Strode's College
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Strode's College is a sixth form college located in Egham, Surrey situated in beautiful grounds close to the Berkshire border. Its history began in 1704 when Henry Strode bequeathed £600 to set up a free school in his native parish of Egham. In the twentieth century Strode’s became a boys’ grammar school before being designated a sixth form college in 1975. It currently provides a wide range of AS-Level and A-Level courses for 16-18 year olds and at present has a roll of some 1050 students.
The College traces its origins to the free school founded by Henry Strode and this School and the Almshouses were built on the same site in Egham in 1706. The original buildings were pulled down; of their replacements, built in 1828, two ranges of almshouses remain. Listed as historic buildings, they are still in use by the College. The present main College building dates from 1915.
The College also plays a vital role in the local community, providing full and part-time courses for adults and local businesses, as well as a large range of evening classes, in Egham and at Outreach Centres in Chertsey and Englefield Green. The College's 2005 Ofsted inspection resulted in some poor grades with Mathematics, Science and Information Technology getting Unsatisfactory Grade 4s. Other areas gained Grade 2s and 3s.
[edit] The Worshipful Company of Coopers
From the time of its foundation, the Coopers' Company was the Trustee of Henry Strode's Charity which administered the School but in 1912 the Charity Commissioners drafted a new Scheme which gave the School its own Board of Governors, changed it from an elementary to a secondary school and brought it into the Surrey education system. Under further changes introduced following the 1944 Education Act, the School was granted Voluntary Controlled status as a Boys' Grammar School and the composition of its Governing Body set to include four Foundation Trustees, one of whom, at least, was to be a representative of the Company.
The Company continues to provide funds administered by the Foundation Trustees for the benefit of the College.
[edit] Strode's Tercentenary
2004 was Strode's 300th anniversary as an educational institution and was marked by a series of celebrations including a visit by HRH The Duke of Edinburgh
