Haileybury (Melbourne)

Associations

History

Charles Rendall, a graduate of Haileybury College, Hertfordshire (1873) and Oxford University (1879), migrated to Australia, for health reasons in 1882. He quickly established a reputation as an outstanding teacher of Latin and Ancient Greek at Melbourne University, Melbourne Grammar and later at Scotch College. In 1892 with five staff and 17 students he opened his own Haileybury ‘Altera terra’ (in another land) in a 22-room mansion on the corner of New Street and South Road, Brighton, close to the Brighton Beach railway station. Magenta from his old school and black were adopted as school colours. The School was based on the traditional English public model with a strong emphasis on the classical texts of Ancient Greece and Rome for the mind and cricket for the body and character.

The School offered 12 years of secondary education and averaged 40 to 50 students through the Depression years of the 1890s. Discipline was enforced through the cane and the prefect system. Also on the staff were Mr and Mrs Mills who contributed financially to the founding of the School. Rendall bought them out at the end of 1892 and in 1893 married Louise Fanny Cardweaver, who became school housekeeper. For such a small school Haileybury produced an impressive number of scholars. Equally impressive were the cricket results under Rendall’s fierce coaching with successive premierships between 1898 and 1901. Gerry Hazlitt was selected for the Victorian Xl while still at school.

Mr L Berthon had joined Rendall’s staff in 1894. Due to Rendall’s continuing health problems, especially after 1906, Berthon was often in charge. Although Berthon had a less domineering personality than Rendall both men regarded supportive staff/student relationship as paramount . After Rendall’s wife was thrown from the car he was driving and killed, he sold the School to Berthon at the end of 1914. Berthon did not have Rendall’s reputation or lofty ambitions, however, and school numbers began to decline. This was compounded by the difficulty of finding good teachers during the war.

It was not all bad news in this period. Gerry Hazlitt had made the Australian Xl in 1907 and toured England in 1912. Another cricket premiership was added in 1911. By 1920 enrolments were rising again and the football team broke through for their premiership. Views of Berthon as a mere caretaker in Rendall’s shadow do not do him justice. From the rigors of war he had ensured that the School had emerged intact.

In 1932 the third Headmaster, Mr S Dickinson purchased what was then known as the ‘Castlefield’ Estate, at Hampton. From 1932 to 1939 the School was carried out at both properties.

A new Headmaster took over in 1942 and with the backing of the church, Mr Sholto Black launch a new era of expansion. By the end of 1943, 190 boys were enrolled at the School and by the time of Mr Black’s retirement in 1953 the number of boys had grown to 600.

Mr D Bradshaw became the new Headmaster and continued the expansion of the School. In 1958 Haileybury was invited to join the Associated Public Schools of Victoria. In 1961 the property ‘Newlands’ was purchased in Keysborough by the School Council and from 1963 to 1968 the Senior School operated at both the Brighton and Keysborough campuses.

Mr M Aikman took over from Bradshaw and continued to develop the Keysborough property. During the 1970s the Preparatory School was built on the ‘Newlands’ site and was to run parallel with the Preparatory School ‘Castlefield, Brighton’ situated in Hampton. In 1985 land was purchased at Berwick to establish a third Preparatory School. In 1989 the ‘Edrington’ campus opened its doors.

Dr R Pargetter took over as Principal in 1998. His blueprint for Haileybury involved the most fundamental changes in the School’s history, including the introduction of Parallel Education, a specialised Pre-Senior (Year 9) Program, the broadening of the curriculum and the three-year VCE. Girls first began at Haileybury in 2000 and in 2006 Haileybury Girls College was formally established. Pargetter died in 2007. During his time at Haileybury Pargetter increased student numbers from 1,620 to 3,110. The first girls graduated from the School later that year, and the Senior Schools opened at ‘Castlefield’ and ‘Edrington’.

Mr Derek Scott was appointed Principal in December 2007.

In 2013 the School opened its first off shore campus just outside Beijing, China.

Headmasters & Principals

Years Name

Crest and Motto

C H Rendall, an Old Boy of Haileybury, England, obtained permission from his old School to use its Name and Badge. The colours he chose were magenta and black instead of the magenta and white of the parent school; and for the motto he chose ‘Altera Terra’ to signify the establishment of a new Haileybury ‘in another land’.

The motto by itself, however, lacked an obvious moral or spiritual significance, which many people believed a school motto should possess. After careful consideration, it was decided in 1954 to couple the Motto of Haileybury, England, ‘Sursum Corda’ (‘Lift up your hearts’) to the original ‘Altera Terra’.

Brighton

The Brighton campus is commonly referred to as "Castlefield" and was established in 1932 as another component to the original campus on New Street, Brighton. The campus consists of an Early Learning Centre, Junior School, Girls Middle School, Boys Middle School and two Pre-Senior Centres. In 2007 the Senior School at Brighton officially opened.

The Brighton campus is currently undergoing a large building phase, which is due for completion in December 2013. The new building works include a brand new Early Learning Centre and new east/west wing.

Keysborough

The Keysborough campus was established in the 1960s and consists of "Newlands" and the Senior School.

"Newlands" has been open since the 1970s but has since undergone major refurbishments. The campus consists of an Early Learning Centre, Junior School, Girls Middle School, Boys Middle School and two Pre-Senior Centres. The Senior School was established in the 1960s and has undergone major redevelopments since the establishment of Haileybury Girls College in 2006.

The Keysborough campus houses the David Bradshaw Chapel, concert hall - "Aikman Hall", newly refurbished library, lecture theatre, arts precinct and numerous sporting ovals, hockey fields and tennis courts as well as an Olympic size swimming pool with diving facilities.

Berwick

The Berwick campus is commonly referred to as ‘Edrington’ and officially opened in 1989. The campus consists of an Early Learning Centre, Junior School, Girls Middle School, Boys Middle School and two Pre-Senior Centres. In 2007 the Senior School at Berwick officially opened.

Controversies

Haileybury has experienced several controversies over the years. In 2006, complaints were made that Haileybury was poaching top pupils from other schools with financial incentives. In 2013 there was anger amongst parents and ex-students over the school's involvement in a controversial television comedy - Chris Lilley's Ja'mie: Private School Girl, with one former Haileybury student stating, "We used to be proud of our roots at Haileybury and now to go back and see that they are promoting racism, homophobia, bullying, picking on kids for their weight and size is just horrible... I'm horrified to have any association with this school."

Parallel Education

At Haileybury, the parallel education system provides education for boys and girls at the same school, and both genders are allowed to interact at any time with the exception of during class times, where only single gender classes exist.

Parallel education at Haileybury incorporates two schools. Haileybury College is a school for boys, and Haileybury Girls College is a school for girls. Each school operates from the Early Learning Centre to Year 12.

How Parallel Education Works; • Girls and boys attend the same teaching precincts • Learning and activities are arranged to reflect the age and gender of the student and the nature of the activities • Students from the Early Learning Centre to Year 4 are educated in coeducational classes • Years 5 to 9 move to single gender schools at Berwick, Brighton and Keysborough (with separate Pre-Senior Centres) • The three-year VCE is conducted predominantly with separate classes for girls and boys, with students coming together for classes when appropriate, such as music or drama, and social and cultural activities.

The Haileybury Institute

In mid-December 2012 articles about Haileybury’s Explicit Teaching Model, driven by Deputy Principal John Fleming, appeared in The Australian newspaper.

Haileybury’s Deputy Principal John Fleming spends four weeks of each term travelling Australia, coaching teachers in using strategies to improve students’ skills. Under the banner of The Haileybury Institute, John Fleming has helped more than 100 schools from all corners of the country and the results have been outstanding. "The first thing I say to schools is we’re aiming to be among the best schools in Australia, we’re not aiming for national minimum benchmarks,"

"We remove all the excuses. Many schools will tell you: ‘But we have indigenous kids, or we have transient kids, or disadvantaged kids’. You quickly get rid of that." John Fleming stated. The program is delivered to hundreds of schools across Australia. "We felt we had something that was best practice in education and there was an opportunity to share it with schools around Australia" stated Principal, Derek Scott.

Prominent Social Commentator and Indigenous Leader, Noel Pearson noted in his article in The Australian that Fleming supports school reform across the nation through The Haileybury Institute.

This program closely fits with Haileybury’s extensive Social Justice Program. Many of the schools who participate in John’s program are assisted on a pro-bono basis, with education departments helping to cover the costs.

Social Justice

Haileybury places a strong emphasis on social justice through their Community Responsibility Program. Each campus of the School supports local and global charities, with approximately 40 charities benefitting from Haileybury’s extensive social justice program.

Students gain a headstrong approach to social responsibility, giving of their time to benefit others through fundraising and ongoing support of global communities in need of their help. Students show constant initiative and leadership towards global crises, and will invent creative fundraising strategies to engage peers to participate and provide aid where they are able.

As part of their social justice program, Haileybury students seek to raise awareness about the not-for-profit organisations they support, and the work these organisations accomplish. Haileybury Berwick’s Boys Middle School created a campaign in collaboration with Beyond Blue Youth to tackle the issues surrounding youth depression.

In accordance with Haileybury’s strong emphasis on social justice and the support of communities, the school has an extensive environmental program. Haileybury is committed to a ‘green campaign,’ developing sustainable environmental practices, which they have implemented across each campus.