Dame Allan's Schools is a collection of
private
Private or privates may refer to:
Music
* "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation''
* Private (band), a Denmark-based band
* "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...
day school
A day school — as opposed to a boarding school — is an educational institution where children are given instruction during the day, after which the students return to their homes. A day school has full-day programs when compared to a regular s ...
s in
Fenham, in the west end of
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle ( , Received Pronunciation, RP: ), is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is England's northernmost metropolitan borough, located o ...
, England. It comprises a Junior School, Senior School and a
Sixth Form
In the education systems of Barbados, England, Jamaica, Northern Ireland, Trinidad and Tobago, Wales, and some other Commonwealth countries, sixth form represents the final two years of secondary education, ages 16 to 18. Pupils typically prepa ...
. Founded in 1705 as a charity, the original schools are two of the oldest schools in the city. It was originally founded to provide education for "40 poor boys and 20 poor girls of the parishes of
St Nicholas
Saint Nicholas of Myra (traditionally 15 March 270 – 6 December 343), also known as Nicholas of Bari, was an early Christian bishop of Greeks, Greek descent from the maritime city of Patara (Lycia), Patara in Anatolia (in modern-day Antalya ...
and
St John" and now charges £5,607 per term (Junior School) and £6,901 per term (Secondary School and Sixth Form) for pupils to attend.
History
They were founded by Dame Eleanor Allan, the daughter of a local
goldsmith
A goldsmith is a Metalworking, metalworker who specializes in working with gold and other precious metals. Modern goldsmiths mainly specialize in jewelry-making but historically, they have also made cutlery, silverware, platter (dishware), plat ...
and the widow of a tobacco merchant, to provide a proper education for "40 poor boys and 20 poor girls of the parishes of
St Nicholas
Saint Nicholas of Myra (traditionally 15 March 270 – 6 December 343), also known as Nicholas of Bari, was an early Christian bishop of Greeks, Greek descent from the maritime city of Patara (Lycia), Patara in Anatolia (in modern-day Antalya ...
and
St John". The schools were endowed with land at
Wallsend
Wallsend () is a town in North Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England, at the eastern end of Hadrian's Wall. It has a population of 43,842 and lies east of Newcastle upon Tyne.
History Roman Wallsend
In Roman times, this was the site of the fort of ...
, to the east of Newcastle. The original school seems likely to have been near
St Nicholas's Church, and certainly was by 1778.
It moved to Manor Chare near
All Saints' Church
All Saints Church, or All Saints' Church or variations on the name may refer to:
Albania
* All Saints' Church, Himarë
Australia
* All Saints Church, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory
* All Saints Anglican Church, Brisbane, Queensland
*All ...
in 1786, to Carliol Square in 1821, to Rosemary Lane off Pudding Chare in 1861, and to Hanover Square in 1875.
[ The school then moved to College Street in Newcastle in 1883 and remained there until 1935 when it re-located to the present site in Fenham.][
Until 1988 the schools operated as separate boys' and girls' schools with a joint governing body. The governors then took the decision to appoint a principal with overall responsibility for the management of the two schools. At the same time, they created a joint mixed sixth form and reintroduced a mixed junior school. In effect, Dame Allan's consisted of four different schools: the co-educational ]Junior school
A junior school is a type of school which provides primary education to children, often in the age range from 8 and 13, following attendance at an infant school, which covers the age range 5–7. Since both infant and junior schools provide pri ...
for nursery to Year 6 are located in a separate building in Spital Tongues
Spital Tongues is a district of Newcastle upon Tyne, located due north-west of the Newcastle City Centre. Its unusual name is believed to be derived from ''spital'' – a corruption of the word ''hospital'', commonly found in British place names ...
; the single sex boys' and girls' schools for years 7 to 11; and the co-educational sixth form
In the education systems of Barbados, England, Jamaica, Northern Ireland, Trinidad and Tobago, Wales, and some other Commonwealth countries, sixth form represents the final two years of secondary education, ages 16 to 18. Pupils typically prepa ...
(years 12 to 13).
In 1994, an early day motion was brought before the UK Parliament citing incidences of racially motivated bullying at the school.
In 2023, Robert Johnson, who taught at Dame Allan's for over a decade, was found guilty of making indecent photographs of children between 2009 and 2020. He was sentenced to one year in jail and banned from teaching for life.
Staff walked-out in a dispute over pensions in March 2024: the school subsequently made an improved offer.
In 2025, it was announced that the school was to abandon the diamond structure and go fully coeducational, with the incoming Years 7-10 becoming coeducational in September 2026 and the incoming Year 11 adopting the change in September 2027.
Facilities
A number of new classrooms were built between 2004 and 2005 to replace older facilities, with some intended specifically for the sixth form centre. The Sixth Form Centre was opened by Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...
during an official visit on 14 October 2005 and was named the Queen's Building.
September 2012 saw the opening of the new nursery and junior school in Spital Tongues.
2015 saw Dame Allan's chosen as the recipient of a £250,000 grant to help fund a £500,000 project. The grant was given by the Reece Foundation which promotes the improvement of education in engineering, technology and related subjects. The new facility will build on the Schools' existing master class programme.
In February 2022 Dame Allan's Schools celebrated the opening of its Jubilee Building. The £8 million transformative development consists of a light and airy art exhibition space, purpose built science labs, a dedicated design technology space for sixth formers, as well as MFL, Art and maths classrooms.
Academics
Scholarships of up to 50% are available on the basis of academic merit, and bursaries of up to 100% are available on the basis of academic merit and financial need.
Being a private school, Dame Allan's does not strictly adhere to the National Curriculum A national curriculum is a common programme of study in schools that is designed to ensure nationwide uniformity of content and standards in education. It is usually legislated by the national government, possibly in consultation with state or othe ...
. It does enter all its students in public examinations such as GCSEs
The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a range of subjects taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, having been introduced in September 1986 and its first exams taken in 1988. State schools ...
and A-levels
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 ...
, so the subjects taught are closely tied into their national counterparts. All students must study English, mathematics, and the sciences to GCSE level, and it is strongly recommended that at least one foreign language be studied to this level. Sixth form students have a much wider range of study, with no mandatory subjects and the introduction of many new subjects in year 12, including A-levels
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 ...
in politics, psychology, sports, business and theatre studies. Dame Allan's is an Anglican
Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...
school.
In 2005 the school recorded its best ever set of exam results, including a handful of Top 5 results in several subjects, notably GCSE languages. Furthermore, two pupils were awarded 6 grade As at A-level. The school consistently performs to an extremely high standard in public examinations, with the girls' school often slightly outscoring the boys' school at GCSE
The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a range of subjects taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, having been introduced in September 1986 and its first exams taken in 1988. State schools ...
level. The school has not yet been inspected by 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's role is to make sure that organisations providing education, training ...
but received a positive report from the independent schools Inspectorate in 2000.
The 2000 inspection summarised the schools as "a civilised and civilising community ... hich providesa well-rounded education for pupils from the age of 8 to 18" and the 2006 report states "Dame Allan's are good schools with several great strengths and no significant weaknesses. The schools succeed very well in their key aims of providing a broad education for their pupils, where academic success is greatly valued but so is the moral, social and spiritual development of pupils."
Notable former pupils
Former pupils are known as Old Allanians.
*Denis Fenwick Allison (born 1931), former English international rugby union player
*The Right Reverend John Crook (born 1940), former Bishop of Moray, Ross and Caithness
*Dame Myra Curtis
Dame Myra Curtis DBE (2 October 1886 – 27 June 1971) was an editor, civil servant, and the Principal of Newnham College, Cambridge from 1942 to 1954.
Early life
Curtis was born on 2 October 1886 in Sunderland. She was the daughter of George ...
(1886–1971), Principal of Newnham College, Cambridge
Newnham College is a women's constituent college of the University of Cambridge.
The college was founded in 1871 by a group organising Lectures for Ladies, members of which included philosopher Henry Sidgwick and suffragist campaigner Millicen ...
* Margaret Dale (1922–2010), dancer and television producer
*Professor Elizabeth Fallaize
Elizabeth Fallaize (3 June 1950 – 6 December 2009) was a British academic who was Pro-Vice Chancellor of the University of Oxford and a French studies scholar.
Fallaize was educated at Dame Allan's School, Newcastle upon Tyne. After gradua ...
(1950–2009), Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Education), University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...
* Marian Foster (born 1948), broadcaster
* Edward Hinds FRS (born 1949), Professor of Physics
*Vick Hope
Victoria Nwayawu Nwosu-Hope (born 25 September 1989) is a British television and radio presenter, journalist and published author.
Hope hosts the BBC Radio 1 drivetime show ''Going Home with Vick, Katie and Jamie'' with Katie Thistleton and ...
(born 1989), TV and radio presenter
*Ian La Frenais
Ian La Frenais (born 7 January 1937) is a retired English writer
best known for his creative partnership with Dick Clement. They are most famous for television series including '' The Likely Lads'', ''Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?'', ' ...
(born 1936), writer
*David Leon
David Jeremy Leon (born 24 July 1980) is an English actor, director, writer and producer. As an actor, he is known for appearing in Rankin and Chris Cottam's 2002 feature film, ''Lives of the Saints'' (as the character Othello), and director ...
(born 1980), actor
* Sir David Lumsden (born 1928), Choirmaster, organist and harpsichordist; former Principal of the Royal Academy of Music
The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is one of the oldest music schools in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the firs ...
* Philip Nicholson (born 1973), Northumberland
Northumberland ( ) is a ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England, on the Anglo-Scottish border, border with Scotland. It is bordered by the North Sea to the east, Tyne and Wear and County Durham to the south, Cumb ...
cricketer
* Sebastian Payne (born 1989), journalist
* Peter Pilkington (1933–2011), Conservative Peer and former chairman of the Broadcasting Complaints Commission
*Varada Sethu
Varada Sethu (born Varada Sethumadhavan, 12 May 1992) is a British actress. Her credits include '' Sket'' (2010), '' English: An Autumn in London'' (2012), ''Doctors'' (2015), '' New Blood'' (2016), '' Doctor Foster'' (2017), '' Hanna'' (2019), ...
(born 1992), actor.
* Keith Wrightson (born 1948), Randolph W. Townsend Professor of History, Yale University
Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...
, since 2004.
References
External links
The findings of the most recent inspection of the Boys' Schools by the Independent Schools Inspectorate in 2006
* ttp://www.dameallans.co.uk/ Official school websitebr>
{{authority control
Private schools in Newcastle upon Tyne
Educational institutions established in 1705
1705 establishments in England
Girls' schools in Tyne and Wear
Member schools of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference
Member schools of the Girls' Schools Association
Diamond schools