Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School
Encyclopedia
The Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School (HABS) is a British
independent school
for boys aged 4–19. It is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference
and of the Haileybury Group.
Approximately one fifth of the student body goes on to study at the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, putting the school at 19th in the country in terms of Oxbridge
admissions. In 1997 both the Daily Telegraph and Daily Mail
named Haberdashers' the best school in the nation, in 2001 was the Sunday Times independent school
of the year.
The school was founded in 1690 by a Royal Charter
granted to the Worshipful Company of Haberdashers
to establish a 'hospital' for twenty boarders with £32,000 from the legacy of Robert Aske
(£4,300,000 in today's money). The school relocated from the premises of the old hospital in 1903 and presently occupies 104 acres of greenbelt parkland in Elstree
. At its centre is Aldenham House
, a Grade 2* listed stately home formerly belonging to Vicary Gibbs
and bought from Lord Aldenham. In recent years the school offered boarding to a proportion of the school's students, but has now become fully day-schooling.
to the Worshipful Company of Haberdashers
on his death in 1689, an almshouse for twenty poor members of the Haberdashers' Company
was established in 1690 at Hoxton
, near the City of London
. Designed by Robert Hooke
, the almshouse contained a Chapel and, at its centre, the school, which provided education for 20 sons of poor freedmen between the ages of nine and fifteen. However, the Chaplain, the Rev. Thomas Wright, was then made master of Bunhill School and was thus unable to teach the boys at Aske's. In 1697, therefore, John Pridie was appointed with the job of teaching the boys English, the catechism and basic grammar at a salary of £40 a month. Soon later, John Pridie secured the right to admit pupils from paying parents, allowing him to increase the amount of money spent on the boys' education, although this right did not last for very long.
In 1701 new rules were introduced which introduced a cap and gown as the school uniform, and the school created the position of a master to teach arithmetic and writing. The school continued to cater for poor students, requiring any boy who inherited £100 or more to leave to make way for a less lucky individual. However, the school began to run into financial difficulties, and by 1714 the number of students was reduced to a mere eight. Hardship continued until 1738 when the Court of Assistants, the senior governing body of the Haberdashers' Company
, decided that the favourable condition of the Company justified restoring the school. At the same time, caps and gowns ceased to be the school uniform, and Latin was removed from the curriculum.
(Reading, wRiting and aRithmetic) and the catechism
.
In the early days of the school the Chaplain and the schoolmaster both taught, but had separate roles. However, in 1830, the school chaplain was dismissed following scandalous behaviour with a servant-girl. The school was temporarily closed, and when it re-opened in 1831 Revd. J. L. Turner was elected to take both roles and given a salary of £700, from which he had to pay for all costs of the school's management. He was forbidden to take pupils from paying parents. The former curriculum of reading, writing and arithmetic was replaced with Latin (having been removed in 1738), Geography, Grammar, accounts, and Mathematics. By the end of the year Turner reveal he had spent £748, an amount that exceeded his salary, but the Company committee was satisfied that the significant improvement in the boys' education merited an increase in funding to £800 per year. Examinations were conducted at this point on a biannual basis.
In 1849 Dr. F. W. Mortimer, Headmaster of the City of London School
, criticised some of the textbooks used and the teaching of Latin, which he thought would be better replaced by French. In 1858 the Rev. Thomas Grose, who conducted the school's examinations, echoed Mortimer's earlier criticisms of the study of Latin and repeated his suggestion that French ought to be taught instead. In addition, he also recommended the introduction of geometry, trigonometry, mechanics, and natural philosophy to the curriculum. The schoolmaster at this time, Mr. Carterfield, resisted these suggestions, but a growing dissatisfaction amongst the school's older pupils lead to his resignation later that year, and Rev. A. Jones became Headmaster, as the title had become known. In 1868 inhabitants of the surrounding area petitioned the school to accept the sons of parishioners as pupils.
In 1874, though not directly related to this school, two new schools, one for boys and one for girls, were set up in Hatcham
, South London. They were known as the Haberdashers' Aske's Hatcham Schools until 1991, when the two were combined as Haberdashers' Aske's Hatcham College
, now an Academy
.
and the boys' to a site in Cricklewood
(though always referred to as Hampstead
), in north-west London. Its formal name was the Haberdashers' Aske's Hampstead School.
was reunited with its boys' school counterpart, joining it at Elstree.
When the Labour government of 1964–70 withdrew the direct grant
arrangements, the boys' school became fully fee-paying, assuming its current name of the Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School (HABS).
At this point, like most public schools
, Haberdashers' took a number of boarding students. In 1964, this was 75 students out of a total of 680 in the senior school. Since then, the school has became a day school
with all students travelling in each day, mainly via coach.
Recently, a number of buildings on the Elstree campus have been opened, including the new Aske Building (2004), a multi-million pound science and geography complex, and the Bourne Building, a series of classics, information technology and history classrooms.
The Bourne Building also features at its focus a large assembly hall, inherited from the building that stood there previously. This hall is home to a fine pipe organ
, built in 1897 by the famous London firm of Henry Willis & Sons
for Hove Town Hall and brought to Elstree in 1962. The instrument retains its original specification of thirty-six stops on four manuals and pedals and is currently maintained by the Willis firm. Another major building in Haberdashers' is the TW Taylor Music School (named after a former headmaster), containing at its centre the Seldon Hall (a concert hall), and a number of classrooms used for class music lessons and smaller tuition rooms used for individual (or small group) tuition in musical instruments.
A full development scheme has been initiated and over a period of time, and the school will be re-built in order to keep up with the changing world. As part of this, the school will be based around two main quadrangles. In the academic year 2009/2010 the school built a new set of changing rooms and expanded its playing fields to ensure high levels of sports provision.
For a more detailed account of the school's history, see the relevant section in Cockburn et al. (1969), referred to below; or in John Wigley's official history of the school, 'Serve and Obey'.
, a minor stately home. Although the house is used by the school for various purposes, teaching takes place in a number of buildings that have been built on the grounds, most built around a central Quadrangle ('The Quad'). The majority of the school's facilities are named after worthy persons in the school's history.
The Bourne Building, home to the largest of the school's assembly halls, the library and a number of History, ICT and Classics classrooms, is built next to Aldenham House, and is at the top of the Quadrangle.
At the other side of the Quad is the Maths block, which also contains the Bates Dining Room and Sixth Form Common Room. The third side of the Quad is occupied by the Taylor Music School, usually referred to as the 'Seldon' after the name of the performance hall in its centre.
Opposite the Music School is the Aske Building, a complex of Science and Geography classrooms which also contains the Aske Hall which is used primarily for lectures given by visiting speakers. Adjacent to the Aske are the English and Modern Languages buildings.
Behind the Aske Building is the Sports Hall, a large, modern building which houses indoor courts and changing rooms. Next to it are two large astro-turfs and a shooting range. Inside, there are newly renovated cricket nets which utilise video technology, a classroom and a large hall used for basketball and badminton.
Also near these is the Preparatory School ('The Prep'). This central campus is surrounded by trees and contains a small stream and pond nearby.
Oxbridge
offer statistics are as follows:
Older averages (2001–2006) placed the school at nineteenth in the country.
The school was ranked at 24 by The Sunday Times in their 2006 Parent Power feature http://www.times-archive.co.uk/onlinespecials//topindependentsecondaryschools.pdf on the best independent schools, down from 18 in the previous year. According to the Times rankings, HABS came 20th (out of 1150 schools) in GCSE rankings http://www.timesonline.co.uk/displayPopup/0,,115677,00.html and 72nd (out of 939) at A-level,http://www.timesonline.co.uk/displayPopup/0,,114842,00.html though this is largely because most boys at HABS only took three A-levels, and so received a lower total score than other comparable schools. In the same year the Telegraph placed HABS in 44th place based on A- and AS-level results,http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/08/25/utable1.xml and 24th (out of 2703) in their full list ranked by average score per A-level entry.http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/main.jhtml?xml=/education/leaguetables/secondary2007/alevel.xml
The school has been, to some extent, under-represented in national League Tables, however, because students take IGCSE papers which are uncounted in Government League Tables, and because the school usually limits pupils to taking only three A-Level subjects. Haberdashers' Aske's received a glowing Inspection report in the autumn of 2005, praised for its extracurricular opportunities and pastoral care.
The names for these Houses derive from the names of their original housemasters.
In the first two years of schooling, boys are placed in tutor groups according to their House and all lessons are with members of the tutor group; later in the school, members of each house are mixed within each class as pupils are grouped in ability streams. The tutor groups, however, are dependent upon House throughout the school.
Several shields are awarded at the end of the academic year for competitions between the Houses. These shields include:
Throughout the Year there are numerous Inter-House events including both sporting and non-sporting competitions such as Inter-House Debating, Inter-House Chess, Inter-House Scrabble, Inter-House Backgammon, Inter-House Bridge. Each boy is expected to represent their house in at least one activity.
Many of these frequently invite outside speakers to address the society or the school. A number of societies produce, in conjunction with their respective departments, their own publications, notably Scribe, which publishes student creative writing, Scope, which is concerned with scientific affairs and encourages pupils to submit articles on recent developments, Timeline, which contains essays and research conducted by students into areas of historical interest, and The Key, which deals with Economics.
The official school magazine is Skylark, which, published annually, contains submissions from across both the pupil and teacher body regarding school trips, societies, charities, sports, and notable events in the school's calendar.
finals were from HABS. HABS is regarded as one of the best Model United Nations
schools, with delegations winning top prizes at nearly every conference attended, and in 2011 Britain was represented in Athens in the international session of the European Youth Parliament
by a joint team with members from both the Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' and Girls' Schools. The school has won the Schools Mace competition and completed the debating quadruple (Durham, Oxford, Cambridge and Bristol) for the first time in Schools history.
(CCF). The CCF comprises Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force sections. The corps takes cadets on a field day each term to take part in activities that are specific to their section.
Music is also a very popular activity within the school with over half the boys playing at least one instrument. The school has three orchestras, numerous bands and many more smaller groups, some of which are student-run. Sport is also a major activity at the school, with a plethora of different teams and a wide array of sports, ranging from cricket to rugby, fencing to squash.
, members of which sit on the School's governing body. Every year a deputation from this ancient Livery company inspects the school and hands out St. John's bibles to every boy in the first year of the Main School (Year 7). All new members of the School are invited to visit Haberdashers' Hall in the City of London. The company, which is responsible for around a dozen other schools, both state and independent, received its Royal Charter
in 1448. The formal name under which it is incorporated is The Master and Four Wardens of the Fraternity of the Art or Mystery of Haberdashers in the City of London.
The school's crest and motto was inherited from the Worshipful Company of Haberdashers
. The crest is blazon
ed:
Barry wavy of six argent and azure on a bend gules a lion passant guardant Or, on a wreath argent and azure colours issuing from clouds two naked arms embowed holding a laurel wreath all proper, on either side a goat of India argent flecked gules and membered Or
Motto: Serve And Obey
The crest was granted to the Haberdashers' Company on 8 November 1570 by Robert Cooke, Clarenceux.
, Matt Lucas
and Jason Isaacs
are particularly prominent. Haberdashers' has produced a number of statesmen and others in the political sphere, with the current Minister of State for Europe
, David Lidington
, also being a former pupil of the school. The historian Simon Schama
, a frequent contributor to television and radio programmes, and Brian Sewell
, 'Britain's most famous and controversial art critic', are also Old Boys of the school. See also Old Haberdashers.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
independent school
Independent school (UK)
An independent school is a school that is not financed through the taxation system by local or national government and is instead funded by private sources, predominantly in the form of tuition charges, gifts and long-term charitable endowments, and so is not subject to the conditions imposed by...
for boys aged 4–19. It is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference
Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference
The Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference is an association of the headmasters or headmistressess of 243 leading day and boarding independent schools in the United Kingdom, Crown Dependencies and the Republic of Ireland...
and of the Haileybury Group.
Approximately one fifth of the student body goes on to study at the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, putting the school at 19th in the country in terms of Oxbridge
Oxbridge
Oxbridge is a portmanteau of the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge in England, and the term is now used to refer to them collectively, often with implications of perceived superior social status...
admissions. In 1997 both the Daily Telegraph and Daily Mail
Daily Mail
The Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. First published in 1896 by Lord Northcliffe, it is the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling daily newspaper after The Sun. Its sister paper The Mail on Sunday was launched in 1982...
named Haberdashers' the best school in the nation, in 2001 was the Sunday Times independent school
Independent school (UK)
An independent school is a school that is not financed through the taxation system by local or national government and is instead funded by private sources, predominantly in the form of tuition charges, gifts and long-term charitable endowments, and so is not subject to the conditions imposed by...
of the year.
The school was founded in 1690 by a Royal Charter
Royal Charter
A royal charter is a formal document issued by a monarch as letters patent, granting a right or power to an individual or a body corporate. They were, and are still, used to establish significant organizations such as cities or universities. Charters should be distinguished from warrants and...
granted to the Worshipful Company of Haberdashers
Worshipful Company of Haberdashers
The Worshipful Company of Haberdashers is one of the senior Livery Companies of the City of London. The organisation, following on from the Mercers' Company, another Livery Company connected with clothing and haberdashery, received a Royal Charter in 1448...
to establish a 'hospital' for twenty boarders with £32,000 from the legacy of Robert Aske
Robert Aske (merchant)
Robert Aske was a merchant in the City of London. He is chiefly remembered from the charitable foundation created from his estate, which operates two schools in Hertfordshire, Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School and Haberdashers' Aske's School for Girls.Aske was the son of an affluent draper...
(£4,300,000 in today's money). The school relocated from the premises of the old hospital in 1903 and presently occupies 104 acres of greenbelt parkland in Elstree
Elstree
Elstree is a village in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire on the A5 road, about 10 miles north of London. In 2001, its population was 4,765, and forms part of the civil parish of Elstree and Borehamwood, originally known simply as Elstree....
. At its centre is Aldenham House
Aldenham House
Aldenham House near Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, was the seat of Vicary Gibbs, a wealthy financier and avid plant collector who once amassed a larger collection of Chinese flora than the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew...
, a Grade 2* listed stately home formerly belonging to Vicary Gibbs
Vicary Gibbs (MP)
The Hon. Vicary Gibbs was a British barrister, merchant and Conservative Party politician. He sat in the House of Commons from 1892 to 1904.- Early life and family :Gibbs came from an old Devon family....
and bought from Lord Aldenham. In recent years the school offered boarding to a proportion of the school's students, but has now become fully day-schooling.
1690–1738
For the record, Haberdashers was voted as the nations best school in 1967, not an achievement to be proud of. At the opposite end of the scale, their rivals, QE Boys in Barnet, topped the tables, while also smashing the rugby team in the local derby by almost 100 points. Not a good year for HABS.Followed a bequest of £20,000 made by the merchant Robert AskeRobert Aske (merchant)
Robert Aske was a merchant in the City of London. He is chiefly remembered from the charitable foundation created from his estate, which operates two schools in Hertfordshire, Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School and Haberdashers' Aske's School for Girls.Aske was the son of an affluent draper...
to the Worshipful Company of Haberdashers
Worshipful Company of Haberdashers
The Worshipful Company of Haberdashers is one of the senior Livery Companies of the City of London. The organisation, following on from the Mercers' Company, another Livery Company connected with clothing and haberdashery, received a Royal Charter in 1448...
on his death in 1689, an almshouse for twenty poor members of the Haberdashers' Company
Worshipful Company of Haberdashers
The Worshipful Company of Haberdashers is one of the senior Livery Companies of the City of London. The organisation, following on from the Mercers' Company, another Livery Company connected with clothing and haberdashery, received a Royal Charter in 1448...
was established in 1690 at Hoxton
Hoxton
Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, immediately north of the financial district of the City of London. The area of Hoxton is bordered by Regent's Canal on the north side, Wharf Road and City Road on the west, Old Street on the south, and Kingsland Road on the east.Hoxton is also a...
, near the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
. Designed by Robert Hooke
Robert Hooke
Robert Hooke FRS was an English natural philosopher, architect and polymath.His adult life comprised three distinct periods: as a scientific inquirer lacking money; achieving great wealth and standing through his reputation for hard work and scrupulous honesty following the great fire of 1666, but...
, the almshouse contained a Chapel and, at its centre, the school, which provided education for 20 sons of poor freedmen between the ages of nine and fifteen. However, the Chaplain, the Rev. Thomas Wright, was then made master of Bunhill School and was thus unable to teach the boys at Aske's. In 1697, therefore, John Pridie was appointed with the job of teaching the boys English, the catechism and basic grammar at a salary of £40 a month. Soon later, John Pridie secured the right to admit pupils from paying parents, allowing him to increase the amount of money spent on the boys' education, although this right did not last for very long.
In 1701 new rules were introduced which introduced a cap and gown as the school uniform, and the school created the position of a master to teach arithmetic and writing. The school continued to cater for poor students, requiring any boy who inherited £100 or more to leave to make way for a less lucky individual. However, the school began to run into financial difficulties, and by 1714 the number of students was reduced to a mere eight. Hardship continued until 1738 when the Court of Assistants, the senior governing body of the Haberdashers' Company
Worshipful Company of Haberdashers
The Worshipful Company of Haberdashers is one of the senior Livery Companies of the City of London. The organisation, following on from the Mercers' Company, another Livery Company connected with clothing and haberdashery, received a Royal Charter in 1448...
, decided that the favourable condition of the Company justified restoring the school. At the same time, caps and gowns ceased to be the school uniform, and Latin was removed from the curriculum.
1738–1825
In 1818 it was announced by the Charities Commission that the school's buildings were in need of repair and were too expensive for the allowance allotted by the Company. However, errors in book-keeping reveal that, whereas it was thought that the school was £7,000 in debt to the Company, they were in fact £900 in credit. By 1820 the schoolmaster's basic salary was still fixed at £15, although the master at this time, William Webb, received gratuities of £20 in both 1818 and 1819. By contrast the Chaplain, Matron and nurse received £50, £16, £12 respectively, and each of the two maidservants received a salary of £8. The student body continued to comprise 20 poor sons of freedmen, and the curriculum consisted of the three RsThe three Rs
The three Rs are the foundations of a basic skills-orientated education program within schools: Reading, wRiting and aRithmetic.The phrase is attributed to a toast given by Sir William Curtis around 1825...
(Reading, wRiting and aRithmetic) and the catechism
Catechism
A catechism , i.e. to indoctrinate) is a summary or exposition of doctrine, traditionally used in Christian religious teaching from New Testament times to the present...
.
1825–1874
In 1825, new buildings were erected on the site. The schoolmaster at this time, George Hamilton, was himself a former pupil of the school and a liveryman of the Company. The allowance provided by the Company for the school was increased by £25 and the school's collection of books was expanded. Regular examinations were conducted, with prizes provided for exceptional performance.In the early days of the school the Chaplain and the schoolmaster both taught, but had separate roles. However, in 1830, the school chaplain was dismissed following scandalous behaviour with a servant-girl. The school was temporarily closed, and when it re-opened in 1831 Revd. J. L. Turner was elected to take both roles and given a salary of £700, from which he had to pay for all costs of the school's management. He was forbidden to take pupils from paying parents. The former curriculum of reading, writing and arithmetic was replaced with Latin (having been removed in 1738), Geography, Grammar, accounts, and Mathematics. By the end of the year Turner reveal he had spent £748, an amount that exceeded his salary, but the Company committee was satisfied that the significant improvement in the boys' education merited an increase in funding to £800 per year. Examinations were conducted at this point on a biannual basis.
In 1849 Dr. F. W. Mortimer, Headmaster of the City of London School
City of London School
The City of London School is a boys' independent day school on the banks of the River Thames in the City of London, England. It is the brother school of the City of London School for Girls and the co-educational City of London Freemen's School...
, criticised some of the textbooks used and the teaching of Latin, which he thought would be better replaced by French. In 1858 the Rev. Thomas Grose, who conducted the school's examinations, echoed Mortimer's earlier criticisms of the study of Latin and repeated his suggestion that French ought to be taught instead. In addition, he also recommended the introduction of geometry, trigonometry, mechanics, and natural philosophy to the curriculum. The schoolmaster at this time, Mr. Carterfield, resisted these suggestions, but a growing dissatisfaction amongst the school's older pupils lead to his resignation later that year, and Rev. A. Jones became Headmaster, as the title had become known. In 1868 inhabitants of the surrounding area petitioned the school to accept the sons of parishioners as pupils.
In 1874, though not directly related to this school, two new schools, one for boys and one for girls, were set up in Hatcham
Hatcham
Hatcham was a manor and later chapelry in what is now London, England. It corresponds to the area around New Cross Gate station in the London Borough of Lewisham....
, South London. They were known as the Haberdashers' Aske's Hatcham Schools until 1991, when the two were combined as Haberdashers' Aske's Hatcham College
Haberdashers' Aske's Hatcham College
Haberdashers' Aske's Hatcham College is an Academy secondary school located. in New Cross. The school was formerly a Grammar school, then a comprehensive City Technology College and now an Academy operating between two sites near New Cross Gate in South-East London...
, now an Academy
Academy (England)
In the education system of England, an academy is a school that is directly funded by central government and independent of control by local government in England. An academy may receive additional support from personal or corporate sponsors, either financially or in kind...
.
1874–1961
In 1874 the almshouse which had housed the school since 1690 closed to give the developing school more space. The school was divided into two halves, one for boys and one, for the first time, for girls. Each half admitted 300 pupils, a great increase on previous student numbers. £5,000 was spent on renovating the Hoxton buildings, and the chaplain, schoolmaster, matron, and almsmen were pensioned. The foundationers were moved to another boarding school. In 1883 the leaving age for pupils was increased to 18, and in 1898 the two halves were relocated, the girls' school to ActonActon, London
Acton is a district of west London, England, located in the London Borough of Ealing. It is situated west of Charing Cross.At the time of the 2001 census, Acton, comprising the wards of East Acton, Acton Central, South Acton and Southfield, had a population of 53,689 people...
and the boys' to a site in Cricklewood
Cricklewood
Cricklewood is a district of North London, England whose northeastern part is in the London Borough of Barnet, western part is the London Borough of Brent and southeastern part is in London Borough of Camden.-History:...
(though always referred to as Hampstead
Hampstead
Hampstead is an area of London, England, north-west of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Camden in Inner London, it is known for its intellectual, liberal, artistic, musical and literary associations and for Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland...
), in north-west London. Its formal name was the Haberdashers' Aske's Hampstead School.
1961–1974
In 1961, this school moved to its present site at Elstree, initially taking the name Haberdashers' Aske's School Elstree, and in 1974 the girls' school at ActonActon, London
Acton is a district of west London, England, located in the London Borough of Ealing. It is situated west of Charing Cross.At the time of the 2001 census, Acton, comprising the wards of East Acton, Acton Central, South Acton and Southfield, had a population of 53,689 people...
was reunited with its boys' school counterpart, joining it at Elstree.
When the Labour government of 1964–70 withdrew the direct grant
Direct grant grammar school
A direct grant grammar school was a selective secondary school in England and Wales between 1945 and 1976 funded partly by the state and partly through private fees....
arrangements, the boys' school became fully fee-paying, assuming its current name of the Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School (HABS).
At this point, like most public schools
Public School (UK)
A public school, in common British usage, is a school that is neither administered nor financed by the state or from taxpayer contributions, and is instead funded by a combination of endowments, tuition fees and charitable contributions, usually existing as a non profit-making charitable trust...
, Haberdashers' took a number of boarding students. In 1964, this was 75 students out of a total of 680 in the senior school. Since then, the school has became a day school
Day school
A day school—as opposed to a boarding school—is an institution where children are given educational instruction during the day and after which children/teens return to their homes...
with all students travelling in each day, mainly via coach.
1974–present
See Present dayRecently, a number of buildings on the Elstree campus have been opened, including the new Aske Building (2004), a multi-million pound science and geography complex, and the Bourne Building, a series of classics, information technology and history classrooms.
The Bourne Building also features at its focus a large assembly hall, inherited from the building that stood there previously. This hall is home to a fine pipe organ
Pipe organ
The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through pipes selected via a keyboard. Because each organ pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ranks, each of which has a common timbre and volume throughout the keyboard compass...
, built in 1897 by the famous London firm of Henry Willis & Sons
Henry Willis & Sons
thumb|250px|St Bees Priory organ, the last major instrument to be personally supervised by "Father" Henry Willis, 1899Henry Willis & Sons is a British firm of pipe organ builders founded in 1845 in Liverpool. Although most of their installations have been in the UK, examples can be found in other...
for Hove Town Hall and brought to Elstree in 1962. The instrument retains its original specification of thirty-six stops on four manuals and pedals and is currently maintained by the Willis firm. Another major building in Haberdashers' is the TW Taylor Music School (named after a former headmaster), containing at its centre the Seldon Hall (a concert hall), and a number of classrooms used for class music lessons and smaller tuition rooms used for individual (or small group) tuition in musical instruments.
A full development scheme has been initiated and over a period of time, and the school will be re-built in order to keep up with the changing world. As part of this, the school will be based around two main quadrangles. In the academic year 2009/2010 the school built a new set of changing rooms and expanded its playing fields to ensure high levels of sports provision.
For a more detailed account of the school's history, see the relevant section in Cockburn et al. (1969), referred to below; or in John Wigley's official history of the school, 'Serve and Obey'.
Buildings and grounds
Haberdashers' is located on the grounds of Aldenham HouseAldenham House
Aldenham House near Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, was the seat of Vicary Gibbs, a wealthy financier and avid plant collector who once amassed a larger collection of Chinese flora than the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew...
, a minor stately home. Although the house is used by the school for various purposes, teaching takes place in a number of buildings that have been built on the grounds, most built around a central Quadrangle ('The Quad'). The majority of the school's facilities are named after worthy persons in the school's history.
The Bourne Building, home to the largest of the school's assembly halls, the library and a number of History, ICT and Classics classrooms, is built next to Aldenham House, and is at the top of the Quadrangle.
At the other side of the Quad is the Maths block, which also contains the Bates Dining Room and Sixth Form Common Room. The third side of the Quad is occupied by the Taylor Music School, usually referred to as the 'Seldon' after the name of the performance hall in its centre.
Opposite the Music School is the Aske Building, a complex of Science and Geography classrooms which also contains the Aske Hall which is used primarily for lectures given by visiting speakers. Adjacent to the Aske are the English and Modern Languages buildings.
Behind the Aske Building is the Sports Hall, a large, modern building which houses indoor courts and changing rooms. Next to it are two large astro-turfs and a shooting range. Inside, there are newly renovated cricket nets which utilise video technology, a classroom and a large hall used for basketball and badminton.
Also near these is the Preparatory School ('The Prep'). This central campus is surrounded by trees and contains a small stream and pond nearby.
Academic
Entrance to the school is via a competitive examination set by the school (not the Common Entrance Paper) at either 11+ or 13+ (with entry into the Preparatory school at 4+, 5+, or 7+).Oxbridge
Oxbridge
Oxbridge is a portmanteau of the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge in England, and the term is now used to refer to them collectively, often with implications of perceived superior social status...
offer statistics are as follows:
| 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 37 | 25 | 40 | 30 | 32 | 44 | 37 | 32 | 26 | 38 | 37 |
Older averages (2001–2006) placed the school at nineteenth in the country.
The school was ranked at 24 by The Sunday Times in their 2006 Parent Power feature http://www.times-archive.co.uk/onlinespecials//topindependentsecondaryschools.pdf on the best independent schools, down from 18 in the previous year. According to the Times rankings, HABS came 20th (out of 1150 schools) in GCSE rankings http://www.timesonline.co.uk/displayPopup/0,,115677,00.html and 72nd (out of 939) at A-level,http://www.timesonline.co.uk/displayPopup/0,,114842,00.html though this is largely because most boys at HABS only took three A-levels, and so received a lower total score than other comparable schools. In the same year the Telegraph placed HABS in 44th place based on A- and AS-level results,http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/08/25/utable1.xml and 24th (out of 2703) in their full list ranked by average score per A-level entry.http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/main.jhtml?xml=/education/leaguetables/secondary2007/alevel.xml
The school has been, to some extent, under-represented in national League Tables, however, because students take IGCSE papers which are uncounted in Government League Tables, and because the school usually limits pupils to taking only three A-Level subjects. Haberdashers' Aske's received a glowing Inspection report in the autumn of 2005, praised for its extracurricular opportunities and pastoral care.
Boys' Houses
Upon joining the school, boys are assigned to one of six school houses:- Calverts
- Hendersons
- Joblings
- Meadows
- Russells
- Strouts.
The names for these Houses derive from the names of their original housemasters.
In the first two years of schooling, boys are placed in tutor groups according to their House and all lessons are with members of the tutor group; later in the school, members of each house are mixed within each class as pupils are grouped in ability streams. The tutor groups, however, are dependent upon House throughout the school.
Several shields are awarded at the end of the academic year for competitions between the Houses. These shields include:
- Junior Work and Conduct
- Middle-School Work and Conduct
- Senior Work and Conduct
- The Crossman Shield, awarded for success in inter-house sporting competitions
- The Dunton Shield, awarded to the house with the highest number of points in the above four categories combined
Throughout the Year there are numerous Inter-House events including both sporting and non-sporting competitions such as Inter-House Debating, Inter-House Chess, Inter-House Scrabble, Inter-House Backgammon, Inter-House Bridge. Each boy is expected to represent their house in at least one activity.
Societies and magazines
There are dozens of student-run societies at Haberdashers', usually presided over by a teacher. The following is a list of some of the more prominent school societies, though the numbers and names change from time to time.- Amnesty International Society
- Art Society
- Bridge Society
- Chess Society
- Christian Union
- Classical Society
- Debating Society (Junior and Senior)
- Economics Society (EconSoc)
- Film Society
- Greek Society
- History Society
- Jewish Society (J-Soc)
- Latin Scrabble (LatScrabSoc)
- Law Society (LawSoc)
- Literature Society (LitSoc)
- Foreign Modern Languages Society (FMLSoc)
- Model United Nations (MUN)
- Philosophy Society
- Politics Society (PolSoc)
- Science Society (SciSoc)
- Young Entrepreneur Society (YES).
Many of these frequently invite outside speakers to address the society or the school. A number of societies produce, in conjunction with their respective departments, their own publications, notably Scribe, which publishes student creative writing, Scope, which is concerned with scientific affairs and encourages pupils to submit articles on recent developments, Timeline, which contains essays and research conducted by students into areas of historical interest, and The Key, which deals with Economics.
The official school magazine is Skylark, which, published annually, contains submissions from across both the pupil and teacher body regarding school trips, societies, charities, sports, and notable events in the school's calendar.
Debating and Model United Nations
Debating within Haberdashers' is exceptionally strong and the school enjoys a reputation as one of the strongest debating schools in the country. In 2010, two out of the four members of the England Worlds Competition Team were students at Haberdashers', while two out of the four teams in the Oxford UnionOxford Union
The Oxford Union Society, commonly referred to simply as the Oxford Union, is a debating society in the city of Oxford, Britain, whose membership is drawn primarily but not exclusively from the University of Oxford...
finals were from HABS. HABS is regarded as one of the best Model United Nations
Model United Nations
Model United Nations is an academic simulation of the United Nations that aims to educate participants about current events, topics in international relations, diplomacy and the United Nations agenda....
schools, with delegations winning top prizes at nearly every conference attended, and in 2011 Britain was represented in Athens in the international session of the European Youth Parliament
European Youth Parliament
The European Youth Parliament is a politically and religiously unbound non-profit organisation, which encourages European youth to actively engage in citizenship and cultural understanding....
by a joint team with members from both the Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' and Girls' Schools. The school has won the Schools Mace competition and completed the debating quadruple (Durham, Oxford, Cambridge and Bristol) for the first time in Schools history.
Combined Cadet Force
Students in Year 10 and above may take part in the Haberdashers' detachment of the Combined Cadet ForceCombined Cadet Force
The Combined Cadet Force is a Ministry of Defence sponsored youth organisation in the United Kingdom. Its aim is to "provide a disciplined organisation in a school so that pupils may develop powers of leadership by means of training to promote the qualities of responsibility, self reliance,...
(CCF). The CCF comprises Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force sections. The corps takes cadets on a field day each term to take part in activities that are specific to their section.
School Community Service
Students who do not take part in the Combined Cadet Force are required to do School Community Service (SCS) once a week. This can range from helping out in local nursing homes to teaching skills such as debating to younger students. As with CCF, SCS is designed to encourage a sense of responsibility within a community and to benefit other people both within and outside the school.Other extracurricular
A School Charity is also nominated annually to which money raised is to be sent, in addition to the charities nominated by each individual house. The school also holds an annual MENCAP Funday and an annual Senior Citizens' Tea Party.Music is also a very popular activity within the school with over half the boys playing at least one instrument. The school has three orchestras, numerous bands and many more smaller groups, some of which are student-run. Sport is also a major activity at the school, with a plethora of different teams and a wide array of sports, ranging from cricket to rugby, fencing to squash.
Links to the Worshipful Company of Haberdashers
The school retains strong links with the Worshipful Company of HaberdashersWorshipful Company of Haberdashers
The Worshipful Company of Haberdashers is one of the senior Livery Companies of the City of London. The organisation, following on from the Mercers' Company, another Livery Company connected with clothing and haberdashery, received a Royal Charter in 1448...
, members of which sit on the School's governing body. Every year a deputation from this ancient Livery company inspects the school and hands out St. John's bibles to every boy in the first year of the Main School (Year 7). All new members of the School are invited to visit Haberdashers' Hall in the City of London. The company, which is responsible for around a dozen other schools, both state and independent, received its Royal Charter
Royal Charter
A royal charter is a formal document issued by a monarch as letters patent, granting a right or power to an individual or a body corporate. They were, and are still, used to establish significant organizations such as cities or universities. Charters should be distinguished from warrants and...
in 1448. The formal name under which it is incorporated is The Master and Four Wardens of the Fraternity of the Art or Mystery of Haberdashers in the City of London.
Crest
Worshipful Company of Haberdashers
The Worshipful Company of Haberdashers is one of the senior Livery Companies of the City of London. The organisation, following on from the Mercers' Company, another Livery Company connected with clothing and haberdashery, received a Royal Charter in 1448...
. The crest is blazon
Blazon
In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image...
ed:
Barry wavy of six argent and azure on a bend gules a lion passant guardant Or, on a wreath argent and azure colours issuing from clouds two naked arms embowed holding a laurel wreath all proper, on either side a goat of India argent flecked gules and membered Or
Motto: Serve And Obey
The crest was granted to the Haberdashers' Company on 8 November 1570 by Robert Cooke, Clarenceux.
Other Haberdashers' Schools
- Haberdashers' Aske's School for GirlsHaberdashers' Aske's School for GirlsHaberdashers' Aske's School for Girls is an academically high-achieving British independent school in Elstree, near Borehamwood, in the county of Hertfordshire. It is often known as "Habs" or "Habs girls", to distinguish it from the neighbouring Haberdashers' Aske's Boys' School...
was established in ActonActon, LondonActon is a district of west London, England, located in the London Borough of Ealing. It is situated west of Charing Cross.At the time of the 2001 census, Acton, comprising the wards of East Acton, Acton Central, South Acton and Southfield, had a population of 53,689 people...
. The Acton school moved during the 1970s to its current location next to the Boys' School in ElstreeElstreeElstree is a village in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire on the A5 road, about 10 miles north of London. In 2001, its population was 4,765, and forms part of the civil parish of Elstree and Borehamwood, originally known simply as Elstree....
. - Haberdashers' Aske's Hatcham CollegeHaberdashers' Aske's Hatcham CollegeHaberdashers' Aske's Hatcham College is an Academy secondary school located. in New Cross. The school was formerly a Grammar school, then a comprehensive City Technology College and now an Academy operating between two sites near New Cross Gate in South-East London...
, formerly Haberdashers' Aske's Hatcham Boys & Girls schools.
- The Haberdashers' Company was also involved in the foundation of other schools such as the boarding Monmouth SchoolMonmouth SchoolMonmouth School is an HMC boys' boarding and day school in Monmouth, Monmouthshire in south east Wales. It was founded in 1614 by William Jones. It is run as a trust, the William Jones's Schools Foundation, by the Worshipful Company of Haberdashers, one of the Livery Companies...
, but these are not associated with Robert Aske.
Headmasters
- 2002- Peter B. Hamilton
- 1996-2001 Jeremy W.R. Goulding
- 1987-1996 A. Keith Dawson
- 1973-1987 Bruce McGowan
- 1946-1973 Tom W. Taylor
Old Haberdashers
Former students at Haberdashers' are referred to as Old Haberdashers. A number of former Haberdashers' students have entered the acting profession, of whom Sacha Baron CohenSacha Baron Cohen
Sacha Noam Baron Cohen is an English stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and voice artist. He is most widely known for his portrayal of three unorthodox fictional characters: Ali G, Borat, and Brüno...
, Matt Lucas
Matt Lucas
Matthew Richard "Matt" Lucas is an English comedian, screenwriter and actor best known for his acclaimed work with David Walliams in the television show Little Britain; as well as for his portrayals of the scorekeeping baby George Dawes in the comedy panel game Shooting Stars, Tweedledee and...
and Jason Isaacs
Jason Isaacs
Jason Isaacs is an English actor born in Liverpool, who is best known for his performance as the villain Lucius Malfoy in the Harry Potter films, the brutal Colonel William Tavington in The Patriot and as lifelong criminal Michael Caffee in the internationally broadcast American television series...
are particularly prominent. Haberdashers' has produced a number of statesmen and others in the political sphere, with the current Minister of State for Europe
Minister of State for Europe
The Minister for Europe is an executive position in the Government of the United Kingdom, in charge of affairs with the European Union. The office is usually a junior Minister of State position in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office...
, David Lidington
David Lidington
David Roy Lidington PC is a British Conservative Party politician, who has been Member of Parliament for Aylesbury since 1992...
, also being a former pupil of the school. The historian Simon Schama
Simon Schama
Simon Michael Schama, CBE is a British historian and art historian. He is a University Professor of History and Art History at Columbia University. He is best known for writing and hosting the 15-part BBC documentary series A History of Britain...
, a frequent contributor to television and radio programmes, and Brian Sewell
Brian Sewell
Brian Sewell is an English art critic and media personality. He writes for the London Evening Standard and is noted for artistic conservatism and his acerbic view of the Turner Prize and conceptual art...
, 'Britain's most famous and controversial art critic', are also Old Boys of the school. See also Old Haberdashers.
Notable teachers
- John Knight (footballer)John Knight (footballer)John George Knight was an English footballer who played for Casuals, Corinthian and Tottenham Hotspur.- Football career :...
, former Chemistry Master - Dr Ian St.John, historian, author of Disraeli and the Art of Victorian Politics and Gladstone and the Logic of Victorian Politics (Anthem Publishing)
- Clive ReesClive ReesClive Frederick William Rees is a former Welsh rugby union player. He won thirteen caps as left wing for Wales between 1973 and 1983....
(born 1951), former PE teacher, captain of London Welsh rugby team and was in the Lions and Barbarians teams as winger - Julian HailsJulian HailsJulian Hails is a former professional English footballer, who played in the Football League as a midfielder for Fulham and Southend United. He is now a maths teacher.-Football career:...
, former footballer now a Maths teacher - Simon Stuart, inspiring English teacher, author of influential book on good teaching practice Say
Media references
- The recent hit Alan Bennett stage-play and film The History BoysThe History BoysThe History Boys is a play by British playwright Alan Bennett. The play premiered at the Lyttelton Theatre in London on 18 May 2004. Its Broadway debut was on 23 April 2006 at the Broadhurst Theatre where there were 185 performances staged before it closed on 1 October 2006.The play won multiple...
mentions Haberdashers' in its script as a school of academic excellence. In addition, the production notes were supplied by acclaimed historian Simon SchamaSimon SchamaSimon Michael Schama, CBE is a British historian and art historian. He is a University Professor of History and Art History at Columbia University. He is best known for writing and hosting the 15-part BBC documentary series A History of Britain...
, an Old Boy of the School. - Old Boy novelist William SutcliffeWilliam SutcliffeWilliam Sutcliffe is a British novelist.An alumnus of Haberdashers' Aske's School, Sutcliffe started his career with a novel about school life entitled New Boy , which was followed by his best-known work so far, Are You Experienced? , a pre-university gap year novel, in which a group of young...
set his largely autobiographical début novel New BoyNew BoyNew Boy is a novel, published in 1996, written by British novelist William Sutcliffe.The book is largely autobiographical, mixing fact and fiction...
(1996) at an unnamed school that is easily identifiable as Haberdashers', for instance by references to the school's location, layout and, most tellingly, mottoMottoA motto is a phrase meant to formally summarize the general motivation or intention of a social group or organization. A motto may be in any language, but Latin is the most used. The local language is usual in the mottoes of governments...
. The book has since been adapted for the theatre (2009). - Oscar Moore detailed experiences of homophobia at the school in his autobiographical first novel A Matter of Life and Sex.
Other references
- J S Cockburn, H P F King, K G T McDonnell (1969) A History of the County of Middlesex. Volume 1: Physique, Archaeology, Domesday, Ecclesiastical Organization, The Jews, Religious Houses, Education of Working Classes to 1870, Private Education from Sixteenth Century. Boydell & Brewer (ISBN 978-0-19-722713-8)
- J W Wigley - Serve and Obey, a History of the School