Queen Elizabeth's High School is a mixed

grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary school ...

Gainsborough, Lincolnshire Gainsborough is a market town, inland port and civil parish in the West Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. The town population was 20,842 at the 2011 census, and estimated at 23,243 in 2019. It lies on the east bank of the River Trent ...

, England. The school, established in 1983, but with a timeline to 1589, is an amalgamation of the previous Gainsborough High School and Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School.

History

Although the details are unclear, Gainsborough appears to have had a small grammar school from the 15th century provided by the local clergy, where possibly several of the

Pilgrim Fathers The Pilgrims, also known as the Pilgrim Fathers, were the English settlers who came to North America on the ''Mayflower'' and established the Plymouth Colony in what is today Plymouth, Massachusetts, named after the final departure port of Plymo ...

received their early education; among its alumni was

John Robinson John Robinson may refer to: Academics *John Thomas Romney Robinson (1792–1882), Irish astronomer and physicist * John J. Robinson (1918–1996), historian and author of ''Born in Blood'' * John Talbot Robinson (1923–2001), paleontologist *Joh ...

. Lessons were first held in a room above the porch of the original All Saints church. Many of the school's early records were lost during the reign of

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

, owing to the prominent Puritan sympathies of many associated with the school who sought to avoid detection, and so had the incriminating records destroyed. In 1589 Queen

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". Eli ...

granted a charter to Sir Robert Somerscale to establish Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School for boys, with the express purpose of providing an education in the classics and divinity for the sons of the emerging middle class in the town. In 1828, the Chartist poet Thomas Cooper sought to set up a rival grammar school, but failed, and saw his school absorbed by Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School. From 1795 until 1940 Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School was located on Cox's Hill, at what is now the Hickman Hill Hotel. An equivalent

for girls, Gainsborough High School, was founded in 1920. In 1940 both schools moved to the present Morton Terrace site, on which the local

technical college An institute of technology (also referred to as: technological university, technical university, university of technology, technological educational institute, technical college, polytechnic university or just polytechnic) is an institution of te ...

was also based. Under the

Tripartite System The Tripartite System was the arrangement of state-funded secondary education between 1945 and the 1970s in England and Wales, and from 1947 to 2009 in Northern Ireland. It was an administrative implementation of the Education Act 1944 and th ...

they became fully state grammar schools, having been fee-paying before then. The schools merged to form Queen Elizabeth's High School in 1982. Before amalgamation Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School had 4 houses: Cox (red), Elliott (white), Hickman (Blue) and Marshall (green). On 7 December 2012, the school was host to the BBC Radio 4 show '

Any Questions? ''Any Questions?'' is a British topical discussion programme "in which a panel of personalities from the worlds of politics, media, and elsewhere are posed questions by the audience". It is typically broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on Fridays at 8 p ...

', which was held in the Upper School Hall. In 2013, following a lack of funding which affected most Grammar Schools, a £2 million grant from the Local Authority and a £500,000 grant from central government was given in order to expand and renovate the school. This enabled the construction of a new sports hall, a two-storey teaching block and the refurbishment of College House. On 7 March 2014 the Sixth Form Centre was relocated to the 1872-built College House building, as the previous centre had become crowded College House has currently fallen into disrepair following the amalgamation with Gainsborough High School of which it had been part, and is yet to be fully restored to a state in which it is adequate for the functions of which the school would like to use it for.

School structure

Each year is divided into six ''forms''. The sixth-form generally contains approximately 125 pupils and is divided into six smaller forms. There are six

houses A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

named after notable Britons: Austen,

Brunel Isambard Kingdom Brunel (; 9 April 1806 – 15 September 1859) was a British civil engineer who is considered "one of the most ingenious and prolific figures in engineering history," "one of the 19th-century engineering giants," and "one ...

Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from 1 ...

, Darwin,

Elgar Sir Edward William Elgar, 1st Baronet, (; 2 June 1857 – 23 February 1934) was an English composer, many of whose works have entered the British and international classical concert repertoire. Among his best-known compositions are orchestr ...

and

Scott Scott may refer to: Places Canada * Scott, Quebec, municipality in the Nouvelle-Beauce regional municipality in Quebec * Scott, Saskatchewan, a town in the Rural Municipality of Tramping Lake No. 380 * Rural Municipality of Scott No. 98, Sask ...

. Each house has a colour and students must wear a tie with stripes of their house colour. Austen: gold, Brunel: purple, Churchill: blue, Darwin: green, Elgar: red, and Scott: silver. The houses compete in sporting, music, the arts and intelligence events to gather points, and there is a house champion trophy awarded to the house with the most points at the end of every academic year. Before 2008 the houses were Frobisher,

Drake Drake may refer to: Animals * A male duck People and fictional characters * Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family name * Drake (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name ...

Raleigh Raleigh (; ) is the capital city of the state of North Carolina and the seat of Wake County in the United States. It is the second-most populous city in North Carolina, after Charlotte. Raleigh is the tenth-most populous city in the Southeas ...

and Grenville. After 2008 form rooms were moved into house blocks instead of year blocks to promote the new house system, and aimed to mix the year groups together to strengthen house community.

Admissions

The school annually admits 180 students into Year 7 and 125 into Year 12; around 1000 students make up the lower school (of those aged 11–16) and another 250 make up the

sixth-form In the education systems of England, Northern Ireland, Wales, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and some other Commonwealth countries, sixth form represents the final two years of secondary education, ages 16 to 18. Pupils typically prepare for A-lev ...

(16–18). Approximately 700 of those attending are girls and 500 are boys. A number of external pupils are also admitted to the sixth-form each year.

Curriculum

Pupils at Queen Elizabeth's High School usually take ten or eleven GCSE examinations in

Year Eleven Year 11 is an educational year group in schools in many countries including England and Wales, Northern Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. It is the eleventh or twelfth year of core education. For some Year 11 students it is their final year ...

, and dependent on satisfactory grades can enter the sixth-form to take four

A-Level The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational au ...

qualifications. Music is historically important to QEHS, with the Anglican choral composer W. Stanley Vann being head of Music during the 1930s. Recent drama productions have included ''

Return to the Forbidden Planet ''Return to the Forbidden Planet'' is a jukebox musical by Bob Carlton, based on Shakespeare's play '' The Tempest'' and the 1956 science fiction film '' Forbidden Planet'', which, in turn, is loosely based on ''The Tempest''. The show features ...

'', ''

Godspell ''Godspell'' is a musical composed by Stephen Schwartz with book by John-Michael Tebelak. The show is structured as a series of parables, primarily based on the Gospel of Matthew, interspersed with music mostly set to lyrics from traditional hym ...

'' and Disco Inferno.

Extracurricular activities

Cricket, rugby, football, and athletics are the main boys' sports, and hockey, netball, tennis and athletics the main girls' sports. Inter-school matches are played against other

s in Lincolnshire, and a few public schools and

secondary modern A secondary modern school is a type of secondary school that existed throughout England, Wales and Northern Ireland from 1944 until the 1970s under the Tripartite System. Schools of this type continue in Northern Ireland, where they are usuall ...

schools. Debating teams have won local competitions, including the Youth Speaks Competition, and have competed in a national competition.

Awards and recognition

Ofsted The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) is a non-ministerial department of His Majesty's government, reporting to Parliament. Ofsted is responsible for inspecting a range of educational institutions, incl ...

inspection in 2008 described the school as "outstanding". The 2021 inspection however described the school as "requires improvement". League tables for Lincolnshire released by the BBC rate Queen Elizabeth's High School overall 10th: ratings based on

English Baccalaureate The English Baccalaureate (EBacc) is a school performance indicator in England linked to the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) results. It measures students' attainment by calculating an average score from specified subject grades. ...

results place the school joint ninth, for A/AS-level points per pupil third, and adjusted for Value Added nineteenth. The BBC A-Level league tables rank the school second best in Lincolnshire.

Old Gainians

Former pupils are known as Old Gainians (O.G.s).

Academia and science

* Nicholas Atkin – Professor of Modern European History,

University of Reading The University of Reading is a public university in Reading, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1892 as University College, Reading, a University of Oxford extension college. The institution received the power to grant its own degrees in 192 ...

; historical biographer and author *

Brian Berry Brian Joe Lobley Berry (born February 16, 1934) is a British-American human geographer and city and regional planning (disambiguation), city and regional planner. He is Lloyd Viel Berkner Regental Professor in the School of Economic, Political an ...

- human geographer, Lloyd Viel Berkner Regental Professor and Dean of the School of Economic, Political and Policy Sciences at the

University of Texas at Dallas The University of Texas at Dallas (UTD or UT Dallas) is a public research university in Richardson, Texas. It is one of the largest public universities in the Dallas area and the northernmost institution of the University of Texas system. It w ...

* Edward William Binney; FRS- 19th century solicitor, geologist and palaeontologist. *Sir Halford Mackinder- British geographer and one of the founding fathers of both

geopolitics Geopolitics (from Greek γῆ ''gê'' "earth, land" and πολιτική ''politikḗ'' "politics") is the study of the effects of Earth's geography (human and physical) on politics and international relations. While geopolitics usually refers to ...

and

geostrategy Geostrategy, a subfield of geopolitics, is a type of foreign policy guided principally by geographical factors as they inform, constrain, or affect political and military planning. As with all strategies, geostrategy is concerned with matching m ...

, Scottish Unionist Party MP and one of the founders of the

London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 milli ...

*Sir

George Rolleston George Rolleston MA MD FRCP FRS (30 July 1829 – 16 June 1881) was an English physician and zoologist. He was the first Linacre Professor of Anatomy and Physiology to be appointed at the University of Oxford, a post he held from 1860 until ...

; FRCP, FRS- 19th century British physician and zoologist, Linacre Professor of Anatomy and Physiology at Oxford, evolutionary theorist. * Robert Smith- mathematician and music theorist, master of

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge or Oxford. ...

Plumian Professor of Astronomy and Experimental Philosophy The Plumian chair of Astronomy and Experimental Philosophy is one of the major professorships in Astronomy at Cambridge University, alongside the Lowndean Professorship (which is now mainly held by mathematicians). The chair is currently held at t ...

Arts

* Jason Carter- actor, best known for his appearances in sci-fi series

Babylon 5 ''Babylon 5'' is an American space opera television series created by writer and producer J. Michael Straczynski, under the Babylonian Productions label, in association with Straczynski's Synthetic Worlds Ltd. and Warner Bros. Domestic Tele ...

Julia Deakin Julia Margaret Deakin (born 20 May 1952)Clarke, Gemma (5 September 2016)"GRAND RE-OPENING OF GAINSBOROUGH HERITAGE CENTRE" ''Gainsborough Heritage Association''. Retrieved 10 August 2021. is an English actress. She is known for her roles in the ...

- actress, known for

Holby City ''Holby City'' (stylised on-screen as HOLBY CIY) is a British medical drama television series that aired weekly on BBC One. It was created by Tony McHale and Mal Young as a spin-off from the established BBC medical drama '' Casualty'', and ...

Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' is an English soap opera created by Granada Television and shown on ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres around a cobbled, terraced street in Weatherfield, a fictional town based on inner-city Salford. Orig ...

Hot Fuzz ''Hot Fuzz'' is a 2007 action comedy film directed by Edgar Wright and written by Wright and Simon Pegg. Starring Pegg, Nick Frost, Timothy Dalton, and Jim Broadbent, the film centres on two police officers investigating a series of mysteriou ...

and

Shaun of the Dead ''Shaun of the Dead'' is a 2004 zombie comedy film directed by Edgar Wright and written by Wright and Simon Pegg. Pegg stars as Shaun, a downtrodden salesman in London who is caught in a zombie apocalypse with his friend Ed ( Nick Frost). The ...

Marina Lewycka Marina Lewycka ( ; born 12 October 1946) is a British novelist of Ukrainian origin. Early life Lewycka was born in a refugee camp in Kiel after World War II. Her family subsequently moved to England; she now lives in Sheffield, South Yorksh ...

- novelist, author of A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian * Stanley Vann- Head of Music (1933–39), Anglican choral composer and organist

Public Service

Angus Innes John Angus Mackenzie Innes (born 22 May 1939) was a Queensland politician and leader of the state Liberal Party. Biography Innes was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Queensland in 1978 representing the Brisbane-area seat of Sherwood at ...

- Australian Liberal politician

Religion

* Hanserd Knollys- Head Master (c.1616–20), Puritan

Particular Baptist Reformed Baptists (sometimes known as Particular Baptists or Calvinistic Baptists) are Baptists that hold to a Calvinist soteriology (salvation). The first Calvinist Baptist church was formed in the 1630s. The 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith w ...

preacher and clergyman.Gordon, Alexander; "Knollys, Hanserd"; Dictionary of National Biography, 1885–1900, Volume 31 *

James Bowling Mozley James Bowling Mozley (15 September 1813 – 4 January 1878) was an English theologian. He was born at Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, the younger brother of Thomas Mozley, and was educated at Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School (now Queen Elizabeth' ...

- Anglican clergyman, theologian,

Oxford Movement The Oxford Movement was a movement of high church members of the Church of England which began in the 1830s and eventually developed into Anglo-Catholicism. The movement, whose original devotees were mostly associated with the University of ...

chronicler and Regius Professor of Divinity at the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

Thomas Mozley Thomas Mozley (1806June 17, 1893), was an English clergyman and writer associated with the Oxford Movement. Early life Mozley was born at Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, the son of a bookseller and publisher. His brother, James Bowling Mozley, woul ...

- Anglican clergyman and

Anglo-Catholic Anglo-Catholicism comprises beliefs and practices that emphasise the Catholic heritage and identity of the various Anglican churches. The term was coined in the early 19th century, although movements emphasising the Catholic nature of Anglica ...

theologian *

Edward Rainbowe Edward Rainbowe or Rainbow (1608–1684) was an English academic, Church of England clergyman and a noted preacher. He was Master of Magdalene College, Cambridge, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cambridge and Bishop of Carlisle. Lif ...

; DD- 17th century Anglican

bishop of Carlisle The Bishop of Carlisle is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Carlisle in the Province of York. The diocese covers the county of Cumbria except for Alston Moor and the former Sedbergh Rural District. The see is in the city of ...

, Puritan writer, Master of

Magdalene College, Cambridge Magdalene College ( ) is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1428 as a Benedictine hostel, in time coming to be known as Buckingham College, before being refounded in 1542 as the College of St Ma ...

and

Vice-Chancellor A chancellor is a leader of a college or university, usually either the executive or ceremonial head of the university or of a university campus within a university system. In most Commonwealth and former Commonwealth nations, the chancellor ...

Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

- Puritan Congregationalist,

Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John C ...

theologian and polemicist, and pastor to the

* John Smyth- Puritan pastor and founder of the

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul c ...

movement

Sport

* Peter Atkinson- county cricketer for

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see H ...

and

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land ...

* Charles Booth- amateur soccer player with

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club' ...

(1889–91) and

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostl ...

(1892–94) * Harry Davies- professional soccer player with

Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...

(1922–29, 1932–38) and

Huddersfield Town Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The team have played home games at the Kirklees Stadium since moving from Leeds Road in 1994. Th ...

(1930–32), sports journalist * John Hargreaves- minor county and

List A List A cricket is a classification of the limited-overs (one-day) form of the sport of cricket, with games lasting up to eight hours. List A cricket includes One Day International (ODI) matches and various domestic competitions in which the numbe ...

cricketer for Suffolk (1963–1981) *

Mervyn Winfield Hugh Mervyn Winfield (13 June 1933 – 18 October 2014) was an English cricketer. Winfield was a right-handed batsman. He was born in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire. Having played for the Nottinghamshire Second XI since 1951, Winfield made his f ...

- county cricketer for Nottinghamshire (1954–66) and Lincolnshire (1970–71)

References

External links

Queen Elizabeth's High School – Official WebsiteQEHS on google mapsQEHS on Microsoft Virtual Earth
(higher resolution than Google Maps) {{authority control Queen Elizabeth's High School (Gainsborough) 1983 establishments in England Educational institutions established in the 1580s 1589 establishments in England Community schools in Lincolnshire Gainsborough, Lincolnshire