Pangbourne College
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| Pangbourne College | |
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| File:Pangbourne College.jpg | |
| Location | |
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| , , RG8 8LA England | |
| Information | |
| Type | Independent day and boarding school |
| Motto | Fortiter ac fideliter ("Bravely and faithfully") |
| Religious affiliation(s) | Church of England |
| Established | 1917 |
| Founder | Thomas Lane Devitt |
| Head | Mr Thomas Garnier |
| Gender | Co-Educational |
| Age | 11 to 18 |
| Enrollment | 400 |
| Houses | 7 |
| Colour(s) | Navy Blue, Red and White |
| Former pupils | Old Pangbournians |
| Website | http://www.pangbournecollege.com/ |
Pangbourne College is a coeducational independent day and boarding school located in the civil parish of Pangbourne, just south-west of the village, in the English county of Berkshire. The headmaster, Mr Thomas Garnier, served in the Royal Navy before switching to a career in teaching. He taught physics and was a housemaster before becoming headmaster in 2005, after Dr Kenneth Greig. The College is renowned for its traditions and holds a parade on the first Sunday of every month, throughout the academic year. Eventually culminating in 'Founders Day' on the last Saturday of the year. Pangbourne has its own distinctive vocabulary, much of it nautical. A pupils' study bedroom is called a 'cabin', house common rooms are known as 'gunrooms' and home clothes are referred to as 'scruff'. The Good Schools Guide describes Pangbourne as "a modern and successful school which concentrates on bringing the best out of each pupil."
History
The college was originally founded by Thomas Lane Devitt in 1917 as The Nautical College, Pangbourne with the purpose of preparing boys to be Officers in the Merchant Navy through the shipping company, 'Devitt and Moore'. In 1969 the College became "Pangbourne College" in a move that saw a shift in focus to the provision of a traditional academic programme. Many of the founding traditions of the College continue to reinforce the values that lie at the core of the College today.
Academic
Pangbourne has students with a range of academic abilities: the students achieve good results and almost all who study at A-Level go on to a variety of universities, including Oxford and Cambridge. Students can chose to study from a wide variety of subjects at both GCSE and A-Level.
Subjects taught to GCSE and A-Level include: English, Business Studies, History, Design Technology, Geography, French, German, Spanish, Physical Education, Religious Studies, Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry and Physics, Drama, Music, Art and Design.
Subjects taught at A-Level are: Art, Biology, Business Studies, Chemistry, Classical Civilisation, Design Technology, Drama & Theatre Arts, English, Economics, Film Studies, French, Geography, German, Spanish, History, Information & Communications Technology, Mathematics, Further Mathematics, Music, Music Technology, Physics, Physical Education, Religious Studies.
Extracurricular Activities
Sport
Pangbourne has a strong sporting tradition and excels at sports such as Rugby and Rowing for a school of its size. The school won the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup four times at the Henley Royal Regatta, a record exceeded only by Eton. Despite the size of the college, the performance of its rowing crews towards the upper years is exceptional. The College held the record for the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup from 1992 to 2011, when the record was beaten by Abingdon. The school has also progressed to the latter stages of the U18 Daily Mail Cup in recent years.
Non-sporting activities
The College is renowned for having a notorious CCF Contingent consisting of all four sections: Royal Navy, Army, Royal Air Force and Royal Marines. The Royal Marines Section are annual competitors in the Pringle Trophy Competition and every year travel to Lympstone, in Devon, to compete in the Competition of which the College has a formidable reputation at. All students who join the school in Third form participate in the Duke of Edinburgh award at bronze level and attain their award. This has proven popular with the students, many of whom continue through, completing their silver and gold awards.
Divisions
The boarding houses at Pangbourne are known as Divisions. They are:
- Harbinger
- Port Jackson
- Macquarie
- Hesperus
- Illawara
- St.George
- Dunbar
All of the divisions are named after ships operated at various times by the Devitt and Moore Line, and all contain roughly 60 pupils.
Falkland Islands Memorial Chapel
The Falkland Islands Memorial Chapel was opened by Queen Elizabeth II in March 2000. It was built to commemorate the lives and sacrifice of all those who died during the Falklands War of 1982, and the courage of those who served with them to protect the sovereignty of the Falkland Islands.
The shape of the building was designed to resemble that of a ship, reflecting the college's naval history. It was due to this history that the college was chosen as the site for the Chapel. The Queen returned to the college in 2007.
Notable Old Pangbournians
- Jeffrey Bernard, journalist
- Beverley Cross, playwright
- Hon Jeffrey Evans, Past Prime Warden Shipwrights' Company
- Sir Robin Gillett, 2nd Baronet, Lord Mayor of London
- Jefferson Hack, journalist and magazine editor, co-founder of Dazed & Confused
- Sir William Garth Morrison - former Chief Scout
- Mike Hailwood, motorcycle racer
- Rodney Pattisson, yachtsman and Olympic Gold medallist
- John Ridgway, yachtsman and rower
- Ken Russell, director
- Andrew Simpson, sailor and Olympic Gold medallist
- David Smiley, Army officer, SOE and MI6 Agent
- Frederick Treves, actor
- Very Rev Richard Shuttleworth Wingfield-Digby, Dean of Peterborough