Torquay Boys' Grammar School Explained

Torquay Boys' Grammar School
Coordinates:50.476°N -3.557°W
Motto:Latin

Aude Sapere
Dare to be Wise

Established:1904
Type:11–18 boys Grammar school;
academy
Head:Peter Lawrence
Chair Label:Chairman of Governors
Chair:Brian Wills Pope
Specialists:Languages, Business and Enterprise
Address:Shiphay Manor Drive
City:Torquay
County:Devon
Country:England
Postcode:TQ2 7EL
Ofsted:Outstanding
Urn:136321
Enrolment:1,093 (2021)[1]
Gender:Boys
Lower Age:11
Upper Age:18
Houses:Burgh, Dart, Fox Tor, Goodrington, Haldon, Rougemont
Publication:Torquin
Website:Torquay Boys' Grammar School

Torquay Boys' Grammar School is an 11–18 selective boys grammar school in Torquay, Devon, England., it had 1,087 students.[2] The school was founded in 1904. It is situated in Shiphay, south of Torbay Hospital, not far from the A3022 and Torre railway station as well as being directly next to Torquay Girls Grammar School.

Torquay Boys' Grammar School is currently ranked within the top 20 boys schools in England, and the best in Southwest England.[3]

History

The school was founded in 1904 and moved to its present location in 1983. As part of its centenary in 2004 the school opened a new hall known as the Cavanna Centenary Hall, which was officially opened in March 2008 by The Earl of Wessex.[4] In September 2010, it gained Academy status.[5]

A long-standing headteacher, Roy Pike, worked for 43 years at the school, 27 years as head.[6] He retired in 2013, and was succeeded by Peter Lawrence.[7]

Academic attainment

In 2022, GCSE examination pass rate between 9-4 stood at 97.6%, with the proportion of top grades 9-7 was 58.6%. The proportion of boys at the school achieving a strong pass in GCSE Level 9-5 in English and Maths stood at 93%. Torquay Boys' Grammar School boasts a 99% rate of boys staying in education after leaving the school, or entering employment after Year 11.[8]

House system

Upon joining the school, every student is assigned to one of the school's six houses. The six houses were previously named after Elizabethan sailors, which had seen criticism in 2020 over their links to the slave trade,[9] were renamed after locations in Devon in 2021.[10]

!House Name!Former Name!Colour!Ref
BurghBlakeBlue[11]
DartDavysWhite[12]
Fox TorFrobisherYellow[13]
GoodringtonGilbertGreen[14]
HaldonHawkinsPurple[15]
RougemontRaleghRed[16]

Overview

Grammar School

The Head Teacher and Governors of Torquay Boys' Grammar School are committed to ensuring the school retains its grammar school status, advocating that pupils who learn in a selective environment excel in their learning and development. The school argues that pupils in selective grammar schools make more progress than those in non–selective schools. [17]

The proportion of students attending Torquay Boys' Grammar School who are entitled to free school meals was well below average the national average in 2007, despite the school's catchment area not being a prosperous area. In 2007, very few boys from minority ethnic groups or with a first language other than English attended the school. The school has held specialist languages status for a number of years and has recently been awarded a second specialism in business and enterprise education.[18]

Headteachers

[19] [20]

Observatory

The school has its own astronomical observatory. Opened in 1989, it houses a 19.2" (0.5m) Newtonian reflector, and is used by the school itself, by the Torbay Astronomical Society, and is also regularly open to the public.[21]

The astronomer and broadcaster Sir Patrick Moore was a patron of the school and maintained close ties – Ralegh House even performed the premiere of his operetta "Galileo" in the late 1990s. Current presenter of the BBC television programme "The Sky at Night" Chris Lintott, who lectures at Oxford University, was also a student of the school.

Notable members of staff

Notable former pupils

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Inspection report: Torquay Boys' Grammar School . OFSTED . 18 November 2023.
  2. Web site: Establishment: Torquay Boys' Grammar School . . Schools Service . 21 May 2023.
  3. Web site: Prospectus . Torquay Boys' Grammar School . 18 November 2023.
  4. .
  5. Web site: 2024-01-05 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240105234130/https://www.tbgs.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/TBGS-prospectus.pdf . 5 January 2024 .
  6. Web site: Robinson . Debbie . University of Exeter . 2023-02-23 . www.exeter.ac.uk . en.
  7. Web site: Council . Torbay . Torquay Boys' Grammar School . 2023-02-23 . www.torbay.gov.uk . en.
  8. Web site: Examination Results . Torquay Boys' Grammar School . 18 November 2023.
  9. Web site: Smith . Colleen . 2020-06-10 . Outcry over school Houses in slave trader Hawkins' name . 2023-10-06 . DevonLive . en.
  10. Web site: 2023-10-06 . House Names Announcement . Torquay Boys Grammar School.
  11. http://www.tbgs.co.uk/blake.htm Torquay Boys' Grammar School – Blake House
  12. https://web.archive.org/web/20071101235516/http://www.tbgs.co.uk/davys.htm Torquay Boys' Grammar School – Davys House
  13. http://www.tbgs.co.uk/frobisher.htm Torquay Boys' Grammar School – Frobisher House
  14. http://www.tbgs.co.uk/gilbert.htm Torquay Boys' Grammar School – Gilbert House
  15. http://www.tbgs.co.uk/hawkins.htm Torquay Boys' Grammar School – Hawkins House
  16. Web site: Ralegh . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20170703021208/http://tbgs.co.uk/ralegh/215.html . 3 July 2017 . 2017-05-02 . tbgs.co.uk . en.
  17. Web site: Prospectus . Torquay Boys' Grammar School . 18 November 2023.
  18. Web site: Torquay Boys' Grammar School . OFSTED . 18 November 2023.
  19. https://web.archive.org/web/20130726073112/http://tbgs.co.uk/docs/torquin/torquin_2012.pdf
  20. http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2011/feb/22/headteachers-legends-schools-staying-put – accessed 9 December 2012
  21. http://www.halien.net/TAS/Gallery/scope/observe.htm The Torquay Boys' Grammar School Observatory
  22. .
  23. .
  24. https://archive.today/20141211233943/http://www.westernmorningnews.co.uk/Dean-laid-rest-cathedral/story-11728883-detail/story.html Western Morning News
  25. Web site: Torquay Herald Express . 11 December 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141215005451/http://www.torquayheraldexpress.co.uk/Ben-Howard-s-new-single-Conrad-selected-Track-Day/story-24724459-detail/story.html . 15 December 2014 . dead .
  26. News: Obituaries – Major Harry Robinson. The Daily Telegraph. London. 3 July 2011.
  27. .
  28. https://web.archive.org/web/20101028170341/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,835759,00.html William Strang
  29. [Chris Lintott]