, motto_translation = The Manly Thing Is Being Done , established = , founder = John Gilmore, William McIlrath, Robert Gillespie and Andrew Reid , type =

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

, day & boarding , gender =

Male Male (symbol: ♂) is the sex of an organism that produces the gamete (sex cell) known as sperm, which fuses with the larger female gamete, or ovum, in the process of fertilization. A male organism cannot reproduce sexually without access to ...

, denomination =

Uniting Church The Uniting Church in Australia (UCA) was founded on 22 June 1977, when most congregations of the Methodist Church of Australasia, about two-thirds of the Presbyterian Church of Australia and almost all the churches of the Congregational Unio ...

, chairman = Simon Rothery , chaplain = Rev. Tim Robinson , principal_label1 = Headmaster , principal1 = Scott James , address = 2 Borambil Street , city =

Wahroonga Wahroonga is a suburb in the Upper North Shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, 18 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government areas of Ku-ring-gai Council and Hornsby Shire. ...

, state =

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, postcode = 2076 , country = Australia , coordinates = , enrolment = ~2,170 , enrolment_as_of = 2017 , grades_label = Years , grades = K- 12 , num_employ = ~278 , colours = Black and blue
, rival = Barker College , affiliation =

Combined Associated Schools The Associated Schools of NSW Inc, most commonly referred to as the Committee of Associated Schools (CAS), is a group of six independent schools located in Sydney, which share common interests, ethics, educational philosophy and contest sporting e ...

, website
www.knox.nsw.edu.au
Knox Grammar School is an

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

day and

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 ...

for boys, located in

Wahroonga, New South Wales Wahroonga is a suburb in the Upper North Shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, 18 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government areas of Ku-ring-gai Council and Hornsby Shire. N ...

, an Upper North Shore suburb of

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, Australia. Founded in 1924 by the

Presbyterian Church of Australia The Presbyterian Church of Australia (PCA) is the largest Presbyterian denomination in Australia. (The larger Uniting Church in Australia incorporated about two-thirds of the PCA in 1977.) History Beginnings When captain James Cook lande ...

as an all-boys

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compuls ...

, and named after

John Knox John Knox ( gd, Iain Cnocc) (born – 24 November 1572) was a Scottish minister, Reformed theologian, and writer who was a leader of the country's Reformation. He was the founder of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland. Born in Giffordgat ...

. The school has since grown, branching out into a large

Senior School A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' secondary education, lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) ...

and a Preparatory School, enrolling approximately 2900 students. The school also caters for approximately 160 boarding students from Years 7 to 12. Knox is affiliated with the

Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference The Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference (HMC) is an association of the head teachers of 361 independent schools (both boarding schools and day schools), some traditionally described as public schools. 298 Members are based in the United ...

, the Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia (AHISA), the

Junior School Heads Association of Australia The Independent Primary School Heads of Australia (IPSHA) formerly Junior School Heads Association of Australia (JSHAA), is an incorporated body representing the heads of independent primary schools in Australia. Officially established in Septem ...

(JSHAA), the Australian Boarding Schools' Association (ABSA), and is a founding member of the

(CAS). In January 2015 the

Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse was a royal commission announced in November 2012 and established in 2013 by the Government of Australia, Australian government pursuant to the Royal Commissions Act 1902 t ...

announced it would conduct a public investigation into how Knox Grammar had responded to allegations of inappropriate conduct and sexual abuse by teachers towards students between 1970 and 2012. The Royal Commission found in September 2016 that the school's principal between 1969 and 1998 had covered up allegations of sexual abuse made against teachers.

History

Knox Grammar School was established on Sydney's North Shore in 1924, by the

Presbyterian Church Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

. The school was named after

, the 16th century Scottish reformer, who planned a network of schools in every church parish. KnoxEarlston1923

Knox opened as a Presbyterian Boys' School after founding members John Gilmore, William McIlrath, Robert Gillespie and Andrew Reid purchased the original property, 'Earlston', as the first school building. Now the Gillespie Heritage House, 'Earlston' was previously owned by Sir Charles Mackellar, was designed by

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

s Spain & Cosh, and built in 1908 for W. Moses Esq., Warrawee. The school was officially opened by the Hon. Sir George Fuller KCMG,

Premier of New South Wales The premier of New South Wales is the head of government in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The Government of New South Wales follows the Westminster Parliamentary System, with a Parliament of New South Wales acting as the legislature. ...

, on 5 February 1924. Under the founding

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 ...

Neil MacNeil, a

Rhodes Scholar The Rhodes Scholarship is an international postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Established in 1902, it is the oldest graduate scholarship in the world. It is considered among the world' ...

, Knox grew rapidly and survived the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

. Student numbers rose from 28 in 1924 to over 300 in 1939. In 1939, William Bryden

FRSE Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". This soci ...

(1904-1992) took over the role of headmaster. As

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

broke out, around 370 Old Knox Grammarians served in the armed forces. 53 of them lost their lives and are now commemorated in the John Williams Memorial Hall, the School

Chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

, the Old Students'

War Memorial A war memorial is a building, monument, statue, or other edifice to celebrate a war or victory, or (predominating in modern times) to commemorate those who died or were injured in a war. Symbolism Historical usage It has ...

, and the original Science Building. The school's

Pipe Band A pipe band is a musical ensemble consisting of Bagpipes, pipers and drummers. The term pipes and drums, used by military pipe bands is also common. The most common form of pipe band consists of a section of pipers playing the Great Highland b ...

was established during Bryden's period as headmaster. John Mill Couper, a Scot, became headmaster in 1953. Couper focused on broadening the School's education, with attention to

music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspect ...

and

art Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...

, however, problems culminated in Couper's departure from a divided Knox in 1955. T. Ross McKenzie, former head of

Brisbane Boys' College (Let Honour Stainless Be) , established = 1902 , type = Independent, single-sex, day and boarding , denomination = Presbyterian and Uniting Church , slogan = , headmaster = André Casson , city = Toowong , state = Queensland , count ...

, replaced Couper. The school's fifth headmaster, Ian Paterson, initiated further developments including a substantial building program. During this period three teachers sexually abused students; these teachers were later convicted and it has been alleged that other teachers abused students. In 2015 Paterson told the

that he had failed to protect students from abuse. In 1999, Peter Crawley, former Head of Trinity Grammar School in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, became Knox's sixth headmaster.

Headmasters

Motto

Knox's school

motto A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. Mot ...

is a

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

phrase, ', which has been translated variously as being "Do the Manly Thing" (The translation most common in the Preparatory School), "The manly thing is being done".

Campus

There are several locations throughout Sydney.

Facilities

Knox's senior campus includes the Great Hall and Aquatic Centre (opened August 2011), sports facility, gymnasium, squash and weights rooms, music and drama centres, two boarding houses (one opened September 2010) and the new performing arts academy (opened late 2019). Knox owns several major sporting fields including one on campus at the Senior School, two on campus at the Prep School, and two off campus in Warrawee and neighbouring

North Turramurra North Turramurra is a suburb on the Upper North Shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. North Turramurra is located north-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Ku-ring-gai Counci ...

. Since 2006 the school has been actively involved in the Future Problem Solving Program.

Building projects

Knox has in recent years completed new buildings at both the Senior and Prep Schools. The Senior School's KG1 Building opened in 2007. The KG1 Project The Prep School's K-2 Centre, opened in 2004, provided new classroom, library, art and music facilities for Years K-2 students. The new Boarding Centre was finished in September 2010. The Great Hall and Aquatic Centre project, was finished August 2011. The Great Hall/Aquatic Centre building won several design awards in 2012. Construction for the new Knox Senior Student Academy began in 2014, with construction continuing to August 2015 and the academy being officially opened in October 2015. The building houses the lockers of Year 11 and Year 12 students, as well as featuring a cafe, classrooms for Science as well as Finance and Legal classrooms, a Senior Library and a Lecture theatre. In 2016, Headmaster John Weeks announced that Knox Grammar School would commence construction of a new Performing Arts Centre and Junior Secondary Academy in February 2017. It was completed in early 2019. The Senior School's construction for a new locker area for Years 7-10 as well as a basketball court, which is in the process of refurbishing the KG1 Building for the new Middle Academy, was completed in early 2020.

House system

Boarding

Knox Grammar School provides boarding facilities for approximately 160 boarders. Boarding facilities have been available since the School's opening, in 1924 RobertGillespie

*Gillespie (Maroon) – the original school house and is named for Robert Gillespie, a founder and benefactor of the School, and chairman of the School Council (1923–1945). It was later converted into a Boarding House, now known as "Gillespie Heritage House". *Boarding Centre – opened in September 2010, the Boarding Centre accommodates Boarders in 21st Century style.

Other Houses

*MacNeil (Black) – originally MacNeil House was an expansion to Gillespie House, completed to add room to the new school. It is named for Neil MacNeil, the first headmaster of the School (1924–1938). *Adamson (Dark green) – John Adamson – a long-serving chairman of the School Council. *Angus (Brown) – Rev Samuel Angus – a

Professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...

Theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

Sydney University The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's six ...

and former member of the School Council. *Bryden (Grey) – Dr William Bryden – the second headmaster of the School (1939–1953). Also known as the cultural house. House mascot is the 'Bryden Squid'. *McIlrath (Dark blue) – William McIlrath – a founder and benefactor of the School and a long-serving council member (1923–1955). His widow contributed 50,000 pounds for the construction of the School chapel in 1960, which contains a

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

organ by

Ronald Sharp Ronald William Sharp (8 August 1929 – 21 July 2021) was an Australian organ builder. He was awarded the Silver Jubilee Medal (1977) and the British Empire Medal (1980). Sharp was self-taught and built his first organ in 1960. He speciali ...

. *McKenzie (Orange). Dr Ross McKenzie – fourth headmaster of the School (1956–1969). *Montgomery (Lime green) – Ross Montgomery – a School Council member (1953–1970) and benefactor of the School. His major gifts included the Montgomery Building and Gilmore House. *Murdoch (Red) – AM Murdoch – a long-serving School Council member (from 1938) and chairman (1855–1969) *Reid (Yellow) – Andrew Reid – a founder and benefactor of the School. A business leader, sole proprietor of

James Hardie James Hardie Industries plc is a global building materials company and the largest global manufacturer of fibre cement products. Headquartered in Ireland, it is a dual-listed company, being listed on the Australian and New York Stock Exchanges. ...

in 1912, he made many financial contributions to the School; he also built the Margaret Reid Home for Crippled Children in St. Ives, in memory of his late wife. *Sinclair (Purple) – George Sinclair – a school council member (from 1944) and chairman (1952–1955). *Turnbull (Light Blue) – Alex Turnbull – a founding member of the School Council, serving 1923 to 1947, and an elder at St Margaret's Church in nearby Turramurra.

Co-curriculum

Army Cadet Unit (KGSACU)

The Knox Grammar School Army Cadet Unit (KGSACU) comprises 1200 members, ranging from recruits (RECs) to Cadet Under Officers (CUOs). The KGSACU is an ACU within the NSW 2nd AAC BDE. Participation is compulsory from the start of Term 4 Year 8, through to the end of Term 3 Year 9 for attendees of Knox Grammar School, and offers voluntary participation for attendees at the

Ravenswood School for Girls , motto_translation = Always towards better things , established = 1901 , type = Independent, day and boarding , denomination = Uniting Church , slogan = Ravenswood widens her world , principal = Anne Johnstone , founder ...

from Term 4 Year 8. After the completion of basic recruit training in their first year, cadets may decide to either discharge from the Unit, or attend a Promotion Course to attempt to attain a higher rank and/or continue into a Senior or Recruit company. The Unit participates in combined Annual Field Exercise (AFX) at the end of Term 1, and holds its own Junior, Senior, and CUOs Promotions Courses during August each year. Additionally, the KGSACU holds ceremonial parades for the Old Knox Grammarians Association (OKGA), an ANZAC Day Parade to commemorate

ANZAC Day , image = Dawn service gnangarra 03.jpg , caption = Anzac Day Dawn Service at Kings Park, Western Australia, 25 April 2009, 94th anniversary. , observedby = Australia Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Cook Islands New ...

(though held several weeks after the day itself), and a Passing-Out Parade at the end of the cadet year to farewell the Year 12 members at the conclusion of their service to the Unit.

Sport

Knox is a member of the

(CAS), and plays competitive sport against the five other member Schools namely,

Barker College , motto_translation = Seek Honour above Rewards , location = Hornsby, Sydney , country = Australia , coordinates = , pushpin_map = Australia Sydney , pushpin_image ...

, Cranbrook School, St. Aloysius College, Trinity Grammar School and

Waverley College , motto_translation = Virtue alone ennobles , location = 131 Birrell Street , city = Waverley, New South Wales , country = Australia , coordinates = , type = Independent early learni ...

. Trial and pre-season fixtures are played against the

GPS The Global Positioning System (GPS), originally Navstar GPS, is a Radionavigation-satellite service, satellite-based radionavigation system owned by the United States government and operated by the United States Space Force. It is one of t ...

and ISA Schools. Students may represent Knox in a variety of inter-school sporting fixtures played each Saturday throughout the term. The Intra-School sporting programs includes House carnivals, Standards and Inter-School competitions open to all boys. Participating in sport at Knox is compulsory in both the winter and summer sporting seasons. Knox plays 5 weeks of sport against GPS schools, and then 5 weeks of sport against CAS schools

CAS premierships

Knox Grammar School has won the following CAS premierships. * Athletics (29) - 1929, 1931, 1933, 1935, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1957, 1959, 1961, 1962, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1992, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008 *Australian Football - 2021 * Basketball (9) - 1978, 1979, 1980, 1997, 2009, 2014, 2019, 2020, 2021 * Cricket (15) - 1936, 1940, 1941, 1991, 1993, 1996, 2004, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2016 * Cross Country (4) - 1993, 1994, 1998, 2006 * Diving (3) - 2007, 2009, 2011 * Rugby (25) - 1932, 1934, 1936, 1939, 1940, 1941, 1942, 1945, 1954, 1957, 1962, 1964, 1967, 1972, 1976, 1991, 1995, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2008, 2009, 2015, 2016 * Soccer (10) - 1993, 1999, 2000, 2005, 2006, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2020, 2022 * Swimming (34) - 1933, 1934, 1939, 1941, 1947, 1948, 1959, 1963, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1992, 2003, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 * Tennis ''Summer'' (17) - 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2020 * Tennis ''Winter'' (9) - 2006, 2007, 2008, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018 * Volleyball ''Summer'' (2) - 2002, 2009 * Water Polo - 2020

Music

Knox has a Gallery Choir and the Knox Symphony Orchestra (KSO). Its Symphonic Wind Ensemble (SWE) toured Spain and Portugal in December 2019. The

pipe organ The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air (called ''wind'') through the organ pipes selected from a keyboard. Because each pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ''ranks ...

in the school's chapel, built in 1965, is highly significant as the first of many Baroque revival (or Orgelbewegung) mechanical action pipe organs built in Australia in the latter half of the 20th century, and is a sibling to organs in St Mary's Cathedral, Perth Concert Hall, Wollongong Town Hall, and the

Sydney Opera House The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in Sydney. Located on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour, it is widely regarded as one of the world's most famous and distinctive buildings and a masterpiece of 20th-century architec ...

Knox Grammar School Pipes and Drums

The Knox Pipes and Drums have toured globally. Most notably, the band toured the United Kingdom in 2016, visiting Scotland, Ireland, England and Northern Ireland. The band also competed in the 2016 European Pipe Band Championships at Forres as well as the 2016 All Ireland Pipe Band Championships in Malahide. The Knox Pipes and Drums also toured Scotland, Ireland, Northern Ireland and England again in 2019. They participated in the European Pipe Band Championships, The All Ireland Pipe Band Championships and the Corby Highland Games. At the Corby Highland Games, The Knox Pipes and Drums won first place for every event that they entered in. In Australia, the band have been State Champions, National Champions, and Best Drum Corps. The band was crowned at Grade 4 2018 National Champions. In the nationals, the Drum corps of KGS were crowned National Champs. The band competed in the 2018 Australian Pipe Band Championships at Brisbane Boys College, Brisbane. The KGS Pipes and Drums took first place in Grade 4 for both the overall band and the Drum crops, hence the band was crowned Grade 4 National Champions. The KGS Drum Corps won National Drumming Championships in 2016 and 2018.

Notable alumni

Alumni Alumni (singular: alumnus (masculine) or alumna (feminine)) are former students of a school, college, or university who have either attended or graduated in some fashion from the institution. The feminine plural alumnae is sometimes used for grou ...

of Knox are known as "Old Knox Grammarians" or "Old Boys", and may elect to join the schools

alumni association An alumni association or alumnae association is an association of graduates or, more broadly, of former students (alumni). In the United Kingdom and the United States, alumni of universities, colleges, schools (especially independent schools), ...

, the Old Knox Grammarian's Association (OKGA).

Controversies

Sex offences by teachers

The school attracted widespread media coverage in 2009, when criminal charges were laid against five former teachers for alleged

sex offence Sex and the law deals with the regulation by law of human sexual activity. Sex laws vary from one place or jurisdiction to another, and have varied over time. Unlawful sexual acts are called sex crimes. Some laws regarding sexual activity are ...

s between 1976 and 1990. All five teachers were subsequently convicted.

Royal Commission hearings

the

is conducting public hearings (commenced on 23 February 2015) concerning the response of Knox Grammar, and the

, to complaints and criminal proceedings involving teachers who

sexually abused Sexual abuse or sex abuse, also referred to as molestation, is abusive sexual behavior by one person upon another. It is often perpetrated using force or by taking advantage of another. Molestation often refers to an instance of sexual assau ...

students. The commission will examine the "systems, policies and procedures" involving the school's response to the complaints since 1970 and the experiences of former students sexually abused by teaching staff. The royal commission is expected to conclude in December 2017. During hearings in early March 2015, several former Knox students and staff alleged that headmaster Ian Paterson did not refer several allegations of sex abuse he received to the police, despite there being a requirement for such allegations to be reported from 1988. The commission heard that in fact Paterson had never reported any student's allegation of sexual abuse to police during his thirty years in charge of the school. Paterson also stated that he had allowed several teachers accused of sexual abuse to resign and subsequently gave them positive references. Paterson denied that he had covered up the sexual abuse of students, arguing that he had responded to the allegations brought to his attention, and stated that "I should have known and I should have stopped the events that led to the abuse and its tragic consequences for these boys in my care and their families". Paterson stated that he was not aware that it was a crime for a teacher to grope or sexually proposition a student. Following the section of the hearing concerning Paterson, the then headmaster, John Weeks, stated that the school had changed considerably since the end of Paterson's period in the role and that Knox's Paterson Centre for Ethics and Business Studies would be renamed. He also stated that the school was actively reaching out and providing support to those who were affected. Weeks also gave evidence to the Royal Commission. During this hearing he was questioned over why he had not sacked the teacher who was arrested in 2009 despite having received allegations in 2007 that the teacher had behaved improperly with a student during the 1980s. Weeks told the media that the allegations had not been detailed or specific, and he had received advice that "it would have been difficult on industrial grounds" to have dismissed the teacher. Weeks also stated that he had reported the teacher to the police child protection unit. The Royal Commission issued its findings on Knox Grammar in September 2016. The ''

Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper i ...

'' stated that its conclusions were that "Paterson deliberately covered up allegations about child sexual abuse because he placed the reputation of the school ahead of student welfare". The Royal Commission also found that while principal Paterson had a "dismissive" attitude towards complaints of sexual abuse, "deliberately withheld information" from a police officer investigating allegations made against Knox Grammar staff, and did not notify the school's council or affected parents of complaints. In addition, it judged that a statement made as part of his evidence to the Royal Commission that he had only been aware of a single allegation of misconduct while principal was "clearly incorrect", as he had been aware of five allegations. As of 1 March 2019 Knox Grammar School has not signed up to compensate its sexual abuse survivors through the National Redress Scheme, though it has indicated it plans to do so. The Royal Commission recommended the establishment of the National Redress Scheme, it commenced on 1 July 2018.

2019 incident

On 5 August 2019, Nicholas Warby, the school's 30-year-old "Director of Aquatic Sports", was arrested for possession of "child abuse material" on his mobile phone. After police searched his belongings and premises, two additional counts of possession of a prohibited drug were added. Headmaster Scott James sent a letter to parents, saying that Warby had been "removed from his duties at the aquatic centre" and that "

he police He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...

have advised us that there is currently no suggestion that the images relate to Knox boys or swim centre students." The police prosecutor told the court that some files were "physically obtained" rather than sourced from the internet.

Discord Incident

In September 2022, 150 students (majorly Year 9 Knox students, with some girls and boys from other schools being involved) were found to have been participating in a

Discord Discord is a VoIP and instant messaging social platform. Users have the ability to communicate with voice calls, video calls, text messaging, media and files in private chats or as part of communities called "servers".The developer documenta ...

chatroom titled 'Gang Gang' in which multiple

racist Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism ...

anti-semitic Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

misogynistic Misogyny () is hatred of, contempt for, or prejudice against women. It is a form of sexism that is used to keep women at a lower social status than men, thus maintaining the societal roles of patriarchy. Misogyny has been widely practiced fo ...

homophobic Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who are identified or perceived as being lesbian, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, hatred or antipathy, m ...

, extreme

anti-abortion Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life or abolitionist movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in respons ...

messages and more had been sent. It was confirmed that no child abuse material was sent on the server. It was found that the chat was active for about two years, with the school becoming aware of it in August 2022 (in which it was discussed with parents, and where student withdrawals from the chat first began). Material from the group chat was provided to the NSW Police Force, and Knox's principle Scott James responded to the incident in a letter to parents, labelling the messages by students "unacceptable" and "contrary to the values and culture of Knox". The letter confirmed that students involved were either suspended or left the school, punishment decided on how much the student participated in the chat. Twenty students in the chatroom met Knox's requirements for disciplinary action.

Gallery

File:(1)Knox_Grammar_Preparatory_School_Wahroonga.jpg , Ewan House File:(1)Knox Grammar School 044.jpg , Reception Building File:(1)Knox Grammar School.jpg , Grand Stand File:(1)Knox Grammar School 038a.jpg , Playing Field File:(1)Knox Grammar Chapel.jpg , Chapel File:(1)Knox Grammar School-1.jpg , Old Boys War Memorial File:Knox Grammar School from Pacific Highway.jpg, View from Pacific Highway, with the War Memorial Gates in the foreground, the John Williams Memorial Hall on the left, and the Main Building on the right.

References

External links

* {{authority control Boys' schools in New South Wales Educational institutions established in 1924 Uniting Church schools in Australia Boarding schools in New South Wales Private primary schools in Sydney Private secondary schools in Sydney Member schools of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference Rock Eisteddfod Challenge participants Combined Associated Schools Junior School Heads Association of Australia Member Schools 1924 establishments in Australia Wahroonga, New South Wales