91-634: Marlborough College is a public school (English private boarding school) for pupils aged 13 to 18 in Marlborough, Wiltshire , England. It was founded as Marlborough School in 1843 by the Dean of Manchester, George Hull Bowers , for the education of the sons of Church of England clergy. It is one of the oldest boarding schools in the UK, and now adopts a co-educational model. In 2023 there were around 1000 pupils, approximately 45% of whom were female. In 2024,
182-641: A Committee on Public Schools under the leadership of David Fleming . The committee was tasked to "consider means whereby the association between the Public Schools and the general educational system of the country could be developed and extended". The Fleming Report (1944) entitled The Public Schools and the General Education System defined a public school as a member of the Governing Bodies Association or
273-644: A charity is defined as an institution established for a charitable purpose and providing a public benefit. The "advancement of education" is a long-standing charitable purpose. The UK's oldest charity is the King's School Canterbury . Charitable status for schools outside of the state maintained sector confers various tax benefits. This means schools are not liable for corporation tax or capital gains tax and receive an 80% reduction in business rates (a local property tax). Donations by individuals to such schools are considered "tax free". Fee-charging schools having
364-539: A "private school" carried on at the risk and for the profit of its master or proprietors.' In November 1965, the UK Cabinet considered the definition of a public school for the purpose of the Public Schools Commission set up that year. It started with the 1944 Fleming Committee definition of Public Schools, which consisted of schools which were members of the then Headmasters' Conference ,
455-651: A career. The English public school model influenced the 19th-century development of Scottish elite schools, but a tradition of the gentry sharing their primary education with their tenants kept Scotland more egalitarian. Thomas Garner Thomas Garner (1839 – 30 April 1906) was one of the leading English Gothic revival architects of the Victorian era . He is known for his almost 30-year partnership with architect George Frederick Bodley . Born at Wasperton Hill Farm in Warwickshire, Thomas Garner grew up in
546-515: A collection of pre-Raphaelite style paintings by John Roddam Spencer Stanhope and stained glass by Old Marlburian William Morris . The rest of the Court is surrounded by buildings in styles ranging from " Jacobethan " (a name coined by Old Marlburian John Betjeman ) to classical Georgian and Victorian. The latter, B house (now called B1), was (along with the College Chapel) designed by
637-444: A definition which would have satisfied Porphyry or Duns-Scotus , but as one sufficiently accurate for our purpose. The characteristic features of these schools are, their antiquity, the numbers, and the ages of the young people who are educated at them ...". Arthur Leach , in his History of Winchester College (1899), stated: "The only working definition of a Public School...is that it is an aristocratic or plutocratic school which
728-409: A figure from the school's past. When the college became fully co-educational in 1989, three girls' houses were opened – Morris, Elmhurst and Mill Mead; New Court was opened in 1991. Morris was moved in 1995 from A house to Field House, which had previously been occupied by B3 and C2. New houses were built to accommodate C3, which had previously shared C house with C1 (in 1989) and C2 (in 1992). In 2012,
819-537: A grant from central government. The direct grant grammar schools would henceforth receive partial state funding (a "direct grant") in return for taking between 25 and 50 percent of its pupils from state primary schools. Other grammar schools were funded by Local Education Authorities . The Labour government in 1965 made major changes to the organisation of state maintained schools issuing Circular 10/65 which directed local authorities to phase out selection at eleven years of age. It also fulfilled its pledge to examine
910-650: A great want in Cork—namely, a good public school, and with the object of inducing persons who had been sending their children to England, to educate them at home'. In 2020 6.7% of the school population in the Republic of Ireland attended 'elite' fee charging schools. In 1892 Haileybury alumnus Charles Rendall, founded Haileybury "altera terra" in Melbourne, Australia. In the 20th and 21st centuries, several public schools opened affiliates in other countries, especially
1001-531: A hired tutor). In England and Wales schools that are called public schools are not funded from public taxation . Sydney Smith in an 1810 article published in The Edinburgh Review suggested the following. "By a public school, we mean an endowed place of education of old standing, to which the sons of gentlemen resort in considerable numbers, and where they continue to reside, from eight or nine, to eighteen years of age. We do not give this as
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#17327972576151092-580: A long-established practice because they were unaware that the law had changed." The school is a member of the G20 Schools group. Marlborough College Malaysia , a sister school, opened in Johor in 2012. The college is built beside the Mound , at the site of a former Norman castle . No remains of the castle can be seen today, though the radiocarbon dating of core samples in the early 2010s indicated that
1183-463: A long-established procedure in sharing the information with each other, and were unaware of the change to the law (on which they had not been consulted). She wrote to John Vickers , the OFT director-general, saying, "They are not a group of businessmen meeting behind closed doors to fix the price of their products to the disadvantage of the consumer. They are schools that have quite openly continued to follow
1274-506: A major contribution to the School Mathematics Project (from 1961) alongside initiating the teaching of its Business Studies programme (from 1968). In 1963 a group of boys, led by the future political biographer Ben Pimlott , wrote a book, Marlborough, an open examination written by the boys , describing life at the boarding institute. The writer and television critic T. C. Worsley wrote about predatory old masters at
1365-544: A new model for the nineteenth and early twentieth century public school. Arnold developed the praepostor (or prefect ) system, in which a group of senior boys were given disciplinary powers of other pupils. This became a standard method to establish good order in the public schools, which had developed a reputation for rowdiness and on occasion, serious disorder. King's College School was founded in 1829 and University College School in 1830. Separate preparatory schools (or "prep schools") for younger boys developed from
1456-496: A public school has a different significance; there the term is typically synonymous with state school in England and Wales. Fee-charging schools are referred to as private or independent schools. There is no single or absolute definition of public school , and the use of the term has varied over time and according to context. The starting point was the contrast between a public school and private teaching (eg., provided by
1547-632: A replacement sport during the Easter term led to hockey matches being regularly played against Clifton College , with the sport consequently becoming popular with other public schools and sporting communities. Public school (United Kingdom) A public school in England and Wales is a type of fee-charging private school originally for older boys. They are "public" in the sense of being open to pupils irrespective of locality, denomination or paternal trade or profession ; nor are they run for
1638-585: A representative of Scott, including the repair of the old chapel of the Lord Leycester Hospital at Warwick , which he buttressed into security. Garner married Rose Emily Smith on 6 October 1866. In 1868 he returned to London to help his friend Bodley, and they established the long and fruitful partnership at their office at 7 Gray's Inn Square. Garner lived at No. 20 Church Row in Hampstead from 1867 to 1893. At first, their collaboration
1729-450: A resident SSI (school staff instructor). Weekly parades take place at the parade ground adjacent to the armoury, with occasional off-campus activities, such as range-days or overnight exercises. Next to the CCF parade ground is a six-lane .22 rifle range. Rifle shooting has had a long history at the college, with teams representing the school since 1862. By the 1890s, the "difficulty" of finding
1820-558: A response to the perceived need to modernise such a curriculum in line with commercial needs, the Grammar School Act 1840 was passed. This allowed schools to make an application to a court of law (rather than Parliament) to deviate from the wishes of the original founder and teach "other branches of literature and science". The new public schools established in the early and mid-19th century were not constrained by early endowments and therefore were able from foundation to offer
1911-540: A rural setting that gave him an instinctive feeling for country crafts and construction, which were never weakened by long years spent in London. Thomas Garner was articled to the architect Sir Gilbert Scott at the age of 17. One of his immediate predecessors at "Scott's" was George Frederick Bodley , who was already beginning to establish his own reputation. A warm friendship developed between two. When he returned to Warwickshire, Garner undertook various small works as
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#17327972576152002-541: A sculpture of "The Virgin and Child" by Eric Gill near the west door. Sir Frank Brangwyn , who had been trained by Morris, produced murals for the school chapel of Christ's Hospital (1912-1923) and from around this time until the 1950s, visited Marlborough College, particularly its Chapel, on several occasions to deliver lectures and practical workshops to members of the Marlborough College community. Brangwyn and Walthamstow Borough Council signed
2093-568: A sot or dunce, Lascivious, headstrong, or all these at once; That in good time the stripling's finish'd taste For loose expense and fashionable waste Should prove your ruin, and his own at last; Train him in public with a mob of boys, Childish in mischief only and in noise, Else of a mannish growth, and five in ten In infidelity and lewdness men. ..." —Extract from William Cowper 's 1784 Tirocinium or A Review of Schools In 1801 William Vincent , headmaster of Westminster published A Defence of Public Education . It contains
2184-702: A trust deed in 1935 to set up the William Morris Gallery and ‘The William Morris Gallery and Brangwyn Gift’ opened to the public in October 1950. In 2010, the Marlborough College Chapel was closed owing to structural defects. After being repaired, it was declared safe to use. All music halls and performance areas are fitted with soundproof windows which prevent sound from escaping, even while open, as well as walls engineered to prevent sound crossing at right angles. The floors of
2275-430: A wider range of taught subjects. From the 1850s organised games became prominent in the curriculum, based on the precedent set at Rugby by Thomas Arnold , forming a keystone of character development through teamwork, sportsmanship and self-sacrifice. Hely Almond headmaster at Loretto 1862–1903, in stating 'Games in which success depends on the united efforts of many, and which also foster courage and endurance are
2366-548: Is a class school, catering for a well-to-do clientèle; it is expensive; it is non-local; it is a predominantly boarding school; it is independent of the State and of local government, yet it is not privately owned or run for profit." Oxford Dictionary of English: 'In England, originally, a grammar-school founded or endowed for use or benefit of the public, either generally, or of a particular locality, and carried on under some kind of public management or control; often contrasted with
2457-578: Is defined in Brewer's Dictionary of Modern Phrase and Fable as "a somewhat demeaning term dating from the 1930s for an English public school that is not one of the ancient foundations, such as Eton, Harrow, Rugby or Winchester". Public school rivalry is a factor in the perception of a "great" (or "major") versus "minor" distinction. The perception of a top tier of public schools is long standing but with some debate on membership. Howard Staunton 's book of 1865 entitled The Great Schools of England considered
2548-503: Is the second to be built at the school. The first was opened in 1848 but by 1880 the school numbers had outgrown its space. After consideration of expanding the existing building, it was demolished in 1884 and a new Chapel was designed and built. The new Chapel, designed in the Late Decorated Gothic style, was dedicated to St Michael and All Angels and was consecrated in 1886. The original colour scheme of greens and browns
2639-511: Is wholly or almost wholly a Boarding School, is under some form of more or less public control, and is ... non-local". Edward C. Mack in 1938 proposed the simple definition of "a non-local endowed boarding school for the upper classes". Vivian Ogilvie in The English Public School (1957) suggests five "characteristics commonly associated with a public school" (while allowing that these are not absolute or definitive): "it
2730-833: The Clarendon schools . The Headmasters' Conference (HMC), now the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference, has grown steadily and by 2021 had 298 British and Irish schools as members. Many new schools were established in the mid-part of the nineteenth century including the day schools City of London School (1837) and Liverpool College (1840). New boarding schools included Cheltenham (1841), Marlborough (1843), Rossall (1844), Radley (1847), Taunton (1847), Lancing (1848), Hurstpierpoint (1849), Bradfield (1850), Wellington (1852), Epsom (1855), Ardingly (1858), Clifton (1862), Malvern (1862), Haileybury (1862), Framlingham (1864) and Cranleigh (1865). In 1887
2821-631: The Endowed Schools Act 1869 . In that year Edward Thring , headmaster of Uppingham School , wrote to 37 of his fellow headmasters of what he considered the leading boys' schools, not covered by the Public Schools Act of 1868, inviting them to meet annually to address the threat posed by the Endowed Schools Act of 1869. In the first year 12 headmasters attended; the following year 34 attended, including heads from
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2912-510: The Governing Bodies Association or the Girls' Schools Association . At that time, there were 276 such independent schools (134 boys and 142 girls), which the 1965 Public Schools Commission took in scope of its work and also considered 22 maintained and 152 direct grant grammar schools . In 2023, using the 1965 Public Schools Commission definition or the 1944 Fleming Committee definition, there are 302 independent secondary schools belonging to
3003-521: The Headmasters' Conference . The Fleming Committee recommended that one-quarter of the places at the public schools should be assigned to a national bursary scheme for children who would benefit from boarding. A key advocate was the post-war Minister of Education Ellen Wilkinson , but the proposed national bursary scheme never got into legislation in that post-war age of severe budget constraints. The Conservative government elected in 1951 did not adopt
3094-713: The Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference (78% of HMC schools are co-educational, 9% are boys only and 13% are girls only), and 152 independent girls' secondary schools belonging to the Girls' Schools Association . The majority of public schools are affiliated with, or were established by, a Christian denomination , principally the Church of England , but in some cases the Roman Catholic and Methodist churches. A small number are non-denominational or inherently secular, including Oswestry School , Bedales and University College School . A minor public school
3185-730: The Holy Angels at Hoar Cross , Staffordshire, and St Augustine's Church, Pendlebury , near Manchester – the former begun in 1871, the latter in 1873. They also designed St David's Cathedral, Hobart , in Tasmania. As Bodley and Garner's commissions increased they became less exclusively ecclesiastical. Church building remained predominant but their practice widened to collegiate buildings in Oxford and Cambridge , and to private houses and offices. This broadening of scope reduced their actual collaboration. Bodley and Garner's pupils included
3276-711: The "principal schools of England", entitled The History of the Colleges of Winchester, Eton, and Westminster; with the Charter-House, the Schools of St. Paul's, Merchant Taylors, Harrow, and Rugby, and the Free-School of Christ's Hospital . In 1818 Nicholas Carlisle published a two-volume survey entitled A Concise Description of the Endowed Grammar Schools in England and Wales . The survey
3367-540: The (then) United Kingdom. The 1895 Public School Yearbook included Loretto School (1827), Glenalmond College (1847) and Fettes College (1870). In Ireland, of the Royal Schools, The Royal School, Armagh 1608 was described as offering an excellent public school education and being the equal of any school in the British Isles. Cork Grammar School 1881 was established for 'the purpose of supplying
3458-476: The 16 houses upon entering the school, where they make their home for the duration of their studies, and compete against other houses in sporting olympiads. The houses are divided between on-campus heritage sites – mostly gathered around the central court – and sites around the western side of Marlborough town. The older on-campus heritage houses are referred to by an alphanumeric title. Newer houses have been given names reflecting their location or commemorating
3549-693: The 1830s, with entry to the senior schools becoming limited to boys of at least 12 or 13 years old. The first of these was Windlesham House School , established with support from Thomas Arnold , the headmaster of Rugby School between 1828 and 1841. A Royal Commission , the Clarendon Commission (1861–1864), investigated nine of the more established schools, including seven boarding schools ( Charterhouse , Eton , Harrow , Rugby , Shrewsbury , Westminster and Winchester ) and two day schools ( St Paul's and Merchant Taylors' ). The Public Schools Act 1868 subsequently regulated and reformed
3640-615: The Act: Eton , Shrewsbury , Harrow , Winchester , Rugby , Westminster , and Charterhouse . Public schools are elite institutions and are associated with the ruling class . Historically, public schools produced many of the military officers and administrators of the British Empire . In 2019, two-thirds of cabinet ministers of the United Kingdom had been educated at such fee-charging schools. In Scotland ,
3731-513: The Clarendon nine, four are (or are soon to be, in the case of Westminster) fully co-educational ( Rugby , Charterhouse , Shrewsbury and Westminster ), two remain as boys-only day schools ( St Paul's and Merchant Taylors' ) and two retain the full-boarding, boys-only tradition ( Eton and Harrow ). Winchester was formerly part of the last group. By the end of the 19th century the "public school movement", had extended to all parts of
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3822-673: The Crown , the established church , or the government. Henceforth each of these schools was to be managed by a board of governors . St Paul's School and the Merchant Taylors' School claimed successfully that their constitutions made them "private" schools, and were excluded from the requirements of this legislation. The Taunton Commission was appointed in 1864 to examine the remaining 782 endowed grammar schools , and in 1868 produced recommendations to restructure their endowments; these recommendations were included, in modified form, in
3913-571: The Divisional Court and the Court of Appeal determined that the City of London School was a public school. The Public Schools Yearbook was published for the first time in 1889, listing 30 schools, mostly boarding schools. The day school exceptions were St Paul's School and Merchant Taylors' School . By 1895 there were entries for 64 schools. Frederick William Sanderson , Headmaster of Oundle School , initiated educational reforms at
4004-803: The Ely Cathedral Grammar School, then the King's School Ely when refounded in 1541 by Henry VIII , subsequently adopting the current name in 2012) and St Albans School c. 948 . Until the Late Middle Ages most schools were controlled by the Church; and had specific entrance criteria; others were restricted to the sons of members of guilds, trades, or livery companies . In 1382 William of Wykeham , Bishop of Winchester and Chancellor of England , founded Winchester College . In 1440 Henry VI founded Eton College. These schools had significantly larger foundations than
4095-549: The Exchequer Rab Butler , Home Secretary Henry Brooke, Baron Brooke of Cumnor , Archbishop of Canterbury Geoffrey Fisher , Olivia Grosvenor, Duchess of Westminster , and individuals from the British monarchy including Catherine, Princess of Wales , Pippa Middleton and Princess Eugenie are also Old Marlburians. See List of Old Marlburians for other notable former pupils. Societies for former pupils include
4186-579: The HMC. State funding was however revived between 1981 and 1997 with the introduction of the Assisted Places Scheme , which provided support for 80,000 pupils attending schools not part of the state maintained sector. Many boarding schools started to admit day pupils for the first time, and others abolished boarding completely. Some started accepting girls in the sixth form , while others became fully co-educational . Corporal punishment ,
4277-611: The Labour government to separate the independent and state sectors. The direct grant scheme was abolished in 1975 and the HMC schools within the scheme became fully independent. Local authorities were ordered to cease funding places at independent schools. This accounted for over a quarter of places at 56 schools, and over half the places at 22 schools. Between 1975 and 1983 funding was also withdrawn from 11 voluntary-aided grammar schools, which became independent schools and full members of
4368-528: The Marlburian Club. There are three academic terms in the year: The Memorial Hall was built to commemorate the 749 Old Marlburians who were killed in World War I . Following World War II, the names of those killed in that war were added to a memorial panel in the entrance hall. The hall is a semi-circular auditorium of stepped seats. There is a stage at the front. Below the seats with access from
4459-474: The Middle and Far East. The schools are typically founded in partnership with a local business person or organisation with the "home" school maintaining control of curriculum and staffing. The almost exclusive teaching of grammar ( Latin and to a lesser extent ancient Greek ) prevailed until well into the 19th century. Most schools were legally obliged to do so by the terms of their original endowment. As
4550-520: The Royal Commission on Secondary Education ) described the schools reformed by the 1868 Act as the "seven 'great endowed schools'". Public schools emerged from grammar schools established to educate pupils, usually destined for clerical orders, in Latin grammar. Thus, concerned with educating boys. The term "public" came into use because over time access to such schools was not restricted on
4641-557: The UK Office of Fair Trading (OFT) found that 50 prominent public schools were in breach of the Competition Act 1998 through their exchange of details of planned fee increases over three academic years 2001–02, 2002–03 and 2003–04. The Independent Schools Council claimed that the investigation had been "a scandalous waste of public money". Three-quarters of HMC schools are now either partially or fully co-educational. Of
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#17327972576154732-627: The UK government to levy VAT on school fees, a commitment (re)made in the 1983 Labour Party election manifesto under Neil Kinnock 's leadership, and revived in 2017 by Jeremy Corbyn . In support of the case for maintaining the status quo , the Independent Schools Council published in 2022 a report which stated that the independent education sector contributed in 2021 £16.5 billion to the UK economy and generated £5.1 billion of tax revenue. The 2019 UK Conservative Party election manifesto made no mention of education outside of
4823-632: The Victorian architect Edward Blore , whose other works included the facade of Buckingham Palace (since remodelled) and the Vorontsovsky Palace in Alupka, Ukraine. On the other side of the Mound is the science laboratory, built in 1933. It is an early example of shuttered concrete construction and was listed as a building of architectural significance in 1970. Pupils are assigned to one of
4914-499: The basis of home location, paternal occupation or status, and that they were subject to an element of public management or control, in contrast to private schools which were run for the personal profit of the owner(s). The origins of schools in England were primarily religious, although in 1640 the House of Commons invited the reformer and promoter of universal education Comenius to England to establish and participate in an agency for
5005-404: The case of Harrow, political sponsorship by aristocratic Whig politician James Brydges (later Duke of Chandos) played a significant role, but also, as was the case too with Rugby, an exemplary headmaster was a key factor in raising the status of the school. This phenomenon was also seen at Shrewsbury , where Samuel Butler was headmaster between 1798 and 1836. "Would you your son should be
5096-558: The centres also float on a bed of air, so as to maintain good soundproofing. The Blackett Observatory houses a 10-inch-aperture Cooke refractor on a motorised equatorial mount. The telescope dates from 1860 and was used professionally at the Radcliffe Observatory at Oxford University . When the Observatory was relocated to South Africa in the 1930s, Sir Basil Blackett , a president of the Marlburian Club, raised
5187-433: The children—nay, the eldest sons—of some of the best families in England have been educated." By the end of the 17th century, the London day schools St Paul's and Merchant Taylors', together with the charitable foundations of Christ's Hospital and Charterhouse, had developed an elevated "standing in popular regard". By the end of the 18th century, two local grammar schools, Harrow and Rugby, had achieved national fame. In
5278-1190: The college acquired the Ivy House Hotel in Marlborough High Street which opened as a girls' house in the autumn of that year. In 1933, the school lent its name to one of the steam locomotives in the Southern Railway's Schools class , which were named after English public schools. The locomotive bearing the school's name (no. 922, later 30922) was withdrawn in 1961. Former pupils include the Nobel laureate Sir Peter Medawar , Poet Laureate Sir John Betjeman , wartime poet Siegfried Sassoon , art historian and Soviet spy Anthony Blunt , writer Dick King-Smith , journalists Frank Gardner , James Mates , Tom Newton Dunn and Hugh Pym , businessman Simon Woodroffe , comedian Jack Whitehall , singers Nick Drake and Chris de Burgh , DJ and producer Frederick Gibson aka. Fred Again , fashion moguls Amanda Harlech and Stella Tennant , and convicted human trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell . Chancellor of
5369-589: The decorated gothic case for the organ at Church of the Holy Trinity, Stratford-upon-Avon . Despite Bodley's distaste for business and trade, he and Garner also set up a fabric company with Gilbert Scott the younger in 1874, to provide embroidered and textile goods, wallpaper and stained glass . The firm was called Watts & Co , trading initially from Baker Street in London, and still continuing its traditions from premises near Westminster Cathedral . The name derives from Bodley's distaste for trade. When
5460-729: The existing local grammar schools, had high level political patronage, and also accepted "non-local" pupils. This was "the start of a new kind of school". Elizabeth I refounded Westminster School in 1560, with new statutes, to select forty Queen's Scholars . This created a "triad" of privileged schools—Winchester, Eton and Westminster. From the 16th century onward, boys' boarding schools continued to be founded or endowed for public use. Daniel Defoe in The Compleat English Gentleman of 1728, writes of "the great schools of Eton, Winchester, Westminster, Felsted , Bishop Stortford (sic), Canterbury and others, where
5551-724: The founders were asked: "Who was Watts?" Bodley replied: "What's in a Name". The final period of the Bodley and Garner partnership is best seen in St John the Evangelist Church, Oxford , built for the Cowley Fathers in 1894–96. In 1898 Garner was received into the Roman Catholic Church , and his partnership with Bodley was dissolved for fear that this might harm the latter's business. After dissolving
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#17327972576155642-406: The funds to purchase it and have the observatory built on the playing fields of the college. In 1997 a restoration effort was started which was finished in 2002 when the telescope was reopened for use. It is currently used to teach astronomy and is also open to local astronomers from outside the college. A fully operational army-only CCF detachment operates at the college under the supervision of
5733-466: The game!" from Henry Newbolt 's 1892 poem Vitaï Lampada and "the Battle of Waterloo was won on the playing fields of Eton", the latter popularly attributed to the Duke of Wellington . Many ex-pupils, like those from other schools, had, and still have, a nostalgic affection for their old schools ( George Orwell remembered being "interested and happy" at Eton, ) and a public school tie and an " old boy network " of former pupils were useful in advancing
5824-484: The garden designer Inigo Thomas who specialised in formal gardens with geometrical plans in 17th and 18th century styles, which suited the numerous houses that Bodley and Garner renovated for wealthy clients. The ensuing period of dual practice under partnership left most of the secular opportunities to the control of the junior partner, Garner, while Bodley, with his penchant for Gothic forms and ecclesiastical work, devoted himself to church building and decoration. Garner
5915-508: The new classroom building at Marlborough College . Hewell Grange , Lord Windsor 's Worcestershire mansion, with all its elaborate details, terraced gardens and their architectural accessories, was also his work. Garner continued to contribute to the firm's ecclesiastical work. He designed the altar screen in St Paul's Cathedral and several sepulchral monuments, including those of the Bishops of Ely , Lincoln , Winchester and Chichester , and that of Henry Parry Liddon . In 1889 he designed
6006-430: The nine Clarendon schools had a combined asset value of almost £2bn. Eton College is the school with the largest endowment of over £500m. Charitable status is politically controversial. The UK Labour Party leader Keir Starmer in 2021 pledged to remove charitable status for fee-charging schools, a policy also of Harold Wilson , stated in the 1974 Labour election manifesto. Removal of charitable status would enable
6097-555: The nine Clarendon schools plus Cheltenham College , Christ's Hospital , and Dulwich College . In 1881 C.Kegan Paul & Co published Our Public Schools with chapters on seven schools: Eton , Harrow , Winchester , Rugby , Westminster , Marlborough , and Charterhouse . In 1893 Edward Arnold published a book entitled Great Public Schools with a chapter on each of Eton , Harrow , Charterhouse , Cheltenham , Rugby , Clifton , Westminster , Marlborough , Haileybury , and Winchester . The Bryce Report of 1895 ( Report of
6188-418: The origins of the Mound date from 2400 BC. This is close to the dates established for Silbury Hill . The main focus of the college is the Court, which is surrounded by buildings in a number of architectural styles. At the south end is the back of an early 18th-century mansion, later converted to a coaching inn , which was bought as the first building for the school. The main block of what now forms C House, it
6279-441: The outside rear are a number of music practice rooms. The façade of the hall towards the forecourt and road has two entrance lobbies linked together by eight stone columns. The forecourt is paved with stone. The Hall holds about 800 people so can no longer be used for assemblies of the entire school. It is now most often used for concerts and theatrical productions where the whole school is not expected to attend. The current Chapel
6370-444: The partnership, Garner designed and supervised the restoration of Yarnton Manor , Oxfordshire in 1897; the Slipper Chapel at Houghton Saint Giles ; Moreton House , Hampstead ; the Empire Hotel at Buxton by the Duke of Devonshire's estate. The crowning work of his life was the choir of Downside Abbey , near Bath , where his body lies. He finally returned to the countryside for his final home, Fritwell Manor in Oxfordshire,
6461-407: The profit of a private owner. Although the term "public school" has been in use since at least the 18th century, its usage was formalised by the Public Schools Act 1868 , which put into law most recommendations of the 1864 Clarendon Report . Nine prestigious schools were investigated by Clarendon (including two day schools , Merchant Taylors' and St Paul's ) and seven subsequently reformed by
6552-558: The promotion of learning. It was intended that by-products of this would be the publication of "universal" books and the setting up of schools for boys and girls. The English Civil War prevented any such reform. Some schools are particularly old, such as The King's School, Canterbury c. 597 , The King's School, Rochester c. 604 , St Peter's School, York c. 627 , Sherborne School c. 710 , (refounded 1550 by Edward VI ), Warwick School c. 914 , King's Ely c. 970 (once
6643-633: The proposal. It failed because it was not a high priority for either party, money was tight, there was wavering support from both public schools and local education authorities, and no consensus was reached on how to select the pupils to participate. Based on the recommendations of the Fleming Report, the Education Act 1944 , also known as "the Butler Act", did, however, establish an enhanced status for endowed grammar schools receiving
6734-792: The role of public schools, setting up a Royal commission "to advise on the best way of integrating the public schools with the State system". The commission used a wider definition than that of the Fleming Committee. The Public Schools Commission produced two reports: the Newsom Report of 1968 entitled The Public Schools Commission: First Report covering boarding schools and the Donnison Report of 1970 entitled The Public Schools Commission: Second Report covering day schools, including also direct grant and maintained grammar schools. The report presented by John Newsom in 1968
6825-508: The school in his critically acclaimed autobiography Flannelled Fool: A Slice of a Life in the Thirties . In 2005, the school was one of fifty of the country's most prestigious independent schools which were found by the Office of Fair Trading to have run an illegal price-fixing cartel , exposed by The Times , which had allowed them to drive up fees for thousands of parents. Each school
6916-494: The school was included in The Schools Index as one of the 150 best private schools in the world and among the top 30 senior schools in the UK. Fees for boarding pupils in 2024/2025 are £50,985 per year. Marlborough was, in 1968, the first major British independent boys' school to allow girls into the sixth form , setting a trend that many other schools followed. The school became fully co-educational in 1989, and made
7007-473: The seven boarding schools investigated by Clarendon, and in summary established and granted autonomy to new governing bodies for the seven schools and as part of that, released them from previous obligations under their founding charters to educate "boys on the Foundation" ie scholarship boys who paid nominal or no fees. The Act gave the seven schools independence from direct jurisdiction or responsibility of
7098-505: The state maintained sector. In September 2023 the UK Labour party announced that, if elected, it planned to allow public schools to retain their charitable status (and some associated tax benefits) but did plan to charge VAT on fees and remove concessions on business rates paid to local authorities. The 19th-century public school ethos promoted ideas of service to Crown and Empire, exemplified in tropes such as "Play up! Play up! And play
7189-498: The status of charities are not totally tax exempt as they pay some business rates, VAT on procured goods and services and staff pay income tax on earnings. The public benefit that a charity is obliged to provide is not defined in law. Typically schools provide this public benefit by offering bursaries to pupils of families with limited financial means and supporting local state maintained school(s) and institutions, including allowing public access to school facilities. As of 2020
7280-549: The text "...comprize under the expression of Public Schools? Are we to understand only Winchester, Eton and Westminster? or are we to extend our notion, as we ought to do, to the other three great schools in the Metropolis; to Harrow, Rugby, Manchester , Wakefield and many more of equal magnitude in the North?" In 1816 Rudolph Ackermann published a book which used the term "History of the Public Schools" of what he described as
7371-489: The turn of the century. Oundle became the first school to create an engineering curriculum as well as teaching biochemistry and agriculture. There was a further expansion in public school education in the interwar years. New schools such as Rendcomb (1920), Stowe (1923), Canford (1923), Bryanston (1928) and Millfield (1935) were established. In 1942 the then President of the Board of Education Rab Butler appointed
7462-562: The very lifeblood of the public school system', encapsulated the thinking of the era. The prominence of team sports prevails to the current day and is a feature by which public schools still distinguish themselves from state maintained schools. By the latter part of the 19th century 'modern' subjects such as mathematics and science featured in many schools listings in The Public Schools Yearbook . Within English law
7553-541: Was abolished in state schools in 1986, and had been abandoned in most public schools by the time it was formally banned in independent schools in 1999 in England and Wales, (2000 in Scotland and 2003 in Northern Ireland). The system of fagging , whereby younger pupils were required to act to some extent as personal servants to the most senior boys, was phased out during the 1970s and 1980s. In September 2005
7644-707: Was almost exclusively responsible for the design and supervision of most of the work at Oxford , including the alterations and tower at Christ Church , St Swithin's Quadrangle and the High Street Entrance Gate at Magdalen College , and the Master's Lodgings at the University College . He was entirely responsible for the subsequent President's Lodgings at Magdalen College. Garner also designed River House in Tite Street , Chelsea , and
7735-429: Was built by Charles Seymour, 6th Duke of Somerset and is a Grade I listed building . Next to it are the old stables, now converted into boarding houses. The west side consists of the 1959 red brick dining hall, and a Victorian boarding house now converted to other purposes. The north west corner is dominated by its Victorian Gothic style chapel by the architects George Frederick Bodley and Thomas Garner , which has
7826-551: Was close and produced such homogeneous work that there was little external evidence of dual authorship. What is noticeable in some of the earlier buildings by the "firm" is the replacement of the French influences which previously had shown themselves in Bodley's work, by a distinctively English style. This period of close collaboration produced the Church of Saint John the Baptist at Tuebrook , Liverpool, soon followed and eclipsed by
7917-443: Was conducted by means of a questionnaire sent to the schools. The description of 475 schools range from one or two paragraphs to many pages of detail. Included in the survey are the renowned nine schools which forty three years later became the subject of the 1861 Clarendon Commission . In 1828 Thomas Arnold became headmaster of Rugby School. The reforming actions he took during his fourteen years (1828–1842) of tenure established
8008-632: Was much loved by Sir John Betjeman and there are twelve large Pre-Raphaelite murals by Spencer Stanhope which depict various Biblical scenes involving angels. Those on the north side show scenes from the Old Testament while the six on the south side are from the New Testament. Two other artistic features are the Scholars' Window on the south side, which was designed by Edward Burne-Jones and made by Old Marlburian William Morris , and
8099-504: Was required to pay a nominal penalty of £10,000, and all agreed to make ex-gratia payments totalling three million pounds into a trust designed to benefit pupils who attended the schools during the period in respect of which fee information was shared. Jean Scott, the head of the Independent Schools Council , said that independent schools had always been exempt from anti-cartel rules applied to business, were following
8190-441: Was supportive of boarding school education and made 52 recommendations, including state funding of up to 45,000 places. No action was taken by the then Labour government (or successive administrations). The report presented by David Donnison in 1970 made 25 recommendations for England and Wales and 22 for Scotland. The commission was divided on many issues so several of the recommendations were not made with full consensus. No action
8281-399: Was taken by the incoming (1970) Conservative government but five years later the direct grant scheme was terminated by Labour. The social changes of the 1960s were felt in the public schools; the new headmaster at Oundle School noted that "student protests and intellectual ferment were challenging the status quo". These challenges later coincided with the mid-1970s recession and moves by
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