St Olave's Grammar School
Encyclopedia
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...
boys' secondary school
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
in Orpington
Orpington
Orpington is a suburban town and electoral ward in the London Borough of Bromley. It forms the southeastern edge of London's urban sprawl and is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.-History:...
, Greater London
Greater London
Greater London is the top-level administrative division of England covering London. It was created in 1965 and spans the City of London, including Middle Temple and Inner Temple, and the 32 London boroughs. This territory is coterminate with the London Government Office Region and the London...
, 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 consistently one of the top achieving state schools in the UK and it was The Sunday Times State School of the Year in 2008. The school is also known as St Olave's, St Olave's Grammar School, STOGS or simply Olave's.
In 2011, the school was ranked as the fourth best performing state school in the country at A-level and the 17th best for schools of all status by the Financial Times.
The school in its current state was formed from an agreement in 1896 between two schools, St Olave's Grammar School (Charter 1571), and St Saviour's Grammar School (Charter 1562). A sister school, St Saviour's and St Olave's Church of England School
St Saviour's and St Olave's Church of England School
St Saviour's and St Olave's Church of England School is a comprehensive secondary school for girls. It is a voluntary aided Church of England school in the Anglican Diocese of Southwark and is affiliated to the Woodard Schools group....
, was established in 1903. St Olave's Grammar School was founded for the parish of St Olave in Southwark (1096-1926) which was named after Saint Olaf.
Originally situated on the south bank of the Thames in Southwark
Southwark
Southwark is a district of south London, England, and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Southwark. Situated east of Charing Cross, it forms one of the oldest parts of London and fronts the River Thames to the north...
, the school moved to suburban Orpington in 1968.
General information
The school is a beneficiary of the St Olave's and St Saviour's Schools Foundation, which in turn is a beneficiary of The Dulwich Estate, successor to the historic Alleyn's CollegeAlleyn's College
Alleyn's College of God's Gift is a historic charity in England, founded in 1619 by the Elizabethan actor and businessman Edward Alleyn who endowed it with the ancient Manor of Dulwich in south London....
charity.. The school is also affiliated to the Woodard Foundation
Woodard Schools
Woodard Schools is a group of Anglican schools affiliated to the Woodard Corporation which has its origin in the work of Nathaniel Woodard, an Anglo-Catholic clergyman....
.
The school's headmaster
Head teacher
A head teacher or school principal is the most senior teacher, leader and manager of a school....
is currently Aydin Onac, newly appointed in September 2010. He is only the sixth headmaster of the school since 1896.
The school is heavily oversubscribed (more than 10 applicants per place in 2008). Entry is determined by competitive tests in English and Mathematics. Since 1998, the school has admitted girls to its 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,...
. It is currently designated as a science, mathematics and computing specialist school
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...
. The school has also applied for academy status.
Members of the school are known as Olavians, and alumni as Old Olavians. There are four houses: Bingham, Cure, Harvard
John Harvard
John Harvard may refer to:* John Harvard , English clergyman after whom Harvard University is named* John Harvard , journalist, politician and office holder in Manitoba, Canada...
and Leeke. These exist for the purposes of the classes and house competitions in the Lower School (Year 7 to 9) and for games competition in Year 10.
St Olave's exclusively provides Choristers for the Choir of the Queen's Chapel of the Savoy
Savoy Chapel
The Savoy Chapel or the Queen's Chapel of the Savoy is a chapel off the Strand, London, dedicated to St John the Baptist. It was originally built in the medieval era off the main church of the Savoy Palace...
, London, which is the Chapel of the Royal Victorian Order
Royal Victorian Order
The Royal Victorian Order is a dynastic order of knighthood and a house order of chivalry recognising distinguished personal service to the order's Sovereign, the reigning monarch of the Commonwealth realms, any members of her family, or any of her viceroys...
and of the Duchy of Lancaster
Duchy of Lancaster
The Duchy of Lancaster is one of the two royal duchies in England, the other being the Duchy of Cornwall. It is held in trust for the Sovereign, and is used to provide income for the use of the British monarch...
.
The school was at the centre of controversy in 1996 when Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
Shadow Cabinet minister
Cabinet of the United Kingdom
The Cabinet of the United Kingdom is the collective decision-making body of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom, composed of the Prime Minister and some 22 Cabinet Ministers, the most senior of the government ministers....
Harriet Harman
Harriet Harman
Harriet Ruth Harman QC is a British Labour Party politician, who is the Member of Parliament for Camberwell and Peckham, and was MP for the predecessorPeckham constituency from 1982 to 1997...
sent her son to the school, despite it being some considerable distance from where she lived. Many considered her sending her son to a selective school to be contrary to Labour's supposedly egalitarian principles.
Its historic sister school is St Saviour's and St Olave's Church of England School
St Saviour's and St Olave's Church of England School
St Saviour's and St Olave's Church of England School is a comprehensive secondary school for girls. It is a voluntary aided Church of England school in the Anglican Diocese of Southwark and is affiliated to the Woodard Schools group....
in New Kent Road
New Kent Road
New Kent Road is a road in the London Borough of Southwark. The road was created in 1751 when the Turnpike Trust upgraded a local footpath. This was done as part of the general road improvements associated with the creation of Westminster Bridge; in effect it was possible to travel from the West...
. Established in 1903, this is a non-selective girls' school in an economically deprived area that is very different in nature from its brother school. St Olave's now also has a strong relationship with Newstead Wood School for Girls
Newstead Wood School for Girls
Newstead Wood School for Girls is a selective girls' secondary school in Avebury Road, Orpington, London, England.-Admissions:It is an engineering and languages specialist school. The school has strong links with nearby St Olave's Grammar School. The current head teacher is Elizabeth Allen. The...
, a selective girls' school situated about 1.5 miles away.
The school traditionally is very successful at chess, with many strong players who have represented their country in international tournaments, and are winners of the prestigious Millfield International Chess Tournament for the second year in a row.
There is a masonic lodge for Old Olavians and others associated with the school.
St Saviour's Grammar School
A new lease for the parish church of St Saviour’sSouthwark Cathedral
Southwark Cathedral or The Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St Saviour and St Mary Overie, Southwark, London, lies on the south bank of the River Thames close to London Bridge....
dated 16 June 1559 included a pledge to start a school within two years. Within a few weeks a school for boys was functioning in temporary accommodation. On 24 November 1560 the four first wardens of the school were elected, and on 4 March 1561 a lease was handed over to the wardens for a new schoolhouse: a building in the Green Dragon, formerly Cobham’s Inn. A licence/charter for St Saviour’s Grammar School was obtained in 1562.
In 1676 the building in the Green Dragon was destroyed in the Great Fire of Southwark—the City of London fire was in 1666—and a new building was built on the same site.
In 1839 the school site was required for the enlargement of the Borough Market and a third building was built in Sumner Street in 1839. It was smaller than the previous one due to a decline in numbers.
St Saviour’s Grammar School agreed to amalgamation with St Olave’s in 1896. At the same time the creation of a new school for girls was envisaged, and this came into being in 1903 and was named St Saviour’s and St Olave’s Grammar School for Girls
St Saviour's and St Olave's Church of England School
St Saviour's and St Olave's Church of England School is a comprehensive secondary school for girls. It is a voluntary aided Church of England school in the Anglican Diocese of Southwark and is affiliated to the Woodard Schools group....
.
St Olave’s Grammar School
Henry Leeke, a Southwark brewer, left a will (13 April 1560) which gave £8 a year towards the founding and maintenance of a new free school. If the parish of St Olave’s failed to create such a school within two years, St Saviour’s parish was to have the money.In November 1560, notice to quit was given to tenants of the rooms which were to be used for the school, and in July 1561 the church wardens of St Olave’s were ordered to receive Leeke’s legacy, and “prepare” a schoolmaster by Michaelmas Day. Assuming that everything went to schedule, the school began teaching on Michaelmas Day 1561.
On 25 July 1571 letters patent were obtained which established the school as a grammar school. The charter stipulated that the school be called: The Free Grammar School of Queen Elizabeth of the Parishioners of the Parish of Saint Olave in the County of Surrey.
Initially the school was housed in the old Vestry Hall of the church and its adjoining premises (on the west side of Churchyard Alley, a narrow lane off the south side of Tooley Street, running parallel with Borough High Street).
In the seventeenth century St Olave's Headmaster Robert Browne was imprisoned for non-conformism.
Although the school was untouched by the Great Fire of Southwark, major renovation and extension was undertaken in 1676 after the fire.
In 1829 the school had to move because its site was needed for the approach to the new London Bridge, which was built about 60 yards west of the old bridge. A new building was built in Bermondsey Street, with the first stone being laid on 17 November 1834. However this building did not last long due to the rapid expansion of the railways, which wanted the land, and another building at Green Bank, in Back Street (later renamed Queen Elizabeth Street) was built in 1855.
This new building was soon deemed to be unsuitable due to the fact that it was designed for a system of teaching which fell out of favour, and had almost no provision for classrooms.
Another building was put up in stages on the same site, while the old building was dismantled. Work was begun in 1892 and completed in 1894. The new building was designed by E. W. Mountford, the architect of the Old Bailey
Old Bailey
The Central Criminal Court in England and Wales, commonly known as the Old Bailey from the street in which it stands, is a court building in central London, one of a number of buildings housing the Crown Court...
, and it is this building which still stands in Queen Elizabeth Street near the approach to Tower Bridge
Tower Bridge
Tower Bridge is a combined bascule and suspension bridge in London, England, over the River Thames. It is close to the Tower of London, from which it takes its name...
(also completed in 1894).
The Queen Elizabeth Street building was abandoned by the school in 1968, when it moved to Orpington
Orpington
Orpington is a suburban town and electoral ward in the London Borough of Bromley. It forms the southeastern edge of London's urban sprawl and is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.-History:...
.
During World War II the former St Saviour's building in Sumner Street was damaged by bombing. Consequently, in 1952 the historic foundation stone was moved from Sumner Street to the Queen Elizabeth Street site. When the school was relocated to Orpington in 1968, the stone was taken to the new site.
Notable Old Olavians
This is a partial list. For a more comprehensive one see: List of notable Old Olavians- H. B. ActonH. B. ActonHarry Burrows Acton was a British academic in the field of political philosophy, known for books defending the morality of capitalism, and attacking Marxism-Leninism. He in particular produced arguments on the incoherence of Marxism, which he described as a 'farrago'...
(1908–1974), philosopher - Sir William Ashley (1860–1927), economic historian
- Samuel Laman BlanchardSamuel Laman BlanchardSamuel Laman Blanchard was a British author and journalist.The son of a painter and glazier, he was born at Great Yarmouth. He was educated at St Olave's school, Southwark, and then became clerk to a proctor in Doctors' Commons. At an early age he developed an interest in literature, contributing...
(1804–1845), author and journalist - William ColeWilliam Cole (Musician)William Charles Cole FSA was a conductor, composer and organist. He went to Saint Olave's Grammar School, where he in fact almost lost his scholarship there because 'his music was getting in the way of his studies'. He also studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London, where he won the Stewart...
(1909-1997), composer, organist and conductor, and Master of the Music at the Queen's Chapel of the SavoySavoy ChapelThe Savoy Chapel or the Queen's Chapel of the Savoy is a chapel off the Strand, London, dedicated to St John the Baptist. It was originally built in the medieval era off the main church of the Savoy Palace... - Lawrence DurrellLawrence DurrellLawrence George Durrell was an expatriate British novelist, poet, dramatist, and travel writer, though he resisted affiliation with Britain and preferred to be considered cosmopolitan...
(1912–1990), novelist, poet, dramatist, and travel writer
- Abba EbanAbba EbanAbba Eban was an Israeli diplomat and politician.In his career he was Israeli Foreign Affairs Minister, Education Minister, Deputy Prime Minister, and ambassador to the United States and to the United Nations...
(1915–2002), Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations; Israeli Minister for Foreign Affairs; Israeli Deputy Prime Minister - Mark EllisMark EllisMark Ellis is the name of:* Mark Ellis , Canadian actor* Mark Ellis , Major League Baseball player* Mark Ellis , English footballer who played for Bradford City...
, record producer (U2U2U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
, Depeche ModeDepeche ModeDepeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in 1980 in Basildon, Essex. The group's original line-up consisted of Dave Gahan , Martin Gore , Andy Fletcher and Vince Clarke...
, The Killers) - Henry Hartley Fowler, 1st Viscount Wolverhampton, (1830–1911), politician †
- Andy GreenAndy GreenWing Commander Andy D. Green OBE BA RAF is a British Royal Air Force pilot and World Land Speed Record holder.-RAF career:...
, (1962– ) past team leader of RAF Red ArrowsRed ArrowsThe Red Arrows, officially known as the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, is the aerobatics display team of the Royal Air Force based at RAF Scampton, but due to move to RAF Waddington in 2011...
Display Team; current holder of the world land speed recordLand speed recordThe land speed record is the highest speed achieved by a wheeled vehicle on land. There is no single body for validation and regulation; in practice the Category C flying start regulations are used, officiated by regional or national organizations under the auspices of the Fédération... - Edmund GwennEdmund GwennEdmund Gwenn was an English theatre and film actor.-Background:Born Edmund John Kellaway in Wandsworth, London , and educated at St. Olave's School and later at King's College London, Gwenn began his acting career in the theatre in 1895...
(1875–1959), Academy Award-winning actor - John HarvardJohn Harvard (clergyman)John Harvard was an English minister in America whose deathbed bequest to the Massachusetts Bay Colony's fledgling New College was so gratefully received that the school was renamed Harvard College in his honor.-Biography:Harvard was born and raised in Southwark, England, the fourth of nine...
(1607–1638), first benefactor of Harvard UniversityHarvard UniversityHarvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
† - William HeberdenWilliam HeberdenWilliam Heberden , English physician, was born in London, where he received the early part of his education.At the end of 1724 he was sent to St John's College, Cambridge, where he obtained a fellowship, around 1730, became master of arts in 1732, and took the degree of MD in 1739...
(1710–1801), physician, coined the term "Angina pectoris" † - Charles Hill, Baron Hill of LutonCharles Hill, Baron Hill of LutonCharles Hill, Baron Hill of Luton PC was a British administrator, doctor and television executive.Charles Hill was born in Islington, London and was educated at St Olave's Grammar School in Southwark, London. He won a scholarship to Trinity College, Cambridge where he gained a first class degree...
(1904–1989), Chairman of the BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
and ITAIndependent Television AuthorityThe Independent Television Authority was an agency created by the Television Act 1954 to supervise the creation of "Independent Television" , the first commercial television network in the United Kingdom... - William SherlockWilliam SherlockNot to be confused with William Sherlock William Sherlock was an English church leader.-Life:He was born at Southwark, and was educated at St. Saviour's School and Eton, and then at Peterhouse, Cambridge. In 1669 he became rector of St George's, Botolph Lane, London, and in 1681 he was appointed a...
(1641–1707), English church leader - Thomas Frederick ToutThomas Frederick ToutThomas Frederick Tout, F.B.A. was a 19th- and 20th-century British historian of the medieval period.-Early life:...
(1855–1929), historian - William Van MildertWilliam Van MildertWilliam Van Mildert was the last palatine Bishop of Durham , and one of the founders of the University of Durham...
(1765–1836), BishopBishopA bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
of DurhamDurhamDurham is a city in north east England. It is within the County Durham local government district, and is the county town of the larger ceremonial county...
; founder of the University of Durham † - Sir Sydney Waterlow, 1st Baronet, Lord Mayor of London, MP †
† Alumni of St Saviour's Grammar School prior to the merger
Further reading
- Carrington, R. C. Two Schools: A History of the St. Olave's and St. Saviour's Grammar School Foundation (London: The Governors of the St. Olave's and St. Saviour's Grammar School Foundation, 1971).
External links
- St Olave's Grammar School website
- The Old Olavians network
- The Old Olavians Rugby Club
- The Old Olavians Masonic Lodge
- Queen's Chapel of the Savoy
- St Saviour's and St Olave's Church of England School website
- Southwark Cathedral Foundation Schools
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