Merchant Taylors' School, Crosby
Encyclopedia
Merchant Taylors' School, Crosby (also known as Merchant Taylors' School for Boys, Crosby) is a British
independent school
for day pupils, located in Great Crosby
on Merseyside
.
The school's motto is that of the Worshipful Company of Merchant Taylors
: Concordia Parvae Res Crescunt. (Small things grow in harmony.)
of London
, who was born in Great Crosby
, and was run under the auspices of the Merchant Taylors' Company until 1910. In 1878, the school moved to its present site, some 1000 yards from the previous, which now forms part of the Merchant Taylors' Girls' School
, with whom the school shares a Governing Board and Bursar
.The first Headmaster was the Revd John Kidde who was also at the time the ‘Minister of Crosby’ and a farmer of 3 acres (12,140.6 m²) to support his family of eight children. Kidde was apparently sacked from the post in 1651 on the grounds of mismanagement although it is thought he was forced out by Roman Catholic Sympathizers on account of his Puritan/Presbyterian ways.
. It currently caters for 800 day pupils between the ages of 11 and 19 (with an additional 120 in the Junior School). Lessons run Monday-Friday, 08:40-16:00 (A Saturday working day was abolished in 1981). As a result of these longer school days, holidays are frequently several weeks longer than local education authority
dates.
The school is independently run, and, as such, charges tuition fees. Fees were partially subsidised by the Government under the Assisted Places Scheme
until the closure of that scheme in 2001. The Schools now run their own means tested Assisted Places Scheme under which about 20% of pupils benefit from free, or reduced-fee places.
Nearly all leavers gain first choice places at Russell Group
universities, with a regular percentage of leavers securing places at Oxbridge
.
Until 2007, the school was regularly ranked in the top 100 for examination results at A-Level, and the top 250 at GCSE
nationally, with an almost 100% pass rate in both.
However, in that year, the government's official league tables ranked the school as fourth from bottom in the borough of Sefton, with the number of pupils obtaining 5 A*-C grades (including English and Mathematics) at 23% This discrepancy is accounted for by the fact that most of the school's pupils sat International GCSE
exams in Mathematics, which are currently not counted in the official statistics. When these are taken into account, the pass rate for Mathematics remains at 100%.
, field hockey
and cricket
, however association football as well as samoan cricket have both recently been introduced as an 'official' school sport and looks set to challenge the more established sports over the coming years.
The school also has a boat house which is currently on loan to Southport Dragon Boat Club, in the nearby town of Southport for its rowing team. The rowing team compete in national races with a number of boys competing at national level every year.
The rugby coaching staff includes Mike Slemen
, former England
and British and Irish Lions
international and England team selector, and former Scottish
international Ian McKie.
In July 2007, members of the rugby team were involved in an accident whilst on tour in Australia
. Rugby coach Ian Robinson was killed after a white-water raft capsized on the Tully River
.
The school also has a Combined Cadet Force
, run in conjunction with Merchant Taylors' School for Girls, headed by Contingent Commander, Lieutenant Colonel (CCF), Paul Irvine. The Army section of MTS CCF is badged as Duke of Lancaster's Regiment (King's Regiment until July 2006).
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
independent school
Independent school
An independent school is a school that is independent in its finances and governance; it is not dependent upon national or local government for financing its operations, nor reliant on taxpayer contributions, and is instead funded by a combination of tuition charges, gifts, and in some cases the...
for day pupils, located in Great Crosby
Great Crosby
Great Crosby is an area of the town of Crosby, in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England.-Location:In 1907, the Victoria County History described Great Crosby's location thus: 'The ancient township of Great Crosby, which includes Waterloo, lies on the northern shore of the estuary...
on Merseyside
Merseyside
Merseyside is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 1,365,900. It encompasses the metropolitan area centred on both banks of the lower reaches of the Mersey Estuary, and comprises five metropolitan boroughs: Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton, Wirral, and the city of Liverpool...
.
The school's motto is that of the Worshipful Company of Merchant Taylors
Worshipful Company of Merchant Taylors
The Worshipful Company of Merchant Taylors is one of the 108 Livery Companies of the City of London.The Company, originally known as the Guild and Fraternity of St...
: Concordia Parvae Res Crescunt. (Small things grow in harmony.)
History
The school was founded in 1620 under the instruction of the estate of John Harrison, a citizen and Merchant TaylorWorshipful Company of Merchant Taylors
The Worshipful Company of Merchant Taylors is one of the 108 Livery Companies of the City of London.The Company, originally known as the Guild and Fraternity of St...
of 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...
, who was born in Great Crosby
Great Crosby
Great Crosby is an area of the town of Crosby, in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England.-Location:In 1907, the Victoria County History described Great Crosby's location thus: 'The ancient township of Great Crosby, which includes Waterloo, lies on the northern shore of the estuary...
, and was run under the auspices of the Merchant Taylors' Company until 1910. In 1878, the school moved to its present site, some 1000 yards from the previous, which now forms part of the Merchant Taylors' Girls' School
Merchant Taylors' Girls' School
Merchant Taylors' Girls' School, Crosby is a British selective independent girls' school, located in Great Crosby on Merseyside. As of 2007, it had around 620 pupils, ranging in age from 11 to 18...
, with whom the school shares a Governing Board and Bursar
Bursar
A bursar is a senior professional financial administrator in a school or university.Billing of student tuition accounts are the responsibility of the Office of the Bursar. This involves sending bills and making payment plans with the ultimate goal of getting the student accounts paid off...
.The first Headmaster was the Revd John Kidde who was also at the time the ‘Minister of Crosby’ and a farmer of 3 acres (12,140.6 m²) to support his family of eight children. Kidde was apparently sacked from the post in 1651 on the grounds of mismanagement although it is thought he was forced out by Roman Catholic Sympathizers on account of his Puritan/Presbyterian ways.
Present day
Until the late 20th century, Merchants was a boarding schoolBoarding school
A boarding school is a school where some or all pupils study and live during the school year with their fellow students and possibly teachers and/or administrators. The word 'boarding' is used in the sense of "bed and board," i.e., lodging and meals...
. It currently caters for 800 day pupils between the ages of 11 and 19 (with an additional 120 in the Junior School). Lessons run Monday-Friday, 08:40-16:00 (A Saturday working day was abolished in 1981). As a result of these longer school days, holidays are frequently several weeks longer than local education authority
Local Education Authority
A local education authority is a local authority in England and Wales that has responsibility for education within its jurisdiction...
dates.
The school is independently run, and, as such, charges tuition fees. Fees were partially subsidised by the Government under the Assisted Places Scheme
Assisted Places Scheme
The Assisted Places Scheme was established in the UK by the Conservative government in 1980. Children who could not afford to go to fee-paying independent schools were provided with free or subsidised places - if they were able to score within the top 10-15% of applicants in the school's entrance...
until the closure of that scheme in 2001. The Schools now run their own means tested Assisted Places Scheme under which about 20% of pupils benefit from free, or reduced-fee places.
Nearly all leavers gain first choice places at Russell Group
Russell Group
The Russell Group is a collaboration of twenty UK universities that together receive two-thirds of research grant and contract funding in the United Kingdom. It was established in 1994 to represent their interests to the government, parliament and other similar bodies...
universities, with a regular percentage of leavers securing places at Oxbridge
Oxbridge
Oxbridge is a portmanteau of the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge in England, and the term is now used to refer to them collectively, often with implications of perceived superior social status...
.
Until 2007, the school was regularly ranked in the top 100 for examination results at A-Level, and the top 250 at GCSE
General Certificate of Secondary Education
The General Certificate of Secondary Education is an academic qualification awarded in a specified subject, generally taken in a number of subjects by students aged 14–16 in secondary education in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and is equivalent to a Level 2 and Level 1 in Key Skills...
nationally, with an almost 100% pass rate in both.
However, in that year, the government's official league tables ranked the school as fourth from bottom in the borough of Sefton, with the number of pupils obtaining 5 A*-C grades (including English and Mathematics) at 23% This discrepancy is accounted for by the fact that most of the school's pupils sat International GCSE
IGCSE
The International General Certificate of Secondary Education is an internationally recognised qualification for school students, typically in the 14–16 age group. It is similar to the GCSE in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, Standard Grade in Scotland or Junior Certificate in the Republic of...
exams in Mathematics, which are currently not counted in the official statistics. When these are taken into account, the pass rate for Mathematics remains at 100%.
Sports and extracurricular activities
The primary sports played by the school are rugby unionRugby union
Rugby 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...
, field hockey
Field hockey
Field Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...
and cricket
Cricket
Cricket 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...
, however association football as well as samoan cricket have both recently been introduced as an 'official' school sport and looks set to challenge the more established sports over the coming years.
The school also has a boat house which is currently on loan to Southport Dragon Boat Club, in the nearby town of Southport for its rowing team. The rowing team compete in national races with a number of boys competing at national level every year.
The rugby coaching staff includes Mike Slemen
Mike Slemen
Michael Anthony Slemen is a former international rugby union player. He toured South Africa in 1980 with the British and Irish Lions and at the time played club rugby for Liverpool.-Rugby union career:...
, former England
England national rugby union team
The England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...
and British and Irish Lions
British and Irish Lions
The British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team made up of players from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales...
international and England team selector, and former Scottish
Scotland national rugby union team
The Scotland national rugby union team represent Scotland in international rugby union. Rugby union in Scotland is administered by the Scottish Rugby Union. The Scotland rugby union team is currently ranked eighth in the IRB World Rankings as of 19 September 2011...
international Ian McKie.
In July 2007, members of the rugby team were involved in an accident whilst on tour in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. Rugby coach Ian Robinson was killed after a white-water raft capsized on the Tully River
Tully River
The Tully River is a river situated within the Cassowary Coast Region of North Queensland, named after William Alcock Tully, Queensland Surveyor-General from 1875-89.The Bruce Highway crosses the river south of Tully...
.
The school also has a Combined Cadet Force
Combined Cadet Force
The Combined Cadet Force is a Ministry of Defence sponsored youth organisation in the United Kingdom. Its aim is to "provide a disciplined organisation in a school so that pupils may develop powers of leadership by means of training to promote the qualities of responsibility, self reliance,...
, run in conjunction with Merchant Taylors' School for Girls, headed by Contingent Commander, Lieutenant Colonel (CCF), Paul Irvine. The Army section of MTS CCF is badged as Duke of Lancaster's Regiment (King's Regiment until July 2006).
Notable former pupils
Alumni of MTS Crosby are known as "Old Crosbeians"- James Allen, (Formula OneFormula OneFormula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...
commentator) - Matthew BaylisMatthew BaylisMatthew Baylis is a British novelist, screenwriter and journalist. He was educated at Merchant Taylors’ School, Crosby, and Trinity College, Cambridge, and spent most of his early years in Southport, Merseyside....
, author and critic - Alan BlackshawAlan BlackshawAlan Blackshaw OBE was an English mountaineer, skier and civil servant who was President of the Alpine Club from 2001 to 2004.-Early life:...
, mountaineer - James BurnieJames BurnieJames Burnie MC was an English businessman and Liberal Party politician.-Family and education:Burnie was born in Bootle, Lancashire, the son of Joseph Burnie a local businessman. He was educated at St John’s School, Bootle and at Merchant Taylors' School, Crosby. In 1910 he married Ruth E....
, Liberal MP, Bootle - Sir Richard Rylandes Costain (1902–1966), building contractor and industrialist
- John CulshawJohn CulshawJohn Royds Culshaw OBE was a pioneering English classical record producer for Decca Records. He recorded a wide range of music, but is best known for masterminding the first studio recording of Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen, begun in 1958.Largely self-educated musically, Culshaw worked for...
, record producer and television executive - Sir (William) Allen Daley (1887–1969), medical officer of health
- George Downing, landlord; owner of the Port of Liverpool building
- George Kruger GrayGeorge Kruger GrayGeorge Edward Kruger Gray was an English artist, best remembered for his designs of coinage and stained glass windows.-Coinage:...
, designer - Simon JackSimon JackSimon Jack is a British business journalist and correspondent for the BBC, known for appearing on BBC Breakfast until September 2011...
, BBC finance reporter - Ben KayBen KayBenedict James Kay MBE is a retired English international rugby union footballer who played Second row forward for Leicester Tigers and .-Background:...
, of the England Rugby World Cup winning side of 2003 - Bruce KenrickBruce KenrickRev Bruce Kenrick was a social activist and Minister in the United Reformed Church and the Church of Scotland...
, founder, ShelterShelterShelter is a basic architectural structure or building that provides cover. The word may also refer to:-Places:*Port Shelter, Hong Kong*Shelter Bay , various locations*Shelter Cove , various locations...
housing charity - Ian Kirby, journalist
- Sir Hardman LeverHardman LeverSir Samuel Hardman Lever, 1st Baronet, KCB , generally known as Sir Hardman Lever, and as "Sammie" to his friends, was an English accountant and civil servant....
, accountant - Charles James MathewsCharles James MathewsCharles James Mathews was a British actor. He was one of the few British actors to be successful in French-speaking roles in France. A son of the actor Charles Mathews, he achieved a greater reputation than his father in the same profession and also excelled at light comedy...
, actor - William Henry Overall (1829–1888), librarian
- Robert RuncieRobert RuncieRobert Alexander Kennedy Runcie, Baron Runcie, PC, MC was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1980 to 1991.-Early life:...
, Archbishop of Canterbury from 1980 to 1991 - Nigel ReesNigel ReesNigel Rees is an English author and presenter, best known for devising and hosting the Radio 4 long running panel game Quote.....
, broadcaster and author - Mark Stephens, technology journalist
- Sir John WaltonJohn Lawson WaltonSir John Lawson Walton KC was a British barrister and Liberal politician.-Family and education:John Lawson Walton was the son of the Reverend John Walton MA, a Wesleyan missionary in Ceylon who later preached at Grahamstown in South Africa and who became President of the Wesleyan Conference for...
, barrister and politician - Sir Charles Kingsley Webster, historian
- Barrie WellsBarrie WellsBarrie Wells is an English financial services entrepreneur and businessperson, who has set up and sold two major insurance-related businesses in his career...
, insurance entrepreneur and sports philanthropist - Bertie Wilson, Second Engineer on RMS Titanic
- The Witty brothers – Arthur WittyArthur WittyArthur Witty Cotton , also known as Don Arturo, was an Anglo/Catalan footballer, club president and businessman. Witty played for FC Barcelona in the first Copa del Rey final and later served as club president between 1903 and 1905. He was also a successful trader and his family company, the Witty...
and Ernest WittyErnest WittyErnest Witty Cotton, , was an Anglo-Spanish footballer, tennis player and businessman. In 1899 Witty, a Spanish national tennis champion, became a founding member of the Real Club de Tenis Barcelona and in the early 1900s he played for FC Barcelona. He was also a successful trader and his family...
footballers
Headmasters
Notable teachers and ex-teachers
- John PughJohn PughJohn David Pugh is a Liberal Democrat politician in the United Kingdom. He is Member of Parliament for Southport...
, Liberal DemocratLiberal DemocratsThe Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
MP for SouthportSouthportSouthport is a seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. During the 2001 census Southport was recorded as having a population of 90,336, making it the eleventh most populous settlement in North West England... - Terence RattiganTerence RattiganSir Terence Mervyn Rattigan CBE was one of England's most popular 20th-century dramatists. His plays are generally set in an upper-middle-class background...
, taught Classics at the Boys school before writing the famous The Winslow BoyThe Winslow Boythumb|1st edition cover The Winslow Boy is an English play from 1946 by Terence Rattigan based on an actual incident in the Edwardian era, which took place at the Royal Naval College, Osborne.-Performance History:...
. - Mike SlemenMike SlemenMichael Anthony Slemen is a former international rugby union player. He toured South Africa in 1980 with the British and Irish Lions and at the time played club rugby for Liverpool.-Rugby union career:...
, former EnglandEngland national rugby union teamThe England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...
and British and Irish LionsBritish and Irish LionsThe British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team made up of players from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales...
international and England team selector