Monkton Combe School
Monkton Combe School is an independent boarding and day school for boys and girls aged 2-18 near Bath, Somerset, England. It is a member of the Rugby Group of independent schools in the United Kingdom.
The Senior School is located in the village of Monkton Combe, while the Prep School, Pre-Prep and Nursery are in Combe Down on the southern outskirts of Bath.
The Senior School admits children from age 13 through to 18; the Prep School admits children from age 7 to 13 and the Pre-Prep has classes in Kindergarten, Reception and Years 1 and 2. The Nursery, set within the Prep School grounds, provides pre-school care. The Senior School and Prep School have a strong boarding tradition; however, day pupils comprise one third of the intake of the Senior School and are in the majority in the Prep School. Since 1992 when it merged with Clarendon School for Girls the school has been co-educational with three boys' boarding houses and three girls' boarding houses, all in the school's immediate environs.
History
Monkton Combe School was founded in 1868 by the Reverend Francis Pocock, Vicar of Monkton Combe and former Chaplain to John Weeks of Sierra Leone. The Junior School was established with four pupils in 1888 in Combe Lodge by Mrs Howard, the daughter of the Senior School Principal, Rev Reginald Guy Bryan. It moved into its current purpose-built premises in June 1907. The Junior School purchased Glenburnie in the 1920s which it occupied as a boarding house and later as a Prep-Prep. In 2016 the Pre-Prep transferred to a newly-constructed building in the grounds of the Prep School and Glenburnie was sold. In 1992, the School became fully co-educational, merging with Clarendon School for Girls, Bedford. In 2006 the Junior School was renamed Monkton Prep School.The school has many historical traditions and a strong evangelical Christian heritage. It was noted as one of the UK's strongest rowing schools during the 20th century, with 20% of the 23-strong men's GB rowing squad at the 1948 Olympics consisting of Old Monktonians.
The official history of the school's first hundred years can be found in A Goodly Heritage: A History of Monkton Combe School 1868–1967 by former Senior School master A. F. Lace, published in Bath by Sir Isaac Pitman & Sons, 1968. The official history of the school's first 150 years can be found in A Delightful Inheritance by former Junior School headmaster Peter Leroy, published in 2017 by Monkton School Enterprises.
Sport and other activities
Monkton Combe School maintains a strong sporting tradition. The main competitive representational sports played are Rugby, Rowing, Hockey, Tennis, Netball, Cricket and Football).The school has produced six Olympic rowing medallists to date. Each represented Great Britain and three won Gold. One Old Monktonian achieved an Olympic Gold Medal representing Great Britain at men's hockey. Another Old Monktonian captained the England Netball Team which won Gold at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. The school's boat club competes against many of the UK's best teams, with Old Monktonians rowing as Monkton Bluefriars.
The school has a strong musical and theatrical tradition with the majority of pupils learning an instrument and taking part in school plays and musical events. Other activities include the Combined Cadet Force and various clubs and societies. There are also annual visits overseas, as well as academic trips such as foreign language exchange trips and sports tours and training camps.
Facilities
The School maintains a range of sporting facilities including an indoor swimming pool, sports halls with fully equipped gyms, three astroturf pitches, nine grass and three hard tennis courts, two boathouses with access to the River Avon and many acres of grounds. All buildings are made of Bath stone, in the same style as many buildings in and around the city of Bath, to keep with the traditional architectural style around Bath. Many of the school's facilities are made available for the use of local schools, such as Combe Down Primary School and local children's sports clubs.Several of the buildings are listed, including the main Senior school block known as The Old Farm, and the part of the Terrace Block known as The Old Vicarage. In 2008 the Senior School completed a 5 million pound project which involved re-building, extending and re-furbishing its Mathematics and Science departments. In June 2012, a new 3.2 million pound Music centre was opened for use by Dame Felicity Lott. A new Art & Design centre was opened in 2016.
Boarding
Many of the pupils are either weekly or full-time boarders. The Senior school maintains six boarding houses, three of which are for girls and three for boys. The Preparatory school only operates one boarding house with a floor for boys and a floor for girls. There are many traditions in each house, as well as many inter-house competitions throughout the year. Students are allowed to visit the City of Bath each weekend. Lessons take place on Saturday mornings with sporting matches against other schools taking place on most Saturday afternoons.List of Head Masters
The following have been Head Masters of Monkton Combe School:| Name | Years as Head Master |
| The Revd F. Pocock | 1868–1875 |
| The Revd R.G. Bryan | 1875–1895 |
| The Revd W.E. Bryan | 1895–1900 |
| The Revd N. Bennet | 1900 |
| The Revd J.W. Kearns | 1900–1926 |
| The Revd E. Hayward | 1926–1946 |
| D.R. Wigram | 1946–1968 |
| R.J. Knight | 1968–1978 |
| R.A.C. Meredith | 1978–1990 |
| M.J. Cuthbertson | 1990–2005 |
| R. Backhouse | 2005–2015 |
| C. Wheeler | 2016–Present |
Notable former pupils
- David Howard Adeney, 1911–1994, Protestant Christian missionary in China and East Asia
- Chris Anderson, 1957–, Journalist and publisher, Owner of TED and curator of TED Talks.
- John Bush, 1937–, former Lord Lieutenant of Wiltshire
- Harry Colt, 1869–1951, widely regarded as the father of golf course architecture
- Bernard Cornwell OBE, 1944–, historical novelist
- Mike Cowlishaw FREng, 1953–, programmer and scientist
- Ian Cundy, 1945–2009, Bishop of Peterborough 1996–2009
- J. Desmond Clark, 1916–2002, influential archaeologist and Professor of Anthropology at the University of California, Berkeley
- Sir Richard Dearlove OBE, 1945-, Head of the British Secret Intelligence Service from 1999 until 2004 and former Master of Pembroke College, Cambridge
- Charles Farr, OBE, 1959–2019, Home Office civil servant and former diplomat
- Gonville ffrench-Beytagh, 1912–1991, Dean of Johannesburg and anti-apartheid activist.
- Major-General John Frost CB, DSO & Bar, MC, DL 1912–1993, best known for leading the small group of airborne forces that got through to Arnhem bridge during the Battle of Arnhem
- Tim Lankester, 1942–, KCB, civil servant
- Dr Ran Laurie, 1915–1998, 1948 Olympic rowing Gold Medallist and father of actor, Hugh Laurie.
- Sir Robert Lechler, 1951–, President of the Academy of Medical Sciences
- James MacLachlan, 1919–1943, World War II fighter pilot and flying ace.
- Adrian Mitchell, 1932–2008, author and Shadow Poet Laureate
- Sir Richard Peirse, 1892–1970, Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Air Force and of RAF Bomber Command
- Seyi Rhodes, 1979–, British television presenter and investigative journalist
- Sir Richard Stilgoe, 1943–, songwriter, lyricist and musician.
- Iain Torrance, 1949–, former Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland
- Ernest Crosbie Trench CBE TD, 1869–1960, British civil engineer
- Kevin Walton GC, 1918–2009, awarded the George Cross in 1946
- Stephen Warren, 1957–, Professor of Astrophysics
- Thomas Watson, 1913–1994, cricketer who later taught French at the school
- Steve Williams OBE, MBE, 1976–, Double Olympic Gold and multi World Gold and Silver Rowing Champion
- Alex Partridge, 1981–, Three time World Rowing Champion and Olympic Silver and Bronze medallist in Rowing
- Colonel David Wood, 1923–2009, MBE, Chevalier of France's Légion d'honneur. Last surviving officer of Operation Deadstick, the first Allied attack on Occupied France on D-Day.
- Alfred Young, 1873–1940, mathematician and inventor of Young tableau for use in theory of groups and quantum mechanics