Hele's School

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Hele's School
Location
Hele's School
Seymour Road

South West

Plympton, Plymouth
,
Devon
,
PL7 4LT

England
Coordinates 50°23′33″N4°03′56″W / 50.392436°N 4.065483°W / 50.392436; -4.065483
Information
Former namePlympton Grammar School
School typeAcademy Converter
Motto"A great place to learn. A great place to grow.
Religious affiliation(s)N/A
Established1658;367 years ago (1658)
FounderFrom a bequest of Elize Hele
Local authorityPlymouth
TrustWestcountry Schools Trust (WesT)
Department for Education URN 136557 Tables
Ofsted Reports
PrincipalEmma Clapham
Staff187
Years offeredYears 7 through 14
GenderMixed
Age range11-18
Enrolment1,386
Schedule
  • Tutor: 09:45 - 09:10
  • Period 1: 09:10 - 10:10
  • Period 2: 10:10 - 11:10
  • Break 1: 11:10 - 11:40
  • Period 3: 11:40 - 12:40
  • Period 4: 12:40 - 13:40
  • Break 2: 13:40 - 14:10
  • Period 5: 14:10 - 15:10
Hours in school day5 hours, 25 minutes
Colour(s)  Selective Yellow
Website http://www.heles.plymouth.sch.uk/

Hele's School, formerly Plympton Grammar School, is a co-educational secondary school and sixth form located in Plympton, Plymouth, England. It is a comprehensive school for pupils aged 11 to 18 and is part of the Westcountry Schools Trust (WeST). The school has around 1,350 students on roll, including around 210 in the sixth form. Hele's School has an eight-form entry system, with a published admission number of 240 per year group.

Contents

The school offers a broad curriculum at Key Stages 3 and 4, with students ordinarily choosing GCSE options in Year 9. Post-16 education is delivered through a dedicated sixth form centre. Alongside academic provision, the school runs a Combined Cadet Force (CCF) with Army, Royal Navy, and Royal Air Force sections, as well as an established Duke of Edinburgh's Award scheme.

The current Acting Principal is Emma Clapham, since 1 September 2025. [1]

History

Old Grammar School, Plympton, founded 1658, built 1664, attended by Joshua Reynolds whose father was headmaster PlymptonOldGrammarSchool Devon.JPG
Old Grammar School, Plympton, founded 1658, built 1664, attended by Joshua Reynolds whose father was headmaster
Under the colonnade of the Old Grammar School, Plympton, the school-room being above OldGrammarSchool Plympton Devon UnderColonnade.JPG
Under the colonnade of the Old Grammar School, Plympton, the school-room being above

Hele's School traces its origins to the legacy of Elize Hele (1560–1635), a lawyer and philanthropist from Brixton, Devon, who left his estate to fund charitable and educational purposes. His trustees established several schools in the South West, including a Grammar school in Plympton. The original Plympton Grammar School building, completed in 1671 in Plympton St Maurice, still stands today. It is a Grade II* listed building. Next to it was the schoolmaster's house, where the painter Sir Joshua Reynolds was born. The grammar school produced several notable artists, including Reynolds, James Northcote, Benjamin Haydon, and Sir Charles Eastlake.

The school closed in 1903 due to financial difficulties but was re-established in 1921 by Devon County Council as Plympton Grammar School. It moved to its current site on Seymour Road in 1937. In 1983, following a period of expansion and reorganisation, it became an 11-18 co-educational comprehensive school and was renamed Hele's School. [2]

In the early 2000s, Hele's held specialist status in Languages, Mathematics and Computing, and Applied Learning, gaining recognition as a Language College. The school converted to academy status in April 2011, initially as a stand-alone academy trust - 'Hele's Trust' - before joining the Westcountry Schools Trust (WeST) in September 2017. [3]

Prime Minister's Global Fellowship

Students have attained places on the Prime Minister's Global Fellowship programme. The school achieved its first student in the inaugural year of the programme, 2008, and in 2009 had another successful applicant. [4]

Notable former pupils

Plympton Grammar School (1658–1983)

Hele's School (1983–Present)

References

  1. ↑ "CEO Letter to Parents/Carers at Hele's School". Westcountry Schools Trust. 27 June 2025. Retrieved 10 September 2025.
  2. ↑ Robinson, Chris (4 July 2023). "Plymouth's historic treasure in the heart of a Stannary town". Plymouth Live. Retrieved 10 September 2025.
  3. ↑ "WESTCOUNTRY SCHOOLS TRUST - GOV.UK". www.get-information-schools.service.gov.uk. Retrieved 10 September 2025.
  4. ↑ British Council website "Fellows" Archived 2011-09-12 at the Wayback Machine accessed 10 November 2009.
  5. ↑ ‘FOSTER, Kevin John’, Who's Who 2016, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 2016
  6. ↑ "Haydon, Benjamin Robert (1786–1846)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/12750.(Subscription, Wikipedia Library access or UK public library membership required.)
  7. ↑ Who's Who 2007 . A & C Black. 1912. ISBN   978-0-7136-7527-6.{{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
  8. ↑ "Grammar School". Plympton St. Maurice. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  9. ↑ "Pole, Sir Charles Morice". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/22444.(Subscription, Wikipedia Library access or UK public library membership required.)
  10. ↑ "Reynolds, Sir Joshua (1723–1792)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/23429.(Subscription, Wikipedia Library access or UK public library membership required.)
  11. ↑ "Rowe, Samuel (1793–1853)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/24206.(Subscription, Wikipedia Library access or UK public library membership required.)
  12. ↑ "Russell, John [Jack] [called the Sporting Parson] (1795–1883)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/24326.(Subscription, Wikipedia Library access or UK public library membership required.)
  13. ↑ Sir Gordon Shattock - Telegraph
  14. ↑ "Trelawny, Sir Harry, seventh baronet (bap. 1756, d. 1834)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/48167.(Subscription, Wikipedia Library access or UK public library membership required.)
  15. ↑ "Lewis Gregory". Cricket Archive. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
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