Birkenhead School
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Birkenhead School is an independent school located on the Wirral, in the Northwest of England. The school was founded in 1860, with a Preparatory Department established in 1889, and is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference.
In 2000 the sixth form became co-educational, followed in 2006 by a co-educational Nursery Department (for children aged three months to three years) and Pre-Prep. Entrance is via the Prep School, by open competitive examination at 11, by Common Entrance at 13, or by interview at the sixth-form level. The school decided in 2006 to accept girls in the kindergarten and Preparatory departments.
The current headmaster is John Clark (since 2003). Previous headmasters include Stuart Haggett (1988-2003) and John Gwilliam (1963-1988).
[edit] Notable Old Birkonians
- Charles Harrison Townsend (1851–1928), architect
- Cecil Reddie (1858–1932), Founder and Headmaster of Abbotsholme School, 1889–1927
- Leslie Brooke (1862–1940), children's writer and illustrator
- Wynfrid Duckworth (1870–1956), anatomist, and Master of Jesus College, Cambridge, 1940–1945
- F. E. Smith, 1st Earl of Birkenhead (1872–1930), barrister, Attorney-General, 1916–1919, Lord Chancellor, 1919–1922, and Secretary of State for India, 1924–1928
- Douglas Laurie (1874–1953), Professor of Zoology, University College of Wales, Aberystwyth, 1922–1940, and Founding Honorary General Secretary, Association of University Teachers, 1919–1953
- Lieutenant-General Sir Wilfrid Lindsell (1884–1973), Quartermaster-General, British Expeditionary Force, 1939–1940, Lieutenant-General i/c Administration, Middle East, 1942–1943, and Principal Administration Officer, Fourteenth Army, 1943–1945
- Sir Melvill Jones (1887–1975), Francis Mond Professor of Aeronautical Engineering, University of Cambridge, 1919–1952
- Martin Percival Charlesworth (1895–1950), classicist
- Geoffrey Webb (1898–1970), Slade Professor of Fine Art, University of Cambridge, 1938–1949, and Secretary, Royal Commission on Historical Monuments (England), 1948–1962
- Sir Gordon Willmer (1899–1983), Lord Justice of Appeal
- Andrew Irvine (1902–1924), mountaineer who attempted the summit of Mount Everest with George Mallory
- Nevill Willmer (1902–2001), Professor of Histology, University of Cambridge, 1966–1969
- Brigadier Sir Philip Toosey (1904–1975), merchant banker, Territorial Army officer, and senior Allied officer during the building of the bridge on the River Kwai
- Henry Pelling (1920–1997), historian
- Air Chief Marshal Sir John Aiken (1921–2005), Director of Training, Royal Air Force, 1971–1973, and Commander, British Forces in Cyprus, 1973–1976
- Gruffydd Evans, Baron Evans of Claughton (1928–1992), lawyer and politician
- Clifford Embleton (1931–1994), Professor of Geography, King's College London, 1982–1994)
- William Wade, Baron Wade of Chorlton (born 1932), businessman, and Joint Treasurer of the Conservative Party, 1982–1990
- Donald Nicholls, Baron Nicholls of Birkenhead (born 1933), Vice-Chancellor, High Court of Justice, 1991–1994, and Lord of Appeal in Ordinary, 1994–
- Andreas Whittam Smith (born 1937), journalist and co-founder of The Independent
- Barry Porter (1939–1996), Conservative politician
- Timothy Mason (1940–1990), historian
- Tony Hall (born 1951), Chief Executive, Royal Opera House, Covent Garden
- Alan Rouse (1951–1986), mountaineer, and first Briton to reach the summit of K2.
