A bluecoat school is a type of charity school in England, the first of which was founded in the 16th century. Most of them have closed; some remain open as schools, often on different sites, and some of the original buildings have been adapted for other purposes. They are known as "bluecoat schools" because of the distinctive blue uniform originally worn by their pupils. The colour blue was traditionally the colour of charity and was a common colour for clothing at the time. The uniform included a blue frock coat and yellow stockings with white bands.
The first bluecoat school to be established was Christ's Hospital. This was founded by Edward VI in Newgate Street, London, in 1552, as a foundling hospital to care for and educate poor children. Between the 16th and late 18th centuries about 60 similar institutions were established in different parts of England. These were not connected with Christ's Hospital, but if their pupils wore the blue uniform, they were known as bluecoat schools. The original Christ's Hospital, while retaining its name, has moved its site to West Sussex and developed into an independent school, with much of its costs being met by a charitable foundation.
| Name | Location | Founded | Closed | Notes | Refs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bluecoat School | Parish Lane, Penge, Bromley, London | 1841 | 1968 | Alexandra Nursery (Garden Centre) | |
| 1705 | A primary school | ||||
| Basingstoke Blue Coat School | 1888 | ||||
| 1711 by Richard Nelson | By 1921 | The building was replaced in 1859. | [1] | ||
| 1722 | An independent junior prep school | ||||
| Bristol (Clifton) | 1586 | also known as The City School | |||
| 1717 | 1949 | Its name has been incorporated in Bishops' Blue Coat Church of England High School, Chester. | |||
| 1702 | 1949 | Foundation now supports scholars at Christ's Hospital and at Chichester Prebendal School. | [2] | ||
| the first and oldest surviving bluecoat school, known as The Bluecoat School | |||||
| 1714 | a comprehensive school | ||||
| 1669 | also known as The Blue Coat School | ||||
| 1869 | 1989 | ||||
| 1666 | a grammar school | ||||
| 1973 | |||||
| 1602/1614 | Set up under the will of Dr Richard Smith, who died in 1602, but established in 1614 in the St Mary's Guildhall, Moved to Christ's Hospital Terrace Lincoln in 1623 where the boys school continued until 1883, when the endowment was transferred to a new Christ's Hospital Girls school. Became Grammar School in 1906 and a state comprehensive in 1974 | ||||
| a grammar school formerly at Bluecoat Chambers, moved to Wavertree in 1906 | |||||
| Blue Coat School | 1811 | Merged with the Orange School and the Green Coat School to form the Corporation Charity School. In 1923 this closed and funded the Blue Coat Corporation Charity School Foundation | [3] [4] | ||
| 1706 | a church school | ||||
| 1834 | |||||
| a junior school | |||||
| 1646 | a secondary school | ||||
| Boys' Charity School | 1706 | 1939 | Popularly known as the Bluecoat School | [5] | |
| Bluecoat Primary School & Nursery | 18th century | ||||
| 1894 | Merged with Addey School in 1894 to form Addey and Stanhope School, still extant | ||||
| 1667 | Formerly sometimes called "Foley's Blue Coat School" or "Foley's Blue Coat Hospital" | ||||
| 1707 | 1914 | Housed in a former chapel built in 1304 | [6] | ||
| 1705 | 1947 | ||||
| 1709 | 1926 | later a National Trust gift shop | |||
| 1641 by Ezekiel Barkham | |||||
| Bluecoat School CofE Junior School | Durham | 1708[7] | Founded in 1708 by local traders and began above a pub ("Ye Bull's Head") in the corner of the market place near St Nicholas' Church and stayed there until 1811. Now housed in a modern building in Newton Hall. | ||
| Blue Coat Church of England Academy | Walsall | 1656 | "Founded in 1656 as a charity school for orphans and deprived children in the borough, Blue Coat Academy has a long and rich history of providing an excellent Christian education for its students. Although in the modern world, the lives of our students are very different, the desire for a good education, within a caring family, lives on. As a Church of England school, our ethos and values are based on Christian traditions but our students come from many different backgrounds and faiths, and we use the richness that this diversity brings to enhance learning opportunities." | ||
| Warrington Blue Coat School | Warrington | 1665 | 1948 |