King Edward VI Grammar School, or KEGS, is a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

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 ...

with academy status located in the

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

Chelmsford Chelmsford () is a city in the City of Chelmsford district in the county of Essex, England. It is the county town of Essex and one of three cities in the county, along with Southend-on-Sea and Colchester. It is located north-east of Londo ...

Essex Essex () is a Ceremonial counties of England, county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the Riv ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

. It takes pupils between the ages of 11 and 18, ie. school years 7 to 13. For years 7 to 11 the school is boys-only, whereas it is mixed in 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-l ...

(years 12 and 13). The headteacher is Tom Carter, who was appointed in the autumn of 2014.

History of the school

KEGS was one of many

s founded by

Edward VI Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. Edward was the son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour and the first E ...

. Its current form resulted from a royal warrant dated 24 March 1551, although evidence of this school exists from as far back as the 13th century, possibly earlier, as a

chantry A chantry is an ecclesiastical term that may have either of two related meanings: # a chantry service, a Christian liturgy of prayers for the dead, which historically was an obiit, or # a chantry chapel, a building on private land, or an area in ...

school in a different location in Chelmsford. Indeed, the school of 1551 was merely a "rebranding" of the Chelmsford Chantry School, a Roman Catholic institution which had been abolished along with the monasteries during the

English Reformation The English Reformation took place in 16th-century England when the Church of England broke away from the authority of the pope and the Catholic Church. These events were part of the wider European Protestant Reformation, a religious and poli ...

. The school was moved to its present site on Broomfield Road in 1892.A History of King Edward VI Grammar School, Chelmsford, 1551-2001 — Anthony Tuckwell Once a

boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. As they have existed for many centuries, and now exten ...

, it was one of many grammar schools to join the state sector and abolish the nominal fees. The last boarding students left in the 1970s. In 1976 it admitted the first female pupil to the Sixth Form, to study Classics. The school has been ranked in the top 50 schools in the country in national examination league tables. KEGS was previously a

Foundation School In England and Wales, a foundation school is a state-funded school in which the governing body has greater freedom in the running of the school than in community schools. Foundation schools were set up under the School Standards and Framework A ...

and Specialist

Science College Science Colleges were introduced in 2002 as part of the now defunct Specialist Schools Programme in the United Kingdom. The system enabled secondary schools to specialise in certain fields, in this case, science and mathematics. Schools that suc ...

and

Language College Language Colleges were introduced in 1995 as part of the specialist schools programme (SSP) in the United Kingdom. The system enabled secondary schools to specialise in certain fields, in this case, modern foreign languages. Schools that succes ...

. The school converted to academy status in April 2011, but continues to have science and languages as specialisms. It is also a Leading Edge school. In 1981 it was named by ''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...

'' as the most successful state school as measured by

Oxbridge Oxbridge is a portmanteau of Oxford and Cambridge, the two oldest, wealthiest, and most famous universities in the United Kingdom. The term is used to refer to them collectively, in contrast to other British universities, and more broadly to de ...

open awards. In 1998, it was rated by the

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...

as the most successful state school at GCE advanced level in the period 1993-1998. In 2001 the school was named ''Sunday Times'' School of the Year. The 2015

Good Schools Guide ''The Good Schools Guide'' is a guide to British schools, both state and independent. Overview The guide is compiled by a team of editors which, according to the official website, "''comprises some 50 editors, writers, researchers and contri ...

names KEGS as the top selective state school for a number of

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 aut ...

subjects, as well as

GCSE The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a particular subject, taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. State schools in Scotland use the Scottish Qualifications Certificate instead. Private sc ...

History and FSMQ Additional Mathematics. In December 2021, it was judged to be "outstanding" by

OFSTED The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) is a Non-ministerial government department, non-ministerial department of Government of the United Kingdom, His Majesty's government, reporting to Parliament of the U ...

House system

In 1907,

headmaster A head master, head instructor, bureaucrat, headmistress, head, chancellor, principal or school director (sometimes another title is used) is the teacher, staff member of a school with the greatest responsibility for the management of the school ...

Frank Rogers set up the system of "Houses"King Edward VI Grammar School, Chelmsford » House System
/ref> – Holland, named for the translator

Philemon Holland Philemon Holland (1552 – 9 February 1637) was an English schoolmaster, physician and translator. He is known for the first English translations of several works by Livy, Pliny the Elder, and Plutarch, and also for translating William Camden's ...

; Mildmay, for the courtier and politician Sir Walter Mildmay; Strutt, for the antiquary Joseph Strutt; and Tindal, for the lawyer

Sir Nicholas Conyngham Tindal Sir Nicolas Conyngham Tindal, PC (12 December 1776 – 6 July 1846) was a celebrated English lawyer who successfully defended the then Queen of the United Kingdom, Caroline of Brunswick, at her trial for adultery in 1820. As Chief Justice ...

, and dividing the school into four forms in each year. Due to the expansion of the school roll over the last few years, this has not been the case. Instead, there are five forms, which contain a mix of people from different houses.

Extracurricular activities

Combined Cadet Force and Corps of Drums

The school maintains an Army contingent of the

Combined Cadet Force The Combined Cadet Force (CCF) is a youth organisation in the United Kingdom, sponsored by the Ministry of Defence (MOD), which operates in schools, and normally includes Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force sections. Its aim is to "provide a ...

(CCF), which was also open to students of

Chelmsford County High School for Girls Chelmsford County High School for Girls or "CCHS", is a selective grammar school for girls aged 11–18 located in Chelmsford, Essex, England. Entrance to the school is by an academic selection test. CCHS is traditionally rated among the most co ...

until 2017. Military music is provided within the contingent by a Corps of Drums playing drums, flutes and bugles. The Corps wears the full dress scarlet tunics of The

Essex Regiment The Essex Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 to 1958. The regiment served in many conflicts such as the Second Boer War and both World War I and World War II, serving with distinction in all three. ...

, incorporating the purple facings which gave the Essex Regiment its nickname 'The Pompadours'. It carries the drums of the 5th Battalion (Territorial Army) emblazoned with the Regiment's

battle honours A battle honour is an award of a right by a government or sovereign to a military unit to emblazon the name of a battle or operation on its flags ("colours"), uniforms or other accessories where ornamentation is possible. In European military t ...

.King Edward VI Grammar School » CCF
/ref>

KEGS Music

The school has many ensembles, of which the orchestras include members from other schools, though the majority are from KEGS and

. The other ensembles are exclusive to those who attend KEGS.King Edward VI Grammar School » Music
/ref> * Junior Orchestra (Combined with KEGS Strings) * Senior Orchestra * Choir * Wind Band * Jazz Ensemble * Big Band

KEGS Languages Society

The KEGS Languages Society (Langsoc), run by students Meredydd Summers and Alison Craig-Greene, is a group where both concepts in linguistics and the structure of specific languages are discussed, mostly in short presentations. Langsoc also provides training for the

United Kingdom Linguistics Olympiad The United Kingdom Linguistics Olympiad (UKLO) is a linguistics competition for primary and secondary school students in the United Kingdom. The competition is divided into four levels: Breakthrough, Foundation, Intermediate and Advanced, collecti ...

(UKLO). A notable success is that of Alison Craig-Greene, who won a gold medal in the

International Linguistics Olympiad The International Linguistics Olympiad (IOL) is one of the International Science Olympiads for secondary school students. Its abbreviation IOL is deliberately chosen not to correspond to the name of the organization in any particular language, an ...

(IOL) in 2022.

The KEGS Ambassador

''The KEGS Ambassador'' is the school's independent student newspaper. Since its creation in January 2009, it has featured numerous articles by alumni, staff and students.

KEGS Medical Society

The KEGS Medical Society (MedSoc) is the society where topical medical issues are discussed.

The KEGS Economics Journal

The KEGS Economics Journal is another of the school's student-led newspapers. They feature articles on a wide variety of national and international economic and political affairs.

Notable former pupils

Of the Chelmsford Chantry School (before the Royal Charter of 1551)

John Dee John Dee (13 July 1527 – 1608 or 1609) was an English mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, teacher, occultist, and alchemist. He was the court astronomer for, and advisor to, Elizabeth I, and spent much of his time on alchemy, divinatio ...

, mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, occultist, and consultant to Queen Elizabeth I; responsible for the English translation of

Euclid Euclid (; grc-gre, Wikt:Εὐκλείδης, Εὐκλείδης; BC) was an ancient Greek mathematician active as a geometer and logician. Considered the "father of geometry", he is chiefly known for the ''Euclid's Elements, Elements'' trea ...

's work.

Pre-1900

John Hilton (surgeon) John Hilton FRCS, FRS, FZS (22 September 1805 – 14 September 1878) was a British surgeon. Born in Sible Hedingham in Essex in 1805, Hilton was educated at King Edward VI Grammar School, Chelmsford and in Boulogne (where he became fluent in ...

, professor of human anatomy and surgery at the Royal College of Surgeons, president of the Hunterian Society *

, classical scholar * Joseph Strutt, author of "Sports and Pastimes of the People of England" *

Nicholas Conyngham Tindal Sir Nicolas Conyngham Tindal, PC (12 December 1776 – 6 July 1846) was a celebrated English lawyer who successfully defended the then Queen of the United Kingdom, Caroline of Brunswick, at her trial for adultery in 1820. As Chief Justice ...

, Lord Chief Justice of The Court of Common Pleas

1900-1960

Claude Colleer Abbott Claude Colleer Abbott (1889–1971) was an English poet, scholar and university lecturer, the 'C. C. Abbott' of academic publications. He is principally known as the editor of Gerard Manley Hopkins' correspondence. Life and career The son of a ...

, poet and academic * H. H. Abbott, poet and headmaster * John Baker, Downing Professor of the Laws of England at the University of Cambridge and leading legal historian *

J. A. Baker John Alec Baker (6 August 1926 – 26 December 1987) was an English author, best known for ''The Peregrine,'' which won the Duff Cooper Prize in 1967. ''The Peregrine'' Robert Macfarlane deemed ''The Peregrine'' to be "a masterpiece of twentie ...

, author of ''The Peregrine'' and ''The Hill of Summer'' *

Norman Fowler Peter Norman Fowler, Baron Fowler, (born 2 February 1938) is a British politician who served as a member of both Margaret Thatcher and John Major's ministries during the 1980s and 1990s. He held the office of Lord Speaker from 1 September 201 ...

, former

Lord Speaker The Lord Speaker is the presiding officer, chairman and highest authority of the House of Lords in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The office is analogous to the Speaker of the House of Commons: the Lord Speaker is elected by the member ...

; Conservative politician; former Cabinet minister * Peter Joslin, Chief Constable of Warwickshire Police (1983–1998) * Tony Oliver (referee), English Football League referee *

Brian Parkyn Brian Stewart Parkyn (28 April 1923 – 22 March 2006) was a British Labour Party (UK), Labour Party politician. Early years Parkyn was educated at King Edward VI Grammar School (Chelmsford), King Edward VI Grammar School, Chelmsford, and at t ...

, Labour MP for

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...

from 1966–70 *

Peter Seabrook Peter John Seabrook Order of the British Empire (MBE), MBE (2 November 1935 – 14 January 2022) was a British gardening writer and television broadcaster, presenting programmes including the BBC's ''Gardeners' World''. He wrote a gardening colu ...

, gardener and broadcaster * John G. Taylor, professor of Mathematics at

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

from 1971–96, and President of the European Neural Network Society from 1993-4 * John Urquhart, cricketer *

Paul White, Baron Hanningfield Paul Edward Winston White, Baron Hanningfield (born 16 September 1940) is a British politician and a member of the House of Lords. He served in various leadership roles in local government as a Conservative and was influential in the establishm ...

, politician and member of the House of Lords * Denis Wick, trombonist *

Clive Young Clive Young (31 May 1948 – 7 October 2015) was a Church of England bishop. From 1999 to 2013, he was the Anglican Bishop of Dunwich, a suffragan bishop in the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich. Early life Young was educated at King Ed ...

, former

Bishop of Dunwich The Bishop of Dunwich is an episcopal title which was first used by an Anglo-Saxons bishop between the 7th and 9th centuries and is currently used by the suffragan bishop of the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich. The title takes its name afte ...

Post-1960

Nick Alston Nicholas Kenneth Alston (born 2 September 1952) is a British former Conservative Essex Police and Crime Commissioner. Alston was the first person to hold the post and was elected on 15 November 2012. The turn-out in Essex for the 2012 PCC elec ...

, Essex's first Police and Crime Commissioner *

Nick Bourne Nicholas Henry Bourne, Baron Bourne of Aberystwyth (born 1 January 1952) is a Conservative Party politician who served as Leader of the Welsh Conservative Party and Member of the Senedd for Mid and West Wales from August 1999 until May 2011. ...

, Conservative politician *

Neil Cole Neil Cole (born 1 March 1972) is an English television presenter, comedian, radio broadcaster and actor. Early life Cole was born in Bristol in 1972, and attended King Edward Grammar School in Chelmsford. He studied English and French Liter ...

, comedian, television presenter and radio broadcaster *

Mervyn Day Mervyn Richard Day (born 26 June 1955) is an English former professional footballer who played in the Football League as a goalkeeper for West Ham United, Orient, Aston Villa, Leeds United, Luton Town, Sheffield United and Carlisle United. H ...

, former

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

winning professional footballer and former assistant manager of

West Ham United Football Club West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, h ...

Alex Dowsett Alex Edward Albert Dowsett (born 3 October 1988) is a former British professional road racing cyclist, who rode for UCI WorldTeam . He was a time trial specialist, and in 2015, he broke track cycling's world hour record by , with a distance of ...

, British cyclist *

Guthrie Govan Guthrie Govan (; born 27 December 1971) is an English guitarist and guitar teacher, known for his work with the bands the Aristocrats, Asia, GPS, the Young Punx and the Fellowship, as well as his solo project Erotic Cakes. More recently, he ha ...

, guitarist and guitar teacher, named "Guitarist of the Year" by Guitarist magazine in 1993 * Jason Hazeley, comedy writer *

Simon Heffer Simon James Heffer (born 18 July 1960) is an English historian, journalist, author and political commentator. He has published several biographies and a series of books on the social history of Great Britain from the mid-nineteenth century unti ...

, British journalist and writer for ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was fo ...

'' and ''

The Daily Mail The ''Daily Mail'' is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper and news websitePeter Wilb"Paul Dacre of the Daily Mail: The man who hates liberal Britain", ''New Statesman'', 19 December 2013 (online version: 2 January 2014) publish ...

'' * Thomas Jenkinson, electronic and jazz musician, also known as Squarepusher * Jon Lewis, former

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

and

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham *County Durham, an English county * Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States *Durham, North Carolina, a city in N ...

cricketer *

Anthony Marwood Anthony Marwood is a British solo violinist. Early life He was born 6 July 1965 to Michael Travers Marwood and Anne née Chevallier. He attended King Edward VI Grammar School in Chelmsford. He then studied at the Royal Academy of Music and t ...

, concert violinist * James Maynard, Mathematician and Fields Medal winner *

Tim Mead Tim Mead (born 1981) is an English countertenor. Life and career Tim Mead was born in Chelmsford, Essex and began singing as a treble in the choir of Chelmsford Cathedral. He was educated at King Edward VI Grammar School, Chelmsford and the ...

, countertenor * Anthony Milton,

Commandant General Royal Marines The Commandant General Royal Marines is the professional head of the Royal Marines. The title has existed since 1943. The role is held by a General who is assisted by a Deputy Commandant General, with the rank of brigadier. This position is not t ...

and Commander UK Amphibious Forces from 2002-4 *

Joel Morris Jason Hazeley and Joel Morris are a British comedy writing duo. Their work includes a collection of parody Ladybird books, and they have written scripts for many British comedy series and films, including ''That Mitchell and Webb Look'', Charlie Bro ...

, comedy writer * Grayson Perry, 2003 Turner Prize winner * Mike Smith, touring car driver and television presenter * Joe Thomas, actor, writer and comedian * John Tipler, international motoring journalist

Fictional

* John Watson, character in the 2010 BBC series of ''Sherlock''. John Watson's CV is visible in episode two, where KEGS is cited under Education Qualifications (with 6 A*).

References

External links

The official KEGS website

The School's most recent Ofsted inspection report
{{DEFAULTSORT:King Edward VI Grammar School (Chelmsford) Educational institutions established in the 1550s Grammar schools in Essex 1551 establishments in England Academies in Essex Schools with a royal charter Schools in Chelmsford King Edward VI Schools