The Harvey Grammar School
Encyclopedia
The Harvey Grammar School is located in Folkestone
, Kent
, England. It is a Community Grammar School and was founded by Sir Eliab Harvey in 1674.
status.
It is situated on the A2034 (former A20) at the junction of the B2064 and near the Folkestone West railway station
, Folkestone Cricket Club and Folkestone Invicta
. It is easily accessed from the last junction of the M20
.
, the eminent physician and discoverer of the major details of blood circulation. A small class with one teacher was first created, until Sir Eliab Harvey
, William's nephew, acting as executor of his uncle's will, founded a larger school of the same name.
In July 1921, the body of the headmaster, 43 year old Major Denham, was found in undergrowth in Hawkinge
with self-inflicted bullet wounds.
The Principal is supported by his Senior Leadership Team who help run the school on a daily basis. This includes Senior Vice Principal, Mr Norman, Vice Principal Mr Goodfellow and four Heads of House. Two of the longest serving members of staff, Martin Hydes and Phil Harding, left their duties at the end of the 2010/11 academic year.
The school has re-formed its house system, with four houses; Discovery, Endeavour, Resolution and Victory, who use the colours Green, Blue, Red and Yellow respectively. The Heads of House are as follows:
Discovery - Miss Thompson,
Endeavour - Mrs Turnbull,
Resolution - Mr Bristow,
Victory - Mr Allon
The school also takes pupil care very seriously and every house has one Learning Support Manager (or LSM)
LSMs are as follows:
Discovery: Mrs Middleton,
Endeavour: Miss Gooding,
Resolution: Mrs Abu Saada,
Victory: Mr Hancox
Each academic department has a Head of Subject and staff below who report directly to this manager and ultimately the Principal.
Sixth Formers are given responsibility as prefects, coordinated by the most Senior Prefects and an elected Head Boy.
. It has been there since 1912-3 when the main building was constructed. In 1989, school buildings in the town centre next to the Folkestone Library were closed on completion of a new Science & Technology Block on the main site. A Sports Hall was added in 1997 and in 2001 a further building was added with facilities for ICT, Art, Business Studies and Biology; this was named the John Edwards Centre in 2002 in honour of the school's headmaster from 1986 to 2002. The school also boasts an adjacent sports field with a cricket pavilion named after former pupil Les Ames
(Kent and England wicketkeeper-batsman); money for this was raised by the Old Harveians Association under the leadership of its President, John Smith. The pavilion was opened in 1997 by Colin Cowdrey
in a ceremony also attended by Godfrey Evans
, another famous former Kent and England wicketkeeper. In a special match to mark the pavilion opening, the school's 1st XI cricket team played a celebrity team that included ex Kent and England opening batsmen Brian Luckhurst
and Mike Denness
. The school also benefits from the close proximity of council-owned sports facilities, including a floodlit astroturf pitch.
The Harvey's badge is worn by all boys ages 11–16 on their school uniform. The uniform consists of a black blazer with badge, black trousers and black shoes, a white shirt and a tie. The tie of which uses the colour corresponding to the pupil's house, in a diagonal-stripe fashion. The Sixth Form wear a different, less strict but still formal suit of their choice, with a different tie which is plain black with the school badge insignia emblem. Once they have reached the Sixth Form this can rise to have a single house-coloured stripe diagonally across, to denote prefect status.
In 2005, the Harvey was awarded specialist status in Sport with Mathematics. Even before the Sports College status, the Harvey had an excellent record in sport across the county of Kent and wider. It has reached more county football and cricket finals than any other school in Kent, a proud tradition largely established by long-standing Head of PE Alan Philpott (1957–92) (alumnus). The school itself has a structure which encourages competition at all levels (not only sport). A House Music and Technology competition are examples of two of the non-sport inter-house activities which the Harvey have introduced in recent years to benefit boys who are not wholly interested in sport.
Now these have been changed in September 2009 to four houses, the pupils decided what to call them on a survey, and they decided on four famous ships. These are now the names of the houses: Discovery, Endeavour, Resolution and Victory. The form groups have also been put into vertical tutor groups. This means year 7, 8 and 9s will be in a form so the school gets a mix and also Yr 10 and up together. This is one of the last schools to go into vertical tutoring in the Area.
in an inspection in 2006. OFSTED also praised the school for the pastoral care of its students which includes continual revision of targets and parent information evenings for GCSE options, Sixth Form study and parent evenings. The flexibility offered by the school, especially at A Level where it works very closely with the Folkestone School for Girls
to provide an extensive range of subjects, makes it a popular choice in the area. The Harvey achieved record A Level results in 2006, with a 100% pass rate. In 2007, A Level results were also very impressive, placing the Harvey above other local boys' grammar schools in the unofficial league table published by the Daily Mail
. The school achieved record GCSE results in 2009.
Michael Howard
, former local MP and former Leader of the Conservative Party
, described the Harvey as "a jewel in Folkestone's crown" at a school prize-giving, whilst the Good State Schools Guide refers to the Harvey as "a potent mix of friendliness and formality, of tradition and innovation".
In the 2006 Ofsted inspection the school received an overall 3,or 'satisfactory' grade, on a scale of 1-4 where 1 is the best and 4 is the worst. The written report was generally favourable and indicated that the sixth form in particular has "many outstanding features". However early in the 2011/12 academic year Ofsted
returned, giving the school a much improved "good with outstanding features" rating.
Many school leavers choose go on to study a wide range of degree subjects at university. A handful of students apply to Oxford or Cambridge each year, with successful applications in the last few years in subjects including Natural Sciences, Mathematics with Physics, English Language and Literature, Anglo-Saxon, Norse & Celtic and Philosophy, Politics & Economics.
have always been an important part of the Harvey's ethos and it was announced in July 2005 that the school had achieved the status of a Specialist Sports College with Mathematics. In September 2005 it officially became a Sports College and within the next few years in connection with the Specialist school
new status this will result in significant additional funding, together with some capital investment. A phased programme of installing interactive whiteboards in every classroom is well advanced and other opportunities resulting from specialist status have greatly enhanced the education available to students. The Harvey was also the "hub" school for the Shepway Sports Partnership, building upon its excellent reputation in sport, which has provided high-quality sporting programmes and events for hundreds of young people at other schools throughout the district. The funding for this project was cut in 2011.
An artificial cricket wicket was laid in the summer of 2007, following receipt of a grant from the Lord's Taverners
and further funding from the Old Harveians Association.
At the end of the Harvey's first full year as a Specialist Sports College the school achieved its best-ever A Level results with a 100% pass rate, followed by praise for the Sixth Form in the government inspection carried out by OFSTED. This was soon followed by excellent Key Stage 3 SAT results. A Level results in 2007 were as impressive as the previous year, placing the Harvey above local rivals Dover Grammar School for Boys
and the Norton Knatchbull School
in the unofficial league tables published by the Daily Mail. The Harvey was also placed ahead of several other prominent Kent boys' grammar schools, including Maidstone Grammar School
, Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys
, Borden Grammar School
, Dartford Grammar School
and Chatham House Grammar School
.
in Ashford, Kent. The money raised varies from year to year but the highest to date was £15,000 with one pupil James Webb (year 10) raising over £300. After a three year period, Mr Bill Wright has reinstated tag days, which generally occur on Red Nose Day.
An annual Prize Day is held at the Leas Cliff Hall in Folkestone to recognise those boys who have achieved a high standard in academic and/or sporting activities. The Headmaster, Chair of Governors, Head Boy and Guest Speaker are invited onto the stage to make speeches and then prizes are presented to the recipients.
for cricket, and Barcelona
and Holland for hockey and basketball. The football trips to the USA have taken place every other year since 1989. The 2009 trip saw the Harvey return home undefeated, having comprehensively beaten Susqehanna Valley High School, Conklin, Owego Free Academy, and Seton Catholic School, Binghamton. Cricket tours to Barbados
have taken place in 2000, 2003, 2006, 2009, 2011 and another will take place in 2014; together with the USA football tours, have all been organised by Senior Vice-Principal Phil Harding. The Barbados
tours replaced the highly-popular annual cricket tours to the West Country. In the past twenty years, over 1200 students have taken part in the school's annual ski trip. Curriculum-related trips to France, Germany and Italy form an integral part of the school's Languages programme, whilst History trips to the Somme and Politics visits to Parliament and 10 Downing Street are annual events. There is also a highly-popular Activities Week and opportunities for Work Experience. The school has a Duke of Edinburgh's Award programme, highly-successful Young Enterprise groups in the sixth form, and an award-winning Debating Group. Music is achieving a much higher profile under the guidance of a new and dynamic Curriculum Leader, Steve Barker, and a jazz band, The Red Herrings, the brainchild of four Harvey students (Chris Pilgrim, Danny Brookwell, Ed Watkinson and Fred Smith) as well as a member of the Folkestone School for Girls (Primrose Briggs) recently staged a charity evening in aid of the Marie Curie Cancer Care
Organisation in the school hall, raising £1800 for the charity. They are in popular demand for concerts locally.
A Drama Club is also ran every Tuesday evening after school.
An annual "Leavers' Ball" is traditionally held in conjunction with the Folkestone School for Girls each year at a large venue within the Folkestone area. This provides the opportunity for the school leavers' to come together, to celebrate their passing from school to further education or employment.
The government's programme Building Schools for the Future
(BSF) would have allowed the Harvey to further improve its facilities. However the Harvey was one of many schools for which the project was scrapped. the new Harvey's Diner (opened in 2005) is a great improvement on the old facility, and offers a wide range of healthy-food options under the leadership of a new Catering Manager.
near Milton Keynes
, which was recently made public and has become a tourist attraction. Their unique roles are honoured on a plaque in the school hall. The school's Headmaster Oliver Berthoud (1946–1952) was there, as was the school's long-serving secretary Miss Audrey Wind. Although they worked closely in the school it was not until a discussion one day in Mr Berthoud's office that he managed to get Miss Wind to admit to her involvement and they spoke at length about their time there.
On a visit to the school in late 2006 Miss Wind commented that no one was allowed to talk about their involvement. They were sworn to secrecy and it was amazing that four Harveians had worked for Ultra
during the war. She is the sole survivor of the four but now in her eighties still gives talks on the topic at functions and at the school to boys studying the period. Following her half-century of service to the school, Miss Wind became the first and only female member of the school's old boys' association.
Folkestone
Folkestone is the principal town in the Shepway District of Kent, England. Its original site was in a valley in the sea cliffs and it developed through fishing and its closeness to the Continent as a landing place and trading port. The coming of the railways, the building of a ferry port, and its...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, England. It is a Community Grammar School and was founded by Sir Eliab Harvey in 1674.
Admissions
It is a selective school for boys and had around 940 pupils on its roll in 2007-8. Although the School is officially known as The Harvey Grammar School, it is called The Harvey by many locals or abbreviated to HGS, as its partner school the Folkestone School for Girls is known as 'The Girls School' or FSG. The school has specialist Sports CollegeSports College
Sports Colleges were introduced in 1997 as part of the Specialist Schools Programme in the United Kingdom. The system enables secondary schools to specialise in certain fields, in this case, PE, sports and dance. Schools that successfully apply to the Specialist Schools Trust and become Sports...
status.
It is situated on the A2034 (former A20) at the junction of the B2064 and near the Folkestone West railway station
Folkestone West railway station
Folkestone West railway station is one of two open railway stations in Folkestone in Kent. The station is operated by Southeastern.The ticket office, in a room on the extensive 'up' side buildings on the London-bound platform, is manned only during part of the day; at other times a PERTIS 'permit...
, Folkestone Cricket Club and Folkestone Invicta
Folkestone Invicta F.C.
Folkestone Invicta F.C. are a football club based in the town of Folkestone, Kent, England. They play their home matches at Cheriton Road, currently known under the terms of a sponsorship deal as the Buzzlines Stadium, and currently compete in the Isthmian League Division One South.-Kent County...
. It is easily accessed from the last junction of the M20
M20 motorway
The M20 is a motorway in Kent, England. It runs from the M25 motorway to Folkestone, providing a link to the Channel Tunnel and the ports at Dover. It is long...
.
History
It was established in 1674, following the death of William HarveyWilliam Harvey
William Harvey was an English physician who was the first person to describe completely and in detail the systemic circulation and properties of blood being pumped to the body by the heart...
, the eminent physician and discoverer of the major details of blood circulation. A small class with one teacher was first created, until Sir Eliab Harvey
Eliab Harvey
Admiral Sir Eliab Harvey, GCB was an eccentric and hot-tempered officer of the Royal Navy during the French Revolutionary and the Napoleonic Wars who was as distinguished for his gambling and dueling as for his military record...
, William's nephew, acting as executor of his uncle's will, founded a larger school of the same name.
In July 1921, the body of the headmaster, 43 year old Major Denham, was found in undergrowth in Hawkinge
Hawkinge
Hawkinge is a village and civil parish in the Shepway District of Kent, England. The original village of Hawkinge is actually just less than a mile due east of the present village centre ; the modern, much larger, village of Hawkinge was formed by the merging of Hawkinge and Uphill...
with self-inflicted bullet wounds.
Leadership and structure
The current Principal of the Harvey is Mr Bill Wright. Mr Wright is well known to many Old Harveians having previously served as Deputy Headteacher for 22 years. The current Chair of Governors is Mr Dennis who replaced the long serving Mr Trevor Greening in 2006.The Principal is supported by his Senior Leadership Team who help run the school on a daily basis. This includes Senior Vice Principal, Mr Norman, Vice Principal Mr Goodfellow and four Heads of House. Two of the longest serving members of staff, Martin Hydes and Phil Harding, left their duties at the end of the 2010/11 academic year.
The school has re-formed its house system, with four houses; Discovery, Endeavour, Resolution and Victory, who use the colours Green, Blue, Red and Yellow respectively. The Heads of House are as follows:
Discovery - Miss Thompson,
Endeavour - Mrs Turnbull,
Resolution - Mr Bristow,
Victory - Mr Allon
The school also takes pupil care very seriously and every house has one Learning Support Manager (or LSM)
LSMs are as follows:
Discovery: Mrs Middleton,
Endeavour: Miss Gooding,
Resolution: Mrs Abu Saada,
Victory: Mr Hancox
Each academic department has a Head of Subject and staff below who report directly to this manager and ultimately the Principal.
Sixth Formers are given responsibility as prefects, coordinated by the most Senior Prefects and an elected Head Boy.
The school
The main school site is situated in the Folkestone suburb of CheritonCheriton, Kent
Cheriton is a northern suburb of Folkestone in Kent that is the location of the English terminal of the Channel Tunnel. It is the location of the major army barracks of Shorncliffe Camp.- History :...
. It has been there since 1912-3 when the main building was constructed. In 1989, school buildings in the town centre next to the Folkestone Library were closed on completion of a new Science & Technology Block on the main site. A Sports Hall was added in 1997 and in 2001 a further building was added with facilities for ICT, Art, Business Studies and Biology; this was named the John Edwards Centre in 2002 in honour of the school's headmaster from 1986 to 2002. The school also boasts an adjacent sports field with a cricket pavilion named after former pupil Les Ames
Les Ames
Leslie Ethelbert George Ames, CBE was an outstanding wicket-keeper and batsman for the England cricket team and Kent County Cricket Club. In his obituary, the Wisden of 1991 described him as the greatest wicket-keeper-batsman of all time...
(Kent and England wicketkeeper-batsman); money for this was raised by the Old Harveians Association under the leadership of its President, John Smith. The pavilion was opened in 1997 by Colin Cowdrey
Colin Cowdrey
Michael Colin Cowdrey, Baron Cowdrey of Tonbridge, CBE , better known as Colin Cowdrey, was the Captain of Oxford University, Kent County Cricket Club and the England cricket team in a career that lasted from 1950 to 1976...
in a ceremony also attended by Godfrey Evans
Godfrey Evans
Thomas Godfrey Evans CBE was an English cricketer who played for Kent and England.Described by Wisden as 'arguably the best wicket-keeper the game has ever seen', Evans collected 219 dismissals in 91 Test match appearances between 1946 and 1959 and a total of 1066 in all first-class matches...
, another famous former Kent and England wicketkeeper. In a special match to mark the pavilion opening, the school's 1st XI cricket team played a celebrity team that included ex Kent and England opening batsmen Brian Luckhurst
Brian Luckhurst
Brian William Luckhurst was an English cricketer, who played his entire county career for Kent County Cricket Club. He played for Kent from 1958 to 1976, usually opening the batting, then in 1985, in an emergency, played in one more match against the Australians. He was cricket manager from 1981...
and Mike Denness
Mike Denness
Mike Denness is a former Scottish cricketer who played for England, Scotland, Essex and Kent. Scotland did not have a representative international team at the time of Denness' career, so he could only play for England at Test and ODI level. Denness became the first Scotsman to captain England...
. The school also benefits from the close proximity of council-owned sports facilities, including a floodlit astroturf pitch.
The Harvey's badge is worn by all boys ages 11–16 on their school uniform. The uniform consists of a black blazer with badge, black trousers and black shoes, a white shirt and a tie. The tie of which uses the colour corresponding to the pupil's house, in a diagonal-stripe fashion. The Sixth Form wear a different, less strict but still formal suit of their choice, with a different tie which is plain black with the school badge insignia emblem. Once they have reached the Sixth Form this can rise to have a single house-coloured stripe diagonally across, to denote prefect status.
In 2005, the Harvey was awarded specialist status in Sport with Mathematics. Even before the Sports College status, the Harvey had an excellent record in sport across the county of Kent and wider. It has reached more county football and cricket finals than any other school in Kent, a proud tradition largely established by long-standing Head of PE Alan Philpott (1957–92) (alumnus). The school itself has a structure which encourages competition at all levels (not only sport). A House Music and Technology competition are examples of two of the non-sport inter-house activities which the Harvey have introduced in recent years to benefit boys who are not wholly interested in sport.
| House Name | Form Initial (Eg) |
|---|---|
| Discovery | D (DJ (junior) or DS (senior) |
| Endeavour | E (EJ (junior) or ES (senior) |
| Resolution | R (RJ (junior) or RS (senior) |
| Victory | V (VJ (junior) or VS (senior) |
Now these have been changed in September 2009 to four houses, the pupils decided what to call them on a survey, and they decided on four famous ships. These are now the names of the houses: Discovery, Endeavour, Resolution and Victory. The form groups have also been put into vertical tutor groups. This means year 7, 8 and 9s will be in a form so the school gets a mix and also Yr 10 and up together. This is one of the last schools to go into vertical tutoring in the Area.
Academic record
It educates boys from the age of 11-19. Academic standards are high, and many of the boys achieve good GCSE grades. The majority go onto the Sixth Form which was praised by OFSTEDOfsted
The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills is the non-ministerial government department of Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Schools In England ....
in an inspection in 2006. OFSTED also praised the school for the pastoral care of its students which includes continual revision of targets and parent information evenings for GCSE options, Sixth Form study and parent evenings. The flexibility offered by the school, especially at A Level where it works very closely with the Folkestone School for Girls
Folkestone School for Girls
Folkestone School for Girls is an all-girls grammar school in Folkestone, Kent. It is located next to Sandgate Primary School on Coolinge Lane. It has good reports from OFSTED, and excellent grades from the pupils. There is a crosskeys bus that takes girls to the top of the hill.-History:It...
to provide an extensive range of subjects, makes it a popular choice in the area. The Harvey achieved record A Level results in 2006, with a 100% pass rate. In 2007, A Level results were also very impressive, placing the Harvey above other local boys' grammar schools in the unofficial league table published by the 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...
. The school achieved record GCSE results in 2009.
Michael Howard
Michael Howard
Michael Howard, Baron Howard of Lympne, CH, QC, PC is a British politician, who served as the Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition from November 2003 to December 2005...
, former local MP and former Leader of the Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
, described the Harvey as "a jewel in Folkestone's crown" at a school prize-giving, whilst the Good State Schools Guide refers to the Harvey as "a potent mix of friendliness and formality, of tradition and innovation".
In the 2006 Ofsted inspection the school received an overall 3,or 'satisfactory' grade, on a scale of 1-4 where 1 is the best and 4 is the worst. The written report was generally favourable and indicated that the sixth form in particular has "many outstanding features". However early in the 2011/12 academic year Ofsted
Ofsted
The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills is the non-ministerial government department of Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Schools In England ....
returned, giving the school a much improved "good with outstanding features" rating.
Many school leavers choose go on to study a wide range of degree subjects at university. A handful of students apply to Oxford or Cambridge each year, with successful applications in the last few years in subjects including Natural Sciences, Mathematics with Physics, English Language and Literature, Anglo-Saxon, Norse & Celtic and Philosophy, Politics & Economics.
Specialist status
"Work hard and play hard" and mens sana in corpore sanoMens sana in corpore sano
Mens sana in corpore sano is a famous Latin quotation, often translated as "A sound mind in a sound body." There is also a sports equipment company with a name based on a twist of this quotation...
have always been an important part of the Harvey's ethos and it was announced in July 2005 that the school had achieved the status of a Specialist Sports College with Mathematics. In September 2005 it officially became a Sports College and within the next few years in connection with the Specialist school
Specialist school
The specialist schools programme was a UK government initiative which encouraged secondary schools in England to specialise in certain areas of the curriculum to boost achievement. The Specialist Schools and Academies Trust was responsible for the delivery of the programme...
new status this will result in significant additional funding, together with some capital investment. A phased programme of installing interactive whiteboards in every classroom is well advanced and other opportunities resulting from specialist status have greatly enhanced the education available to students. The Harvey was also the "hub" school for the Shepway Sports Partnership, building upon its excellent reputation in sport, which has provided high-quality sporting programmes and events for hundreds of young people at other schools throughout the district. The funding for this project was cut in 2011.
An artificial cricket wicket was laid in the summer of 2007, following receipt of a grant from the Lord's Taverners
Lord's Taverners
The Lord’s Taverners is a thriving club, the official charity for recreational cricket and the UK’s leading youth cricket and disability sports charity whose objective is to 'give young people, particularly those with special needs, a sporting chance'.The Lord’s Taverners was founded in 1950 by a...
and further funding from the Old Harveians Association.
At the end of the Harvey's first full year as a Specialist Sports College the school achieved its best-ever A Level results with a 100% pass rate, followed by praise for the Sixth Form in the government inspection carried out by OFSTED. This was soon followed by excellent Key Stage 3 SAT results. A Level results in 2007 were as impressive as the previous year, placing the Harvey above local rivals Dover Grammar School for Boys
Dover Grammar School for Boys
Dover Grammar School for Boys is a selective secondary school located in Dover, United Kingdom. The school is situated next to Astor College for the Arts, which is a non-selective school. It has a strong sporting rivalry with Astor and Sir Roger Manwood's School, a selective Grammar school in...
and the Norton Knatchbull School
The Norton Knatchbull School
The Norton Knatchbull School is a grammar school for boys located in Ashford, Kent, England. Girls are accepted into the Sixth Form. As of 2008, the school serves more than one thousand students aged 11 to 18.- History :...
in the unofficial league tables published by the Daily Mail. The Harvey was also placed ahead of several other prominent Kent boys' grammar schools, including Maidstone Grammar School
Maidstone Grammar School
Maidstone Grammar School is a grammar school located in Maidstone, United Kingdom. It was founded in 1549.-Admissions:The school takes boys at the age of 11 and over by examination and boys and girls at 16+ on their GCSE results. The school currently has almost 1200 students and approximately 120...
, Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys
Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys
Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys, also known as Tunbridge Wells Boys' Grammar School, TWGSB or "Tech", is a grammar school in Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England....
, Borden Grammar School
Borden Grammar School
Borden Grammar School is a selective boys grammar school situated in the centre of Sittingbourne, Kent, England which educates students aged 11–18. Whilst the school mainly admits boys, a small number girls have been educated at the school within the Sixth Form. The school holds specialist status...
, Dartford Grammar School
Dartford Grammar School
Dartford Grammar School is a selective secondary foundation school for boys in Dartford, Kent, England, which admits girls to its sixth form . All of the students joining the school are from the top 25% of the ability range...
and Chatham House Grammar School
Chatham House Grammar School
Chatham House Grammar School, often abbreviated to "Chatham House" is a grammar school in Ramsgate, Kent, England, founded in 1797 as a private boy's boarding school by William Humble, under the name Humbles Boys' School...
.
Community involvement
The Harvey promotes charities very strongly and has to date (2006) raised around £110,000 for charity through an Annual Sponsored Walk around the surrounding coastline and/or countryside. Each year around 900 people set out along a marshalled route with sponsored cards to help raise money for charity. In 2006 the Harvey raised over £10,000 for the William Harvey HospitalWilliam Harvey Hospital
The William Harvey Hospital, located in Willesborough, Ashford, Kent, England, is one of the three main hospitals in the East Kent Hospitals University NHS Trust area...
in Ashford, Kent. The money raised varies from year to year but the highest to date was £15,000 with one pupil James Webb (year 10) raising over £300. After a three year period, Mr Bill Wright has reinstated tag days, which generally occur on Red Nose Day.
An annual Prize Day is held at the Leas Cliff Hall in Folkestone to recognise those boys who have achieved a high standard in academic and/or sporting activities. The Headmaster, Chair of Governors, Head Boy and Guest Speaker are invited onto the stage to make speeches and then prizes are presented to the recipients.
Extra-curricular activities
There is an extensive range of trips: to the United States for football, to BarbadosBarbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
for cricket, and Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
and Holland for hockey and basketball. The football trips to the USA have taken place every other year since 1989. The 2009 trip saw the Harvey return home undefeated, having comprehensively beaten Susqehanna Valley High School, Conklin, Owego Free Academy, and Seton Catholic School, Binghamton. Cricket tours to Barbados
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
have taken place in 2000, 2003, 2006, 2009, 2011 and another will take place in 2014; together with the USA football tours, have all been organised by Senior Vice-Principal Phil Harding. The Barbados
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
tours replaced the highly-popular annual cricket tours to the West Country. In the past twenty years, over 1200 students have taken part in the school's annual ski trip. Curriculum-related trips to France, Germany and Italy form an integral part of the school's Languages programme, whilst History trips to the Somme and Politics visits to Parliament and 10 Downing Street are annual events. There is also a highly-popular Activities Week and opportunities for Work Experience. The school has a Duke of Edinburgh's Award programme, highly-successful Young Enterprise groups in the sixth form, and an award-winning Debating Group. Music is achieving a much higher profile under the guidance of a new and dynamic Curriculum Leader, Steve Barker, and a jazz band, The Red Herrings, the brainchild of four Harvey students (Chris Pilgrim, Danny Brookwell, Ed Watkinson and Fred Smith) as well as a member of the Folkestone School for Girls (Primrose Briggs) recently staged a charity evening in aid of the Marie Curie Cancer Care
Marie Curie Cancer Care
Marie Curie Cancer Care is a charitable organisation in the United Kingdom which provides nursing care, free of charge, to terminally ill people, giving them the chance to choose to be cared for at home...
Organisation in the school hall, raising £1800 for the charity. They are in popular demand for concerts locally.
A Drama Club is also ran every Tuesday evening after school.
An annual "Leavers' Ball" is traditionally held in conjunction with the Folkestone School for Girls each year at a large venue within the Folkestone area. This provides the opportunity for the school leavers' to come together, to celebrate their passing from school to further education or employment.
The government's programme Building Schools for the Future
Building Schools for the Future
Building Schools for the Future is the name of the previous UK Government's investment programme in secondary school buildings in England. The program is very ambitious in its costs, timescales and objectives, with politicians from all English political parties supportive of the principle but...
(BSF) would have allowed the Harvey to further improve its facilities. However the Harvey was one of many schools for which the project was scrapped. the new Harvey's Diner (opened in 2005) is a great improvement on the old facility, and offers a wide range of healthy-food options under the leadership of a new Catering Manager.
The school's secret war contribution at Station X
Three former staff and a pupil at the Harvey worked at the once secret code breaking centre at Bletchley ParkBletchley Park
Bletchley Park is an estate located in the town of Bletchley, in Buckinghamshire, England, which currently houses the National Museum of Computing...
near Milton Keynes
Milton Keynes
Milton Keynes , sometimes abbreviated MK, is a large town in Buckinghamshire, in the south east of England, about north-west of London. It is the administrative centre of the Borough of Milton Keynes...
, which was recently made public and has become a tourist attraction. Their unique roles are honoured on a plaque in the school hall. The school's Headmaster Oliver Berthoud (1946–1952) was there, as was the school's long-serving secretary Miss Audrey Wind. Although they worked closely in the school it was not until a discussion one day in Mr Berthoud's office that he managed to get Miss Wind to admit to her involvement and they spoke at length about their time there.
On a visit to the school in late 2006 Miss Wind commented that no one was allowed to talk about their involvement. They were sworn to secrecy and it was amazing that four Harveians had worked for Ultra
Ultra
Ultra was the designation adopted by British military intelligence in June 1941 for wartime signals intelligence obtained by "breaking" high-level encrypted enemy radio and teleprinter communications at the Government Code and Cypher School at Bletchley Park. "Ultra" eventually became the standard...
during the war. She is the sole survivor of the four but now in her eighties still gives talks on the topic at functions and at the school to boys studying the period. Following her half-century of service to the school, Miss Wind became the first and only female member of the school's old boys' association.
Buildings
Main building, John Edwards Centre, Maths Block, Music Room, Drama Room, Science and DT Block, P.E Block, Gym, Sports Hall and the Gallery (Originally the Sixth Form Common Room).Notable former pupils
- Les AmesLes AmesLeslie Ethelbert George Ames, CBE was an outstanding wicket-keeper and batsman for the England cricket team and Kent County Cricket Club. In his obituary, the Wisden of 1991 described him as the greatest wicket-keeper-batsman of all time...
, Kent and England wicket-keeper-batsman - Ronnie AldrichRonnie AldrichRonnie Aldrich, born Ronald Frank Aldrich was a British easy listening and jazz pianist, arranger, conductor, and composer. The only son af a store manager, he was three years old when he started playing the piano...
- leader of the Squadronaires band - Prof Michael Baker, Professor of Marketing from 1971-99 at the University of StrathclydeUniversity of StrathclydeThe University of Strathclyde , Glasgow, Scotland, is Glasgow's second university by age, founded in 1796, and receiving its Royal Charter in 1964 as the UK's first technological university...
, and President from 1986-2005 of the Academy of Marketing - Toby BoothToby BoothToby Booth born 6 February 1970)is an English rugby union coach, currently head coach at London Irish in the Guinness Premiership. He was educated at The Harvey Grammar School, Folkestone, a prominent football-playing school....
, head coach of London IrishLondon IrishLondon Irish RFC is an English rugby union club based in Sunbury, Surrey, where the senior squad train, the youth teams and senior academy play home games, and the club maintain their administrative offices. The senior squad play home games at the Madejski Stadium in Reading and compete in the top...
rugby union club - Air MarshalAir MarshalAir marshal is a three-star air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...
Sir Leslie Bower CBOrder of the BathThe Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
DFCDistinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom)The Distinguished Flying Cross is a military decoration awarded to personnel of the United Kingdom's Royal Air Force and other services, and formerly to officers of other Commonwealth countries, for "an act or acts of valour, courage or devotion to duty whilst flying in active operations against...
DSODistinguished Service OrderThe Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September... - Andrew BrownswordAndrew BrownswordAndrew Douglas Brownsword , is an English entrepreneur, developing his fortune through the greeting cards and gifts of Forever Friends. He has regularly featured on the Sunday Times Rich List, with an estimated fortune of £190 million....
, former greeting card magnate and currently owner of Bath Rugby Club, worth £195m (163 Times Rich List 2003). Owns the aBode chain of hotels. - Alex CornishAlex CornishAlex Cornish is an Edinburgh-based singer songwriter. He was educated at The Harvey Grammar School, Folkestone.His début album 'Until the Traffic Stops' was initially released in 2008 on Bellevue Records, his own label, and was co-produced by Stuart Wilson. Later in 2008, the album was remixed with...
, singer-songwriter - Richard Morrell, Red HatRed HatRed Hat, Inc. is an S&P 500 company in the free and open source software sector, and a major Linux distribution vendor. Founded in 1993, Red Hat has its corporate headquarters in Raleigh, North Carolina with satellite offices worldwide....
VP and inventor of SmoothWallSmoothWallSmoothwall is a Linux distribution designed to be used as an open source firewall. Designed for ease of use, Smoothwall is configured via a web-based GUI, and requires little or no knowledge of Linux to install or use....
and SchoolGuardian, and long time stalwart of the Linux operating system attended 1984-1991 - Maj-GenMajor-General (United Kingdom)Major general is a senior rank in the British Army. Since 1996 the highest position within the Royal Marines is the Commandant General Royal Marines who holds the rank of major general...
Alfred Gadd CBE, Director of Army Education from 1962-5 - Sir George GardinerGeorge Gardiner (politician)Sir George Arthur Gardiner was a United Kingdom Conservative Party politician and journalist.- Early life :...
, Conservative MP for ReigateReigate (UK Parliament constituency)Reigate is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.-Boundaries:...
from 1974–97, former Chairman of the 92 Group92 GroupThe 92 Group is a right-wing grouping within the British Conservative Party. They are so named because they used to meet at Conservative MP Sir Patrick Wall's home, 92 Cheyne Walk in Chelsea....
. - Ross Godfrey of the band MorcheebaMorcheebaMorcheeba are a British band, mixing influences from trip hop, rock, R&B, and pop.They have produced 7 albums since 1995, two of which reached the UK top ten.-Biography:...
attended the school from 1987-1994. - Prof Lewis Harmer, Drapers Professor of FrenchDrapers Professor of FrenchThe Drapers Professorship of French is the senior professorship in the study of the French language at the University of Cambridge, and was founded in 1919 by a donation from the Worshipful Company of Drapers.-Drapers Professors:...
from 1951-67 at the University of CambridgeUniversity of CambridgeThe University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally... - Steven Heard, British Olympic 800m runner, attended the school from 1973-1980.
- Scott Huggins, TV presenter, BBC2's relocation series Get a New Life
- Lord Imbert of New RomneyNew RomneyNew Romney is a small town in Kent, England, on the edge of Romney Marsh, an area of flat, rich agricultural land reclaimed from the sea after the harbour began to be silted up. New Romney was once a sea port, with the harbour adjacent to the church, but is now more than a mile from the sea...
, formerly Peter Imbert, Commissioner of the Metropolitan PoliceMetropolitan policeMetropolitan Police is a generic title for the municipal police force for a major metropolitan area, and it may be part of the official title of the force...
, who played a role in bringing the Balcombe Street siege to a conclusion. - David JohnsonDavid JohnsonDavid Johnson may refer to:* C. David Johnson , Canadian actor* David Johnson , American painter* David Johnson , American former college football quarterback...
CMGOrder of St Michael and St GeorgeThe Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
CVORoyal Victorian OrderThe Royal Victorian Order is a dynastic order of knighthood and a house order of chivalry recognising distinguished personal service to the order's Sovereign, the reigning monarch of the Commonwealth realms, any members of her family, or any of her viceroys...
, High Commissioner to GuyanaGuyanaGuyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...
and Ambassador to SurinameSurinameSuriname , officially the Republic of Suriname , is a country in northern South America. It borders French Guiana to the east, Guyana to the west, Brazil to the south, and on the north by the Atlantic Ocean. Suriname was a former colony of the British and of the Dutch, and was previously known as...
from 1993-8 - Peter KircherPete KircherPeter Derek Kircher , is a retired English rock/pop drummer.He played between 1982 to 1985 in the rock band Status Quo...
, former drummer with rock group Status Quo, was a pupil at the school in the 1950s and early 1960s. - Howard Losty, Director from 1971-77 of the (GEC) Hirst Research CentreHirst Research CentreGEC Hirst Research Centre was one of the first specialised industrial research laboratories to be built in Britain, and was part of the General Electric Company plc empire...
- Prof Michael MingosMichael MingosDavid Michael Patrick Mingos FRS was Principal of St Edmund Hall, Oxford from 1999 to 2009, and Professor of Inorganic Chemistry in the University of Oxford...
, Principal of St Edmund Hall, OxfordSt Edmund Hall, OxfordSt Edmund Hall is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Better known within the University by its nickname, "Teddy Hall", the college has a claim to being "the oldest academical society for the education of undergraduates in any university"...
and Professor of Inorganic Chemistry in the University of OxfordUniversity of OxfordThe University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
. - Stephen Neal, Director of The One ShowThe One ShowThe One Show is a topical magazine-style daily television programme broadcast live on BBC One and BBC One HD, hosted by Alex Jones and Matt Baker. Chris Evans joins Jones to present the programme on Friday...
- Prof Ken Packer, Professor in Chemistry, University of NottinghamUniversity of NottinghamThe University of Nottingham is a public research university based in Nottingham, United Kingdom, with further campuses in Ningbo, China and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia...
from 1993–2001, and Editor from 1982-8 of Molecular PhysicsMolecular Physics (journal)Molecular Physics is an international peer-reviewed scientific journal covering the interface between chemistry and physics, in particular chemical physics and physical chemistry. It covers both theoretical and experiment molecular science, including electronic structure, molecular dynamics,... - Noel ReddingNoel ReddingNoel Redding was an English rock and roll guitarist best known as the bassist for The Jimi Hendrix Experience.-Biography:...
, who played bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
in the Jimi Hendrix ExperienceThe Jimi Hendrix ExperienceThe Jimi Hendrix Experience were an English-American psychedelic rock band that formed in London in October 1966. Comprising eponymous singer-songwriter and guitarist Jimi Hendrix, bassist and backing vocalist Noel Redding and drummer Mitch Mitchell, the band was active until June 1969, in which...
(there is a mural painting celebrating him near the school office, painted on site in sections by the pupils). - Prof Athol Riddell MBE, Professor of Surgery from 1964-74 at the University of BristolUniversity of BristolThe University of Bristol is a public research university located in Bristol, United Kingdom. One of the so-called "red brick" universities, it received its Royal Charter in 1909, although its predecessor institution, University College, Bristol, had been in existence since 1876.The University is...
, and based at Southmead HospitalSouthmead HospitalSouthmead Hospital is a large hospital, situated in the northern suburbs of Bristol, England, part of the North Bristol NHS Trust.The hospital opened in 1902 as a 64 bed workhouse for poor sick people. By 1911 there were 520 beds.... - Gerald SinstadtGerald SinstadtGerald Sinstadt is a British commentator and broadcaster, usually on football.-Broadcasting career:Born in Folkestone, Kent, Sinstadt attended the Harvey Grammar School, and began broadcasting on the British Forces Broadcasting Service in October 1949 and BBC Radio in the 1950s and 1960s - where...
, television sports commentator. - Timothy (Tim) Wren, English first-class cricket player, attended the school from 1981-1988.