Sir Thomas Rich's School
Encyclopedia
Sir Thomas Rich's School is a grammar school
for boys (aged 11–18) and girls (aged 16–18, in the sixth form
) in Longlevens
, Gloucester
, England, locally known as "Tommies". It was founded in 1666 by Sir Thomas Rich, 1st Baronet Rich of Sonning
.
green, available for use by senior pupils who possess bowls shoes and by the Sir Thomas Rich's Bowls Club, and rented out to other organisations.
status. In 2007 an extension provided another modern language room and three geography classrooms.
Rugby is participated in by all pupils in the autumn term in their Games afternoons. It is an major option for pupils in the Sixth Form. In the junior years at Tommies, boys are taught a full range of skills, with the emphasis being placed on safety and mastering the basic skills. In Year 7 & 8 we have four teams in each year group and everybody wanting to play is given a chance to do so. Emphasis is placed on enjoying the game and each session is planned to challenge the players and have a large element of fun. As the boys move up the School their basic skills are gradually supplemented with more complex concepts as their own understanding of the game grows. Boys are encouraged to practise skills specific to their position both in their own time and in organised positional clinics. For instance, all the scrum halves in the club will meet for a passing practice with the older boys helping the younger boys. In the Sixth Form we run three senior teams. House matches are organised for all pupils throughout the school.
and Founders Day (roughly the 2nd to 3rd week of May).
The number of syllables in the fifth line of the third verse, ("Sixteen thousand pounds of what God gave",) does not fit with the rhythm of the psalm and does not correlate with the six thousand pounds left by Sir Thomas Rich for the founding of the school.
Let us rejoice with cheerful voice,
God's goodness magnify,
Who freely grants to all our wants,
Most plentiful supply.
Naked and poor to clothe and feed,
From misery to raise,
How truly great and noble 'tis,
How worthy is the praise.
Base pleasure 'tis mankind to hurt,
Although the only joy
Of ill men who abuse their wealth,
The harmless to annoy.
Within this city, thanks to God,
Such bounteous works abound
As have embalmed the authors' names,
By faith most richly crowned.
And in this rank of pious men,
Our founder, though the last
In time, yet in munificence
By none has been surpassed;
Sixteen thousand pounds of what God gave,
He did lend back again,
Though having issue of his blood,
Did not poor heirs disdain.
Whene'er we come, our gratitude
Shall there make it appear,
Who 'twas at first did nourish us
And who doth feed us here.
The pious part of this large store
In heaven's treasury lies,
Whilst the earthly stock's secured below
In the hands of good and wise.
And may this place and the whole realm
In peace protected be,
And happily may our Queen reign,
Blessed with peace and prosperity.
Grammar school
A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and some other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching classical languages but more recently an academically-oriented secondary school.The original purpose of mediaeval...
for boys (aged 11–18) and girls (aged 16–18, in the sixth form
Sixth form
In the education systems of England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, and of Commonwealth West Indian countries such as Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Belize, Jamaica and Malta, the sixth form is the final two years of secondary education, where students, usually sixteen to eighteen years of age,...
) in Longlevens
Longlevens
Longlevens is an area of Gloucester, United Kingdom. It was once a small farmstead outside the city of Gloucester. The name is believed to be based on the old Roman name Colonia Glevensis. Another possibility is that it was named after a row of eleven houses with long gardens...
, Gloucester
Gloucester
Gloucester is a city, district and county town of Gloucestershire in the South West region of England. Gloucester lies close to the Welsh border, and on the River Severn, approximately north-east of Bristol, and south-southwest of Birmingham....
, England, locally known as "Tommies". It was founded in 1666 by Sir Thomas Rich, 1st Baronet Rich of Sonning
Sonning
Sonning, occasionally called Sonning-on-Thames is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Wokingham in the English county of Berkshire, a few miles east of Reading. The village is situated on the River Thames and was described by Jerome K...
.
The will
In Sir Thomas Rich's will of 1666 he left his Gloucester house, in Eastgate and £6,000 (a considerable amount for the time) for a school to be established for twenty poor boys in Gloucester. The money was mainly invested in farm land and the rent was to pay for the running of the school. The school was opened in 1667, a year after Sir Thomas Rich's death. Sir Thomas Rich decreed that the pupils should wear "blue coats and caps according to the laudable usage of Christ Church Hospital in London." The blue drugget gown and yellow stockings were replaced in 1882 by the modern equivalent, the blue blazer. The uniform now consists of shirt, blazer (two varieties), tie (four varieties), black trousers, black socks and black or dark brown shoes.Modern history
The school moved to its present location from the centre of Gloucester in May 1964. Improvements include a new quadrangle of classrooms completed in 1994. The school has much increased in size since 1990, with the addition of many new buildings, such as a second quadrangle, sports hall, swimming pool, language block, and music block.Swimming pool
The school added a swimming pool when it moved in 1964. It was closed in the early 1990s, but re-opened in 1995. The pool is also used by neighbouring junior schools and local community organisations. The school participates in annual swimming galas, in which houses are awarded trophies. Ben Sawers won the competition in 2009. He was nominated for the London Olympics in 2012 but narrowly missed out because of intense competition.Bowling green
The school is the only one in the country with its own bowlingBowls
Bowls is a sport in which the objective is to roll slightly asymmetric balls so that they stop close to a smaller "jack" or "kitty". It is played on a pitch which may be flat or convex or uneven...
green, available for use by senior pupils who possess bowls shoes and by the Sir Thomas Rich's Bowls Club, and rented out to other organisations.
The "Old" gym
The old gym is used for sports such as table tennis, basketball, and gymastics; it is also used as a venue for exams. The newer, larger, sports hall is more often used.Sports hall
Opened in 1999, the sports hall is part of the STRS Sports Centre complex which provides sports facilities for the local community of Longlevens. Students and staff have access during school hours – the size of the sports hall means that a whole year group can be accommodated for Games & PE instruction. Activities include badminton, 5-a-side football, basketball, indoor cricket and cricket nets, trampolining, gymnastics, roller-blading and hockey. The school also has a fitness suite that students are able to join for an annual fee. The hall is also rented out to other associations.The W J Veale Language Block
Built in 2002, and named after former headmaster W. J. Veale, it originally had with five classrooms and one computer room for modern language tuition in connection with the school's recently received Language CollegeLanguage College
Language Colleges were introduced in 1995 as part of the Specialist Schools Programme in the United Kingdom. The system enables secondary schools to specialise in certain fields, in this case, modern foreign languages...
status. In 2007 an extension provided another modern language room and three geography classrooms.
Tennis courts
Tennis, basketball, football, netball and hockey are played on the tennis courts, which are fenced off from the botanical gardens. The Botanical Gardens themselves are out of bounds to pupils outside of curricular activity.School Rugby
Sir Thomas Rich’s School Rugby Football Club has a long and illustrious history with many Old Richians gaining international schoolboy caps.Rugby is participated in by all pupils in the autumn term in their Games afternoons. It is an major option for pupils in the Sixth Form. In the junior years at Tommies, boys are taught a full range of skills, with the emphasis being placed on safety and mastering the basic skills. In Year 7 & 8 we have four teams in each year group and everybody wanting to play is given a chance to do so. Emphasis is placed on enjoying the game and each session is planned to challenge the players and have a large element of fun. As the boys move up the School their basic skills are gradually supplemented with more complex concepts as their own understanding of the game grows. Boys are encouraged to practise skills specific to their position both in their own time and in organised positional clinics. For instance, all the scrum halves in the club will meet for a passing practice with the older boys helping the younger boys. In the Sixth Form we run three senior teams. House matches are organised for all pupils throughout the school.
The "Tommy" psalm
Believed to be one of the oldest school-based psalms, the Tommy psalm is sung on speech dayand Founders Day (roughly the 2nd to 3rd week of May).
The number of syllables in the fifth line of the third verse, ("Sixteen thousand pounds of what God gave",) does not fit with the rhythm of the psalm and does not correlate with the six thousand pounds left by Sir Thomas Rich for the founding of the school.
Let us rejoice with cheerful voice,
God's goodness magnify,
Who freely grants to all our wants,
Most plentiful supply.
Naked and poor to clothe and feed,
From misery to raise,
How truly great and noble 'tis,
How worthy is the praise.
Base pleasure 'tis mankind to hurt,
Although the only joy
Of ill men who abuse their wealth,
The harmless to annoy.
Within this city, thanks to God,
Such bounteous works abound
As have embalmed the authors' names,
By faith most richly crowned.
And in this rank of pious men,
Our founder, though the last
In time, yet in munificence
By none has been surpassed;
Sixteen thousand pounds of what God gave,
He did lend back again,
Though having issue of his blood,
Did not poor heirs disdain.
Whene'er we come, our gratitude
Shall there make it appear,
Who 'twas at first did nourish us
And who doth feed us here.
The pious part of this large store
In heaven's treasury lies,
Whilst the earthly stock's secured below
In the hands of good and wise.
And may this place and the whole realm
In peace protected be,
And happily may our Queen reign,
Blessed with peace and prosperity.