SCECGS Redlands

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Established
School type Christian Independent
Headmaster Christopher Daunt Watney(retiring, replacement to be determined)
Chairman ME Jones
Enrolment 1600 Students (Years pre-12)
School Colours Blue, Red and Gold
School Song "Students of Redlands School"
Area 12 Acres (over multiple "campuses")
Location Cremorne, NSW
Website www.redlands.nsw.edu.au


Contents

[edit] Establishment

Established in 1884 as a school for girls, Redlands early established an association with the Anglican diocese of Sydney and became the "Sydney Church of England Girls Grammar School, Redlands" in 1945 — hence "SCEGGS" and, later "SCECGS." The current name is Redlands, Sydney Church of England Co-Educational Grammar School, though it is more commonly referred to simply as Redlands

[edit] The Sydney Anglican association

The formal link with the Sydney Anglican diocese was severed in 1976 during the disaster of the comptroller of the Anglican diocesan schools misappropriating school funds and ruining the SCEGGS schools; SCEGGS, Redlands (as it then was), SCEGGS, Darlinghurst, SCEGGS, Wollongong and SCEGGS, Loquat Valley survived by re-constituting themselves as wholly independent entities, severing their legal ties with the Anglican diocese while retaining the now cosmetic "Church of England" element in their names. SCEGGS, Moss Vale, was unable to recover, and closed.

Peter Cornish, the Headmaster during Redlands' period of recovery from the '70s fiasco, cultivated an association with the immediately-neighbouring Anglican parish of St Peter's, one of the more High Church parishes of the Anglican Diocese of Sydney.

[edit] Independent school with boys

The school's enrolment was broadened to include boys in 1978 as a mechanism for attempting to recover from the financial disaster. Redlands retains certain elements of its former Sydney Anglican association by keeping a Sydney Anglican chaplain on staff and requiring him to be addressed as "Reverend X." In the Anglican Diocese of Sydney this seems generally to be a not illiterate and reasonably middle class way of addressing ministers of religion, and not to be considered particularly vulgar as it would be elsewhere.[1] Students from Methodist, Presbyterian, Baptist and Congregationalist as well as Anglican backgrounds must be coached to address the school chaplain as "Reverend X" rather than as "Mr X," as on American television and in Northern Ireland rather than as their family and church backgrounds indicate or indeed as general middle class standards of etiquette would require.

Redlands was in the 70s in a position of seriously lacking in enrollments but having a certain cachet which it confer on its girls and -- now -- boys and it quickly moved to acquire a reputation as a school which readily administered the cane as a measure of discipline. Families with difficult boys moved to enroll them in Redlands as a school which would readily administer the cane, and Redlands' enrollment quickly recovered when it filled up with difficult boys whose parents expected them to be caned.

[edit] Former association with past SCEGGS girls' schools

The Latin school motto of Redlands, Luceat lux vestra, is taken from Matthew 5:16, and translates as "Let your light shine." It is appears in the school song which was shared with the other SCEGGS schools:

Girls of the Grammar School, those old and new
Gathered or parted, all the world through
Still to the motto that binds us keep true:
Luceat lux vestra.

After the collapse of the SCEGGS school network and Redlands' admission of boys in 1978 the first line of the SCEGGS song was altered at Redlands to "Students of Redlands School...."

[edit] Mr Cornish - building a co-educational, diverse and modern school

Peter W. Cornish, then of SCEGS (Shore), a boys school also associated with the Anglican Diocese, was appointed headmaster and is credited during his two decades at the school with bringing the school to a high level of financial security and academic respectability. Mr Cornish emphasised academic achievement, as well as developing numerous co-curricular opportunities for students at the School.

[edit] Redlands Expansion

Redlands continues to expand prodigiously and it now occupies several "campuses" (as they are styled) around Sydney and New South Wales, including the former Cremorne State School site which it purchased from the New South Wales government and now operates as a junior school. It has gradually accumulated some academic reputation, with three students entering into Oxford and Cambridge in 2004.

[edit] International Baccalaureate and academic reputation

As with many private and state schools the world over that seek to provide their students with a wider and alternative academic qualification when their peformance according to local standards is equivocal, Redlands offers the International baccalaureate as well as the State qualification, the New South Wales HSC.

[edit] Higher School Certificate

As with other New South Wales schools Redlands necessarily offers the State-mandated Higher School Certificate. The 2005 academic year proved impressive results: 147 of its 182 members received a UAI over 85. One of its students managed to score a UAI over 99.90.

[edit] Mr Daunt-Watney

Mr Christopher Daunt-Watney, the current Headmaster of SCECGS Redlands will leave Redlands at the end of year after 10 years at the School to travel overseas to complete his PhD. A current Global search for a principal is underway.

[edit] Notable alumnae

  • Catriona Rowntree, a television presenter on Channel Nine's "Getaway" program, went to Redlands; she is reported to regard her time at Redlands as her golden years and to consider that she owes to Redlands her current position. This observation was documented in a conversation I had with her last week.
  • Lachlan MacKay is an established Rugby Union player of the Western Force Super 14 team. He captained the Australian Under-21 Team. He has played at the highest national level with the Wallabies, making his test debut for the country in 2005.

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Miss Manners on the vulgarity of addressing ministers of religion as "Reverend X" [1]

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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