Sexey's School

Infobox UK school
name = Sexey's School
established = 1889
type = Voluntary aided, comprehensive, boarding school
religion = Church of England
head_label = Headmaster
head = Raymond McGovern
street = Cole Road
city = Bruton
county = Somerset
country = England
postcode = BA10 0DF
latitude = 51.105307
longitude = -2.463201
enrollment = 512
lower_age = 11
upper_age = 19
colours = color box|red color box|yellow color box|black
website = http://www.sexeys.somerset.sch.uk
website_name = Official site

Sexey's School is a state boarding school in Bruton, Somerset, England that also takes some day pupils from the surrounding area. Sexey's School is named after Hugh Sexey who, in 1599, was appointed as a Royal auditor to Elizabeth I and later as a Royal auditor to James I. Sexey's Hospital was established in 1619 from the proceeds of his will, and the school was founded in 1889. State boarding schools are most unusual in the United Kingdom.

History

The Sexey School dates back to a Trade School which opened on 6 April 1891 with 15 boys. The headmaster and the boys moved into temporary premises in a house known as 'The Glen' on Quaperlake Street in Bruton. At the end of its first year there were 40 boys at the school learning basic subjects including practical mechanics, land measuring and elementary science. The school was moved to its current site and re-founded in 1898. The first headmaster was William Albert Knightcite web | author = Sexey's School | title = Early history | work = Sexey's School magazine - Issue 1 - February 1897 | url = http://www.sexeys.somerset.sch.uk/index.php?main=history&sub=extracts&ssub=issue1 | date = February 1897 | accessdate = 2008-01-20]

Sexey's was a grammar school until the Education Act 1944, after which it became a Voluntary controlled school. In 1991 it adopted Grant Maintained status and in September 1999 it became a Voluntary aided school.cite web | author = Sexey's School | title = Sexey's School - A Brief History | url = http://www.sexeys.somerset.sch.uk/index.php?main=history | accessdate = 2007-07-01]

It remained an all-boys school until 1977 when it became fully co-educational. Boarding facilities were expanded in the 1980s with the building of two new boarding houses - Lisbury House and Coombe House, making Sexey's one of the largest schools of its type in the country. The school has continued expansion with the introduction of a policy in 2003 to take day pupils from a local catchment area of 1.5 miles. Prior to this the last day pupil was admitted in 1983. In 2001 the school had 394 students. [cite web | author = Ofsted | year = 2001 | title = Inspection Report: Sexey's School | url = http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/reports/pdf/?inspectionNumber=190216&providerCategoryID=8192&fileName=\school\123\s10_123902_20011129.pdf | format=PDF | accessdate = 2007-10-02] In 2007 there were 512 students. [cite web | author = Ofsted | year = 2007 | title = Inspection Report: Sexey's School | url = http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/portal/site/Internet/menuitem.7c7b38b14d870c7bb1890a01637046a0/?event=getReport&urn=123902&inspectionNumber=292832&providerCategoryID=8192&fileName=\school\123\s5_123902_20070125.xml | accessdate = 2007-10-02]

Sexey's is renowned for being a school that is not quite state (government funded) and not quite independent (charity funded) either.

Boarding

As of 2007 the school has around 300 boarders. Around two thirds of the school, and one third of sixth form are boarders. There are four boarding houses:
* Walwin House (formerly Junior House), two houses built in the late 1930s. Walwin accommodates year 7 boarders and has capacity for 49 children - 30 boys and 19 girls.
* Cliff House, a listed building built by Thomas Hannam in 1820 and opened as a boarding house in 1892. Cliff takes boarders in years 8, 9 , and 10.
* Coombe House, opened 1983. Coombe has capacity for around 100 boarders in years 8, 9 , and 10.
* Lisbury House, opened 1983, has around 85 boarders in years 11, 12 and 13. The majority of sixth form boarders live in Lisbury.

Headmasters

*William Albert Knight (1891-1927)
*Wallace. E. Page (1927-)
*W. R. Towns
*David Curtis (-1980)
*John Lello (1980-1989)
*David Charman (1989-1995)
*Stephen G. Burgoyne (1995-2007)
*Raymond McGovern (2008-present)

chool song

The school song is a devotional chorus which is mentioned in the first school magazine in 1897. [cite web | author = Sexey's School | title = The trip to Stourton | work = Sexey's School magazine - Issue 1 - February 1897 | url = http://www.sexeys.somerset.sch.uk/index.php?main=history&sub=extracts&ssub=stourton | accessdate = 2008-01-20] [cite web | author = R J T Waller | title = The AOS Magazine 2007, Issue 4 | date = 2007 | url = http://www.theaos.co.uk/AOS_Magazine_2007.pdf | accessdate = 2008-01-20]

Hear mighty Lord,
Thy Sexeian's humble cry:
Hear, mighty Lord.
Inspire with motives high
For work and School.
For students here and past
Grant thankfulness,
And endless rest at last.

2002 calendar

In 2001, a group of pupils produced a glossy calendar as part of a Young Enterprise business project, sold for charity, called "Sexey's Hot Twelve", that featured 12 pictures of boys and girls in seductive poses. Child protection groups criticised the calendar for its potential attraction to adults who prey on vulnerable young people. The school reported that they had received no complaints, and that most of the 500 copies were bought immediately after going on sale. [cite news | first = Richard | last = Savill | title = Schoolgirl calendar 'too sexy' | url = http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2001/12/15/nsexy15.xml&sSheet=/news/2001/12/15/ixhomef.html | publisher = Daily Telegraph | date = 14 December 2001 | accessdate = 2007-06-01] [cite news | first = Rebecca | last = Allison | title = Sixth formers' topless calendar criticised | url = http://education.guardian.co.uk/schools/story/0,5500,619240,00.html | publisher = The Guardian | date = 15 December 2001 | accessdate = 2008-01-20] [cite news | first = John | last = Coles | title = We're so Sexey's | url = http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/1,,2001580068,00.html | publisher = The Sun | accessdate = 2007-06-01]

Notable alumni

* Sir Harold Richard Scott, Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police, 1945–1953
* Ned Sherrin, broadcaster, author and stage director, 1931–2007 [cite news | first = Natalie | last = Graham | title = Radio host lives ‘entirely for pleasure’ | url = http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/money/article403897.ece | publisher = The Sunday Times | date = 19 December 2004 | accessdate = 2007-07-01]
* Mike Freeney, diversity and disability campaigner [cite news | first = Susan | last = Scott-Parker | title = Obituary - Mike Freeney | url = http://www.guardian.co.uk/otherlives/story/0,,1643311,00.html | publisher = The Guardian | date = 16 November 2005 | accessdate = 2007-06-01]
*Arthur John Willis, botanist and editor [cite news | first = David | last = Lewis | title = Obituary - Professor Arthur Willis | url = http://news.independent.co.uk/people/obituaries/article1178594.ece | publisher = The Independent | date = 15 July 2006 | accessdate = 2007-07-01]
*Frederick Tom Brooks FRS, botanist, Professor of Botany, Cambridge University, attended 1895-1898 [citation | author = W. C. Moore | title = Frederick Tom Brooks. 1882-1952. Obituary Notices of Fellows of the Royal Society, Vol. 8, No. 22 (Nov., 1953) | url = http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=1479-571X(195311)8%3A22%3C340%3AFTB1%3E2.0.CO%3B2-9 | pages = 340-354 | accessdate = 2008-01-20]
*Lionel John Farnham Brimble, botanist, editor of Nature 1938-1965 [citation | author = The Royal Society of Edinburgh | title = Biographical Index of Former Fellows of The Royal Society of Edinburgh 1783 – 2002, Part One | url = http://www.royalsoced.org.uk/fellowship/fells_indexp1.pdf | year = July 2006 | isbn = 090219884X | accessdate = 2008-01-20]

References

*

External links

* [http://www.sexeys.somerset.sch.uk/ Official site]
* [http://www.theaos.co.uk/ The Association of Old Sexeians]