Vorlage:Advert Vorlage:Infobox Secondary school Highgate School is an old and fairly prestigious British public school in Highgate, North London. It is run by a charity, the Highgate Foundation, which also manages both a prep and a pre-prep school.
History
The school was established, in 1565, by a Royal Charter patented by Elizabeth I giving permission for Sir Roger Cholmeley to erect a free grammar school for boys, making it one of the older schools in the United Kingdom. Significant expansion of the school only occurred under the Headmaster John Bradley Dyne between 1838-1874. Over this period the current chapel and main buildings were erected, designed by Reginald Blomfield (who had also designed Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford). During the Second World War, the school was appropriated by the government, and was evacuated to Devon, returning eventually in 1943. By 1965 the school now occupied a large site in the Highgate Village, as well as several boarding houses in the surrounding area. Recently the school has taken the move to become fully co-educational ending almost 500 years of single-sex education.
Administration
Due to the Foundation's significant ownership of land and properties around the school, it has been able to invest greatly in the school's facilities; the relatively recent conversion from boarding to day school has increased the space available for this to continue. The Foundation's governing body consists of 12 members; 5 are nominated (one each by the Universities of Oxford, Cambridge, and London, by the Bishop of London, and by the Lord Chief Justice), and the rest are co-opted. The school is a member of the Eton Group of leading independent schools.
Notable Members of Staff
- T S Eliot, OM (September 26, 1888 – January 4, 1965) was an American-born British poet, dramatist, and literary critic, whose works, such as The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock, The Waste Land, and Four Quartets, are considered defining achievements of twentieth century Modernist poetry. In 1948 he won the Nobel Prize for Literature. He was one of the most influential poets of the 20th century.
- Zbigniew Szydlo - Dr Szydlo made a name for himself by appearing on Channel 4 TV Show "That'll Teach Them". Fans of his appearance on this show include radio presenter Al Smith.
- Debbie Picton - Was once the subject of a call from The Geoff Show on Virgin Radio. It was claimed that she was the daughter of one of the Chuckle Brothers. Since the call, this has neither been confirmed or denied.
Houses
The school operates a house system like many other public schools, and on entering pupils are placed in a house according to where they live. Each house has a Housemaster in charge of the pastoral, as well as academic well-being of house-members, and tutors for each year group. This system was established to create 'house spirit' among the students, allowing for both academic and sporting competitions among the houses. Some of these, like School House, Grindal, and The Lodge used to be boarding houses.
Currently the houses are as follows:
- Eastgate [Housemaster Dr V E C Stubbs]
- Fargate [Housemaster Mr W J Atkins]
- Heathgate [Housemaster Mr S Evans]
- Grindal [Housemaster Mr K M Pullinger]
- Kingsgate [Housemaster Mr J A Fisher]
- Midgate [Housemaster Mr M J Short]
- Northgate [Housemaster Mr P R Aston]
- School House [Housemaster Miss K P Norris]
- Southgate [Housemaster Mr T C J Wilding]
- The Lodge [Housemaster Mr D G Brandt]
- Queensgate [Housemaster Mr J P Murphy]
- Westgate [Housemaster Mrs J F Morelle]
Departments
Highgate's senior school has numerous departments, covering a range of subjects. These are as follows:
- Physical Education [Head Mr A G Tapp]
- Design Technology [Head Mr P R Aston]
- Art [Head Mrs T A Jay]
- History and Politics [Head Mr P C K Rowe]
- Modern Languages [Head Mr P X Pillet]
- Classics [Head Mr R W Halstead]
- Religious Education [Head Revd P J J Knight]
- Information Technology [Head Mr D J Abramson]
- Biology [Head Dr J C Y Welch]
- Physics [Head Mr D J Smith]
- Chemistry [Head Mr K S Bains]]
- Mathematics [Heads Mr D J Noyce/ Mr J W Partridge]
- Music [Head Mr J Q March]
- Economics [Head Mr S J Grills]
- English [Head Mr G J H Catherwood]
- Geography [Head Mr M R Price]
- Drama [Head Mr M L Bowden]
Alumni
Former pupils are known as "Old Cholmeleians" after the school's founder, Sir Roger Cholmeley, and, as is common with prestigious British schools, Highgate has a very diverse range of famous old boys. The Old Cholmeleians Society, of which students become members on leaving, ensures that former pupils retain a connection to the school, a custom that is typical of a school with traditional values. Members include:
- Charles Clarke (politician - Home Secretary 2004-2006)
- Anthony Crosland (politician)
- Johnny Borrell of Razorlight
- John Hassall of The Libertines/Yeti
- Crispin Mills from Kula Shaker
- Harry Thompson (television producer)
- Barry Norman (film critic)
- Murray Walker (motorsport commentator)
- Geoffrey Palmer (actor)
- Lord Neill of Bladen (Warden of All Souls College, Oxford 1977-1995)
- Gerard Hoffnung (artist)
- Sir Clive Sinclair (entrepeneur)
- Sir John Tavener (composer)
- John Rutter (composer)
- Phil Tufnell (cricketer)
- Sir John Betjeman (poet - was taught by T S Eliot)
- Gerard Manley Hopkins (poet)
- John Venn (logician and philosopher)
- Alan Blumlein (inventor)
- Martin Gilbert (historian)
- Owen Barfield (philosopher)
- Reginald Blomfield (designed the school)