Radio 4's Any Questions.
• The school's former Campus Network Manager, Mark McMorran, pioneered the use of thumbprint sensors to register students' attendance.

External links

• Official website
• Map - grid ref SK 539 189
• BBC league table report for LGS

52.76502°N 1.20263°W / 52.76502; -1.20263