Henry Box School
 | |
| Motto |
"Studio Floremus" translated as "By study we flourish" |
|---|---|
| Established | 1660 |
| Type | Academy |
| Headteacher | Ms.W.Hemmingsley |
| Founder | Henry Box |
| Specialism | Languages, Science |
| Location |
Church Green Witney Oxfordshire OX28 4AX England Coordinates: 51°47′33″N 1°28′16″W / 51.792422°N 1.471052°W |
| Local authority | Oxfordshire |
| DfE number | ???/4050 |
| DfE URN | 138210 Tables |
| Ofsted | Reports |
| Students | 1351 |
| Gender | Coeducational |
| Ages | 11–18 |
| Houses | Redgrave, Nightingale, Churchill, Newton |
| Colours | Yellow, White, Blue, Green |
| Former name | Witney Grammar School |
| Website | HBS |
The Henry Box School is a secondary school with academy status located in Witney in the English county of Oxfordshire.
Admissions
It has a catchment area of the town of Witney and many surrounding villages such as Ducklington, Aston and Bampton. It has approximately 1400 students,[1] aged 11–18. The Latin motto of the Henry Box School is 'Studio Floremus', which can be translated as 'By study we flourish'.
Facilities
Sports
The Henry Box School has a sports hall and gym used for Physical Education lessons and afterschool sports activities such as badminton, rounders, cricket and basketball. For some PE lessons students go off-site to use the Leys or Witney
The School's under 14 and under 16 boys' badminton teams won the Centre Parcs County Championships in 2013 and will go on to represent Oxfordshire at the University of Surrey for the South East National Schools Championships, the first time a school has won both regional age group competitions. [2]
Sciences
The Henry Box School has 11 Science laboratories.
English
The School has a library, also known as the Learning Resources Center. Students take part in the kids lit quiz[3] annually and the school also hosts author visits such as Chris Bradford and Andy Briggs. [4]
The Arts
The school does drama and musical productions throughout the year; for example, Jesus Christ Superstar in April 2013 [5] and Annie in April 2011 [6]
The school's new Music block, including a recording studio and sound-proof practice and teaching rooms, was opened on 26 November 2010 by David Cameron, Prime Minister. To celebrate the opening of the Music block, students recorded a cover of Take That's Greatest Day which was then uploaded onto Youtube.[7]
History
Foundation
It was established in 1660 by Grocer, Henry Box and his wife Mary. It was an endowed grammar school with boarding facilities for 100 boys.[8]
Grammar School
For 300 years it was a public grammar school, administered by Oxfordshire Education Committee as a co-educational school. In the early 1960s it had 350 boys and girls, and was known as The Witney Grammar School, Witney.
Comprehensive
It was converted to a state comprehensive school in 1968. In the 1990s it had around 1,000 pupils. The school was granted Specialist College status in September 2001 for Modern Foreign Languages, and was the first school in Oxfordshire to gain a second specialism, that of Science and Maths in 2006.
The Henry Box School plays an annual football game against the Abingdon and Witney College in memory of former student Kevin Mott.
Academy
The school became an academy in August 2012.
Academic performance
It gets well above-average GCSE results and above-average results at A-level, though not particularly high. According to the School League Tables, 44% of students achieved 5 good GCSEs or equivalent and 25% of students achieved the English Baccalaureate in 2012[9]
Notable alumni
- Paul Angelis, actor
- Robert Llewellyn, actor (Red Dwarf, Scrapheap Challenge), briefly at the grammar school and expelled when 16 for arguing with the headmaster
- Gugu Mbatha-Raw, actress (Doctor Who, Spooks, Bonekickers)
- Lawson D'Ath, footballer (Reading Football Club)
- Jay Osgerby, founding member of BarberOsgerby industrial design studio, which designed the London Olympics 2012 Olympic torch.
Witney Grammar School
- Air Vice-Marshal Wilfred Carter CB DFC, Station Commander from 1958-60 of RAF Ternhill
- Patrick Christopher Steptoe CBE, obstetrician and inventor, with Robert Edwards of in vitro fertilisation (IVF), and President from 1986-88 of the British Fertility Society and from 1977-88 of the International Federation of Fertility Societies
References
- ↑ "School Info". Henry Box School. Retrieved 2011-01-13.
- ↑ http://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/sport/10259621.BADMINTON__Henry_Box_double_up/
- ↑ http://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/10088179.Pupils_dazzle_quizmaster_with_book_knowledge/
- ↑ http://www.henrybox.oxon.sch.uk/page_viewer.asp?page=Author+Visits&pid=380
- ↑ http://www.witneygazette.co.uk/news/10327390.School_stars_shine_in_Jesus_Christ_Superstar/
- ↑ http://www.henrybox.oxon.sch.uk/_includes/attachments/P118/Parents%20Newsletter%20May%202011%20for%20website.pdf
- ↑ http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=BlPFLT2BkM8
- ↑ http://www.henrybox.oxon.sch.uk/page_viewer.asp?category=History&pid=41
- ↑ http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/special/education/school_tables/secondary/12/html/931.stm retrieved 2013-06-02