Aylesbury Grammar School
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| Aylesbury Grammar School | |
 |
|
| Schola Ailesburia (Latin: Aylesbury School) | |
| Established | 1598 |
|---|---|
| School type | Boys' Grammar School |
| Headmaster | Steve Harvey |
| Location | Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, United Kingdom |
| Students | 1,250 |
| office@ags.bucks.sch.uk | |
| Website | www.ags.bucks.sch.uk |
Aylesbury Grammar School is a single-sex male grammar school which educates 1,250 pupils. As a selective state school, its entry requirements are dictated by the exam taken at the age of 10-11. In September 1997 the school was awarded specialist school status in Technology, and then Languages in April 2006.
The school educates boys from the age of 11, in what is called Year 7, through to the age of 18, in Year 13 (Upper VI). The school has its largest intakes at Year 7 followed by Year 12 (Lower VI). On completing GCSEs, most pupils stay on to complete their A-levels at the school's sixth-form.
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[edit] History
Founded, 1598 in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire by Sir Henry Lee, Aylesbury Grammar School will celebrate 100 years on the current site in Walton Road in 2007. It is commonly referred to by its students and staff by the abbreviation 'AGS'.
The school was previously a mixed sex school but then parted and the girls' school became Aylesbury High School, which is across the road from AGS.
The school styles itself after public schools in some ways - for example, making rugby the main sport rather than football, awarding special ties for sports performances, and appointing prefects and a Head Boy.
The current headmaster is Steve Harvey.
[edit] Houses
Each pupil is placed into one of six houses upon starting at the school. The six houses are:
| House | Colour | Current Head of House | Significance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Denson | Sky Blue | J Ferris | |
| Hampden | Green | M Appleby | Named after John Hampden, leader of the victorious Parliamentarian forces in the Battle of Aylesbury in 1642 |
| Lee | Yellow | P Dean | Named after the founder of the school, Sir Henry Lee, Bart of Ditchley |
| Paterson | Maroon | J Paver | Named after Mr. Paterson, an ex-music master at the school, who was an extremely popular staff member |
| Phillips | Red | G Dallas | Named after Henry Phillips of London, influential in the founding of the school |
| Ridley | Dark Blue | J Barrie |
[edit] House trophy competitions
Each year, the school houses compete for the Brodie Trophy for sports and the Watson Trophy for all other activities (including art, music and public speaking). The awards are named for former pupils who made a great contribution to the school's life. The competitions have been taking place for over 300 years, when the 'houses' were groups of boarders living in one building.[1] There is also a defunct trophy called 'Merit Marks', which was abolished due to imbalances in the willingness of various teachers to distribute them.
| Prize | Current Holder (as of 2006) |
|---|---|
| Brodie Trophy | Phillips |
| Watson Cup | Phillips |
Boys are encouraged throughout the year to participate in team events, as well as some individual events. Most of the encouragement comes from their heads of house, who are in charge of 210 pupils on average (or 7 tutor groups, each consisting of 30 pupils).
At the end of each event the houses gain points for their placements in these events; and at the end of the year, these points are totalled up and a winner is declared for each trophy.
[edit] Uniform
Students are currently required, as part of uniform, to wear a white shirt, school tie (black, white and maroon diagonal striped), black trousers, black school blazer (optional in summer) and black leather shoes. In the VI form, students are permitted to wear coloured shirts. However, it has just been put through the junior school council that pupils may be allowed to wear their own suits, such as the pupils of the Sir Henry Floyd Grammar School, also in Aylesbury. Discussions are taking place, and this may come into effect within the next few years.
The sixth form were polled about retaining the school uniform some years ago, and decided that it should remain mandatory. However for families in financial difficulties, there remains the option of purchasing second hand uniform from the school thrift shop.
[edit] Teaching System
In the first three years of the school, pupils are almost exclusively taught in their houses, or 'tutor groups' (with the exceptions of Maths, in which pupils are streamed by ability in year 8-9, and by their second Foreign Language choice in year 8-9). Tutor groups are also split up into groups of 20 for Design Technology lessons, and into groups of 20 is also used for Art and Ceramics in Years 8-9.
In Year 10 and above, the year group is reshuffled into 7 smaller sized 'forms' for teaching of the sciences, English and P.E., whilst pupils' different GCSE choices mean they may not see others from either tutor group or form. From this point onwards, the houses play no significant role other than teams for the Watson or Brodie trophies.
The teaching staff at Aylesbury Grammar School includes Dr. Carol Blyth, who has received a 'Teacher of the Decade' award[2] as well as Dr Kevin Bond, author and Chairman of Examiners for Computer Science.[3]
[edit] Notable alumni
- Jake Arnott (b. 1961) author, left school at 16
- Angela Billingham (b. 1939-07-31), politician
- Richard Bracewell (b. circa 1970), director, producer and scriptwriter
- Rutland Boughton (1878 – 1960), composer
- Kevin Cecil, scriptwriter
- Derek Dick (Fish) (b. 1958), singer (briefly)
- John Edwards (1904 – 1959), politician
- Sean Forbes, Rough Trade Records director
- Tim Harford (b. 1973), journalist and presenter[4]
- Peter Jukes (b. 1960), author & scriptwriter[5]
- Richard Lee (b.1982), Premiership Footballer
- Kris Needs (b. 1954), journalist and author
- Harry Gerald Oxley, 1950, pioneer in community studies in South Africa and Australia[6]
- Andy Riley, author and scriptwriter
- Kevin Sacre, actor
- Frederick Taylor, historian
- Shailesh Vara, politician
- Christopher Webster, actor
[edit] References
- ^ Mead, W.R. (1997). Aylesbury Grammar School 1598-1998: a Commemorative Volume. The Peterhouse Press. ISBN 0-946312-06-0.
- ^ Dr. Carol Blyth is 'Teacher of the Decade'
- ^ One of Dr. Kevin Bond's Books
- ^ The Independent Online
- ^ Peter Jukes CV Accessed 2007-01-15
- ^ Dorothy K. Billings, Australian Journal of Anthropology, August, 2005 Accessed 2007-01-15
[edit] External links
[edit] Photos of the School
 The old school site in Aylesbury town centre that hosted the school from 1598 to 1907 |
 The main school hall, used for Upper School Assembly and drama productions, among others, was constructed in the 1950s |
 The Languages block (known as the Tower block until 2003) hosts Modern Foreign Language lessons, as well as Classics and various other 'overflows' |
 The John Mason Raven Sports Hall, opened at Easter 2003, is one of the newest constructions and has replaced the Gym as the primary sports facility. The building includes a large viewing balcony |
