Derby Grammar School

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Derby Grammar School is an independent and selective Church of England secondary school at Littleover near the city of Derby. Its head is a member of the HMC, and it includes a Junior department.

Founded as a school for boys only in 1994, it takes boys from the age of seven and currently has around three hundred pupils. The Sixth Form has been co-educational since September 2007.

The school is academically selective, admitting those within the top twenty-five percent of the ability range.

The current Headmaster, Mr Roger D Waller BSc, also serves as an inspector for the Independent Schools Inspectorate.

[edit] Premises

The school occupies Rykneld Hall, a Grade II listed 18th century country house at Littleover, previously Rykneld Hospital, which was built circa 1780 for Josias Cockshutt, enlarged in 1803, 1826 and 1881-1883.

A new arts, music and assembly hall, linking with the old quadrangle, was designed by the architects Paul Akon.

The woodland, mature trees, grassland and water areas in the school's grounds are designated as Wildlife Site 38 and safeguarded in the City of Derby's Local Plan, Policy E4 (Nature Conservation). Such sites are "considered irreplaceable".

New school playing fields were officially opened in September 2006 by the England and British and Irish Lions rugby player Sir Clive Woodward.^[1]

[edit] Curriculum

The curriculum is built around teaching for GCSE and A-level. Subjects taught include Classics, English, Latin, French, German, Maths, Chemistry, Physics, Biology, History, English, Geography and Economics (the last subject at A-level only).

[edit] Extra-curricular

Activities include school drama productions, the Duke of Edinburgh Award, public speaking, debating, a school choir and orchestra, adventure training and the prestigous Arts Award. There are music and drama workshops, some being joint events with Derby High School for girls.

The School regularly supports the Children in Need Appeal, and in 2007 raised £7,600.^[1]

[edit] Sport

The main school sports are cricket, hockey, and rugby union, plus rowing, cross-country, golf, swimming, and badminton.

The 2007 Under-15 rugby team are county champions, beating Chellaston School in the final. The Under-15s have won the county cup twice, and the under 16s once. The 2007 under-16s were the first DGS team to win all their games, although the under-15s later did the same. In 2007, the under-16s reached the fourth round of the Daily Mail Cup, and over half of the team members also played for the First XV.

The school rowing team also particiapte in the ball cup and the 2008 team ( D.Grant, O. Foulds, A Hughes & R Newbould + R.Proctor) came first in the mens coxed four^[2]

[edit] Fees

The school's fees (2007-2008) range from £7,053 to £9,531 a year.

[edit] School motto and badge

The school aims to fill the gap left by the demise of the original Derby School. The school motto, Vita Sine Litteris Mors (Life without learning is death), is taken from the motto of the former school and is from Seneca's Epistulae morales ad Lucilium.

With the agreement of the Committee of the Old Derbeians' Society, the new school has also adopted a heraldic badge devised in 1883 for Derby School, which it used until 1952 (not its coat of arms, granted in 1952).

[edit] Old Derbeians

The term Old Derbeians once meant only former pupils of Derby School, but the Old Derbeians Society is now open also to ex-pupils of the new school, who are also Old Derbeians.^[3]

[edit] References

• Derby Grammar School at BBC Education League Tables
• Derby Grammar School at ISBI
• Derby Grammar School at dfes.gov.uk
• Independent Schools Inspectorate report of Derby Grammar School 2005 inspection
• Derby Grammar School buildings by Rothera Goodwin
• City of Derby Local Plan

[edit] External links

• Derby Grammar School - official site
• Web site of the Old Derbeians Society