In 1615, the will of Stephen Perse included a bequest of land for the establishment of what was then described as a Grammar Free School, in Cambridge. It became The Perse School and was originally reserved for boys. It developed along separate lines and operates as a separate organization today, providing coeducational education from ages 3 to 18.
In 1881, the complementary but unconnected Perse School for Girls opened, as part of the strong 19th-century movement to educate women. From the Perse School for Girls, the Foundation developed to become the Stephen Perse Foundation in 2007. It opened a co-educational sixth form in 2008. It now provides a complete educational pathway for boys and girls from age 1 to 18.[3]
Writer and cartoonist Ronald Searle drew from the Perse School for Girls and the Cambridgeshire High School for Girls (now Long Road Sixth Form College) as inspiration for his St Trinian's School books (published 1946 to 1952), which portrayed the girls at a boarding school as juvenile delinquents. Searle donated original manuscripts and diaries to the Perse, which are held in the school archive. This material includes a letter, dated 1993, which confirms the link.[4][non-primary source needed]
Around the turn of the 20th century, the school accepted boys into its kindergarten, including a young John Maynard Keynes.[5][6][7]
In September 2013, Dame Bradbury's School in Saffron Walden joined the Foundation, as a non-selective school for boys and girls aged 1–11.[8] At the same time, announcements were made of major development plans to admit boys to Rosedale House (then known as the Junior School) and Senior Schools. Boys started at Rosedale House in Cambridge in September 2014, and at the Senior School in 2017, with classes from Year 5 through to Year 11 being taught in a diamond formation. This is intended to combine the academic benefits of single-sex learning with the social advantages of a co-educational environment.[9][10][11]
Awards and recognition
In 2013, The Sunday Times named the Foundation the International Baccalaureate (IB) School of the Year for the second time.[12] That year the school was reported as holding the joint-highest IB results in the world, with a student average score of 42.2 points.[13] In 2018, the average IB points score was 36, as reported in the Sunday Times Parent Power Survey ranking.[14]
In November 2014, the school was awarded the title Independent School of the Year 2014[15] and also "Outstanding Strategic Initiative" by the Independent School Awards, decided by a panel of independent judges, including the Chief Inspector of the Independent Schools Inspectorate, Christine Ryan.[citation needed]
In November 2016, the Foundation was named the Best Independent School in East Anglia by The Sunday Times[16] on its 'Parent Power' list. The list is acknowledged as the 'most authoritative survey' of the county's best schools, according to the newspaper. The Foundation was ranked at number 18 in a list of 2,000 schools around the United Kingdom. The accolade was based on GCSE and A Level results – 97.6% of A Level students achieved A* to B grades and 86.1% of GCSE students achieved A* and A grades.[17] In 2017, The same Parent Power survey ranked the school number 40 in the UK and, in 2018, number 74.[18]
The Foundation was shortlisted for Digital innovation/ed tech school of the year at the TES Schools Awards 2017.[19]
In 2020 the Senior School received the Sunday Times Schools Guide 2021 award for East Anglia Independent Secondary School of the Decade.[citation needed]
The school has been featured by BBC News regarding the innovatory use of iTunes U courses.[20]
Site and facilities
The main school site occupies a city block, three sides bordered by residential streets and the fourth by the University of Cambridge Department of Chemistry. This houses the Stephen Perse Senior School (ages 11–16), with Rosedale House (ages 3–11) occupying a site close by. The Stephen Perse Pre-Prep was established in 2010, after the Foundation purchased the Madingley site on the retirement of the previous owners.
In 2013, the refurbished library and classrooms in Rosedale House were covered by The Guardian newspaper in a feature on inspirational teaching spaces.[21]
Pupils
There are currently[when?] approximately 800 pupils: 80 in the Pre-Prep, 140 in Rosedale House, and 140 in the Sixth Form; and 450 in the Senior School.
In 2013 it was announced that the school would be accepting boys for the first time in to Rosedale House in 2014 and then the Senior school in 2017, becoming coeducational.[22]
Extracurricular activities
The Stephen Perse Foundation holds the British Council International School Award in recognition of the work the school undertakes with schools in Finland, Hungary, Portugal, Italy, France, Russia, Spain, Germany and Japan.[citation needed]
This article's list of alumni may not follow Wikipedia's verifiability policy. Please improve this article by removing names that do not have independent reliable sources showing they merit inclusion in this article AND are alumni, or by incorporating the relevant publications into the body of the article through appropriate citations.(October 2022)
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