Burgh, Dart, Fox Tor, Goodrington, Haldon, Rougemont
Colour(s)
Publication
Torquin
Website
Torquay Boys' Grammar School
Torquay Boys' Grammar School is currently ranked within the top 20 boys schools in England, and the best in Southwest England.[3]
Historyedit
The school was founded in 1904 and moved to its present location in 1982. As part of its centenary in 2004 the school opened a new hall known as the Cavanna Centenary Hall, which was officially opened in March 2008 by The Earl of Wessex.[4] In September 2010, it gained Academy status.[5]
A long-standing headteacher, Roy Pike, worked for 43 years at the school, 27 years as head.[6] He retired in 2013, and was succeeded by Peter Lawrence.[7]
Academic attainmentedit
In 2022, GCSE examination pass rate between 9-4 stood at 97.6%, with the proportion of top grades 9-7 was 58.6%. The proportion of boys at the school achieving a strong pass in GCSE Level 9-5 in English and Maths stood at 93%. Torquay Boys' Grammar School boasts a 99% rate of boys staying in education after leaving the school, or entering employment after Year 11.[8][non-primary source needed]
House systemedit
Upon joining the school, every student is assigned to one of the school's six houses. The six houses were previously named after Elizabethan sailors, which had seen criticism in 2020 over their links to the slave trade,[9] were renamed after locations in Devon in 2021.[10]
The Head Teacher and Governors of Torquay Boys' Grammar School are committed to ensuring the school retains its grammar school status, advocating that pupils who learn in a selective environment excel in their learning and development. The school argues that pupils in selective grammar schools make more progress than those in non–selective schools. [17]
The proportion of students attending Torquay Boys' Grammar School who are entitled to free school meals was well below average the national average in 2007, despite the school's catchment area not being a prosperous area. In 2007, very few boys from minority ethnic groups or with a first language other than English attended the school. The school has held specialist languages status for a number of years and has recently been awarded a second specialism in business and enterprise education.[18]
The school has its own astronomical observatory. Opened in 1989, it houses a 19.2" (0.5m) Newtonian reflector, and is used by the school itself, by the Torbay Astronomical Society, and is also regularly open to the public.[21]
The astronomer and broadcaster Sir Patrick Moore was a patron of the school and maintained close ties – Ralegh House even performed the premiere of his operetta "Galileo" in the late 1990s. Current presenter of the BBC television programme "The Sky at Night" Chris Lintott, who lectures at Oxford University, was also a student of the school.[citation needed]
Notable members of staffedit
Retired teacher Carole Church was awarded the Ted Wragg Teaching Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2004.
This was followed by retired teacher Dave Berry who was also awarded the Ted Wragg Teaching Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2006.[22]
Adrian Sanders, Liberal Democrat MP for Torbay, between 1997 and 2015.[27]
Professor David Southwood, Science Director of the European Space Agency, President of the Royal Astronomical Society, Head of Physics Department Imperial College.
^"Establishment: Torquay Boys' Grammar School". Schools Service. Department for Education. Retrieved 21 May 2023.
^"Prospectus" (PDF). Torquay Boys' Grammar School. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
^"Prince Tells Students to Take Up Challenge", Herald Express, 4 March 2008, retrieved 14 May 2008[permanent dead link].
^ https://web.archive.org/web/20240105234130/https://www.tbgs.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/TBGS-prospectus.pdf. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 January 2024. Retrieved 5 January 2024. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
^Robinson, Debbie. "University of Exeter". www.exeter.ac.uk. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
^Hindmarch, Sonali (7 July 2006), "Inspirational tales as teachers of the year are announced", SecEd, archived from the original on 21 October 2007, retrieved 14 May 2008.
^Sheehy, Noel (2003), Fifty Key Thinkers in Psychology, London: Routledge, p. 61.