The John Fisher School

Last updated
The John Fisher School
Badgejfs.png
Address
The John Fisher School

, ,
CR8 3YP

United Kingdom
Coordinates 51°20′44″N0°08′02″W / 51.34548°N 0.13386°W / 51.34548; -0.13386
Information
Type Faith school voluntary-aided
Selective school 1991–2008
Independent school 1929–1977
Religious affiliation(s) Roman Catholic
Established1929 [1]
Founder Peter Amigo
Department for Education URN 103009 Tables
Ofsted Reports
HeadteacherP. E. McCullagh
ChaplainFr. James Clarke
GenderMales
Age11to 18
Enrollment1113 [2]
Capacity1195 [3]
HousesFisher   Bede  
More   Becket   Challoner   Newman   Teresa  
Colour(s)Year 7- Year 10
  
Year 11
  
Year 12- Year 13
  
PublicationThe Kingfisher
The Fishtickler
Newsletter
The Student Voice
Feeder schoolsLaleham Lea Primary School
AlumniOld Fisherians (Old Boys)
Website www.johnfisherschool.org

The John Fisher School is a Roman Catholic voluntary-aided boys' faith school based at Peaks Hill, Purley, Croydon, Surrey, England. The school is located in and funded by the London Borough of Sutton. It occupies the former site of the 19th-century prep school Falconbury School. The school operates as a faith (Roman Catholic) comprehensive School, educating boys mainly from south and central Croydon. It has a history of selection, and (as a selective entry grant-maintained school, and before that as a fee-paying boys’ grammar school) has drawn pupils from across London and South East England.

Contents

The school has operated selective admissions policies twice in its history, from when it was founded in 1929 until 1977, and more recently from 1991 to 2008. It was, alongside the London Oratory School, one of the last selective entry Catholic comprehensive schools to defy the Schools' Admissions Code by continuing to interview prospective pupils and their parents. There have been no parental interviews since 2008, with the final cohort of boys selected by interview leaving the school in the Summer of 2014.

The school has grown since the end of its selection policy from 700 pupils to over 1000, and was set to grow even more beginning in 2016 (30 additional places).

History

The John Fisher School was founded by Peter Emmanuel Amigo, Archbishop of Southwark, in 1929 at Duppas Hill in Croydon, and moved in 1931 to its current premises in Peaks Hill, Purley. [1] It is the only currently-open school named after Saint John Fisher that was founded before his canonization in 1935. This is indicated by the absence of "Saint" from the school name. At the start of the 1970s the John Fisher School was a diocesan grammar school with an intake of fee-paying and non-fee-paying children. It had a small number of boarders until 1970 when a decision was made to end this facility. In 1977 it became an all-ability comprehensive school maintained by the London Borough of Sutton. [ citation needed ]

In 1991, following discussion and a vote by parents, John Fisher was incorporated as a Grant Maintained School and operated a selection policy. Selection into the school was via an interview process involving candidates and their parents (to assess whether the boy and his family's ambitions and ethos were in harmony of those of the school) or by examination (for a minority of academic places). Also, a small number of young men were selected on the basis of musical ability or for sporting promise. [ citation needed ]

Despite the school selecting all of its pupils it was nominally comprehensive because not all boys were selected purely on academic ability. GM Catholic schools[ clarification needed ] that examined candidates and interviewed potential pupils and their parents were often controversial. [4] In September 2008, the school stopped all forms of selection and became a local voluntary-aided comprehensive school, serving Croydon and Sutton, once more. In 2003, John Fisher School became a specialist sports college and construction began on a £1.2 million sports hall opened by Sir Bobby Robson. [1]

Since the end of its selective admissions process the school came under fire for "its controversial points admission system which favoured children from families who are the most active in the church." The school was investigated by the Office of the Schools Adjudicator (OSA) after complaints from a parent. Objections to the OSA included "governors could manipulate what was considered a bona fide parish activity to 'exclude those they do not wish to admit from the school'" and "that governors were using surnames to reject single parents". The OSA did not endorse the latter claim but made "the strongest recommendation" that the current system be scrapped. This is the second time the school's admission policy has been investigated by the OSA following complaints. [5]

In March 2022, the school invited the children's author Simon James Green to speak at the school and sign books as part of the national Book Week event. However, after a number of parents complained about what they considered to be the blasphemous and age inappropriate sexual content of some of the author's published work, the Catholic Archdiocese of Southwark instructed the school to withdraw the invitation and subsequently removed the foundation governors after the Governing Board had narrowly voted in favour of the visit continuing. [6]

Concerns over the governance in this matter triggered a snap Ofsted inspection, which reported that the archdiocese had acted unilaterally and without regard to statutory guidance. Ofsted said that as a priority, "immediate steps must be taken to restore stability to governance, and in turn ensure that leadership is provided". The inspectors overlooked the fact that at the time of their inspection the Archdiocese had already appointed seven new Foundation Governors to replace those who had either been removed or resigned. Six days of strike action by members of the National Education Union followed in protest at the archdiocese's actions. [7]

In recent years, due to tightening up in the schools' admissions code and the abolition of first preference first criteria, the school has developed and expanded to become more of a standard non-selective local Roman Catholic boys' comprehensive school, mainly serving the areas of South & Central Croydon, North Surrey, Bromley and Sutton.

Description

Admissions at 11+

Boys are admitted to the school at the ages of 11 or 16. Entry at 11+ is non-selective (since September 2008). Since 2013 for the first time in its history, the school now admits boys who either fail or fail to score highly enough in the 11+ used for grammar school entry. Approximately 190 boys are admitted in Year 7.

John Fisher was a small selective school from 1991 until September 2008. During the school's selection policy (when there was no consideration for boys living closest to the school whatsoever) it was taking boys from 20 to 30 miles away, but, due to its highly selective nature and high academic attainment, it was seen by many parents as an alternative to independent schools. [8]

The assessment consisted of a candidate and parent interview, a religion test, a written statement by the boy stating why he would like to attend the school and a report from the boy's current school. A smaller number of boys were selected for academic, musical and sports aptitude, in conjunction with an interview. There have been no interviews since 2008. [9]

Headmasters

Prior to Terence King's appointment all headmasters were Roman Catholic priests.

Sporting results

Rugby Union

The 7s team reached three consecutive national finals between 1997 and 1999 winning two and losing the 1999 final against Stonyhurst; they lost the 2008 final 19-0 to Sedbergh School. [10] The school's U15s reached the final of The Daily Mail Cup in the 2000/2001 season, losing to Epsom College. [11] The school has rugby rivalries with Whitgift School, London Oratory School and Dulwich College. It is the only comprehensive school with a rugby fixture against Eton College.

Overall summary 1st XV

Played since 2000Won by John Fisher School Won by Whitgift School Drawn
285230

Overall summary U15A

Played since 2004Won by John Fisher School Won by Whitgift School Drawn
193160

The John Fisher Association

The JFA, a registered charity, was founded in 1996. Located at 33 Park Hill Carshalton, it was founded for the "advancement of the education of the pupils of The John Fisher School" and undertakes activities which contribute financially and socially to the school. The charity provide scholarships and bursaries during the school's selection policy.

Old Boys Association and alumni groups

The John Fisher Old Boys Association (JFOBA) is a members club for past pupils and teachers of The John Fisher School in Purley, Surrey. Membership is available to all former pupils of school, and those members and former members of the school's staff invited to be Honorary Members. [12]

Notable former pupils

Arts and media

Business

Military

Science

Clergy

Sport

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newstead Wood School</span> Grammar school in Orpington, London, England

Newstead Wood School is a selective girls' grammar school in Avebury Road, Orpington, south east London, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tiffin School</span> Boys grammar school in London

Tiffin School is a boys' grammar school in Kingston upon Thames, England. It has specialist status in both the performing arts and languages. The school moved from voluntary aided status to become an Academy School on 1 July 2011. Founded in 1880, Tiffin School educates 1,400 pupils as of March 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St George's School, Harpenden</span> Academy in Harpenden, Hertfordshire, England

St George's School, Harpenden is a non-selective day and boarding school in Harpenden, Hertfordshire, England, educating students of both sexes between the ages of eleven and eighteen, with an emphasis on its Christian ethos. It was founded in 1907 as one of Britain's first mixed-sex boarding schools. The school has International School status. The School was named as the Sunday Times' 'Comprehensive School of the Year' in 2019. In 2022, the School was ranked as the 122nd best secondary state school in the country based on combined GCSE attainment and A-Level point scores.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Boys</span> Grammar school in Kings Heath, Birmingham, West Midlands, England

King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Boys, also known as Camp Hill Boys, is a highly selective grammar school in Birmingham, United Kingdom. It is one of the most academically successful schools in the United Kingdom, currently ranked third among state schools. The name is retained from the previous location at Camp Hill in central Birmingham. The school moved to Vicarage Road in the suburb of Kings Heath in 1956, sharing a campus with its sister school, also formerly located in Camp Hill. Since September 2021 the current headmaster is Russell Bowen. It is a school which specialises in Science, Mathematics, and Applied Learning. In 2006, the school was assessed by The Sunday Times as state school of the year. A Year 9 student was the 2011 winner of The Guardian Children's Fiction Page and the Gold Award in the British Physics Olympiad was won by a King Edward VI Camp Hill student in September 2011. Camp Hill has also sent a boy to the International Chemistry Olympiad for 4 years in a row. In the 2019 Chemistry Olympiad, Camp Hill received the second most gold certificates, coming second to St Paul's School, London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys</span> Grammar school in Seal Hollow Rd, Sevenoaks, Kent

Tunbridge Wells Grammar School for Boys (TWGSB) is a grammar school in Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beechen Cliff School</span> Academy in Bath, Somerset, England

Beechen Cliff School is a boys' secondary school in Bath, Somerset, England, with about 1,150 pupils. Its earliest predecessor school was founded in 1896.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul Sackey</span> England international rugby union player

Paul Henry Sackey is a retired English rugby union footballer who played on the wing, most recently for Harlequins in the Aviva Premiership.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sandbach School</span> School in Sandbach, Cheshire, England

Sandbach School is an 11–18 boys free school in Sandbach, Cheshire, north-west England. It was established in 1677 by local philanthropists, including Richard Lea, who donated the land for the school, and Francis Welles, who helped to fund the schoolhouse. It was located at Egerton Lodge, Middlewich Road, before moving into a new set of buildings designed by George Gilbert Scott in 1851.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Campion School</span> Academy in Hornchurch, Greater London, England

The Campion School is a Roman Catholic boys' secondary school and coeducational sixth form in Hornchurch, London, England. The school converted to academy status in August 2011, and has a specialism in science.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Riddlesdown Collegiate</span> Academy in Purley, London, England

Riddlesdown Collegiate is a secondary school with academy status located in the Riddlesdown area of the London Borough of Croydon, UK. It is a coeducational school, of between 1800 and 2000 students. The school takes its pupils mainly from the Sanderstead, Selsdon, Purley, Kenley, New Addington and South Croydon areas, and specialises in science. Riddlesdown is the largest school in Croydon in terms of pupil numbers, and one of the most over-subscribed schools in the area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Aloysius' College, Highgate</span> Voluntary aided comprehensive school in Highgate, Greater London, England

St Aloysius' College is a Roman Catholic, boys-only state school in the London Borough of Islington, England. Each year around 180 pupils are admitted to Year 7 on the basis of examination; the local education authority also assigns students without another school to this school. It is the oldest surviving foundation of its kind in the Archdiocese of Westminster.

In England, a partially selective school is one of a few dozen state-funded secondary schools that select a proportion of their intake by ability or aptitude, permitted as a continuation of arrangements that existed prior to 1997. Though treated together by current legislation, they are of two types: bilateral schools in remnants of the Tripartite System, and former grant-maintained schools that introduced partial selection in the 1990s. While technically classified as comprehensive schools, they occupy a middle ground between grammar schools and true comprehensives, and many of the arguments for and against grammar schools also apply to these schools. Although there are relatively few schools of this type, several of them score very highly in national performance tables, and are among the most over-subscribed schools in the country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harris Academy Purley</span> Academy in South Croydon, Greater London, England

Harris Academy Purley is an academic secondary school in South Croydon, England. It is also part of the Harris Federation. Haling Manor High School was one of only fifteen schools in the country to be awarded specialist status as a music school.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Canterbury Academy</span> Academy in Canterbury, Kent, England

The Canterbury Academy is a co-educational 11-19 academy school in Canterbury, Kent, England. It is a specialist Sports College and 15% of its 1081 pupils are selected on musical aptitude. The school was founded as a non-selective secondary modern foundation school before gaining academy status in 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oasis Academy Coulsdon</span> Academy in Coulsdon, Greater London, England

Oasis Academy Coulsdon, formerly known as Coulsdon High School, is a school in the London Borough of Croydon, England. It is between the area of Coulsdon and Caterham. It is an academy run by the Christian charity Oasis Trust. The conversion to an academy in 2008 attracted a £20 million investment over five years by the government, via the Oasis Trust.

The Archbishop Lanfranc Academy is a coeducational secondary school located in the Thornton Heath area of Croydon, South London, named after Lanfranc, Archbishop of Canterbury from 1070 to 1089.

Selective Catholic schools were Roman Catholic secondary schools that existed in England until the beginning of the twenty-first century. They emerged out of successive governments' desire to create a free market in the state education system. These schools were able, primarily through selecting by interviewing prospect pupils along with their parents, to attract pupils from motivated families who were committed to the education and advancement of their children and to the schools themselves.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">State-funded schools (England)</span> School in England which provides education to pupils between the ages of 3 and 18 without charge

English state-funded schools, commonly known as state schools, provide education to pupils between the ages of 3 and 18 without charge. Approximately 93% of English schoolchildren attend such 24,000 schools. Since 2008 about 75% have attained "academy status", which essentially gives them a higher budget per pupil from the Department for Education.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St John's Catholic Comprehensive School</span> Voluntary aided school in Gravesend, Kent, England

St John's Catholic Comprehensive School is a coeducational Roman Catholic secondary school and sixth form, located in Gravesend in the English county of Kent.

References

  1. 1 2 3 The John Fisher School - History of the school Archived 24 June 2009 at the Wayback Machine , accessed 26 April 2009.
  2. "The John Fisher School". Ofsted . Retrieved 25 July 2019.
  3. "The John Fisher School - GOV.UK". get-information-schools.service.gov.uk. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  4. Lightfoot, Liz (9 September 2006). "Admissions code bans faith school selection by interview". The Daily Telegraph. London.
  5. Truman, Peter (30 July 2008). "School admissions system rapped as far too complex". Croydon Guardian . p. 2.
  6. Sherwood, Harriet; Adams, Richard (9 March 2022). "Catholic church bans visit by gay author to London school". The Guardian.
  7. Adams, Richard (27 April 2022). "Ofsted criticises archdiocese over ban on gay author's visit to Catholic school". The Guardian.
  8. "Patten Ready To Change Popular School Rule - from the Catholic Herald Archive". archive.catholicherald.co.uk. Retrieved 7 April 2023.
  9. "Minister who knows his own words". Catholic Herald . 26 July 1991. p. 5.
  10. "National Schools Sevens Results". National Schools Sevens. Archived from the original on 29 September 2011. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
  11. "Daily Mail Cup Results Archive". Schools' Rugby. Schools' Sports. Archived from the original on 13 December 2007. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
  12. "Home - The John Fisher Old Boys Association" . Retrieved 8 February 2016.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 "Old Boys". The John Fisher School. Archived from the original on 28 June 2015. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  14. The Times, "Bill Nighy talks Pirates of the Caribbean", 12 May 2007. Accessed 26 April 2009.
  15. thisiscornwall.co.uk, College team ready for cup semi-final test [ permanent dead link ], 12 March 2009. Accessed 26 April 2009.
  16. 'I am a rather unsubtle sort of chap'
  17. "FindArticles.com - CBSi" . Retrieved 8 February 2016.
  18. The John Fisher School Newsletter, Winter 2008 Archived 2 October 2011 at the Wayback Machine , accessed 26 April 2009.
  19. Tim Murtagh player profile at Cricinfo, accessed 26 April 2009.
  20. Chris Murtagh player profile at Cricinfo, accessed 26 April 2009.
  21. Croydon Guardian, Rooney wants British record, 3 November 2008. Accessed 26 April 2009.
  22. Paul Sackey profile at England Rugby Archived 15 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine , accessed 26 April 2009.
  23. 1 2 "Sackey and Skivington support schoolboys"; 3 February 2009; accessed 26 April 2009.
  24. Kyle Traynor player profile