Oundle School

History

The original school was known as Laxton Grammar School, and founded by Sir William Laxton. Laxton had been eight times Master of the Worshipful Company of Grocers and was Lord Mayor of the City of London in 1544. After Laxton's death in 1556, his will decreed the founding of a school for the local boys of Oundle, which was to be maintained by the Worshipful Company of Grocers. There had been a school on the site since at least 1485, at which Laxton himself was educated.

The size and reputation of Laxton Grammar School rose gradually in the following centuries such that by the mid-nineteenth century, many of the school's pupils had been sent from around the country to receive their education in Oundle. In 1876 the decision was made by the Grocers to divide the school into Oundle School and Laxton Grammar School. Laxton Grammar School was to continue to educate boys from Oundle and its surrounding villages while Oundle School was to accept only the sons of gentlemen from further afield.

It is during this period that Oundle rose to prominence as an English Public School, which can be largely attributed to F. W. Sanderson in his role as headmaster from 1892 until his death in 1922. When Sanderson joined Oundle he found a minor country boarding school; by the time of his death the school had become the leading establishment for science and engineering education. The success of Sanderson can be attributed to his educational ethos; he believed in teaching students what they wanted to learn and as a result helped to introduce subjects such as science, modern languages, and engineering to the English independent school system.

The major development came about in 1990 when Oundle admitted girls for the first time. In the year 2000 the decision was made by the school's governing body to re-unite Oundle School and Laxton School as a single educational establishment under the common name Oundle School, with Laxton House becoming the day house.

The school today

Oundle has 835 boarders and 235 day pupils. It is the third largest independent boarding school in England, after Eton and Millfield. The various school buildings which date from the 15th century are scattered around the market town, with the Cloisters acting as the nucleus of the school community.

The Good Schools Guide described the school as a "Popular, well oiled, well heeled co-educational boarding school which is riding high." Pupils obtain strong results at GCSE and A Level. In their 2013 A Levels pupils achieved 89.1% A* to B grades, with over 60% of grades either A* or A. Many pupils go on to study at Oxbridge; the overwhelming majority continue to Russell Group universities.

The school still promotes the practice of Christian values and maintains strong links with the Church of England by celebrating the major events of the Christian calendar. All pupils who board are required to attend services in the school chapel three times a week: one midweek lunch time service, Friday hymn practice, and the Sunday service. Pupils of other faiths are free to worship according to their own beliefs but must still attend chapel with the rest of the school.

The school places a strong emphasis on extra-curricular activities which encourage pupils to develop interests outside the classroom. One of the ways in which the school fosters extra-curricular interests is through its extensive programme of voluntary clubs and societies (approaching 50 in number), which range from poetry and debating to croquet and wine tasting. Each academic subject also has its own society which organises evening lectures from guest speakers throughout the year; these can be either directly related to the syllabus or simply to broaden interest in the subject. A new subject, Trivium, gives Third Form pupils timetabled engagement with extension topics for their own sake, using methods of thought drawn from the traditional liberal arts. Outside term time pupils are given the opportunity to participate in the countless regular school trips which explore all corners of the globe. These include history trips to major European cities, language exchanges in Europe and Asia, charity work in Africa, AAAS conventions and politics trips in America, natural history expeditions to Antarctica, and many more.

Sport is considered to be an essential part of school life and while there exists a multitude of sports to choose from, the emphasis remains on traditional team sports such as rugby, hockey, cricket, rowing and soccer for boys, and hockey, netball and tennis for girls. Oundle performs particularly strongly in independent school rugby, cricket and girls' hockey. A large proportion of the school gathers to support the 1st XV rugby team on the Two Acre during the Michaelmas and Christmas quarters. The school's greatest sporting rivalry is with Uppingham School, while other rivalries include Harrow School, Radley College, Stamford School and Rugby School. The school sends regular rugby, cricket and hockey tours to countries all around the world, while the social 'Ramblers' cricket team is known in the school for its tours of the U.K. and the Caribbean. The Oundle Rovers Cricket Club (made up of Old Oundelians) plays in The Cricketer Cup [3] and hosts its own cricket week at the school. The Rovers have won the cup three times and are third in the all time order of merit.

Like sport, music plays a vital role within school life for many pupils, and over 60% of pupils regularly practise a musical instrument while at Oundle. The school offers an extensive range of groups, bands, orchestras and choirs which cater for many musical tastes. Such is the success of music at Oundle that in recent years many pupils have gone on to receive musical or choral scholarships from Oxbridge, while school bands and choirs have gone on to perform concerts across the U.K., Europe and even Asia. Musical and non-musical pupils are encouraged to get involved in the house shout and part song competitions in the Lent term which are independently judged and contested fiercely. Possibly the greatest success in the practice of music at the school is its rock society, which can count the likes of Bruce Dickinson among its earliest members. 'Roc-Soc' has been running since the 1970s and promotes the independent formation of popular music bands which have their own dedicated concerts towards the end of every term.

Oundle School has the largest Combined Cadet Force of any school in the country which plays an important role in both the development of pupils as well as in the community, for example in the annual Remembrance Day service held in St Peter's Church. The CCF offers pupils the opportunity to practice their leadership skills whether on parade at school, on the termly field weekends, or on the annual camps. The school has a strong tradition of serving the community with many pupils opting to provide assistance in the local area, or Community Action as an alternative to CCF. There are a broad range of Community Action options available in the Oundle area which cater not only for the needs of the local community but also for the extra-curricular interests of the pupils. Many pupils choose to undertake the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme which provides an ideal combination of the skills they acquire during CCF and Community Action. Every summer since 1982 sixth formers and former pupils have run the Oundle School Mencap holiday, a residential holiday for children with a range of learning disabilities and now a highly respected charity in its own right.

The school has ties with the Laxton Junior School, for primary school pupils, some of whom continue their secondary education as pupils at the senior school. A modern building for Laxton Junior was completed in 2003, which allowed the school to double its intake.

In November 2005 the school was found to have taken part in a cartel of price fixing amongst public schools. However, Mrs. 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 a long-established procedure in sharing the information with each other, and that they 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 a long-established practice because they were unaware that the law had changed."

Facilities

Oundle School's facilities include the following:

Houses

The school has 14 boarding houses in total. There are eight boys' boarding houses (Bramston, Crosby, Fisher [formerly Laxton House], Grafton, Laundimer, School, Sidney and St Anthony), five girls' boarding houses (Dryden, Kirkeby, New House, Sanderson and Wyatt) and a junior house (The Berrystead). Laxton House (formerly Laxton School) caters solely for day pupils.

Oundle's Boarding Houses differ greatly in character, customs, and traditions and there has always been a healthy rivalry between them. House Masters and Mistresses live with their families in private accommodation located within the boarding houses. The House Master/Mistress plays a crucial role in the every day running of the house and is supported by a deputy as well as a head of house and a team of prefects from the sixth form. In addition, each house has a number of house tutors who take care of approximately eight pupils each. Each house also has a resident matron who not only cares for the unwell but also plays an important pastoral and administrative role within the house. Student accommodation varies between houses, most houses contain a mixture of dormitories and bed-sits which are usually allocated according to seniority. Each house has its own library, computer room, recreation room, and dining room as well as living facilities such as kitchens, bathrooms and changing rooms.

The Boarding Houses are divided into two categories, Town and Field. The Town Houses front onto Oundle's central streets and have extensive grounds at the rear. The buildings were converted from a mixture of large private residences and shops and as such tend to possess highly individual, sometimes even labyrinthine layouts. The Field Houses provide accommodation in grand buildings which were purpose-built (mostly around the time of Sanderson) and are located slightly further from the town among the sports pitches and the school's other recreational facilities.

Old Oundelians

Alumni of the school include rock musician Bruce Dickinson and evolutionary biologist and science writer Richard Dawkins. Former pupils are known as Old Oundelians. The OO Club was founded in 1883.

Victoria Cross winners

Three Old Oundelians were awarded the Victoria Cross for actions during the First World War:

Notable masters

School song

The official school song is Carmen Undeliense (words by R.F. Patterson, music by Clement M. Spurling, published in 1912 by Novello & Company Ltd of London).