The King's School, Chester, is a

co-educational Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to ...

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 ...

for pupils aged 4 to 18. It is one of the seven 'King's Schools' established (or re-endowed and renamed) by

King Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disagreement w ...

in 1541 after the Dissolution of the Monasteries. It is situated outside the city of

Chester Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, Wales, River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West an ...

, England. The school is a member of the

Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference The Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference (HMC), formerly known as the Headmasters' Conference and now branded HMC (The Heads' Conference), is an association of the head teachers of 351 private fee-charging schools (both boarding schools ...

. The school comprises an Infant school (years 4–7), a Junior school (years 7–11), a Senior school (years 11–16) and a Sixth form (years 16–18) in which the students choose their

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 ...

subjects.

History

An ancient foundation, attached to a monastery that King Henry VIII had dissolved, it still served a purpose teaching grammar to potential ordinands. It was reconstituted in 1541 as a joint church state enterprise and operated for 400 years in the former monks' refectory. The statutes that constituted the school also specified the training and education of choristers for

Chester Cathedral Chester Cathedral is a Church of England cathedral and the mother church of the Diocese of Chester. It is located in the city of Chester, Cheshire, England. The cathedral, formerly the abbey church of a Benedictine monastery dedicated to Saint ...

, an arrangement that ran in parallel for hundreds of years. It was one of seven schools in this category, the others being Canterbury, Rochester, Peterborough, Worcester, Gloucester, and Ely. In 1869 new school buildings were constructed and they were formally opened by Gladstone. The school motto is "''Rex dedit, benedicat Deus''” (The King gave it, may God bless it'')'', which was given by John Saul Howson, Dean of Chester. John Saul Howson was the chief instrument in the building and endowing of the King's School, and in its reorganization on a broader basis.

Description

Since 1960, The King's School has been based at its Wrexham Road site on the outskirts of Chester. It has a Sixth Form Centre, a library (the Wickson Library) and a music school (the Tim Turvey Music School). Sports facilities include a swimming pool, all-weather sports pitches, grass sports pitches, a cricket pavilion, and a boat house on the River Dee.

Academia

In September 2011, King's adopted a new curriculum alongside its shift from an eight-period to a five-period day. This involved substantial changes, introducing 'enrichment' lessons and replacing the

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 ...

courses with

IGCSE The International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) is an English language based secondary qualification similar to the GCSE and is recognised in the United Kingdom as being equivalent to the GCSE for the purposes of recognising ...

Extra-curricular activities

The school's pupils engage the Duke of Edinburgh's Award scheme. The King's School's Combined Cadet Force (CCF) is a voluntary contingent within the CCF. It consists of the mandatory Army Section, with an additional RAF Section. The King's School has also been successful in the F1 in Schools competition, sending a team to the global finals in 2016.

Publications

The Herald is the school's magazine and is published on a termly basis for parents and pupils. Its articles are about current pupils, teachers and former pupils.

Sports

Hockey

In 2011, King's appointed hockey coach Simon Egerton, who is a member of the England hockey team.

Rowing

The King's School Rowing Club has been in existence since 1883 with the school's

boat house A boathouse (or a boat house) is a building especially designed for the storage of boats, normally smaller craft for sports or leisure use. describing the facilities These are typically located on open water, such as on a river. Often the boats ...

situated on the River Dee in the centre of

and is affiliated to British Rowing. Rowing is offered as part of the sports curriculum from the third year onwards. The King's rowers often compete in the top levels of school's competitions, and count numerous ex-Boat-Race crew members alongside National and Olympic squad members amongst it Old King's Scholars Alumni including seven Olympians, three in the London 2012 games. Gold and silver medallists – two gold and one silver Olympic medallists. Olympic Finalists – three in 2012. 14 x Oxford and Cambridge Blues. 47 x GB Senior World Championship representatives – since 1960 and 36 x GB Junior International representatives – since 1970. Kings Chester Boat House

Headmaster

The school's headmaster (since 2017) is George Hartley. He has an undergraduate degree in geography and an postgraduate degree in Environmental Sciences. He has previously been the headmaster/principal of two other British schools.

Previous headmasters

*2007–2017 - Chris Ramsey, linguist *2000–2007 - Tim Turvey, biologist *1981–2000 - Roger Wickson, historian A full list of previous headmasters are engraved on a board displayed in the school.

Notable alumni

Post-1900

* Godfrey Ashby, former bishop of St John's, South Africa *

Michael Axworthy Michael George Andrew Axworthy (26 September 1962 – 16 March 2019) was a British academic, author, and commentator. He was the head of the Iran section at the British Foreign & Commonwealth Office between 1998 and 2000. Personal life and fami ...

* Hagan Bayley, scientist and head of

chemical biology Chemical biology is a scientific discipline between the fields of chemistry and biology. The discipline involves the application of chemical techniques, analysis, and often small molecules produced through synthetic chemistry, to the study and m ...

at the

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 ...

* Graham Benton, British and world indoor rowing champion * Michael Burdekin, civil engineer and emeritus professor of the

University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The University of Manchester is c ...

* John Carroll, mathematician, physicist and former professor of natural philosophy at the

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* Matthew Collins (academic), archaeologist * Rob Leslie-Carter, engineer * Sir James Dutton, former commandant-general, Royal Marines * Rob Eastaway, mathematician and ex-puzzle writer for

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* Simon Edge, novelist * James Fair, England and Great Britain hockey goalkeeper * Nickolas Grace, actor * George Guest, organist and choirmaster at

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Matthew Hancock Matthew John David Hancock (born 2 October 1978) is a British politician who served as Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General from 2015 to 2016, Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport from January to July 20 ...

, former

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(2018),

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(2018–21) and member of Parliament for

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, computer scientist, mostly known for his contributions to Internet security * Tom James, Olympic gold medal oarsman * Glyn Smallwood Jones, colonial administrator and last governor of

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* Trevor Kletz, safety engineer and author on industrial safety * Steve Leonard, television vet and BBC presenter * Martin Lewis, financial journalist and founder of the

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consumer finance website *

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, comedy actor *

Patrick Mercer Patrick John Mercer (born 26 June 1956) is a British author and former politician. He was elected as a Conservative in the 2001 general election, until resigning the party's parliamentary whip in May 2013 following questions surrounding paid ad ...

, member of Parliament for Newark * Seb Morris, racing driver * Mike Parry, journalist and radio presenter *

Ronald Pickup Ronald Alfred Pickup (7 June 1940 – 24 February 2021) was an English actor. He was active in television, film, and theatre, beginning with a 1964 appearance in ''Doctor Who''. Theatre critic Michael Billington described him as "a terrific st ...

, actor * Jonathan Samuels, Australia correspondent with

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George Drewry Squibb George Drewry Squibb (1 December 1906 – 3 January 1994) was an English lawyer, herald and antiquary who is most noted for his participation in the celebrated 1954 case of '' Manchester Corporation v Manchester Palace of Varieties Ltd'' 955in ...

, lawyer * David Whitley, author of The Midnight Charter * Olivia Whitlam, Olympic rower *

Arnold Frederic Wilkins Arnold Frederic Wilkins OBE (20 February 1907 – 5 August 1985) was a pioneer in developing the use of radar. It was Arnold Wilkins who suggested to his boss, Robert Watson-Watt, that reflected radio waves might be used to detect aircraf ...

radar Radar is a system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), direction ( azimuth and elevation angles), and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It is a radiodetermination method used to detect and track ...

pioneer * Phil Salt, England Cricketer * Kate Coppack, Welsh Cricketer * Harry Brightmore, Olympic Gold medal coxswain

Pre-1900

Randle Ayrton Frederick Randle Ayrton (9 August 1869 – 28 May 1940) was a British actor of stage and screen, and was also a producer and director. Early life Ayrton was born in Chester to William Frances Ayrton, a wealthy wine-merchant who was a par ...

, film and stage actor, producer and director *

John Bradbury, 1st Baron Bradbury John Swanwick Bradbury, 1st Baron Bradbury (23 September 1872 – 3 May 1950) was a British economist and public servant. Bradbury was born in Crook Lane, Winsford, Cheshire, the son of John Bradbury and Sarah Cross. He was educated at Manch ...

, civil servant and chief economic advisor to the government during

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Thomas Brassey Thomas Brassey (7 November 18058 December 1870) was an English civil engineering contractor and manufacturer of building materials who was responsible for building much of the world's railways in the 19th century. By 1847, he had built about o ...

, civil engineer * Edward Brerewood, mathematician, logician and antiquary *

Charles Burney Charles Burney (7 April 1726 – 12 April 1814) was an English music historian, composer and musician. He was the father of the writers Frances Burney and Sarah Burney, of the explorer James Burney, and of Charles Burney, a classicis ...

, music historian, musician, composer and philosopher *

John Byrom John Byrom, John Byrom of Kersal, or John Byrom of Manchester (29 February 1692 – 26 September 1763) was an English poet, the inventor of a revolutionary system of shorthand and later a significant landowner. He is most remembered as the wr ...

, poet and developer of geometric

shorthand Shorthand is an abbreviated symbolic writing method that increases speed and brevity of writing as compared to Cursive, longhand, a more common method of writing a language. The process of writing in shorthand is called stenography, from the Gr ...

Randolph Caldecott Randolph Caldecott ( ; 22 March 1846 – 12 February 1886) was a British artist and illustrator, born in Chester. The Caldecott Medal was named in his honour. He exercised his art chiefly in book illustrations. His abilities as an artist were pr ...

, illustrator *

William Chaderton William Chaderton (c.1540 – 11 April 1608) was an English academic and bishop. He also served as Lady Margaret's Professor of Divinity. He was born in Moston, Lancashire, what is now a part of the city of Manchester. After attending ...

, academic, clergyman and former

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at the

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* John Churton Collins, literary critic and former professor of English literature at the

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* Piers Claughton, clergyman and former

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Thomas Legh Claughton Thomas Legh Claughton (6 November 1808 – 25 July 1892) was a British academic, poet, and clergyman. He was professor of poetry at Oxford University from 1852 to 1857; Bishop of Rochester; and the first Bishop of St Albans.Sutton, C. W. "Cla ...

, first

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and former

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, clergyman and educator, known for establishing schools in

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* Sir Peter Denis, 1st Baronet, naval officer and member of Parliament *

John Downham John Downame (Downham) (1571–1652) was an English Puritan clergyman and theologian in London, who came to prominence in the 1640s, when he worked closely with the Westminster Assembly. He is now remembered for his writings. Life He was the you ...

, clergyman and theologian *

Joseph Everett Dutton Joseph Everett Dutton (9 September 1874 – 27 February 1905) was a British parasitologist who discovered one of the Trypanosoma brucei, trypanosomes that cause African trypanosomiasis, sleeping sickness. He died in the Congo Free State at the ag ...

, pathologist, physician and tropical medicine specialist * Thomas Falconer, clergyman and classical scholar * Thomas Francis, physician, former

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and former Regius Professor of Medicine at the

Christopher Goodman Christopher Goodman BD (1520–1603) was an English reforming clergyman and writer. He was a Marian exile, who left England to escape persecution during the Counter-Reformation in the reign of Queen Mary I of England. He was the author of a work ...

, clergyman and writer * William Lee Hankey, painter and illustrator *

Rowland Hill, 1st Viscount Hill General Rowland Hill, 1st Viscount Hill, (11 August 1772 – 10 December 1842) was a British Army officer and politician who served in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Hill became Commander-in-Chief of the Forces in 1828. Well- ...

, former member of Parliament for

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and

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* George Lloyd, clergyman * Bert Lipsham, England international footballer and

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winner with

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in 1902. * George Ormerod, antiquary and historian * William Parry, Elizabethan courtier, MP and spy, executed 1585. * Sir Ralph Champneys Williams, colonial governor of the

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and

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* Thomas Wilson, clergyman The Chester Association of Old King's Scholars (CAOKS), founded in 1866, exists to maintain links between former students. It is one of the longest established alumni associations in the country. The school has recently established OAKS (Organization of Alumni of The King's School) to maintain relations with former pupils. OAKS is free to join and open to all alumni.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:King's School, Chester Ancient grammar schools of Cheshire Educational institutions established in the 1540s Private schools in Cheshire West and Chester Member schools of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference 1541 establishments in England Schools in Chester