Monmouth School

History

In 1613, William Jones, a prominent merchant and haberdasher, gave the Haberdashers’ Company £6,000, followed by a further £3,000 bequeathed in his will on his death in 1615, to "ordaine a preacher, a Free-School and Almes-houses for twenty poor and old distressed people, as blind and lame, as it shall seem best to them, of the Towne of Monmouth, where it shall be bestowed". Jones was born at Newland, Gloucestershire and brought up in Monmouth, leaving to make a sizeable fortune as a London merchant engaged in the cloth trade with the continent. Jones' motivations for his bequest appear partly philanthropic and partly evangelical; "the priority given to the preacher illustrates his concern to convert an area in the Marches which was still, when the school opened in 1614, strongly recusant."

The Haberdashers purchased four fields as the site for the school before Jones's death and by 1615, the almshouses, and the schoolroom and headmaster's house had been completed. Nothing remains of the original school buildings. In 1865, and on the same site, the school was substantially rebuilt (see below). By 1872, and under the headmastership of the Rev. Charles Manley Roberts, Monmouth had become a member of the prestigious Headmaster's Conference (created by Edward Thring of Uppingham in 1869), a mark of its increasing reputation and status as a public school. As a result of rising revenues from investments - Monmouth's endowment was one of wealthiest of any school by the mid-19th century - the original foundation was re-organised in 1891 to support a new girls’ school and an elementary school in the town, as well as a boys grammar school (West Monmouth School) in Pontypool. The elementary school was transferred to County Council control in 1940 with West Monmouth School at Pontypool following in 1955. This left the William Jones’s Schools Foundation responsible for Monmouth School and Haberdashers' Monmouth School for Girls - also known as HMSG - both of which joined the Direct Grant scheme in 1946. In 1976, and with the ending of Assisted Places, the school returned to full independence.

Prior to Keith Kissack's 1995 volume, three earlier histories of the school had been published: the History of the Charities of William Jones at Monmouth and Newland of 1899, by the Reverend W M Warlow; Monmouth School in the 'Sixties and 'Seventies, by the Reverend K M Pitt; and Monmouth School, 1614-1964 of 1964, by H A Ward. A new history of the school, Monmouth School: The First 400 Years, was published in 2014 to mark the school's four hundredth anniversary. This event was also commemorated by a service of thanksgiving at St. Paul's Cathedral, on 19 March 2014, attended by some 1,200 pupils and staff from the school, and from Haberdashers' Monmouth School for Girls.

Buildings

The rebuilding of the school (1864–1878) was mostly undertaken by William Snooke and Henry Stock, of the firm Snooke & Stock, surveyors to the Haberdashers' Company. Snooke built the chapel, two schoolrooms and a classroom in 1864-5, followed in the 1870s by the library, Headmaster's House and the buildings which now form Monmouth House and Hereford House. Snooke also redeveloped the Monmouth Alms Houses, on Almshouse Street, now part of the school and which incorporate a large inscription panel describing the benefactions of the Jones Foundation. Snooke's work was not universally praised; a report from the School's Commissioner commenting, "the architect has arranged the buildings in a most inconvenient manner, and the ventilation is deficient." School House, with its ceremonial arched entrance and coat of arms facing the Wye Bridge, was designed by Henry Stock in 1894-5. It is a Grade II listed building as of 8 October 2005. The war memorial was dedicated in 1921, Angus Buchanan (VC) attending the ceremony.

More modern developments include the Hall of 1961, redeveloped in the early 21st century and now the Blake Theatre, the Red Lion Block of the same date and the Science Block of 1981-4. In November 2008, a £2.3 million sports pavilion was completed and opened by the former Welsh and British Lions captain, Eddie Butler, an old boy of the School. It was designed by the architects Buttress Fuller Alsop Williams. 2011 saw the commencement of the Heart Project. This saw the sale of some outlying sites, such as St. James's House, and the re-organisation of others, in order to assist in the raising of funds for the redevelopment of the main school site. Further funds came from the Haberdashers' Company, and the first phase was completed with the rebuilding of the Red Lion Block, now renamed the William Jones Building. Further phases are planned, as funds allow.

The School today

With 600 pupils Monmouth School offers boarding and day places as well as preparatory departments in a single-sex environment. To enable a wide range of A and AS level subjects to be taken, there is some mixed-sex teaching in the Sixth Form with the sister school, Haberdashers' Monmouth School for Girls (HMSG).

Houses

There are three main age divisions in the school; lower (forms I and II) middle (forms III, IV, and V) and sixth form (forms VI.1 and VI.2). Within these divisions, pupils are members of different houses as follows: Wye and Dean Houses, the lower school day houses, which are incorporated under one roof in a building at the south of the campus; St James House has been recently moved to Chapel house, the lower school boarding house, located off-site nearby in St James Square; Severn House, the newest of the middle school day houses, located on the ground floor of the middle school house complex at the north of the campus; Town House; Monmouth House, one of the original day houses, located below Hereford House in a building which also houses the Classics and Religious Studies departments and is connected to Severn and Town Houses; Hereford House, another of the original day houses; New House, a boarding house, located next to the administrative buildings in the centre of the campus; Weirhead House, a boarding house, located at the south of the campus; School House, a boarding house, located next to the middle school house complex at the north-east of the complex; Chapel House, Monmouth, a Grade II* listed building, located offsite on the Hereford Road to the north of the town and Tudor, Glendower and Buchanan Houses, which comprise the sixth form centre and V1.2 boarding.

Academics and extra-curricular

Monmouth School offers a range of subjects, over 30 being available for study to AS and A Level, through collaboration with HMSG. This selection is supported by facilities such as the School Library, Science laboratories, computer suites, and design technology workshop.

In 2004 The Blake Theatre, was opened. Funded by Bob Blake, it is used as a venue for performances by both the boys' and girls' schools, and by external performers. It was officially opened by HRH The Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex.

The school also possesses a large music school (Glover Music School) with an auditorium, teaching rooms and practice rooms. The school's strong musical tradition owes much to Michael Eveleigh, Director of Music at the school from 1950-1986.

Extra-curricular activities include foreign expeditions, music and drama events as well as the school newspaper, The Lion, a creative writing leaflet, The Lion's Tale, and an annual school magazine, The Monmothian. The School also has a CCF (Combined Cadet Force) which has both an Army and RAF Section and is operated in collaboration with HMSG.

Sport

The school's three main sports are rugby, rowing and cricket. The sports facilities include a new sports complex which houses a six-lane swimming pool, indoor sports facilities, a weight and fitness suite, tennis courts, and a full size astroturf pitch which can be used for a variety of activities. The school's sporting tradition is reflected in the fact that many boys play at county or national level, especially in rugby, rowing, and cricket. In addition to rowing and rugby the school offers a range of other sports which include Association football, basketball, athletics, canoeing, climbing, cricket, cross country, fencing, fitness training, hockey, golf, sailing, shooting, squash, sub-aqua, swimming, tennis, and water polo.

Other

In June 2009, the school paid out £150,000 to settle a landmark pensions rights case brought by female catering and support staff who claimed that, as part-time workers, they had been unjustly excluded from the school's pension scheme.

Alumni