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King's College School

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King's College School, Wimbledon
File:KCSWimbledonLogo.jpg
Location
Map
Wimbledon Common
,
London

EnglandEngland
Information
TypePublic School
MottoSancte Et Sapienter (Latin: With Holiness and Wisdom)
Established1829
FounderRoyal Charter
Chairman of the Governing BodyJM Jarvis QC MA
Head MasterAndrew Halls
GenderBoys
Age7 to 18
Enrollment1200 (approx.)
Colour(s)Red and Blue    
Former pupilsOld King's (Old Boys of King's College School)
VisitorThe Archbishop of Canterbury
Websitehttp://kcs.org.uk/

King's College School Wimbledon, or KCS, is a well known British independent boys' school in Wimbledon, south-west London and is a highly selective and competitive day school for pupils of exceptionally high academic abilities. KCS is a leading member of the Eton Group, a group of the 12 most prestigious elite schools in the United Kingdom.

The school was originally founded by King George IV as the junior department of King's College London and occupied part of its premises in Strand, before relocating to Wimbledon in 1897; there is no longer any connection between the institutions, except that one of the Board of Governors is nominated by King's College London.

KCS is one of the highest academically performing schools in the United Kingdom historically and to this date, coming 2nd in the country's league table of independent schools and sending more than 50% of its pupils to the University of Cambridge and University of Oxford, the two leading universities in the UK and world.[1]

KCS was one of the first schools in the United Kingdom to abolish A-Levels in favour of the International Baccalaureate, as well as adopt the new IGCSE curriculum, both which are the most widely recognized international education curriculums.

History

A Royal Charter founded the School in 1829 as the junior department of the newly established King’s College, London. The School occupied the basement of the College in The Strand. Most of its original eighty-five pupils lived in the City within walking distance of the School. During the early Victorian Period, the School grew in numbers and reputation. Members of the teaching staff included Gabriele Rossetti, who taught Italian. His son, Dante Gabriel, joined the School in 1837. The best known of the early masters was the water-colourist, John Sell Cotman. Nine of his pupils became practising artists and ten architects. The School was progressive in its curriculum in many areas and appointed its first Science Master in 1855, at a time where very few schools taught science. The first Head Master, John Major, served the School between 1831-1866. Ninety-nine of the School’s pupils from this period appear in the Dictionary of National Biography.

Until the 1880s, the School flourished. In 1882, only Eton College surpassed the total of thirty Oxford and Cambridge Board examination certificates obtained by pupils at King's. But the School's teaching facilities were becoming increasingly inadequate as many competitor schools moved to new sites with modern facilities and large playing fields. Falling numbers of pupils prompted the move to the School's present site in Wimbledon in 1897. Wimbledon was a fast growing suburb and well served by the railway lines from Surrey and south London.

In World War I, many letters were written to the school, including some from the Battle of the Somme. During World War II, the school's Great Hall was damaged by bomb shrapnel, and some of the damage can still be seen on the outside of the hall.

Today

The school is currently under the headmastership of Mr. A.D Halls, who succeeded Tony Evans in January 2008. Pupils come to the school from south west London, north Surrey and neighbouring areas. Sixty four per cent of the Year 9 entry consists of boys who continue from the King's College Junior School, thirty four per cent enter from other preparatory schools and about two per cent come from overseas.

The school consistently achieves exceptional exam results at GCSE, A-Level and the International Baccalaureate. In 2007, KCS began to offer solely the IB in the Sixth Form, following its gradual - and highly successful - adoption since 2001.

It is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference, an association of nearly 250 independent British schools, and of the Eton Group of 12 leading independent schools.

The last headmaster (Mr. A.C Evans) won the best headmaster of a public school category at the annual Tatler School Awards 2005. Mark Palmer, editor of the Tatler School's Guide, said that he "thought it was about time it was recognised for being an all-round, academically excellent school", he added, "That has a lot to do with the professionalism and integrity of Tony Evans". [1]

The Great Hall is a very large building in the Victorian style. It is used for assembly to hold around 400-500 people. It also enclosed many classrooms and other facilities. It is also sometimes hired out for private functions. The Great Hall was designed by famous architect Sir Banister Fletcher, who co-wrote the book, 'A History of Architecture', and also designed the Gillette factory in Brentford, UK.

It came second in the country for 2006 in The Times' rankings for A-Levels, mainly due to the inclusion of its International Baccalaureate results. [2] In 2007, it came third in the country in the Times' rankings for A levels, yet again due to its International Baccalaureate. [3]

Houses

There are 6 houses in the Senior School named after previous headmasters and notable old boys of the school. Boys wear a red and blue school tie until they achieve 6 house points, in which they are awarded a house tie of navy blue with thin stripes of the following colours:

  • Alverstone (Green)
  • Glenesk (Sky Blue)
  • Kingsley (Purple)
  • Layton (Red)
  • Maclear (Silver)
  • Major (Yellow)

King's College Junior School

King's College Junior School is the preparatory school for King's College School located in Wimbledon, London. It educates pupils (boys only) from ages 7-13. [4] The school operates on the same grounds as the Senior School.

As of the November 2005 Independent Schools Inspectorate inspection report, enrollment in the junior school totaled 444 boys, divided into six year groups and four classes of about 20 (except in Rushmere (Year 3 and 4) where there are three). The headmaster is Dr G A Silverlock. [5]

The ties are similar to the Senior School ties, but in the top year (Upper Remove) and the end of the previous year (Lower Remove) the headmaster and the teachers choose prefects who get given a Senior School tie. Three headboys are chosen for each Upper Remove year, one for each term, and they are usually prefects.

The uniform is a red blazer with the emblem in blue on the top pocket. Every boy wears a white shirt and grey shorts or trousers.

The junior school was established in its own right in 1912. While it occupies the same campus as the senior school, they enjoy mostly separate facilities, though conveniently close to share some in common, for example, the dining facility, playing fields, the sports hall, swimming pool, music school and a new art and design technology department. King's College Junior School is also known as KCJS.

All boys are allocated to one of the school's four houses when they join. Siblings are placed into the same house. Every boy is able to take part in house events that take place through out the school year. At the start of the term, boys will be placed into a house and will consequently remain in there until a move to another school, or KCS (Kings College School).

The houses are as follows:

  • Norman (Black)
  • Stuart (Green)
  • Tudor (Blue)
  • Windsor (Yellow)

Noted Old King's

See also

  1. ^ http://www.best-schools.co.uk/league-tables/ucas-tariff-points.aspx
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