Birkenhead School
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| Motto |
Beati Mundo Corde (Blessed are the Pure in Heart) |
|---|---|
| Established | 1860 |
| Type | Independent day school |
| Religion | Church of England |
| President | Sir Andreas Whittam Smith CBE |
| Headmaster | Paul Vicars |
| Chaplain | Mrs Sian Howell-Jones |
| Deputy Head | Mrs K Pankhurst |
| Chair of Governors | Mr AJ Cross |
| Location |
58 Beresford Road Oxton Merseyside CH43 2JD England Coordinates: 53°23′08″N 3°03′18″W / 53.3855°N 3.0551°W |
| DfE number | 344/6023 |
| DfE URN | 105123 Tables |
| Staff | 80(approx.) |
| Students | 803 |
| Gender | Mixed |
| Ages | 3 months–18 |
| Houses |
Beresford Bidston Kingsmead Shrewsbury |
| Colours | Red, Black |
| Publication | InFocus |
| Former pupils | Old Birkonians |
| School Visitor | Rt Rev. Peter Robert Forster, Bishop of Chester |
| Website | www |
Birkenhead School is an independent, selective, co-educational school located in Oxton on the Wirral Peninsula in the north west of England. It is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference.
The school is subdivided into
Entrance is via the Prep School, by open competitive examination at 11, by Common Entrance at 13, or by interview at the sixth-form level. The school offers some assistance with fees to pupils who would not otherwise be able to take up a place at the school through a bursary scheme financed by the Birkenhead School Foundation Trust. This charity was established in 1998 and is currently supporting about sixty pupils in the school. A few scholarships are also awarded, based principally on academic ability, but occasionally as a result of exceptional sporting or musical potential. These give a fixed reduction in fee, independent of the parents’ financial circumstances. The school no longer has boarders.
The current headmaster is Paul Vicars who started in September 2016. Previous headmasters include David Edmunds (2015-16), John Clark (2003-2014), Stuart Haggett (1988–2003), John Gwilliam (1963–1988), Kenneth "KD" Robinson (1946–1963) and Warin Foster Bushell (1930–1946).
As well as a strong sporting tradition, the school had a Combined Cadet Force (CCF) contingent, which started in October 1914 just a few months after the start of the First World War with an Army section, although, the Royal Air Force and Royal Navy sections were not founded until a few years after the end of the Second World War in 1949 and 1950, respectively. Until 2006, the CCF had been incorporated as part of the normal school timetable, initially compulsory for pupils of the fourth form to the lower sixth (now Years 10-12) then voluntary, but it then became an entirely voluntary after-school activity, although it did allow pupils in the third form (now Year 9) to join the Corps for the first time. However, according to the Summer 2015 edition of In Focus magazine which contained a potted history of the CCF, declining numbers of cadets resulted in the disbandment of the CCF at the end of the summer term in 2015, ending 101 years of military-related tradition at the school. The CCF was then replaced by a variety of adventurous activities for the pupils. It also has a student council, created in 2003, which seeks to improve the lives of Birkenhead School pupils.
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