Wilson's School

Wilson's School is a boys' grammar school in Wallington, in the London Borough of Sutton, UK. Admission is based on performance in an entrance test with around 1,000 pupils being taught there.

It was founded as Wilson's Grammar School in Camberwell in 1615, moving to its present location on part of the site of the former Croydon Airport in 1975, changing its name in the process. The move was due to concerns over the size of the facilities, government policy being against grammar schools at the time, and the wish of Sutton Council to have an additional grammar school.

Wilson's became Voluntary Aided in 1997. It was designated as a specialist school in Mathematics and Computing in 2002 and in April 2007 added a second specialism in the Arts. Its academic performance places it among the best schools in the United Kingdom.^[1]

The school recently changed to an Academy in June 2011 though there will be no name change.

The school operates five houses: Brecon, Camberwell, Greencoat, Hayes and Southwark.

The main sport is Association Football, although others such as athletics and cricket are also played. Swimming and Water Polo were of importance before the conversion of the swimming pool into an additional exercise hall. The status of Badminton Academy was conferred on it in 2006.

Wilson's hosts a Combined Cadet Force and has achieved Eco-Schools status.

While information on pupils taught at the school before 1843 has been lost, Wilson's has a long list of noted Old Boys across the fields of entertainment, science, the military and the church.

A Short History of Wilson's School,^[2] from which much of the information below was taken, was first published in 1951; its most recent edition was in 1987.

Academic performance

According to information supplied by the Department for Children, Schools and Families in January 2009, Wilson's had the 13th best GCSE results of all UK schools, including independents. They had the best state school results.^[3] and 33rd best A-Level results (based on average points per pupil; 17th based on average points per exam entry) ^[4]

The school was subject to an Ofsted report^[1] in June 2007, which rated the school as Grade 1 (outstanding) in all 38 of the target areas. The report begins:

"Wilson's is an outstanding school that deserves its high reputation. This is how the school sees itself, a view shared by the vast majority of the large number of parents who responded to the inspection questionnaire. One parent summed up the school well by noting of their son, 'Wilson's has helped him realise his potential and given him a life-long love for learning.'"

History

Foundation

The school was founded by Edward Wilson in 1615 and was located in Camberwell, now part of Greater London but at that time a small village of cottages, homesteads, inns and larger buildings grouped around a village green. Wilson was born around 1550 in Cartmel, Lancashire, which had its own grammar school, from where he passed on to Cambridge University. No record remains of him taking a degree, although it is known that he went into the Church, being appointed Deacon at Ely in Norfolk in 1576. He subsequently became Vicar of the Parish of Camberwell, which was presented to him by the Queen in person. This would indicate that he favoured the settlement of the Church of England which Elizabeth I was resolved to make. His nephew Peter Danson became a governor of the new school at its founding. Danson was also vicar of Carshalton in Surrey, ironically only one mile from the present site of the school. A further member of the Wilson family, a namesake of Edward Wilson, is named in the Charter of the School as the Master.

At the time, the establishment of a grammar school in England required the assent of the crown. This was obtained after the first school buildings were constructed. The original Charter bearing this assent has since been lost, although in 1929 the governors of the school obtained a certified extract from the Patent Rolls. This requirement for the agreement of the Crown explains the legend "Founded in 1615 by Royal Charter" that appears in various places beneath the school name. The Charter was granted by King James I, who had succeeded his cousin Elizabeth by this time.

The charter names the school as "The Free Grammar School of Edward Wilson, clerk, in Camberwell, otherwise Camerwell, in the County of Surrey."^[2]

Reconstitution

In 1845 the school was forced to close as a result of a financial scandal. Following an Order in Council of Queen Victoria in 1880, which superseded the previous Royal Charter, the school was rebuilt on a different site in Camberwell, opening in 1883. It again catered to the need for schooling of boys in Camberwell, which by this time had grown considerably from its rustic origins. Its working population largely consisted of men working in the professions, clerks, journalists, tradesmen and labourers.^[2] Naturally, a grammar school provided an asset to the neighbourhood, with the prospect for boys to go on to University education. For five and a half years during the Second World War, Wilson's was evacuated to a Camp School at Itchingfield near Horsham, Sussex, and for the only period in its history became a boarding school. The whole compound stood around a broad elliptical area, set in large part to grass and the remainder, an asphalt quadrangle. Radiating from this central area, in spoke-like fashion, was a series of large cedarwood huts. These were the dormitories, ablution blocks and classrooms. Two larger buildings stood adjacent to the asphalted space, one the dining hall and the other the assembly hall which also functioned as the gym, cinema and church. The whole establishment catered for four hundred plus boys forming six houses, all named after past headmasters of the school, Nairn, Macdowell, Wilson, Kelly, Whiteley and Jephson. The Head Master of Christ's Hospital was kind enough to allow Wilson's the use of the school's cricket pitches, swimming bath and other faciltiies, including the Great Hall for Speech Day.^[2]

In 1958, an elementary school in Camberwell known as the Greencoat School was closed after a 250-year history and part of its assets passed to Wilson's Grammar School. The funds were used to provide a new science facility, the Greencoat Building,^[5] whch was constructed opposite the main school site in Wilson Road. Two carved figures of a boy and a girl which are believed to have stood over the boys' and girls' entrances to the school were installed first in the Greencoat Building, and later in the Greencoat Courtyard in the new school at Wallington.

Relocation

School Coat of Arms and Badge

From 1883 the school was accustomed to use as a coat of arms the version of the Wilson shield used by Edward Wilson, probably without authority. In 1985 the then Chairman of Governors, Lt. Col. W. R. Bowden, obtained a Grant of Arms from the College of Arms. The new officially authorised Arms introduced to the previous form a silver bar between the wolf and the objects above, together with a gold border. Additionally, a crest is added above the helm in the form of a black wolf holding a silver fleur-de-lys in his paws with a black and gold mantle.^[2]

The blazon reads: "Sable a Wolf Salient Or and a Barrulet enhanced Argent in chief a Fleur de Lys also Argent between two Bezants all within a Bordure Gold And for the Crest upon a Helm with a Wreath Or and Sable a demi Wolf Salient Sable holding between its paws an Ogress charged with a Fleur de Lys Argent Mantled Sable doubled Or."

The Grant of Arms also gives the rights to a badge, defined as "Within a voided Hexagon Sable charged with three Fleur de Lys Argent and three Bezants a Wolf salient Sable armed and langued Gules."^[2] A lapel badge of this design is worn by senior prefects.

Houses

Each pupil is allocated to one of the houses upon entry to the school. In 1981, four new houses replaced the previous six^[2] (Jephson, Kelly, McDowell, Nairne, Whiteley, Wilson), and in 2002 a fifth, Southwark, was added, when the school became five form entry before the new foundation building was opened in 2005.^[6] Stundents in the same year in the same house are in the same form, and have registration, form period and lessons in years 7 and 8 together. Having once faded almost to complete insignificance in the life of the school, there is now renewed interest in putting the houses back at the heart of school life. House points are awarded for academic, sporting and extracurricular success; all members of the staff (including all ancillary staff, though not senior management) are allocated to Houses; all students wear a lapel badge of their house shield. House standards have been created for use on Sports Day; these are now kept on permanent display in the main school hall. The houses are also now used to differentiate whom uses the different school canteens: Brecon, Camberwell and Greencoat use the 'South Canteen' while Hayes and Southwark (with also the staff) use the 'North Canteen'.

Greencoat currently has the highest number of house points from golden tickets and certificates due to academic work and is also the strongest house for sport, winning sports day for 2009.

There are currently five houses in the school,^[7] corresponding to the five forms of entry. They are:

Uniform

The School Uniform consists of a white shirt, grey or black trousers, and black blazer emblazoned with the school badge on the left chest pocket.^[8] The tie is black with alternating thin white and yellow stripes of equal width. Starting from September 2010, all boys in the middle school (years 9-11) must wear a house tie, which consists of the same school tie with an added stripe with the house colour (red, blue, yellow, green or maroon), with the exception of year 11 in this school year (ending August 2011), who may wear a house badge with the normal tie instead should thye wish.

In exceptionally hot weather, with the permission of the Head, the blazer and tie may be removed and shirt sleeves rolled up.

Traditionally, Sixth Form students were differentiated from the lower years by wearing a black tie variant featuring a repeated small version of the school crest. There was also a prefect tie issued which reverted to stripes - in this case a black tie with alternating blocks of silver white flanked by two thin yellow bands.

Currently however, Sixth Form students are permitted to wear lounge suits or dark jackets, collar and tie with the option of jumpers if necessary.

Music and drama

Music plays a vital role in the cultural life of the school.^[9]

Musical ensembles range from those for more advanced players (including Senior Orchestra, Chamber Ensemble, and Wind Band) to a range of smaller ensembles catering for every instrumentalist. There is a Senior Choir and a Junior Choir (which combine for school events to form an ensemble of up to 90 singers) as well as a Chamber Choir. From September 2011, the Music Department will have three full time staff and a team of fourteen peripatetic teachers (many of whom run and support ensembles). There are concerts and performances throughout the year, including events held jointly with Wallington High School for Girls.

Collaboration between Music and Drama departments has yielded a range of productions involving junior students in recent years (including musical versions of A Midsummer Night's Dream and Hamlet in early 2010). A senior musical production of High Society will take place in December 2011.

There is generally one senior drama production per year,^[10] produced under the company name Shock Tactics. This goes back to 1997 when the then Headmaster bowed to pressure from a small number of parents who objected to the play ’Tis Pity She’s A Whore^[11] by John Ford being produced in school; the production team responded to the ban by taking the show out to a local theatre and performing not as Wilson’s School but as ‘Shock Tactics’. The following year at the same theatre they presented Ghetto^[12] by Joshua Sobol. Since then, productions have returned to the school, but the Shock Tactics moniker has remained, despite producing less controversial material.

Every seven or so years the staff perform in a full-scale Christmas pantomime. The last one was Sinbad the Sailor in 2009.

Sport

The original School statutes state that "The scholars play to be Shooting in long bows; chess; running, wrestling and leaping, &c..."^[2]

Football

In more modern times, the school's main sport is Association Football. Wilson's has six teams at Under 19 level and two teams for every age group from Under 12s (the Under 12s also have C,D E and F teams) to Under 16s. Football is compulsory in physical education throughout much of the season during a pupil’s early years at the school. In 2007 the 1st XI won the U19 Surrey Cup but lost to Millfield School in the semi-finals of the National Championship.^[2]

Cricket

The school has always had a good standard of cricket. There is a team for every year group up until year 11 when there is a first, second and often a third team. The school competes against local schools on Saturdays and there is first team tour every two years. Notable players in the school at present include Muhammad Raza, Dan Kenton(left for university), Sameer Khan, Sachin Duggal and Sam Wright.^[13]. Recently, another pupil of the school, Yousef Abdullah, was cited as the best up and coming sportsman in the school. He has since gone on to train in Indian cricket camps with the likes of other Indian cricket players.

Athletics

Alongside cricket, athletics is also popular. During the summer term, the school partakes in many track and field events; these include 100m to 1500m races, hurdles, javelin, shot put, long jump, high jump, triple jump and discus. Year 11 pupil, Jacob Paul completed 400 metre hurdles in a rapid time at the English schools athletics event and this earned him a place in the GB squad. ^[14]

Badminton

The school was designated an Academy School by Badminton England in February 2006. The six boys considered best in Badminton from years 8 to 12 receive specialist coaching and there is an after-school club for years 7 and 8 on Mondays and for years 9 and above on Fridays. The school is home for the Chadacre Badminton club, one of the top clubs in the county at senior level.^[15]

Swimming and Water Polo

Swimming was first brought in as an organised activity in 1883, using private facilities in Peckham and then Kennington, as no public baths were available in Camberwell until 1892. Masters of this early era include Mr M. Holbein, a channel swimmer, and Mr Cavill, credited by many of being the first to bring the front crawl to Britain from Australia.^[2]

However, it was not until the establishment of the new premises in Sutton, which included a half-Olympic sized swimming pool, that the school gained a national reputation for watersports. This was largely due to the keen involvement of the coach of a local club, who fed budding Wilson's water polo players through to develop their skills at Sutton and Cheam, a local club.^[16] By 1976, the school was competing internationally in swimming and provided half of Sutton's team for a gala in Berlin for that year and the next. Four boys were representing the country and the school came second in the 1977 English School Swimming Association Trials.^[2]

During this time, several water polo internationals were produced, including members of Welsh and English teams. More recently, the under 14 side came third in the National Schools Competition at Grantham in 1999. In 2000 the under-15 side won the London League. In 2001 Wilson's took a bronze medal at the under-14 national competition. Ex-pupil Kieran Bayles has represented England Schools under-16s and toured with the English under-19s in Malta, despite being two years under age. He played in the European Championship Qualifiers in Portugal.^[16]

Since the conversion of the pool to a sports hall in 2005, training and competition in swimming and water polo declined.

Table Tennis

This is taught by Mr Henderson, an external table tennis coach, regarded as one of the top table tennis coaches in the south of England. He is the Chairman of the Surrey Schools and was county player himself. The under-19s are ranked fourth nationally, having won the Surrey Cup, the National Schools Area Tournament and were runners up in the National Regional Tournament.^[17]

Rugby Union

Rugby was first introduced to the school in 1886, although it has not been continuously played since then. It was revived in 1921, in the 1960s, 1980s^[2] and has continued since a further revival in the mid-1990s. This reflects its status as a secondary game in the school; indeed, the existence of the 1st XV and other teams has not always been well known in the school. In the academic year 2008-2009 Wilson's entered three teams to the Mitcham Bulls League (Yr8, Yr10 and the 1st XV comprising mostly Lower sixth and Yr 11 students). All three leagues were won, and between them only 2 games were lost all season.^[18]

Rugby League

Rugby League is not played at the school, but the Rugby Union teams are often entered into Rugby League tournaments, with mixed success. The best result was when the 1st XV (playing League) reached the finals of a competition for the South of England but lost to a last minute drop goal: which was ironic, since a criticism of Union is that kicking and drop-goals are too important.

Sports day

On the 2011 sports day, the House of Greencoat won followed closely by Southwark with only fifteen points between them.

Combined Cadet Force

Wilson's School CCF was established in 1910 as an Army Officer Training Corps on the original Camberwell site by a teacher, Captain Edmonds. It continued to flourish after the school's move to Wallington under the leadership of Maj. C. Burton, and is now a Combined Cadet Force with Army and RAF sections, the latter introduced in 1964. The Officer team of the CCF is currently headed by Major C. Burton. The corps is inspected every two years, goes on annual Army and RAF camps, and is regularly appraised at a standard well above the average for school CCFs. In 2011 Wilson's School CCF (RAF) reached the National Final of the Air Squadron Trophy and gained third place winning RAF Knowledge and placing second in Drill despite this being their first time qualifying for National Finals.^[19]

Chess Club

Wilsons school also runs a successful chess club, which runs on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. In 2008 it won the plate in the national cup. It runs several chess teams, and in 2010 the first got through to the final four in the National Cup. It contains several players who play for England in their age groups and annually runs the British Land UK chess tournament.^[20]

Maths activities

As well as doing GCSE, AS and A level maths, Wilsons runs a Hans Woyda team, enters the Team Maths Challenges as well as the Junior, Intermediate and Senior maths challenges, with several pupils from each year getting through. It also runs maths masterclasses for pupils around the area in years 6 and 9.

KD Clubs

In Autumn 2009, Kes Daood, the founder of WASA, created a club solely for setting up other clubs in Wilson's School. This was named KD clubs and as of March 2010, has consisted of: WASA, Lower School Debating, Upper School Debating, Additional debating, Book Club, Medical Club, Free-thinkers club. Prayer club is now part of KD clubs however was founded by Sameer Khan.

WASA

On March 2008, a group of year 9 pupils started WASA, Wilson's Aeronautics and Space Association. It was set up mainly by Kes Daood, who is a member of PARS and currently runs the club with 14 other members. WASA continues to develop and has had 14 successful launches since March. WASA was postponed to the spring term in Autumn 2009 because of bad weather, 28.^{[21] [22]}

Eco-Schools

Wilson's has achieved Eco-Schools status (bronze).^[23] The goal is for the project to grow within the school and involve all students with representatives from every year group which is one of their ongoing projects, however, only Year 9 pupils are in the group, most likely because the co-ordinator of Eco-Schools, Stephen Phillips, is the current head of year 9.

Old Boys

Class lists from 1615 to 1843 have been lost, making it impossible to record with absolute certainty those who rose to fame in that period. However, A Short History^[2] notes that James Tyrrell, grandson of Archbishop Usher and author of A General History of England and other works, is known to have been a pupil in the middle of the seventeenth century.

Noted Old Boys include:

Entertainment and Sport

• Sir Michael Caine (Maurice Joseph Micklewhite), actor.^[24] Caine wrote of his dislike of his time at Wilson's, which was still in Camberwell during that period, in his autobiography "What's It All About?". However, he also states that his English teacher, Eric Watson "took the trouble to guide my rebellious mind into the area of literature."
• Simon Furman, comic book writer
• Stephen Jenkins, stage name Stephen Beckett, actor with regular roles in Coronation Street and The Bill ^[25]
• Andrew Kazamia, actor with a regular role in London's Burning, playwright and film-maker^[26]
• Tom Abbott, presenter and commentator for US television network The Golf Channel.
• Chris Cohen, comedy songwriter who works for ESPN and Chelsea FC TV

Arts, Humanities and Politics

• John Galliano, CBE, RDI, fashion designer
• Harry Golombek, OBE, Chess Grandmaster^[24]
• Roy Porter, historian
• Peter Walcot, Professor of Classics^[27]
• Aaron Porter, President, National Union of Students of the United Kingdom, 2010-11
• Sir Norman Reid, former director of the Tate Gallery^[24]
• Mark Stone, opera singer
• Tim Rayment, writer, the Sunday Times Magazine
• Ben Webster, writer, The Times
• Ben Ashford, writer, The Sun
• Dom Foulsham, writer, Music Week, Record Mirror, The Times, and writer/producer, BBC and Channel 4
• Richard Cook, LBIPP Photographer, British Institute of Professional Photography
• Matthew Todd, editor of Attitude Magazine and playwright
• Colin Butts, writer, Is Harry on the Boat? ^[28]

Military

• Capt. Harold Auten, VC, DSC, RD, "Q-Ship" commander in the First World War,^[24] author of ""Q" Boat Adventures" and later executive Vice-President of the Rank Organisation^[24]
• Sir Alan Cobham, KBE, AFC, pioneer aviator (first flight from Britain to Australia in 1926 and pioneer of air-to-air refuelling).^[24] Curiously, his flight to Australia was from Croydon Airport, the site of which is the present location of the School.
• H. E. Funnell, DSO, Merito de Guerra^[29]
• H. Harbord, DSO^[29]
• Major-General H. A. J. Sturge, CB, former Vice-Chairman of the Governors^[24]

Science

• Stephen Barker, MB BS BSc MS FRCS, Senior Lecturer in Surgery and Consultant Vascular Surgeon, University College London^[30]
• Nick Losseff, MD FRCP, neurologist^[31]
• Paul Deegan, mountaineer and environmentalist^[32]
• Sir Lewis Fermor, OBE DSc FRS^[33]
• Sir James Jeans, OM MA DSc ScD, astronomer^[24]
• George Barker Jeffery, mathematician
• John Stevens Henslow. botanist and geologist
• Dr George Druce Lander, FRS, chemist^[29]
• R. H. J Swan, FRCS, eminent surgeon of Guy's and the Royal Cancer Hospital^[29]

Law

• Trevor Hunter, QC and County Court Judge^[29]
• Alexander Walker, Assessor of the City of Glasgow^[34]

Industry and Government

• Lt. Col. W. R. Bowden, Founder Master of the Worshipful Company of Marketors^[29]
• F .L. Brown, CMG, MC and bar, secretary to the Duke of Windsor during the Duke's period as Governor-General of the Bahamas.^[29]
• Mr Deputy C. G. Dickson, former Sheriff of the City of London^[29]
• Charles Samuel Garland, MP and industrialist^[29]
• B. A. Glanvill, JP, former mayor of Bromley and High Sheriff of Kent^[29]
• Roger Lambart, 13th Earl of Cavan^[35]
• Ernest Partridge, MP and industrialist^[29]

Church

• The Rt. Revd. Dr. Brian Colin Castle, Bishop of Tonbridge^[36][37] and Governor of Sevenoaks School ^[38]
• The Very Revd. Dr Walter Robert Matthews, CH, KCVO, DD, DLitt, former Dean of St Paul's Cathedral^[24]
• The Rt. Revd. H. A. Wilson, CBE, DD, former Bishop of Chelmsford^[24]

Notable Governors

An exhaustive list is to be found in Appendix A of "A Short History of Wilson's School".^[2] The following are particular highlights from this. Dates are of their governorships.

• Hugh Boulter, DD, 1708-1722, Chaplain to George I, Bishop of Bristol, Archbishop of Armagh (Church of Ireland).
• Sir Edmund Bowyer, 1615-1626, a friend of the founder, Edward Wilson. His son, Edmund Bowyer the younger, was also a governor 1634-1681.
• William Cooper, 1651-1662, Chaplain to Princess Elizabeth of Bohemia.
• Rev. Dr. George D'Oyly, 1820-1846, theologian, biographer and the main founder of King's College London.
• Jonathan Dryden, 1650-1653, second cousin to the poet John Dryden.
• Edmund Gibson, DD, 1703-1717, Bishop of Lincoln and later bishop of London.
• George Hooper, DD, 1675-1703, Bishop of St Asaph, later bishop of Bath and Wells. Chaplain to Charles II and Regius Professor of Divinity at Oxford University.
• Guy Morgan, 2010-Present, Local-Hero and Renowned Tibetan Monk.
• Wilfred H. Hore, TD, DL, MA, BSc, 1978-1984, Deputy Lieutenant for the County of Surrey and former Headmaster of Guildford Royal Grammar School.
• William Dalrymple Maclagan, 1869-1875, Rector of Newington and later Archbishop of York, author of hymns.
• Richard Meggott, DD, 1672-1677, a Chaplain in Ordinary to Charles II.
• Sir Perceval Nairne, 1880-1921. One of the houses of the reconstituted school in Camberwell was named after him.
• John Nicholls, 1960-1968, Chaplain to Queen Elizabeth II.
• Beilby Porteous, DD, 1767-1777, Rector of Lambeth and later Bishop of Chester and then London.
• William Bramley Taylor, 1901-1902, surgeon, churchwarden of Camberwell and Master of the Apothercaries' Company.
• Richard van Spangen, 1729-1754, sculptor, carver of the font in Dulwich College Chapel.
• Christopher Wordsworth, DD, 1816-1820, Master of Trinity College, Cambridge, younger brother of the poet William Wordsworth.

References

Bibliography

• GCSE Results
• A-Level Results

External links

• Wilson's School
• Shock Tactics: Wilson's School Drama
• The Old Wilsonians' Association
• WASAv2