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The King's School is an 11–18 boys
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 Latin school, school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented Se ...
with academy status, in the
market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rura ...
of
Grantham, Lincolnshire Grantham () is a market town and civil parish in the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England, situated on the banks of the River Witham and bounded to the west by the A1 road. It lies south of Lincoln and east of Nottingham. The p ...
, England. The school's history can be traced to 1329, and was re-endowed by Richard Foxe in 1528. Located on Brook Street, the school's site has expanded over the course of its history, with some school buildings dating back to 1497. Today, King's remains an all-boys grammar school, with just over 1,000 pupils. King's and another Grantham grammar school, Kesteven and Grantham Girls' School, share teaching resources for
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 ...
study in certain subjects; since 2006–2007, timetables for this study have been co-ordinated between both schools.


History


Establishment

The King's School has an unbroken history on the same site since its re-endowment in 1528 by Richard Foxe, although its history can be traced back to 1329. Sir Nikolaus Pevsner in his ''Buildings of England'', dates the original School building to 1497. Foxe was born and raised locally. He entered into the service of Henry Tudor, while Henry was in exile in
Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...
. When Henry took the
throne of England The Throne of England is the throne of the Monarch of England. "Throne of England" also refers metonymically to the office of monarch, and monarchy itself.Gordon, Delahay. (1760) ''A General History of the Lives, Trials, and Executions of All t ...
as Henry VII, Foxe became his secretary, and later founded
Corpus Christi College, Oxford Corpus Christi College (formally, Corpus Christi College in the University of Oxford; informally abbreviated as Corpus or CCC) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1517 by Richard Fo ...
(1517) and Taunton Grammar School (1522). In the 16th century the School became known as the ''Free Grammar School of King Edward VI''. Scholars numbered perhaps a few dozen at foundation, and there were still fewer than one hundred until the 20th century.
Isaac Newton Sir Isaac Newton () was an English polymath active as a mathematician, physicist, astronomer, alchemist, theologian, and author. Newton was a key figure in the Scientific Revolution and the Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment that followed ...
was a King's School scholar between 1655 and 1660. As was customary in his time, he carved his signature on the wall of what is now the school library, although the signature has never been confirmed as authentic; visitors from around the world come to view this indication of Newton's education. A replica of the signature is on display in Grantham Museum.


Selective grammar

The school became a selective state
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 Latin school, school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented Se ...
under the implementation of the
Education Act 1944 The Education Act 1944 ( 7 & 8 Geo. 6. c. 31) made major changes in the provision and governance of secondary schools in England and Wales. It is also known as the Butler Act after the President of the Board of Education, R. A. Butler. Histori ...
. By 1970, Kesteven County Council announced plans to turn its grammar schools into co-educational comprehensives for ages of 11–16 and leave Grantham College as the town's only sixth form. Other parts of Kesteven became comprehensive but responsibility for education passed to Lincolnshire County Council under the
Local Government Act 1972 The Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974. It was one of the most significant acts of Parliament to be passed by the Heath Gov ...
, and King's remained a grammar school. The novelist and eccentric Frederick Rolfe ('Baron Corvo') was briefly a teacher at the school.


Recent history

In 1988 an illustrated history of the School was published by a former King's School teacher: ''The King's School Grantham – 660 years of a Grammar School''. On 1 August 2011 The King's School ended its long relationship with the local elected authorities and the town of Grantham, by converting to a selective academy. It remains a selective boys' school and has kept its name and logo.


Overview


Curriculum

The school provides subjects that are traditional in range, providing curriculum subjects with breadth, depth and challenge at each Key Stage throughout the school. Boys attending the school are provided with opportunities to partake in extra-curriculum and academic experiences such as in sports, music, art, drama, chess, the
Duke of Edinburgh Duke of Edinburgh, named after the capital city of Scotland, Edinburgh, is a substantive title that has been created four times since 1726 for members of the British royal family. It does not include any territorial landholdings and does not pr ...
award scheme and languages. Additionally, the school offers a range of lunchtime and after school clubs to enhance boys' learning experiences such as the Combined Cadet Force (CCF). Boys may also wish to partake in a programme of visits and trips overseas with the school. Form tutors support the progress and wellbeing of boys throughout the school year, together with subject staff and Heads of Year staff at the school. Subjects offered by the school include Art, Business, Computing, Drama, English, French, History, Music, Physical Education (PE), Politics, Religious Education (RE), Biology, Chemistry, Design and Technology, Economics, Financial Studies, Geography, Mathematics, Physics, Psychology, Science and PSHE Curriculum.


Academic attainment

King's boys generally take ten to eleven General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) examinations in Year Eleven (aged 15–16), and they have a choice of three or four A-levels in the sixth form. An Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) inspection in May 2008 graded The King's School as "outstanding". The majority of students go on to higher education following the completion of their A-levels at the end of Year Thirteen (aged 17–18), and it is common for several boys to gain Oxbridge offers.


School uniform

An agreed school uniform is in place at The King's School, as determined by the schools School Uniform policy. The school expects all boys attending the school to be "clean, neat and tidy in their appearance", with an expectation to be wearing full school uniform during their commute to and from the school, as well as when representing the school at occasions outwith the school building and grounds. Boys are expected to have their shirts tucked in to their school trousers, with clean and "well groomed" hair, having no "extremes of length, style or colour", the school expects boys to have "natural coloured" hair". The current agreed school uniform for boys attending The King's School is as follows: * Black blazer with school badge * Formal, white school shirt * Black or dark grey, long school trousers * School tie * Dark grey or black socks * Black school shoes (not
suede Suede (pronounced ) is a type of leather with a fuzzy, napped finish, commonly used for jackets, shoes, Textile, fabrics, Handbag, purses, furniture, and other items. Suede is made from the underside of the animal skin, which is softer and m ...
material, boots and trainers are forbidden) * Grey school pullover jumper with maroon stripe, or; * Plain grey v-neck pullover jumper


Admissions

A selective academy, boys wishing to attend The King's School must have achieved at least the minimum standardised qualifying score for entry in the examination in order to be classed as eligible for a place to attend the school. The school selects boys to admit based on their academic ability and performance, and leaves spaces unfilled if there are not enough boys who have reached the necessary qualifying standard which is a standardised score of 220 or above. The schools Published Admission Number for boys in Year 7 is currently a maximum of 174 boys per year, with the number for external Sixth Form applications being a maximum of 30 boys.


Notable former pupils


Early scholars

* William Cecil (statesman) (1530s) *
Henry More Henry More (; 12 October 1614 – 1 September 1687) was an English philosopher of the Cambridge Platonists, Cambridge Platonist school. Biography Henry was born in Grantham, Grantham, Lincolnshire on 12 October 1614. He was the seventh son of ...
(philosopher) (c. 1620s) *
Isaac Newton Sir Isaac Newton () was an English polymath active as a mathematician, physicist, astronomer, alchemist, theologian, and author. Newton was a key figure in the Scientific Revolution and the Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment that followed ...
(scientist) (1655–1659) *
Colley Cibber Colley Cibber (6 November 1671 – 11 December 1757) was an English actor-manager, playwright and Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom, Poet Laureate. His colourful memoir ''An Apology for the Life of Colley Cibber'' (1740) describes his life in ...
(playwright and
poetaster Poetaster (), like rhymester or versifier, is a derogatory term applied to bad or inferior poets. Specifically, ''poetaster'' has implications of unwarranted pretensions to artistic value. The word was coined in Latin by Erasmus in 1521. It was f ...
) (1682–1687)


20th century scholars

* Captain Albert Ball VC DSO MC (World War I Flying Ace) * Air Vice Marshal Gary Waterfall CBE (Senior RAF Officer, Chief of Staff (Operations) Permanent Joint Headquarters) * Jason Lai (Orchestral Conductor and TV presenter) * Andy Bond, Former
Asda Asda Stores Limited (), trading as Asda and often styled as ASDA, is a British supermarket and petrol station chain. Its headquarters is in Leeds, England. The company was incorporated as Associated Dairies and Farm Stores in 1949. It expanded ...
COO"Global retail giant's top bosses share Grantham connection"
''Grantham Journal'' 26 June 2008; retrieved 2 July 2009
* Andy Clarke, Former Asda CEO * Brian Thompson (1938–2011), footballer and concert promoter *
Ben Everitt Benjamin William Everitt (born 22 November 1979) is a British Conservative Party politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Milton Keynes North from 2019 to 2024. Early life and career Everitt was born in Grantham, Lincol ...
(1978–), MP for Milton Keynes North.https://www.beneveritt.com/


See also

*
List of the oldest schools in the United Kingdom This list of the oldest schools in the United Kingdom contains extant schools in the United Kingdom established prior to 1800. The dates refer to the foundation or the earliest documented contemporary reference to the school. In many cases the date ...


References


External links


The King's School, Grantham

The King's School Old Boys' Society
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kings School Grantham Educational institutions established in the 1520s Grammar schools in Lincolnshire 1528 establishments in England Boys' schools in Lincolnshire Schools in Grantham Academies in Lincolnshire