St Benedict's School

Infobox UK school
name = St Benedict's School


size = 99px
latitude =
longitude =
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motto = "a minimus incipe"
"from the smallest beginnings"
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established = 1902
approx =
closed =
c_approx =
type = Independent (Public School)
religion = Roman Catholic
president =
head_label = Headmasters
head =Christopher Cleugh (Senior School)cite web |url=http://www.ealingtimes.co.uk/news/localnews/display.var.1055610.0.tribute_to_school_founders.php |title=Tribute to school founders |accessdate=2008-05-30 |author=David Doyle |date=2006-12-04 |publisher=Ealing Times]
Robert Simmons (Junior School)
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chair =
founder = Fr Sebastian Cave
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specialist =
street =
city = Ealing
county = London
country = England
postcode = W5 2ES
LEA =
ofsted =
staff =
enrollment = ~610 (Senior School)
~265 (Junior School)
gender = Junior school co-ed (Senior school - 6th form co-ed. Moving to full Co-education 2008)
lower_age = 3 (nursery)/4 (Junior School)
upper_age = 18
houses = 4(Barlow,Gervase,Pickering,Roberts)
colours = Green, yellow
publication =
free_label_1 = Former pupils
free_1 = Old Priorians
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free_label_3 =
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website = http://www.stbenedicts.org.uk
website_name = St Benedict's School website

St Benedict's School is an independent Roman Catholic day school situated in Ealing, West London. The school is part of Ealing Abbey and is governed by the Abbot and monks of Ealing. It is the only Benedictine day school in England that does not take boarding pupils.

History

The school was founded as Ealing Priory School in 1902 by Fr Sebastian Cave. The junior school was 'spun off' as a separate entity with its own headmaster in 1946, and in 1948 the school's name was changed to St Benedict's. The senior school's first lay headmaster, Dr A.J. Dachs, was appointed in 1987, while the junior school's first lay headmaster, Dennis McSweeny, was appointed in 2000.

Move to co-education

Although St Benedict's was originally founded as a boys school, girls have been admitted to the sixth form of the senior school since the 1970s and to the nursery since it was founded in 2002. In June 2006 the Monastic Chapter voted to extend co-education across the whole school and as from the Michaelmas term 2007, the junior school is fully co-educational. The senior school has also become co-educational in Michaelmas 2008. Girl are in year 7-10.

Notable Alumni

Alumni of the school are known as Old Priorians, and include:

*Peter Ackroyd
*David Bermingham
*Christopher Caudwell
*Julian Clarycite web |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/7217762.stm |title=BBC NEWS ! England ! London ! Priest arrested over sex claims |accessdate=2008-05-30 |date=2008-02-01 |publisher=BBC News]
*Declan Donnellan
*Reginald C. Fuller
*Damian Hopley
*Colin MacCabe
*Denis MacShane
*Douglas Murray
*Denis O'Regan
*John Bernard Orchard
*Chris Patten
*Andy Serkis
*Labi Siffre
*Iain Softley

Chris Patten (now Lord Patten of Barnes) serves as an Advisory Governor to the school.

Headmasters

*Dom Sebastian Cave 1902-1916
*Dom Wulstan Pearson 1916-1917
*Dom Dennis Goolden 1917
*Dom Roger Huddleston 1917
*Dom Edward Green 1917-1919
*Dom Dominic Young 1919-1936
*Dom Austin Corney 1936-1938
*Dom Adrian Morey 1938-1939
*Dom Rupert Hall 1939-1945
*Dom Bernard Orchard 1945-1960 [cite web |url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1536281/Dom-Bernard-Orchard.html |title=Dom Bernard Orchard |accessdate=2008-05-30 |author= |date=2006-12-08 |publisher=The Telegraph]
*Dom Gerard Hayes 1960
*Dom George Brown 1961-1965
*Dom Bernard Orchard 1965-1969
*Dom George Brown 1969-1978
*Dom Anthony Gee 1978-1987
*Dr Tony Dachs 1987-2001
*Mr Christopher Cleugh 2001- incumbent

Achievements

The senior school is proud of its record in rugby union [St Benedict's play Barnard Castle School in the semi-final round - [http://www.rfu.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/RFUHome.News_Detail/StoryID/18933 Rugby Football Union] ] , where it won the Under 15 Daily Mail Cup in 2005Fact|date=May 2008 and came to semi-final stage in 2007,and finished runner-up in the same competition in 2008. St. Benedict's is one of the few teams to have played in both U15 and U18 Daily Map Cup finals for one year group. In 2008, they finished top of the Canterbury Rankings beating Wellington, Bryanston and St. Peter's Gloucster. The same team recently represented England in the Sanix World Rugby Youth Invitational Tournament, only losing to the eventual winners, with a severely depleated squad of members. [ [http://www.ealingtimes.co.uk/sport/localsport/display.var.1246076.0.st_benedicts_edged_out.php St Benedict's Edged Out] - Ealing Times, 2007] It is also good in cricket and in music.Fact|date=February 2008.

References

External links

* [http://www.stbenedicts.org.uk/ St. Benedict's School website]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/bsp/hi/education/07/school_tables/secondary_schools/html/307_6006.stm BBC League Tables]