Peter Symonds College
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Peter Symonds' College is a sixth form college in Winchester, Hampshire, in the south of England.
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Origins and history
Peter Symonds College is an open access college which has catered for up to 2,000 students a year from central Hampshire since 1974, but the origins of the former boys' grammar school goes back to the 16th century.
The Symonds family played a considerable part in the life of Winchester during the 16th and 17th centuries and earlier. William Symonds was three times mayor and the slab over his tomb is to be found in the north aisle of the cathedral.
His brother, Peter, became a successful business man in the City of London and achieved membership of the Mercers' Company.
In those days, needy London boys were helped by the foundation of Christ's Hospital, of which Peter Symonds became a great admirer. He decided to give Winchester a somewhat similar foundation, and in his will, dated 1586, he provided for the foundation of an almshouse, Christes Hospitall, to benefit Winchester people across the whole age range.
Six aged brethren were to be supported in comfort at the hospital, two divinity students were to be assisted, one at Oxford and one at Cambridge University, and "four pore boys" to be taught, and, after leaving School, to be apprenticed.
The Alms houses, in Symonds Street, near the cathedral, were amalgamated with the St John Hospital charity in 1991 and still provide five rooms for "poor bachelors and widowers of good character of not less than 50 years". The trustees have moved with the times and wives are now allowed. They may stay if they are widowed and currently there are four women and one man in residence.
Another request of the founder has been honoured. Every year, on St Peter's Day. 29 June, an Evensong is held in Winchester Cathedral. Flowers are still laid before the clergy and congregation, but the brethren and students no longer wear the gowns of crimson grograyne with silver chains round their necks nor do the scholars wear "Crimson Sattin Night Caps." as in the past.
By the 1890s, enough money had been earned from the sale of land to the expanding railway companies for the Conservator and Gubernators, who looked after the finances, to increase the educational side of the foundation and establish a secondary school for Winchester boys.
Peter Symonds' School opened in May, 1897, at 39, Southgate Street.
Only six headmasters have been appointed in 102 years and the first two of these, Telford Varley and Dr Freeman covered the first half-century between them. The ethos of the school has been greatly influenced by the personalities and achievements of these men.
Appointed in 1897 and ordained a priest in 1908, the Revd Telford Varley was a formidable first headmaster for the school. He was held greatly in awe by the boys; this was partly because of his manner; distant eyed behind his beard, he was capable of fearsome outbursts of temper and of designing strange punishments, making offenders feel very small indeed.
He caught a boy climbing through a classroom window and invited him to climb in and out of it 50 times after school while Varley himself sat in the room marking.
Slovenly pupils who slouched around with their hands in their pockets were paraded in Northbrook Hall at 4 o'clock and invited by Mr. Varley to "assume an attitude of hobbledehoy". They then shambled round the hall with hangdog expression until told to assume "the attitude of a gentleman", when they straightened themselves and marched smartly round and round.
During the pauses in this exercise, trains could he heard entering and leaving Winchester station, and, as many of the delinquents were train boys, this added to their discomfiture. "This is called the old game of keeping the headmaster in," he gloated. "That was the 4 o'clock to Eastleigh. There will be another at 5 o'clock...". His inspection report would meet with approval nowadays, his discipline methods less so!
The first annual examination and inspection in 1898 stated: "Here you have proof of three things: 1st, the energy and organising skill of the Headmaster; 2nd, the loyal co-operation of the staff; 3rd, the hearty obedience of the boys." On 21 December, 1899, they moved to the present site off Owens Road. There were 87 boys on the register and the headmaster's salary was £100 per annum, plus £4 for each boy.
He retired in 1926 and was succeeded by Dr Freeman, a mathematics graduate, always known as "Doc". He dearly wanted to make Peter Symonds' into a public school and set about enlarging buildings and facilities, had the swimming pool built and became a prominent figure in the community - an early president of Winchester Rotary Club, a Freemason and a Justice of the Peace. He threw him self into every aspect of school life and had boundless energy.
It was he who introduced rugby to the school in 1936 and encouraged continental holidays, such as cruises to the Baltic on the SS Neutralia.
During World War II, 450 boys were evacuated from Portsmouth and squashed into the school. One school held lessons in the morning, the others in the afternoon. As news filtered bhack of old boys dying in action, Doc openly grieved, announcing in assembly, sometimes in tears, the names of the latest to lose their lives in action. They were added to the Board of Honour which stands above the fireplace in The Symonds Room which had been built by the Old Symondians' Society in 1922 as a memorial to those who had lost their lives in the first World War.
John Shields took over as head in 1957 after the death of Doc and instigated the building of Varley Hall, the Gym and the Science Labs. When he retired in 1963 he had totally revitalised the place.
John Ashurst was the head in the "swinging Sixties" and it fell to him to deal with its effect on the boys. Despite the fashion for the Beatles haircut, long hair was definitely not appreciated. When he left in 1973 to take up a new post at Hymer's College, Hull, the school's reputation was as its zenith.
The task for his successor. Stuart Nicholls, was to transform a school with an outstanding reputation into a sixth-form college. In September, 1974, the first admissions were made. Girls were accepted for the first time, their mini-skirts causing consternation to pupils and masters alike.
In 1982, when there were 900 on roll. The largest single intake of students came not from the local comprehensives but from the private sector.
The highly-regarded Hampshire specialist music course began. Students go through a rigorous selection procedure which enables them to progress to the top music colleges in the country. Mr Nicholls cultivated the phrase which remains an unofficial motto of the college: "We count in ones". He served on several national education bodies and headed the Association of Sixth-Form College Principals. He left after 20 years to become a national inspector.
In 1991, the Adult Continuing Education Centre, based in Stoney Lane, became a division of Peter Symonds. Using the facilities of the college they now provide 250 courses in the daytime, evening and, at weekends in a wide range of subjects, from pre-degree level examinations to cake icing.
Neil Hopkins, who arrived in 1993, has seen the expansion of courses to include NVQ and BTEC examinations as well the more traditional A-levels. Even they have changed with the introduction of modular courses and course work assignments. New buildings and facilities have been provided. The science centre was opened in 1996 by the Duke of Gloucester and, in 1998, Prince Andrew opened Falkland Lodge, the new boarding house, and the Paul Woodhouse centre.
The last named building contains a cafeteria supplied by an industrial-sized kitchen, student union and counselling services and two large rooms where the young people can watch TV, relax and meet their friends.
In 2004, the John Shields Building was unveiled, providing classrooms for the computing, psychology and environmental science departments. Also in that year Varley cafe was rebuilt.
The philosophy and care for students is still the priority for Neil Hopkins. "The students come first." he says firmly. "Despite our size, we still count in ones, valuing individuals, and I'm proud to be part of this vibrant place."
Boarding
During its heyday the school operated a number of boarding houses. The houses (School House, Wyke Lodge and Kelso) brought in a welcome variety of boys from far-flung corners of the world (outposts of Empire and Armed Forces bases) to spice up the – largely insular – intake of 11+ pupils from Winchester. Nowadays, only School House, as well as the newly built Falkland Lodge are used for boarding, for both male and female students. The construction of Falkland Lodge was funded by the government of the Falkland Islands as a boarding house so that students from the islands can study at the college. Wyke Lodge and Kelso are now used for educational purposes, the Business Studies Department and Music Department respectively.
Achievement
From 1998 Peter Symonds' has been the top sixth form college in Hampshire, and the third in the country. The A-level pass rate in 2004 was 98.6%, with over 40 students going up to Oxford and Cambridge colleges.
Headmasters and principals
- Revd Telford Varley, 1897 to 1926
- Dr "Doc" Freeman, 1926 to 1957
- John Shields, 1957 to 1963
- John Ashurst, 1963 to 1973
- Stuart Nicholls, 1973 to 1993
- Neil Hopkins, 1993 to present
External links
- Peter Symonds' College official website (http://www.psc.ac.uk/)
- Old Symondians' Society (http://www.oldsymondianssociety.co.uk/)