Monkton Combe School

Monkton Combe School
Motto "Verbum Tuum Veritas (Thy Word is Truth)"
Established 1868
Type Independent, Boarding
Headteacher Christopher Wheeler (Senior School), Martin Davis (Prep School), Catherine Winchcombe (Pre-Prep)
Location Monkton Combe, Near Bath
Somerset
England
51°21′25″N 2°19′37″W / 51.3569°N 2.3270°W / 51.3569; -2.3270Coordinates: 51°21′25″N 2°19′37″W / 51.3569°N 2.3270°W / 51.3569; -2.3270
Students 711 (all three schools from September 2015)
Houses

Eddystone (MSS Boys)          

Farm (MSS Boys)          

Grove Grange (MSS Girls)     

School (MSS Boys)     

Clarendon (MSS Girls)     

Nutfield (MSS Girls)     

Hatton (MPS Mixed) (Subhouses of Hatton:)

Easterfield (MPS Mixed)     

Kearns (MPS Mixed)     

Howard (MPS Mixed)     

Jameson (MPS Mixed)     
Colours Red     , White     , Blue     
Former pupils Old Monktonians
Website www.monktoncombeschool.com

Monkton Combe School is an independent boarding and day school of the British public school tradition, near Bath, England. The Senior School is located in the village of Monkton Combe, while the Prep School, Pre-Prep and Nursery are in Combe Down on the southern outskirts of Bath. Founded in 1868, the school maintains many traditions with a particular emphasis on academic and sporting achievements combined with pastoral care. The school has a strong Christian ethos within the Anglican evangelical tradition. The school is a member of the Rugby Group of independent schools in the United Kingdom.[1]

The Senior School (current pupil numbers are around 380) admits children from age 13 through to 18; the Prep School admits children from age 7 to 13 and the Pre-Prep has classes in Kindergarten (3 – 4), Reception (4 – 5) and Years 1 and 2 (5 – 7). The Nursery, set within the Prep School grounds, provides pre-school care (ages 2 – 3). The Senior School and Prep School have a strong boarding tradition; however, day pupils comprise one third of the intake of the Senior School and are in the majority in the Prep School. Since 1992 when it merged with Clarendon School for Girls the school has been co-educational with three boys' boarding houses and three girls' boarding houses, all in the school's immediate environs.

History

Monkton Combe School was founded in 1868[2] by the Reverend Francis Pocock, Vicar of Monkton Combe and former Chaplain to John Weeks (bishop) of Sierra Leone. The Junior School was established with four pupils in 1888 in a private house, Combe Lodge, in Church Road, Combe Down [2] by Mrs Howard (the daughter of the Senior School Principal, Rev Reginald Guy Bryan) and moved into its current purpose-built premises in June 1907. The Pre Prep was added in 1929, occupying another large house in Church Road, Glenburnie, until 2016 when it transferred to a newly-constructed building, located in the grounds of the Prep School.[2] In 1992, the School became fully co-educational, merging with Clarendon School for Girls, Bedford. In 2006 the Junior School was renamed Monkton Prep School.

The school has many historical traditions and a strong evangelical Christian heritage, with particular emphasis on sporting and academic achievements in a caring pastoral environment. It has produced some important society figures through the years.

The official history of the school's first hundred years can be found in A Goodly Heritage: A History of Monkton Combe School 1868-1967 by A. F. Lace, published in Bath by Sir Isaac Pitman & Sons, 1968.[3] The official history of the school's first 150 years can be found in A Delightful Inheritance by former Junior School headmaster Peter Leroy, published in 2017 by Monkton School Enterprises.

Sport and other activities

Monkton Combe School maintains a strong sporting tradition. Both the Senior and Junior schools have a wide range of sporting and other extra curricular activities. The main sports played are Rugby, Rowing, Hockey, Tennis and Cricket (and more recently, Football) for boys and Hockey, Netball, Rowing and Tennis for girls. A range of "minor sports" are also available (named in this way as they are generally not played competitively against other schools).

The school has produced six Olympic rowing medallists to date, each of whom represented Great Britain, and three of whom won Gold, and an Olympic Gold Medallist who represented Great Britain at men's hockey. The school's boat club is famous for being one of the most successful small clubs in the UK, and frequently competes against many of the UK's best teams, with Old Monktonians rowing as Monkton Bluefriars. The school rows in the Lent and Summer terms, with the Michaelmas term dedicated to rugby (boys) and hockey (girls).

The school has a strong musical and theatrical tradition with the majority of pupils learning an instrument and taking part in school plays and musical events. Other major activities include the Combined Cadet Force (CCF) and various clubs and societies. There are also annual (optional) visits overseas, as well as academic trips such as foreign language exchange trips and sports tours and training camps.

Facilities

The School maintains a range of sporting facilities including an indoor swimming pool, sports halls with fully equipped gyms, three astroturf pitches (two full size and one half size), nine grass and three hard tennis courts, two boathouses with access to the River Avon and many acres of grounds. All buildings are made of Bath stone, in the same style as many buildings in and around the city of Bath, in order to keep with the traditional architectural style around Bath. Many of the school's facilities are made available for the use of local schools, such as Combe Down Primary School and local children's sports clubs.

Several of the buildings are listed, including the main Senior school block known as The Old Farm,[4] and the part of the Terrace Block known as The Old Vicarage.[5] In 2008 the Senior School completed a 5 million pound project which involved re-building, extending and re-furbishing its Mathematics and Science departments. In June 2012, a new 3.2 million pound Music centre was opened for use by Dame Felicity Lott. A new Art & Design centre was opened in 2016.

Boarding

Many of the pupils are either weekly or full-time boarders. The Senior school maintains six boarding houses, three of which are for girls (Nutfield, Clarendon and Grange) and three for boys (Eddystone, School and Farm).[6] The Preparatory school only operates one boarding house with a floor for boys and a floor for girls (Hatton). There are many traditions in each house, as well as many inter-house competitions throughout the year. Students are allowed to visit the City of Bath each weekend. Lessons take place on Saturday mornings with sporting matches against other schools taking place on most Saturday afternoons.

Notable former pupils

References

  1. ↑ http://www.monktoncombeschool.com monktoncombeschool. com
  2. 1 2 3 "History". Mokton Combe School. Retrieved 2009-07-04.
  3. ↑ "Senior School History". Monkton Combe School. Retrieved 2010-10-04.
  4. ↑ "Monkton Combe School, the main or old block known as The Old Farm". Images of England. English Heritage. Retrieved 2009-07-04.
  5. ↑ "Monkton Combe School, the part of the Terrace Block known as The Old - Vicarage". Images of England. English Heritage. Retrieved 2009-07-04.
  6. ↑ {{url=http://www.monktoncombeschool.com/senior/boarding.html}}
  7. ↑ David Ellis (17 May 1994). "Obituary: David Adeney". The Independent Features. p. 14.
  8. ↑ "The Right Reverend Ian Cundy". The Daily Telegraph. London. 2009-05-11.
  9. ↑ Secretary, Office of the Home; Sciences, National Academy of (2003-11-21). Biographical Memoirs. National Academies Press. ISBN 9780309527699.
  10. ↑ Burgess, Kaya (2008-12-22). "Adrian Mitchell Shadow Poet Laureate dies aged 76". The Times. London.
  11. ↑ L, Klemen (1999–2000). "Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Edmund Charles Peirse". Forgotten Campaign: The Dutch East Indies Campaign 1941-1942.
  12. ↑ p.9.
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