Ampleforth College

Ampleforth College
Location
Ampleforth , North Yorkshire , YO62 4ER England
Information
Type	Independent school Roman Catholic.
Motto	[Dieu le ward] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help) (French for God the protector)
Established	1802
Headmaster	The Reverend Gabriel Everitt OSB, MA, DPhil (Oxon)
Colour(s)	Red and Black
Website	http://www.college.ampleforth.org.uk

Ampleforth College in North Yorkshire, England, is the largest Roman Catholic co-educational boarding independent school in the United Kingdom. It opened in 1802 and is run by the Benedictine monks and lay staff of Ampleforth Abbey. The current headmaster is Father Gabriel Everitt OSB.

Ampleforth Abbey

Situation

The school is situated in a valley with sports pitches, wooded areas and lakes. There are three lakes remaining of the original five constructed by the Fairfax Family centuries ago. The middle lake is stocked with trout (mainly brown and rainbow, although the occasional blue back has been seen).

Education

The school's primary concern is to provide pupils with not just academic sporting and other achievements, but also "a spiritual compass for life": moral principles to give guidance in a secular world; within a context where the "Benedictine ethos permeates pupils’ experience".

The Good Schools Guide called the school an "Unfailingly civilised and understanding top co-educational boarding Catholic school that has suffered from time to time as a result of its long liberal tradition." The Guide adds also that there is "A refreshing openness and honesty about the place these days."

It is notable that its academic admissions policy isn't as exacting as that exercised by some other English public schools. As a result, the school is typically between 150 - 200 in the annual league tables of public examination results, although it was ranked 6th nationally in the 2004 "value added" table.

It maintains a scholarship set, with about 5% of pupils gaining the offer of a place at Oxford or Cambridge. Over 90% go on to university.

School life

Though originally only a boys' school the college is now fully co-educational. In 2009 an OFSTED Social Care report said that the overall quality of care was outstanding.

Religious life

The monks at the Abbey belong to the Community of St Laurence (a House of the English Benedictine Congregation), who trace their origins back nearly 1000 years to medieval Westminster. Although there are more than 90 monks in Ampleforth, only about 10 are in contact with the students, with another 2 in St. Martin's Ampleforth. As a result of the school's association with the monks, religion is central to the life of the school. All pupils are expected to take religious education all the way through school. Mass is attended by all pupils twice a week, once on a weekday in the house, and once on Sunday in the Abbey Church. In addition, each house has prayers each morning and evening.

The school has a boys' choir, the Schola Cantorum, which sings at High Mass on Sunday and also at a choral Mass on Friday nights during term time. The choir has made various recordings, broadcasts and tours throughout the world. There is also now a girls' choir, Schola Puellarum, which was recently noted in both newspaper and magazine. They sing a service every Thursday, and they sing on Holy Days of Obligation in high mass on Sunday. They recently went on a tour to Dublin, and sang in many of the well-known churches there.

Houses

The school is arranged into ten houses, with students living in the separate houses, eating together as a house and playing sport together as a house in inter-house competitions. Each House is named after a British saint:

• St Aidan's (Girls) Housemistress: Dr. Victoria Fogg
• St Bede's (Girls) Housemistress: Mr Brendan & Victoria Anglim
• St Cuthbert's (Boys) Housemaster: Mr David Willis
• St Dunstan's (Boys) Housemaster: (awaiting appointment)
• St Edward-Wilfrid's (Boys), originally two houses, Housemaster: Mr Adrian Smerdon
• St Hugh's (Boys) Housemaster: Mr Hugh Codrington
• St John's (Boys), Housemaster: Dr David Moses Phd
• St Oswald's (Boys) Housemaster: (awaiting appointment)
• St Margaret's (Girls) Housemistress: Mrs Gaelle McGovern
• St Thomas' (Boys) Housemaster: Mr Paul Brenan

Some of the houses are paired into buildings named after people who have been instrumental in the school's history:

• Hume House - St Cuthbert's and St Edward-Wilfrid's - Named after Cardinal Basil Hume (although originally Saint Edward's house on one side and Saint Wilfrid's house on the other)
• Nevill House - St Dunstan's and St Oswald's
• Bolton House - formerly St Edward's and St Wilfrid's before their merger in 2001
• Fairfax House - St Margaret's and St Hugh's

St Martin's Ampleforth is the Prep School for Ampleforth, situated a few miles across the valley in Gilling Castle.

Sport

Sport is a large part of school life, with pupils participating in a wide variety of sports including rugby, shooting, tennis, cricket and football. As well as many rugby and cricket pitches set in the 2000 acres (8 km²) of the valley, the school runs the St Alban's Centre (SAC), a sports centre with a large hall (also used for school assemblies and official ceremonies), a 25-metre swimming pool, three squash courts, and a fitness suite. SAC is also open to the general public for a fee.

The school has a sporting history, mostly regarding arch rivals Sedbergh School and Stonyhurst College both of whom play Ampleforth in about twenty (boys and girls) sports annually. The highlight of the sporting year however, is the annual rugby matches between Sedbergh and Ampleforth. Sedbergh in recent years proving to be superior, not having lost a 1st XV game against "the old enemy" since 1998.

Ampleforth has produced some top class sportsmen, especially in Rugby, such as Lawrence Dallaglio and Simon and Guy Easterby.

Ampleforth Abbey and College.

Sexual abuse

See also: Sexual abuse scandal in the English Benedictine Congregation

Ampleforth and the Valley from the air.

Several monks and three members of the lay teaching staff molested children in their care over several decades. In 2005 Father Piers Grant-Ferris admitted 20 incidents of child abuse. This was not an isolated incident. The Yorkshire Post reported in 2005; "Pupils at a leading Roman Catholic school suffered decades of abuse from at least six paedophiles following a decision by former Abbot Basil Hume not to call in police at the beginning of the scandal."

Press coverage

The school has periodically experienced a drugs problem. A 2003 TV documentary made by director Dan Barraclough highlighted large-scale breaking of the school rules on smoking and some abuse of alcohol.

In September 2005, Ampleforth was one of fifty of the country's leading private schools (including Tonbridge, Charterhouse, Eton, Radley, Gresham's, Harrow, Haileybury, Lancing, Marlborough, Rugby, Sedbergh School, Shrewsbury, Stowe, Wellington, Winchester and Worth) which were found by the Office of Fair Trading to be operating a fee-fixing cartel in breach of the Competition Act of 1998. All of the schools were ordered to abandon this practice, pay a nominal penalty of £10,000 and 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.

Daughter abbeys

In 1955, at the invitation of prominent Roman Catholic laypersons in Saint Louis, Missouri, a group of Benedictines from Ampleforth established the Priory of Saints Mary and Louis and the corresponding Saint Louis Priory School in Saint Louis. The Priory became independent from Ampleforth in 1973, and was elevated to abbey status, becoming the Saint Louis Abbey in 1989.

Notable Old Amplefordians

Religion

• Thomas Burgess (1791–1854), Roman Catholic Bishop of Clifton, 1851–1854
• Athanasius Allanson (1804–1876), Benedictine monk, and Abbot of Glastonbury, 1874–1876
• Cuthbert Hedley (1837–1915), Roman Catholic Bishop of Newport, 1881–1915
• Columba Cary-Elwes (1903–1994), monastery founder, ecumenist and author
• Anthony Ainscough (1906–1986), Prior of Ampleforth Abbey, 1961–1963
• Basil, Cardinal Hume (1923–1999), Abbot of Ampleforth Abbey, 1963–1975, and Archbishop of Westminster, 1975–1999

Politics, law and business

• Don Agustín Jerónimo de Iturbide y Huarte (1807–1866), Prince Imperial of Mexico
• Julian Asquith, 2nd Earl of Oxford and Asquith (1916–2011), diplomat
• Sir Hugh Fraser (1918–1984), Secretary of State for Air, 1962–1964
• Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg (born 1921), Grand Duke of Luxembourg, 1964–2000
• Auberon Herbert (1922–1974), campaigner for Eastern European causes
• Michael Nolan, Baron Nolan (1928–2007), Law Lord and first chairman of the Committee on Standards in Public Life
• Andrew Bertie (1929–2008), first British Grand Master of the Knights Hospitaller, 1988–2008;
• John George (born 1930), HM Kintyre Pursuivant of Arms,well known herald and author.
• David Hennessy, 3rd Baron Windlesham (born 1932), Lord Privy Seal and Leader of the House of Lords, 1973–1974
• John Crichton-Stuart, 6th Marquess of Bute (1933–1993), Chairman, Historic Buildings Council for Scotland, 1983–1988, and National Museums of Scotland, 1985–1993
• King Moshoeshoe II of Lesotho (1938–1996), King of Lesotho (1966–1970, 1970–1990, 1995–96)
• Michael Ancram, 14th Marquess of Lothian (born 1945), Deputy Leader of the Conservative Party, 2001–2005
• Sir Anthony Bamford (born 1945), Chairman, J.C.Bamford (Excavators) Ltd.
• John Burnett, Baron Burnett (born 1945), former Liberal Democrat MP for Torridge and West Devon, 1997–2001, 2001-5, Life Peer, 2006-
• William Peel, 3rd Earl Peel (born 1947), Lord Chamberlain
• John Home Robertson (born 1948), former Labour MP and currently Member of the Scottish Parliament
• Matthew Festing (born 1949), second British Grand Master of the Knights Hospitaller, 2008–present;
• Raymond Asquith, 3rd Earl of Oxford and Asquith (born 1952), former diplomat and businessman
• Edward Fitzalan-Howard, 18th Duke of Norfolk (born 1956)
• Dominic Asquith (born 1957), Ambassador to Iraq, 2006—2007, Ambassador to Egypt, 2007–present.
• King Letsie III of Lesotho (born 1963), King of Lesotho (1990–95, 1996–present)
• Paul Moore, whistleblower sacked from HBOS

Arts and entertainment

• Herbert Railton (1857–1910), illustrator
• Roderic O'Conor (1860–1940), artist
• Harman Grisewood (1906–1997), Chief Assistant to the Director-General of the BBC, 1955–1964
• Vincent Cronin (born 1924), historical writer and biographer
• Patrick Reyntiens (born 1925), stained glass artist
• Hugo Young (1938–2003), journalist
• Andrew Knight (born 1939), journalist, editor, and media magnate
• Mark Burns (born 1936–2007), actor
• Piers Paul Read (born 1941), writer
• Tom Waller (born 1974), film producer
• Henry Hudson (born 1982), artist
• James O'Brien (born 1972), radio presenter and journalist
• Edward Stourton (born 1957), journalist
• Julian Wadham (born 1958), actor
• Rupert Everett (born 1959), actor
• Julian Fellowes (born 1949), actor and writer
• Antony Gormley (born 1950), sculptor
• Peter Bergen (born 1962), author, print and TV journalist, CNN, adjunct professor, Johns Hopkins University
• John Micklethwait (born 1962), editor-in-chief of The Economist
• Red Morris, 4th Baron Killanin (born 1947), film producer
• Joe Simpson (born 1960), mountaineer and autobiographer
• Andrew Festing (born 1941), British Royal Portrait Painter

Military

• Major-General Sir Freddie de Guingand (1900–1979), Chief of Staff to Field Marshal Montgomery, 1942–1945
• Brigadier Simon Fraser, 15th Lord Lovat (1911–1995), founder of the commandos.
• Colonel Sir David Stirling (1915–1990), founder of the SAS
• Major General Lord Michael Fitzalan-Howard (1916–2007), Marshal of the Diplomatic Corps 1972-1981
• Michael Allmand (1923–1944), Victoria Cross recipient (posthumous). Killed in action 24 June 1944, in Burma.
• Brigadier Andrew Parker Bowles (born 1939), soldier
• Major General Sir Sebastian Roberts (born 1954), GOC The Household Division 2003–2007
• Major-General Peter Grant Peterkin (born c.1947), Sergeant at Arms of the House of Commons
• Captain Robert Nairac (1948–1977), George Cross, intelligence officer killed by the Provisional Irish Republican Army

Philosophy and academe

• Gabriel Turville-Petre (1908–1978), Professor of Ancient Icelandic Literature and Antiquities, University of Oxford, 1953–1975
• Henry Wansbrough (1934), Master of St Benet's Hall, Oxford, 1990–2004
• Philip Lawrence (1947–1995), headmaster and murder victim
• William Dalrymple (born 1965), historian
• Robert Maximilian de Gaynesford (born 1968), philosopher

Science and medicine

• John Polidori (1795–1821), physician and writer
• Thomas Cecil Gray (1913–2008) pioneered modern Anaesthetic techniques
• Bill Inman (1929–2005) pharmacovigilance pioneer

Sport

• Edward O'Donovan Crean (born 1887), English rugby union player who was part of the first official British and Irish Lions team that toured South Africa in 1910.
• Charles Grieve (1913-2000), cricketer who played for Oxford University and Guernsey
• John Crichton-Stuart, 7th Marquess of Bute (b. 1958), a Scottish peer and former racing driver ("Johnny Dumfries")
• Guy Easterby (born 1971), Ireland international rugby scrum-half
• Lawrence Dallaglio (born 1972), England rugby player
• Simon Easterby (born 1975), Ireland rugby player

Other

• Peter Bergen (born 1962) author
• Prince Sebastian of Luxembourg (born 1992)

External links

• Ampleforth College official site
• Ampleforth official umbrella site
• A website for alumni of Ampleforth College
• Profile at the Good Schools Guide
• Special report