The Royal Grammar School Worcester (also known as RGS Worcester or RGSW) is an eleven-eighteen co-educational, privateday school and sixth form in Worcester, Worcestershire, England. Founded before 1291, it is one of the oldest British independent day schools.
In September 2007, the school merged with the neighbouring Alice Ottley School and was briefly known as RGS Worcester and The Alice Ottley School (RGSAO) before reverting to the original name. The school began accepting girls in 2003, prior to the merger. The school currently consists of the main secondary school and three preparatory campuses known as RGS Springfield (previously a boarding house of the Alice Ottley School),[3]RGS The Grange (opened 1996),[4] and RGS Dodderhill.[5]
Until 1992 it accepted boarders. Boarding pupils would reside in Whiteladies House, a building that is rumoured to contain hidden treasure from Charles I from when he sought refuge there during the Civil War.[6] It is now a day school and in 2024 was named the top co-ed independent school in the West Midlands.[7]
The school was founded as a secular monastic school in Worcester in around 685 by Bishop Bosel.[8] This makes it the 6th oldest school in the world. It was located outside the monastic precincts (as with the King's School, Canterbury) and catered for the relatives of monks and children intending to go into the monastery. The first written reference to the school appears in 1265 when the Bishop of Worcester, Walter de Cantilupe, sent four chaplains into the city to teach.[9]
Conclusive evidence appears in 1291 when an argument was settled by Bishop Godfrey Giffard regarding who owned the wax from the candles used at the feast of St Swithun. It was decided that the scholars of the Worcester School owned it, and the Rector of Saint Nicholas Church had to rely on the generosity of the scholars in order to get candle wax. The headmaster is mentioned as Stephen of London. The letter dated December 1291 is in the County Records Office in Worcester.
The next headmaster was appointed in 1312 as Hugh of Northampton as recorded in the Bishop's register for that year. He was appointed personally by the Bishop of Worcester, Archbishop of Canterbury, Lord ChancellorWalter Reynolds. The school continued to exist under the control of the city guilds through the centuries with various records of headmasters being appointed, again listed in the registers of the bishops of Worcester. One in particular was 'Sir Richard (Chaplain)', who was dismissed by the bishop of Worcester, Philip Morgan, in 1422 for taking money from the scholars for his own use. He was replaced the same year by Sir John Bredel. Sir Richard Pennington was appointed in 1485 and is known to have given money to the Archbishop of Canterbury's fund,[citation needed] showing the strong connection of the school with the church.
Royal charters
After a petition by some notable citizens of Worcester to endow the school permanently, the school was given a Royal Charter by Queen Elizabeth I in 1561 and a governing body known as the Six Masters was set up, which remains as the governing body of the new RGS Worcester school today. Amongst famous Six masters are John Wall, Earl Beauchamp, Charles William Dyson Perrins and Anthony Lechemere.[9]
The Six Masters acquired much land for the school including its current site bought in 1562, the Pitchcroft fields, now used as the city racecourse, and land in Herefordshire still owned by the school. The 1906 Charity Commission survey also recorded a number of Pubs in Worcester which still exist today.[6]
A second Royal Charter was granted in 1843 by Queen Victoria, and the title of 'Royal' was conferred in 1869.[10]
Houses
The house system was introduced in 1899 by the then headmaster Frederick Arthur Hillard. Initially six houses were established, and membership of houses was based on the place of residence of each boy. The original houses were: Boarders, Barbourne, City, St. John's, County A, and County B. In 1909 the house system was changed to reflect the increasing number of boys in the school, and the difficulty of allocating pupils on the basis of where they lived. The six houses created in 1909 were: School House, for boarders, (which, due to common usage, changed to Whiteladies, as this was the building in which the boarders lived); Temple (after Henry Temple, headmaster 1850s); Tudor (after Elizabeth I); Woolfe (after Richard Woolfe, benefactor 1877 ); Wylde (after Thomas Wylde, benefactor 1558); and Yewle (after Robert Yewle, Six Master 1561). In 1963 two additional houses were created by the then headmaster Godfrey Brown, namely Langley (after William Langley, Six Master 1561) and Moore (after John Moore, benefactor 1626).[6]
In 2013/ 2014, the house system changed from six houses (Flagge-red for Flagge Meadow, Butler-yellow for the old Butler Library, Cobham-gold for Cobham Hall, Eld-green for Eld Hall, Perrins-orange for Perrins Hall and Britannia-blue for Britannia house) to the current house system.
The current houses are:
House
Colour
Whiteladies
Elgar
Ottley
Wylde
The school holds a yearly house championship, decided by a range of events throughout the school year in which all four houses compete, with the winners of each event being awarded four points, the second placed house three, down to the losing house one point. The house championship was traditionally called the 'Cock House' (or Cock House Cup Competition[6]) competition, its name deriving from that of the Cock. The original cup that was competed for is one which was presented to the school in 1902 by the Old Elizabethans' Association; in modern times competition is for a cup which was introduced in 1978.[6]
RGS The Grange (Royal Grammar School The Grange) is located in Claines, north of Worcester, United Kingdom. It is approximately three miles (4.8 km) north of the senior school, and is situated on a 50 acres (20 ha) site.
The headmaster of the school since 2009 has been Gareth Hughes.
The school was founded in 1996, when RGS Worcester purchased a traditional English farmhouse in Claines named “The Grange”. It opened to just twenty pupils at the time, but soon other parts of the RGS prep school moved from the senior school site to the Grange. By early 2004, all of the prep school was located at the Grange.
Facilities at the school were upgraded in the early 2000s with a £4.5 million development of the buildings. The build was completed ahead of schedule.
The Grange has wide-ranging sporting facilities, set in 50 acres (200,000 m2) of maintained pitches and playing fields. It also has an astro-turf for hockey.
The current headmaster, Mr Gareth Hughes, took the role in September 2009.
The school has four houses: Cash (green), Perowne (yellow), Cornwall (red), and Goodrich (blue).
During 2008 the school formed linkages with the community departments of Worcester Warriors Rugby Club and Aston Villa Football Club.
RGS Springfield (Royal Grammar School Springfield) is located in Britannia Square in Worcester, United Kingdom. It is located 100 yards west of the Senior School.
After the RGS/AO merger, RGS Springfield became mixed-sex.
The headmistress of the school is Mrs Laura Brown.
Prior to September 2009, the school was known as AO Springfield, as it was the AO's junior school prior to the RGS/AO merger. Today, the school houses 150 pupils.
RGS Springfield is located in a large Georgian house surrounded by six acres of gardens and playing fields. The school has a forest area where the children can learn about nature.
Academic and music scholarships are offered at RGS Springfield.
Academic scholarships
These are offered to people entering year five and year six. There is no separate exam; pupils who perform very well in the entrance exam are offered scholarships.
Music scholarships
These are also offered to people entering year three and year five. As a guide, pupils taking a music scholarship exam in Year three are expected to hold Grade one on one musical instrument. Year five pupils taking the exam are expected to be playing two or more instruments and have achieved grade three in at least one of grades
RGS Dodderhill(Royal Grammar School Dodderhill) is located in the town of Droitwich Spa, Worcestershire, approximately six miles outside of Worcester.
Previously Dodderhill Independent Girls School, the school merged with RGS Worcester family of schools in 2019 and became known as RGS Dodderhill.
In September 2021, RGS Dodderhill Prep School became co-educational while the Senior School remains for girls only.
The headmistress of the school is Mrs Sarah Atkinson who was appointed in 2019 following the retirement of Mrs Cate Mawston.
RGS Dodderhill has a large indoor sports hall, outdoor netball and tennis courts, as well as purpose built drama and music studios.
This section is missing information about RGS Dodderhill. Please expand the section to include this information. Further details may exist on the talk page.(April 2021)
Connections
The school is a member of the 'Monmouth Group', a collection of schools similar in aims and membership to that of the Eton Group. The school is also a member of the HMC.
Land and buildings
Many of the current buildings were paid for Charles William Dyson Perrins, who was an Old Boy and a member of the school's governing body. Perrins Hall was named after his father James Dyson Perrins, owner of Lea and Perrins Worcestershire Sauce, who went to the school.
The basement of Perrins Hall contains a rifle range, which was added in 1914.[6] The back rooms of Perrins Hall used to be the sixth form common rooms and are now used for storage.
St. Oswald's, the school's second playing field, is located further down the canal and is mainly used for athletics, football and rounders.
School's halls
Front of the Clock Block.
The Old School buildings were built in 1868 on a site owned by the school since 1562.[6] The Main Hall, Eld Hall and adjoining buildings were designed by A E Perkins in the Gothic style. It is three bays long with a central lantern. A life-size statue of Elizabeth I by R L Boulton stands above the central window.[15]
The Perrins Hall was built in 1914 to the plans of Alfred Hill Parker (an Old Boy) in a Jacobethan style with an Oriel Window on the staircase end and balcony looking over the hall. The interior is panelled with fitted bookcases (which make up the Dowty Library[6]) and a plastered ceiling. Two war memorials for the two World Wars are housed in the hall and a life-size portrait of Charles William Dyson Perrins hangs opposite the fireplace. Portraits of the 20th-century headmasters hang below. The school organ is in this building, and is played regularly at assemblies.
The Clock Block is connected to the Perrins Hall and was built in 1927, and had extension work carried out in 1967 to link it to the Science Block. It has a bell tower and clock above the entrance. The clock (which was installed by J. B. Joyce & Co)[16] is made of Cotswold Limestone, and is surmounted by the carved head of Old Father Time.[6] To commemorate the millennium a stained glass window was commissioned and installed over the main entrance to the Clock Block.
In the Alice Ottley Building, formerly the main school building for the Alice Ottley School, there are two more halls: Cobham Hall and Main Hall. Main Hall is the school's dining hall, with views over a lawn and a stained glass window commemorating Miss Margaret Spurling, headmistress of the Alice Ottley School from 1912 to 1934.[citation needed]
Long walk with the science block in the distance. The small school crest in the foreground features the three Black Pears.
The science buildings were built in 1922 and opened by the Duke and Duchess of York (later King George VI and Queen Elizabeth).[6] The science buildings were subsequently refurbished in 1996 and thereafter re-opened by Michael Portillo. The science block features at one end of a long path which comes from the main quad of the school, which is the location of Perrins Hall and the Main block. This long path is known as Long Walk.
Whiteladies House, built in the 17th century, was traditionally the Headmaster's house and stands opposite Clock Block across the gardens. This is currently where the school admin staff, nurse and school heads of departments are situated. The West wall was part of the Whiteladies Priory chapel built in 1255.[17] Its name derives from the white habit that is worn by Cistercian nuns, who were based at a Nunnery, which was adjacent to Whiteladies.[6]
The school's library, with the old roof structure visible
Other buildings include Priory House (17th Century), Pullinger House (1980s), Gordon House (after Adam Lindsay Gordon OE), Stephen Hall (1961, opened by Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother on her second visit to the school) and the Design Centre comprising various engineering facilities.[6]
The most recent building work to a school building took place on the school's Performing Arts Centre. The Performing Arts Centre (formerly a gymnasium), was extended to create three spaces: Studio 1 downstairs, Studio 2 upstairs, and the Godfrey Brown Theatre. An entrance was added to the back of the building and a car park was opened. This project cost the school £2.8 million.
The school's library was refurbished in 2001, and was renamed the Philip Sawyer Library (after the former chairman of the governors). It was opened by the then Poet LaureateAndrew Motion. The library is situated above Eld Hall, and features a high vaulted roof structure.
The school offers Rugby union and football to boys and hockey and netball to girls. The school stopped teaching lacrosse in 2010.
Both boys and girls are taught tennis, athletics, swimming and, after a six-year campaign by a former pupil, cricket is now taught to girls as well as boys.[citation needed]
Notable patrons
Bishop Godfrey Giffard (1240–1306) Bishop of Worcester and Lord Chancellor of England.
Bishop Walter Reynolds (d.1327) Archbishop of Canterbury and Lord Chancellor of England.
Hugh Latimer (1470–1555) Bishop of Worcester and Protestant Martyr.
^ abcdefghijklmWheeler, A R. Royal Grammar School Worcester, 1950 to 1991 with retrospect to 1291, Royal Grammar School Worcester, 1991. ISBN0-9516775-0-0
^Pevsner, N. Buildings of England: Worcestershire, Yale University Press, 2002. ISBN0-300-09660-7.
^Pickford, Chris, ed. (1995). Turret Clocks: Lists of Clocks from Makers' Catalogues and Publicity Materials (2nd ed.). Wadhurst, E. Sussex: Antiquarian Horological Society. pp. 119–133.
^Leach, A. F. Schools of Mediaeval England, Methuen Young Books, 1969. ISBN0-416-13360-6.
