| Motto | Inspiring Individuals |
|---|---|
| Established | 2005 |
| Type | Independent school |
| Religion | Multi-Faith |
| Principal and Chief Executive | Mr Michael Gibbons |
| Location | Alwoodley Gates Harrogate Road Leeds West Yorkshire LS17 8GS England |
| Students | 2,350 |
| Gender | Co-Educational |
| Ages | 3–18 |
| Houses | 8 |
| Colours | Indigo |
| Publication | GSAL Life |
| Website | www.gsal.org.uk |
The Grammar School at Leeds (GSAL) is an Independent school in Leeds, England, created on 4 August 2005 from the merger of Leeds Grammar School and Leeds Girls' High School.
The schools physically merged in September 2008, at which point the school became open to both sexes. The school is now situated on two sites; the Senior School (ages 11–18) and Junior School (7–11) at the Alwoodley Site, while the Leeds Girls' High School site in Headingley is used by the Infant School and a new Nursery School. The merged school is based on a so-called diamond school formation, meaning that classes for girls and boys between the ages of 11 and 16 remain segregated, but all extracurricular activities are mixed. Classes for all below the age of 11 and in the Sixth Form are co-educational. During the merger consultation process, the student, parent and teaching bodies of both schools decided on the '4 major goals of The Grammar School at Leeds'. These would be to achieve academic excellence, opportunity, care and integrity.
The Grammar School at Leeds is a fee paying school, although bursaries and scholarships are available.
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A key element of the new school is intended to be the foundations of eight School House, each with Head Boy and Head Girl. These Houses, of which the pupils of The Grammar School are divided into, are as follows:
The Grammar School at Leeds was established via the legal merger of Leeds Grammar School and Leeds Girls' High School in 2005. Both these schools operated on two separate sites which were some distance between each other; Leeds Girls' High School operated from 3 separate sites in Headingley, whilst Leeds Grammar School ran from a 138-acre (0.56 km2) modern campus situated in Alwoodley.
Upon physical merger in 2008, four distinct sections of school were created. The Junior School, Senior School and Sixth Form now operate from substantially extended buildings at the Alwoodley Gates site (originally Leeds Grammar School). The site was redeveloped from 2007 to 2008, and now contains a new Sixth Form and Maths departments whilst the Lawson Library, Science department and Refectory were extended. Rose Court Nursery & Pre-Prep School operates in Headingley; from a new nursery extension and the refurbished building formerly known by Leeds Girls' High School as 'Ford House'. The rest of the Leeds Girls' High School site, which is now surplus to requirements, is currently the subject of discussion with Leeds City Council planning officers prior to anticipated application for outline planning permission for residential housing. The site currently stands empty.
The current Principal and Chief Executive is Michael Gibbons, the previous Headmaster of Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, Wakefield. Mr Gibbons was educated at the City of Leicester Grammar School and gained his degree from King's College London. He is the founder member of the working party for the Forum of Independent Day Schools. Michael took up the office of Principal at the beginning of the Summer Term 2010, formally taking over on 1 April 2010. He announced upon his appointment that "What excited me about GSAL was the prospect of leading a school which combined the best of modernity with a rich and proud heritage. A fabulous new school possessing exceptional facilities allied to a tradition of excellent education built upon generations of endeavour."
The previous Headmaster was Dr. Mark Bailey, a former Rugby Union player and bursar of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. He was appointed Headmaster of Leeds Grammar School in 1999 amid some controversy.[1] Despite this, his tenure as head saw a sharp increase in entrance applications and financial stability, as well as a number of high profile appointments to Senior Management Levels. He led the merger of Leeds Grammar School and Leeds Girls' High School following his appointment as both Headmaster and Chief Executive of the Grammar School at Leeds, in February 2005. He left GSAL in March 2010 to become the Professor of Later Medieval History at the University of East Anglia and a visiting Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford.
| Principal and Chief Executive | Mr. Michael R Gibbons |
| Director of Finance | Mr. David Naylor |
| Deputy Head (Pastoral) | Mrs. Christine Bamforth |
| Deputy Head (Academic) | Dr. Ian Hotchkiss |
| Deputy Head (Activities) | Mr. Steve Field |
| Deputy Head (Staff Welfare) | Mr. Barry Brindley |
| Deputy Head (Systems) | Mr. Eric Medway |
| Assistant Deputy Head (Pastoral Care) | Mr. C. Freeman |
| Assistant Deputy Head (School Evaluation) | Mr. P. Lunn |
| Head of Junior School | Mr. Robert Lilley |
| Head of Rose Court Nursery & Pre-Prep | Miss. Anne Pickering |
The school administrations of Leeds Grammar School legally merged with Leeds Girls' High School on 31 August 2005 with the schools physically merging in September 2008.
Plans for the merger were not universally welcomed. As early as 2003, a campaign group called "No Merger in 2007" alleged a "hidden agenda"--a drive to reduce debts incurred from an LGS building programme—and stated that the proposed merger "makes no educational sense". The LGS headmaster, Mark Bailey, claimed that only a fifth of parents opposed the planned merger, whilst the LGHS head Sue Fishburn stated that 80% of parents were in favour of the merger.[2] A number of parents were reported to have stated a preference for strictly single-sex establishments, despite assurances that classrooms would be single-sex.[3] In January 2004, Mark Bailey was reported to have stated that less than 1% of the 1500 families with children at the two schools "wrote to oppose the move".[4] Further controversy was reported in 2005, when plans for the new school crest were released. According to the report "Parents who contacted the Yorkshire Post said many felt dismayed by the merger and the new logo but dared not speak up". One parent claimed the existing crest had been "obliterated by a felt-tip doodle".[5]
Plans to redevelop the Alwoodley site were met with some opposition. Leeds City Council delayed its decision for the LGS planning application until Summer 2006, requiring the physical merger to be put back a year until September 2008. As well as this, there was controversy due to the expected increase in traffic levels at the Alwoodley site,[6] but this was reduced by the drawing up of a new traffic plan.[7] Work began in August 2007 and involved the formation of a new signalised site access junction. The construction of a new pedestrian tunnel and a 30 mph (48 km/h) speed limit were also installed to relieve traffic pressure. Controversy persisted into late 2007, however, over the possible need for an additional vehicle entrance at the new school site in Alwoodley and the arrangements for the disposal of the Headingley LGHS site.[8]