Chatham Grammar School for Boys

Maidstone Road Chatham Kent ME4 6JB t: 01634 830083 f: 01634 826230

Chatham Grammar School for Boys

Turning potential into reality

www.cgsb.co.uk
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Welcome
from the Headteacher
Dear Parent and Pupil We hope that in reading this prospectus you will experience something of the qualities of excellence we value at Chatham Grammar School for Boys and will wish to join us. Our aim is to offer the best of selective education to young people in the Medway Towns. At Chatham Grammar School for Boys we pride ourselves in giving every pupil the opportunity to excel in academic, sporting and cultural life. We encourage the individual development of each student within a caring and disciplined environment. High expectations will flourish and be met by highly qualified and experienced staff. Our status as a Science Specialist College and achievements in Mathematics provide a backbone for the school. Students are also advantaged by using the most advanced technologies and specialist support available. All of this is in addition to our many other strengths. Most boys choose to stay into the Sixth Form where they are joined by a number of boys and girls from surrounding grammar and high schools. All have the opportunity to maximise their potential in the purposeful atmosphere of the Sixth Form at Chatham Grammar School for Boys eventually moving on to higher education or professional employment. We cherish the friendly and personal atmosphere of our family school. Do take the opportunity to visit us and speak to our pupils and their teachers. L D Marshall Headteacher

CGSB allows us to unlock our full potential.

Year 9 pupil

Chatham Grammar School for Boys

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Belonging
Pupils at Chatham Grammar School for Boys are proud to belong to the Holcombe community, equally the school is proud of its young men and the excellent reputation that the school enjoys. The school can document its origins from the early 1800s when William Giles founded the school in Clover Street. The move to the current site occurred in 1920, a location already steeped in history, originally being a farm and then an estate when George Winch, the first Mayor of Chatham, designed and built the present Manor House in 1870. There are strong links with Charles Dickens and his dependants. There are also connections with the Naval Dockyard since at one time the school provided many naval engineers and artificers. The Grammar School has developed over the years although some architectural signs still remain of the Stables and Coachmans Cottage (now the Language Department). As each new building development takes shape, so has the revolution in technology and its spread of influence throughout the curriculum. We have superb and extensive sports facilities, including our off site facility shared with our old boys at Holcombe Park, most pupils belong to the many clubs and societies.

CGSB is like a family, we look out for each other and help each other to grow up and be part of Holcombe.
Year 9 pupil

Chatham Grammar School for Boys

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Learning
Chatham Grammar School for Boys provides a challenging, flexible curriculum with opportunities for not only the acquisition of knowledge but the purposeful exploration of ideas, the development of skills and the love of learning. The school is traditional in terms of subjects, yet provides diverse opportunities to stretch the more able and support those who require additional help. Our curriculum is designed to combine the best of academic habits with an emphasis on depth and rigour, whilst focussing on future developments in order to prepare for the world of work. Effective learning has to be enjoyable, we tailor our teaching by using a variety of styles to motivate, stimulate and fascinate students. Considerable and sustained investment enables pupils to experience cutting edge developments in Information Communication Technology (ICT) which plays an important role within and across the whole curriculum; Examination results are steadily improving and will continue to do so, largely due to increased levels of motivation and stimulation delivered through the drive to ensure that every minute of every lesson is a positive learning experience. Our students in the Sixth Form do exceptionally well. Those students who have been with us since Year 7 achieve amongst the highest results in Medway. Students are provided with the opportunity to achieve an exceptionally wide range of traditional and vocational qualifications to a very high level.

Ive enjoyed every lesson and hope to continue this great adventure.
Year 7 pupil

Chatham Grammar School for Boys

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Thinking
The school respects and encourages individuality. Every pupil has unique gifts and talents; the stimulation and stretching of minds develops imagination, and creativity whilst encouraging independence of thought. Our teaching recognises the importance of differentiation and we use a range of teaching strategies in every lesson to suit the needs of each pupil. We also believe in providing the widest of opportunities for everyone and recognise that in addition to developing academic ability we must also nurture gifts and talents of any sort. Hence, we encourage our pupils to try out new and exciting ideas and to participate in a wide range of activities, to develop and share their thoughts and creativity whether this is through debate, drama, art or entrepreneurship.

... thank you to CGSB, for giving me seven years I will never forget. Cambridge is everything I dreamed it to be...
Former pupil now at Cambridge University

Chatham Grammar School for Boys

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Leading
The innovators and professionals for the future attend Chatham Grammar School for Boys. There are numerous opportunities to explore the wider community, the world of work and the possibilities of higher education. Students enter and organise competitions in Engineering, Writing, Mathematics, Business Enterprise and the Arts to name but a few. Our curriculum and the possibilities it provides, lead to high level qualifications and ensure that our pupils are well placed to succeed in a competitive world. Lessons are structured so that teamwork is promoted as is the opportunity to manage and lead initiatives within the classroom and beyond. Large numbers of pupils develop their leadership skills through the Duke of Edinburgh Award. For those interested in developing their interpersonal skills and ability to convey information, we develop students through our Personal and Social Health education programme, as well as through Drama, Sport and Music. Pupils take on leadership roles from their first day at school, form captains are elected and The Holcombe Council allows for pupil representation in the decision making process. Senior pupils lead their peers through the school captain team and represent the school through Medway Youth Parliament and Medway Councils scrutiny committee.

Congratulations on having such a great bunch of students

from a letter received from a member of the public who had shared The Theatre Royal, Brighton, with a group of our pupils the previous evening.

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Participating
Actions can often speak louder than words. Pupils throughout the school take part in an extensive physical education programme. Major sports include Football, Rugby, Hockey, Swimming, Athletics, Gymnastics, Tennis, Table Tennis and Cricket. Opportunities to experience outward-bound activities such as Sailing, Camping, Horse Riding and Archery exist with different activity days at centres in Kent. Skiing holidays are a regular event on the school calendar and are open to all pupils as well as annual adventure holidays to other parts of the United Kingdom and beyond. An extensive fixture list provides pupils with opportunities to represent the school. The school enjoys considerable success in a number of sporting areas, teams regularly succeed in district, county and national competitions. Individual pupils are supported in their sporting ambitions and represent Kent, England and Great Britain in sports as diverse as football, sailing, athletics, fencing and skiing. Pupils are encouraged to become involved with, and support, the local community, working with local primary schools and organising events for the elderly. Charity Days involve all students and raise sums for local, national and international causes - last year in excess of 12,000 was raised.

I love the sports that are available to me

Year 8 pupil

Exploring

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Respecting
Respect for Self, Others and the Wider Community ensures a sense of purpose, order and discipline. Many aspects of the curriculum encourage our young men and women to take care of themselves and others. Pupils are taught to value the school environment and be aware of green issues that impact upon the wider world. All members of the Holcombe Community are expected to treat each other with respect regardless of age, gender, race or sexual orientation. Bullying is not tolerated and is dealt with swiftly and effectively, usually through restorative approaches. Discipline is firmly but fairly applied and as a result standards of behaviour and conduct are exceptionally good. Pupils support one another in academic and non-academic activities. Prefects led by the School Captains Team, act as role models for younger students and ambassadors for the school. Student buddies and mentors are part of our support network and assist our Pastoral Managers and Academic Leaders. The school maintains a competitive House System with Heads of House and House Captains. The system has been in place since the school started. Houses were named initially as Commonwealth countries but changed more recently to the names of warships built in the Chatham Dockyard.

Thank you for helping us to serve some of the people in greatest need in our society your gift makes this possible.
Revd. Nicholas Holtam Vicar St Martin in the Field

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Growing
All members of the Holcombe community are encouraged to think of their role within the broader community, and also the world. The school has International School Status, a prestigious award that has recently been renewed. Pupils new to the school are provided with many different forms of support to help them integrate and find out how we do things at Holcombe. Opportunities are soon provided for pupils to become independent learners, to take responsibility for their own education and future. Before long pupils have grown in confidence to take on roles or responsibility and to participate in some of the many trips to far flung corners of the world. Our pupils represent their school and the young people of Medway in competitions and ambassadorial roles across the globe. We offer a large number of foreign languages, including French, German and Spanish. Where demand arises, we often provide additional languages to these. The school aims to address the countrys severe shortage of citizens with foreign language skill and also to teach the students to view their education in an international context. In recent years Holcombes links with schools in other counties such as France, Germany, Spain, South Africa, Japan and Thailand have further increased and extensive extra-curricular trips are offered to students.

We are so glad that we chose this school. He is so happy here and is growing into a fine young man...
Parent of a Year 9 pupil

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Collaborating Collaborating
Partnership between thethe school, students, parents and carers improve. The Governors support an an increasing use ourour Partnership between school, students, parents and carers improve. The Governors support increasing use of of school the local community. Classes for parents and working side by by side ensure the success ourour community. school by by the local community. Classes for parents and working side side ensure the success of of community. Communication with parents is vital in establishing and Communication with parents is vital in establishing and students take place after school in subjects such as French, students take place after school in subjects such as French, maintaining positive relationships between home and school. maintaining positive relationships between home and school. Japanese, Spanish, Parent help groups and many others. Japanese, Spanish, Parent help groups and many others. Regular communication including weekly diaries, regular Regular communication including weekly diaries, regular reports on on assessments and increasingly the use thethe reports assessments and increasingly the use of of internet to publish information about thethe school and internet to publish information about school and assessments all help to promote an an understanding thethe assessments all help to promote understanding of of achievements of students and what more they can do do to achievements of students and what more they can to Work experience, mentoring and project work all involve local Work experience, mentoring and project work all involve local businesses and these links help ourour students see their businesses and these links help students to to see their future careers and their potential roles and responsibilities in in future careers and their potential roles and responsibilities thethe adult world. adult world.

You helped me inin some very You helped me some very tough times.things are tough times.things are going well, Im studying Legal going well, Im studying Legal Studies and History atat Uni Studies and History Uni
Letter from a former pupil. Letter from a former pupil.

Chatham Grammar School for Boys

Turning potential into reality

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