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Aylesbury Grammar School

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Aylesbury Grammar School
File:AGS Badge.jpg
Address
Map
Walton Road

Aylesbury
,
Buckinghamshire
,
HP21 7RP

England England
Information
TypeVoluntary controlled Grammar school
Established1598
FounderSir Henry Lee
Local authorityBuckinghamshire
SpecialistScience (Primary)
Languages (Secondary)
Maths & Computing
OfstedReports
HeadmasterMr Stephen R. Lehec BA (Winchester) [1]
GenderBoys
Age11 to 18
Enrollmentc. 1,250
Colour(s)Maroon, Black and White    
Websitehttp://www.ags.bucks.sch.uk
The Geography (l) and Maths blocks by the school field

Aylesbury Grammar School is a single-sex male grammar school in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, England, which educates 1,250 pupils. As a selective state school, its entry requirements are dictated by the exam taken at the age of 10-11. In September 1997 the school was awarded specialist school status in Technology, which it kept until Summer 2007, when it was decided that a more academic specialist subject would be more appropriate for AGS and the school successfully gained Science College status as its primary specialism. In April 2006 AGS gained a second college status as a Language College and the gained a second secondary college status in Maths and Computing in January 2008.[citation needed]

The school educates boys from the age of 11, in year 7, through to the age of 18, in year 13 (Upper VI). The school has its largest intakes at Year 7 followed by Year 12 (Lower VI). On completing GCSEs, most pupils stay on to complete their A-levels at the school's sixth-form.

History

Founded, 1598 in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire by Sir Henry Lee, Aylesbury Grammar School celebrated 100 years on the current site in Walton Road in 2007. It is commonly referred to by its students and staff by the abbreviations 'AGS' or 'The Grammar'.

The school was previously a mixed sex school but then parted after a fire which destroyed part of the old school buildings. The girls' school became Aylesbury High School and is across the road from Aylesbury Grammar School.

The current headmaster is Stephen Lehec who took over from Steve Harvey at the start of the 2008-9 academic year. [2]

Houses

Each pupil is placed into one of six houses upon starting at the school. The six houses are:

House Colour Current House Leader Significance
Denson   Sky Blue E Hill  
Hampden   Green R Rooney Named after John Hampden, leader of the victorious Parliamentarian forces in the Battle of Aylesbury in 1642
Lee   Yellow P Dean Named after the founder of the school, Sir Henry Lee, Bart of Ditchley
Paterson   Maroon K Chalk Named after Mrs. Paterson, a long serving member of the Governing body. The newest house, founded in 1981 
Phillips   Red P Jackson Named after Henry Phillips of London, influential in the founding of the school
Ridley   Dark Blue J Barrie  

Sanctions

The school has a behaviour policy[3], which prescribes the following principles.

  1. respect other people
  2. respect their environment
  3. work hard
  4. take part
  5. follow the rules of the school.

If any of these principles are broken, then there are numerous sanctions that can be imposed. For minor offences, such as eating in a classroom, pupils may be required to attend a short break or lunchtime detention, but if they fail to attend, or they commit a more serious offence, they may be given an after school detention. These come in two varieties, the private detention (which comes with a yellow slip) and a school detention (white slip with red wording). Detentions are often referred to as "dets", so to receive a private detention with a subject teacher would be to receive a "yellow det".

A private detention can be given to a pupil who misbehaves to a fairly serious level, or consistently misses deadlines. The detention will be supervised by the department who gave it. A school detention is given for more serious offences, such as violence. These are held in a lecture theatre and are supervised by a senior member of staff. They are also recorded on the pupils' records.

For pupils who fail to participate in school activities, or who are perceived by their teachers (or parents) to be making insufficient effort, there are three types of 'report' that are designed to monitor their progress. These include 'homework report' to ensure homework is completed to a high standard, and daily or weekly 'effort reports' which monitor the pupil's level of participation. These periods of report can last for an entire term, or longer, at the discretion of the relevant Head of Year.

For serious offences, a merit holiday (inset day) may be denied. For persistent defiance and misbehaviour an exclusion may be given. Finally, if a pupil was to not respond to any of these punishments or was caught committing a very serious offence then a permanent exclusion would be implemented. However this is mainly in the hands of the County and LEA (Local Education Authority).

House trophy competitions

Each year, the school houses compete for the Brodie Trophy for sports and the Watson Trophy for all other activities (including art, music and public speaking). The awards are named for former pupils who made a great contribution to the school's life. The competitions have been taking place for over 300 years, when the 'houses' were groups of boarders living in one building.[4]There is also a defunct trophy called 'Merit Marks', which was abolished due to imbalances in the willingness of various teachers to distribute them.

Boys are encouraged throughout the year to take part in house events, as well as some individual events. Most of the encouragement comes from their heads of house, who are in charge of 210 pupils on average (or 7 tutor groups, each consisting of 30 pupils).

At the end of each event the houses gain points for their placements in these events; and at the end of the year, these points are totaled up and a winner is declared for each trophy.

Uniform

Students are currently required, as part of uniform, to wear a white shirt, school tie (black, white and maroon diagonal striped), black trousers, black school blazer (optional in summer) and black leather shoes. In the VI form, students are permitted to wear coloured shirts. It has just been put through the school council that pupils may be allowed to wear their own suits, such as the pupils of the Sir Henry Floyd Grammar School, also in Aylesbury. It was decided not to implement any changes to the school uniform.

However for families in financial difficulties, there remains the option of purchasing second hand uniform from the school thrift shop.

Teaching system

In the first three years of the school, pupils are almost exclusively taught in their houses, or 'tutor groups' (with the exceptions of Maths, in which pupils are streamed by ability in year 8-9, and by their second Foreign Language choice in year 8-9). Tutor groups are also split up into groups of 20 for Design Technology lessons, and for Art and Ceramics in Years 8-9.

In Year 10 and above, the year group is reshuffled into 7 smaller sized 'forms' for teaching of the sciences, English and P.E., whilst pupils' different GCSE choices mean they may not see others from either tutor group or form. From this point onwards, the houses play no significant role other than teams for the Watson or Brodie trophies.

The teaching staff at Aylesbury Grammar School includes Dr. Carol Blyth, who has received a 'Teacher of the Decade' award[5][dead link] as well as Dr Kevin Bond, author and Chairman of Examiners for Computing.[6]

Notable alumni

References

  1. ^ Aylesbury Grammar School Website
  2. ^ http://www.ags.bucks.sch.uk/
  3. ^ "The Aylesbury Grammar School 'Behaviour Policy'" (DOC). Retrieved 2007-11-29.
  4. ^ Mead, W.R. (1997). Aylesbury Grammar School 1598-1998: a Commemorative Volume. The Peterhouse Press. ISBN 0-946312-06-0.
  5. ^ Dr. Carol Blyth is 'Teacher of the Decade'
  6. ^ One of Dr. Kevin Bond's Books
  7. ^ The Independent Online
  8. ^ Peter Jukes CV Accessed 15 January 2007
  9. ^ Who's Who 2007. A & C Black. ISBN 978-0-7136-7527-6. {{cite book}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)

Photos of the school

  • The old school site in Aylesbury town centre that hosted the school from 1598 to 1907
    The old school site in Aylesbury town centre that hosted the school from 1598 to 1907
  • The main school hall, used for Upper School Assembly and drama productions, among others, was constructed in the 1950s
    The main school hall, used for Upper School Assembly and drama productions, among others, was constructed in the 1950s
  • The Languages block (known as the Tower block until 2003) hosts Modern Foreign Language lessons, as well as Classics and various other 'overflows'
    The Languages block (known as the Tower block until 2003) hosts Modern Foreign Language lessons, as well as Classics and various other 'overflows'
  • The John Mason Raven Sports Hall, opened at Easter 2003, is one of the newest constructions and has replaced the Gym as the primary sports facility. The building includes a large viewing balcony
    The John Mason Raven Sports Hall, opened at Easter 2003, is one of the newest constructions and has replaced the Gym as the primary sports facility. The building includes a large viewing balcony
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