Ernest Bevin College
Encyclopedia
Ernest Bevin College is a specialist college in Tooting
, London
, England
. The school is all-boys for ages 11 through 18, but has a co-educational sixth form. It has about 1173 pupils.
(1881–1951), a British labour leader and politician. It was formed through merging the two adjacent schools of Bec Grammar
and Hillcroft Secondary Modern
in 1970. The school was briefly named Bec-Hillcroft until 1971, at which point it became Ernest Bevin School and eventually in 1996 Ernest Bevin College.
Hillcroft Secondary School, Bec-Hillcroft and Ernest Bevin School ran under the aegis of the Inner London Education Authority
until it was abolished by the Education Reform Act 1988
. Since then the school has been run by the London Borough of Wandsworth
.
Ernest Bevin College has been a specialist college
for Sport since 2000. Because of improvement in academic achievement, the college was offered a second specialism in Mathematics and Computing in 2004.
Prior to 1980, the school was divided into four houses each with a different tie and badge colours: Faraday(green), Shaftsbury(red), Wellington(yellow) and Churchill(blue). Each pupil would remain in their respective house until they left school.
One driving influence was Joe Wilson (1920 - 2011) who became head of Physical Education at Hillcroft School when it opened in 1960 and remained in this role for 20 years. Unusually Joe's vision was to promote as many competitive sports as possible and he was instrumental in introducing lacrosse
to the school in 1964.
Today, this sporting mentality is still a strong presence at the school – the opening of the new sports facilities in 2007 only served to strengthen this.
Sports the school currently participates in, or facilitates students’ participation in, include:
Table tennis is now an integral part of the sporting culture at Ernest Bevin, and most students are aware of the players' activities. In recent months, the club has been expanded to include players from several local primary schools, opening up an entirely new stream of young players and clearing the path for Bevin to tap into local potential – many of these younger students will go on to attend Ernest Bevin, thus furthering their table tennis career.
It is a well-known fact that the current table tennis England Senior Men No. 2 ranked player, Darius Knight, grew up and learned his table tennis in Wandsworth.
Over the years, Ernest Bevin has won many tournaments in volleyball – most notably so in recent years, the U16 Boys Nationals Title (2008). They were succeeded by Newcastle Staffs Volleyball Club in 2009. Today, the college is something of a volleyball 'hub' with London teams such as the former London Malory and White Eagles Volleyball Club and the Dulwich Tuskers using it as their home training venue. For a period of time in late 2008, Putney Volleyball Club also used Ernest Bevin as a training venue.
Many of Ernest Bevin's players have gone on to have involvement with the national squads. In recent years, nine Ernest Bevin players have been invited to attend England trials at various age groups. The Ernest Bevin volleyball set-up had strong links with both the former White Eagles Volleyball Club (now Malory Eagles Volleyball Club) and with the Wandsworth Bourough Volleyball Squads who compete both at the London Youth Games and at various age-groups in the junior Nationals tournament each year/season.
Tooting
Tooting is a district in south London, England, located in the London Borough of Wandsworth. It is situated south south-west of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.-History:...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The school is all-boys for ages 11 through 18, but has a co-educational sixth form. It has about 1173 pupils.
History
The school was named after Ernest BevinErnest Bevin
Ernest Bevin was a British trade union leader and Labour politician. He served as general secretary of the powerful Transport and General Workers' Union from 1922 to 1945, as Minister of Labour in the war-time coalition government, and as Foreign Secretary in the post-war Labour Government.-Early...
(1881–1951), a British labour leader and politician. It was formed through merging the two adjacent schools of Bec Grammar
Bec School
Bec School was a grammar school in South London.-Comprehensive:The school closed when it was amalgamated with the adjacent Hillcroft School in 1970 to create Bec-Hillcroft comprehensive school...
and Hillcroft Secondary Modern
Hillcroft School
Hillcroft School was a boys' secondary school in South London. In 1960, it was established in Tooting Bec, being built on playing fields of, and adjacent to, the premises of Bec School...
in 1970. The school was briefly named Bec-Hillcroft until 1971, at which point it became Ernest Bevin School and eventually in 1996 Ernest Bevin College.
Hillcroft Secondary School, Bec-Hillcroft and Ernest Bevin School ran under the aegis of the Inner London Education Authority
Inner London Education Authority
The Inner London Education Authority was the education authority for the 12 inner London boroughs from 1965 until its abolition in 1990.-History:...
until it was abolished by the Education Reform Act 1988
Education Reform Act 1988
The Education Reform Act 1988 is widely regarded as the most important single piece of education legislation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland since the 'Butler' Education Act 1944...
. Since then the school has been run by the London Borough of Wandsworth
London Borough of Wandsworth
The London Borough of Wandsworth is a London borough in southwest London, England, and forms part of Inner London.-History:The borough was formed in 1965 from the former area of the Metropolitan Borough of Battersea and much of the former area of the Metropolitan Borough of Wandsworth, but...
.
Ernest Bevin College has been a specialist college
Specialist school
The specialist schools programme was a UK government initiative which encouraged secondary schools in England to specialise in certain areas of the curriculum to boost achievement. The Specialist Schools and Academies Trust was responsible for the delivery of the programme...
for Sport since 2000. Because of improvement in academic achievement, the college was offered a second specialism in Mathematics and Computing in 2004.
Dress code
Ernest Bevin College, like most secondary schools, has a strict dress code. The school uniform for key stages 3 and 4 (years 7–11) is a white shirt, optional black V-neck jumper, black trousers, black shoes, black blazer with Ernest Bevin phoenix and flames logo on the left pocket, and a colour-striped tie representing the student's year group.School tie colour
Red, green, purple, yellow and blue are the tie colours representing each year group. When a student joins in year 7, they are given the colour which was the colour to the year 11 the previous academic year. This tie colour remains the same for the remainder of their time in school until reaching sixth form.Prior to 1980, the school was divided into four houses each with a different tie and badge colours: Faraday(green), Shaftsbury(red), Wellington(yellow) and Churchill(blue). Each pupil would remain in their respective house until they left school.
Healthy Schools
Ernest Bevin College was one of the first schools to receive Healthy Schools status.Sports at Ernest Bevin College
Ernest Bevin College has a strong sporting tradition running back many years. Since the school's inception, it has managed to produce many professional athletes and sportsmen.One driving influence was Joe Wilson (1920 - 2011) who became head of Physical Education at Hillcroft School when it opened in 1960 and remained in this role for 20 years. Unusually Joe's vision was to promote as many competitive sports as possible and he was instrumental in introducing lacrosse
Lacrosse
Lacrosse is a team sport of Native American origin played using a small rubber ball and a long-handled stick called a crosse or lacrosse stick, mainly played in the United States and Canada. It is a contact sport which requires padding. The head of the lacrosse stick is strung with loose mesh...
to the school in 1964.
Today, this sporting mentality is still a strong presence at the school – the opening of the new sports facilities in 2007 only served to strengthen this.
Sports the school currently participates in, or facilitates students’ participation in, include:
- Football
- RugbyRugby unionRugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
- CricketCricketCricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
- SwimmingSwimming (sport)Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
- JudoJudois a modern martial art and combat sport created in Japan in 1882 by Jigoro Kano. Its most prominent feature is its competitive element, where the object is to either throw or takedown one's opponent to the ground, immobilize or otherwise subdue one's opponent with a grappling maneuver, or force an...
- Athletics
- BasketballBasketballBasketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
- TennisTennisTennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
- Table tennisTable tennisTable tennis, also known as ping-pong, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight, hollow ball back and forth using table tennis rackets. The game takes place on a hard table divided by a net...
- VolleyballVolleyballVolleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
Table tennis at Ernest Bevin College
The current table tennis coach at Ernest Bevin is Mark Smith (former professional table tennis player). Mark has been a full-time coach at Ernest Bevin College since late 2005. During that time, Mark has created a strong, well-known team – three of his players have been or currently are ranked among the top 50 in the country (Cadet age).Table tennis is now an integral part of the sporting culture at Ernest Bevin, and most students are aware of the players' activities. In recent months, the club has been expanded to include players from several local primary schools, opening up an entirely new stream of young players and clearing the path for Bevin to tap into local potential – many of these younger students will go on to attend Ernest Bevin, thus furthering their table tennis career.
It is a well-known fact that the current table tennis England Senior Men No. 2 ranked player, Darius Knight, grew up and learned his table tennis in Wandsworth.
Volleyball at Ernest Bevin College
The current long-serving volleyball coach at Ernest Bevin College is John Lowney – a well-recognised and respected name in the world of English volleyball; he is an ex-international, now coach of the junior London Squads, as well as coach amongst many other things at the newly formed Malory Eagles Volleyball Club (formerly White Eagles Volleyball Club and London Malory).Over the years, Ernest Bevin has won many tournaments in volleyball – most notably so in recent years, the U16 Boys Nationals Title (2008). They were succeeded by Newcastle Staffs Volleyball Club in 2009. Today, the college is something of a volleyball 'hub' with London teams such as the former London Malory and White Eagles Volleyball Club and the Dulwich Tuskers using it as their home training venue. For a period of time in late 2008, Putney Volleyball Club also used Ernest Bevin as a training venue.
Many of Ernest Bevin's players have gone on to have involvement with the national squads. In recent years, nine Ernest Bevin players have been invited to attend England trials at various age groups. The Ernest Bevin volleyball set-up had strong links with both the former White Eagles Volleyball Club (now Malory Eagles Volleyball Club) and with the Wandsworth Bourough Volleyball Squads who compete both at the London Youth Games and at various age-groups in the junior Nationals tournament each year/season.
Notable alumni
- Jimmy WhiteJimmy WhiteJames Warren "Jimmy" White MBE is an English professional snooker player. Nicknamed the "Whirlwind" and popularly referred to as the "People's Champion", White is a multiple World Championship finalist renowned for losing each of the six finals he contested.White's extensive list of achievements,...
, professional snooker player - Tony Meo, professional snooker player
- Sean Davis, professional footballer
- Winston GordonWinston GordonWinston Alanzo Gordon is a British judoka, and Sensei at the in Tooting, London.He is also British Open Champion 2009.Winston is hoping to compete in his third Olympic games in London 2012.-Achievements:...
, Judo competitor - Ricky ShakesRicky ShakesRicky Ulric Shakes is an Guyanese football player who plays for Ebbsfleet United in the Conference National. He made over 110 appearances in Football League between 2005 and 2008.-Club career:...
, professional footballer - Jermaine AllenJermaine AllenJermaine Allen is an American Football running back who is active for the Kiel Baltic Hurricanes since December 2009. He was signed by the London Olympians in 2005...
, professional NFL running back - Eric BoatengEric BoatengEric Yamoah Boateng is a 6'10" British professional basketball player. He is a former player with the Arizona State Sun Devils men's basketball team. He attended St. Andrew's School in Middletown, Delaware. Boateng committed to Duke University out of high school, but transferred after one season...
, college basketball player - Sadiq KhanSadiq KhanSadiq Aman Khan is a British Labour Party politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Tooting since 2005, succeeding Tom Cox as the Labour MP for the seat...
, Labour MP for Tooting, South West London - Lennie JamesLennie JamesLennie James is an English actor and playwright.-Career:James attended the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, graduating in 1988...
, Actor and playwright - Sneakbo, UK rapper