High School Education

Sir William Borlase's Grammar School Marlow, Buckinghamshire
		Marlow--the famous suspension bridge
Godalming Grammar School (now Godalming Sixth Form College)

A History of Sir William Borlase School About the Time I was There

extracted from Borlase, 1624-1957 by J. C. Davies  3rd ed.

W. S. BOOTH, 1927 - 1956

p. 22        The new Headmaster was a 31 years old Yorkshireman who had been educated at Manchester Grammar School and held a First Class Honours degree in Classics of Manchester University. He was a brilliant musician--a great boon to local churches from time to time--and a keen Mason, founder of Borlase's own lodge.

        Marlow was changing. The deaths of Sir George Higginson in 1927, of Lady Clayton in 1930 and of Mrs. Hornby Lewis in 1931 removed the last of those generous patrons of the School who had contributed so much to its funds. Moreover the Conservative Geddes axe, followed by preparation for the Second World War, the War itself and the Labour Government's priorities made it impossible for the local authority to do much for the school.

        But Mr. Booth was a man of determination. If the old sources of revenue had dried up, others must be found to make of Borlase a place of beauty where boys could be taught self-discipline in the most pleasant surroundings. We started a fund into which could be poured the proceeds from plays and concerts, from the Athletic Sports and from small donations given by friends of the School.

        At a cost of £50 the Chapel was wired for electricity as a hint to the authorities that it was time to abolish the old hissing gas jets throughout the School. The old senior dormitory was transformed into a library, a staircase of oak leading to it from the cloisters, with oak doors above and below. The woodwork of the library is of Austrian oak, except the floor which is of polished Oregon pine. Of the three oak tables two were constructed for the library. The third was a gift from an old boarder, W. G. Matthews. The three dark oak bookcases came from Court Garden. Mr. Booth wrote to the College of Heralds for the authentic Borlase arms and so discovered the wounded wolf and its broken arrow. These arms in their original colours were depicted in stained glass in the west Library window overlooking the gardens. A picture of Pascoe Grenfell, an 18th century industrialist from Fawley, and another of a review of the cadets in Remnantz at the time of the Napoleonic Wars, some old maps of Buckinghamshire and prints of old Marlow helped to give the Library atmosphere. Two pictures too large for the Library walls were gifts to the school. One, a seascape, was a gift from Mr. Garfield Weston whose two boys were at the school, and the other an oil painting of Sir John Borlase, the third of the Knights, and squire of Bockmer.

        The cloisters themselves were transformed by the planting of flowering shrubs along the walls and an avenue of standard roses along the path from the drawing room. The lawn between the Assembly Hall and the Chapel was turned into an open-air theatre suitable for summer plays or speech day orations. The wrought iron gate behind the stage was made by a local craftsman.

        But the really big job undertaken by the Headmaster, loyally assisted by the School gardener, James Gray, an old Afghan war veteran, and "Sergeant" Tommy Foreman, P.T. organiser and "Old Contemptible," some rails and two trucks, was the levelling of the Home Meadow. It meant the removal of 32,000 tons of earth--a task which took four years. Now it would be possible to nurse the cricket pitch during the winter and to make Rugby football a school game. An old dogshed was converted into shower baths.

        O.B.'s deplored the change from soccer to rugby. As the school grew in numbers the change became really necessary. Thirty could play instead of twenty-two, all the local Grammar Schools had changed games, and rugby needed less ball control, so that "the awkward squad" could have some fun during games periods. It was the same need to give all boys a chance that induced Mr. Booth to introduce the points system into the Athletic Sports. Now even the less capable performers could aim at contributing a few points to their house total.

        The last big structural change before the War was the conversion of the East Wing of the house into a Physics laboratory above and a dining room below (now also a lab.). The wall between the old Physics and Chemistry labs was knocked down and the two old labs made into an enlarged Chemistry lab.

        Came six years of war and the end of dreams of structural changes for a decade. The blocked up cloisters made the school dark and gloomy, giving pleasure to none except perhaps 'Aubrey' who enjoyed knocking out the bricks when he returned from his naval duties. The air raid shelter was an eyesore for sixteen years until it was removed in 1956. It was never used, except by small boys to play hide and seek. Plays and concerts went on as usual, the proceeds patriotically invested in Government bonds to await better times.

        War Memorials were low down in post-war priorities. Yet by 1947 the names of the Old Borlasians who had fallen in the second World War were carved under the middle window of the Chancel surmounted by a new stained glass window with the crests of the navy, army and Air Force and Borlase in the appropriate colours. Mr. Booth was determined there should be a second war memorial, a pipe organ worthy of the School. In one way and another, he raised a sum of £2,372, had the organ installed in 1953 and dedicated by the Bishop of Buckingham.

        In pre-Burnham scale days, Borlase was considered merely as a stepping stone to bigger schools by all assistant masters, and consequently there was a constant change of staff. Now it was possible to build up a permanent staff. Mr. Booth appointed men whom he liked as men, realizing that a happy staff-room was the greatest asset a school could have; and he was singularly happy in his selections. In his first choice, Mr. W. F. Jones (1929), he found not only a born Mathematics teacher but a man who has devoted himself to the welfare of the School in innumerable ways. Two years later came Mr. W. 0. Robertson, who not only taught French and German but became the School secretary and knew more of the School and its component parts than any man. Mr. Russell H. Sage (1934) has not only built up the French department to be of the highest standard, but he has made the annual school Autumn play a famous institution and gained remarkable results in the Thames regatta with his fours and his eights. Mr. C. B. Davenport (1935). has been similarly successful with his English department. He produced summer plays in the open-air theatre until that theatre was put out of action by the new buildings. Mr. G. A. Dewhurst (1938), a Geographer and keen footballer, bore the brunt of making rugby a school game, and coached cricket and tennis. Mr. R. Pitman (1942), has transformed the teaching of art in the School. Mr. F. J. Davies (1942), former headmaster of Beaconsfield School, has done the same with his department, Chemistry. He is our tennis and box-office expert. Mr. F. W. M. Peirce (1942), has not only been most successful as a teacher of English and Scripture, but he has given up much of his spare time to creating a school orchestra and a school choir. His spring term concerts bid fair to rival even Mr. Sage's autumn plays.

        Younger heads of departments are Mr. D. C. Banner (1951), Latin and expert on rugby football--he comes from Newport. Mr. D. C. Paton (1953), physics, a county rugby player and Mr. B. Welch (1953), History, who has made Borlase cricket once again formidable.

        When Mr. Booth became headmaster, the VI Form was small. If a boy of genius desired to proceed to a university he had either to gain an Open Scholarship or one of the limited number of awards granted annually by the County Council. In the pre-war period four open scholarships were won and seven County awards.

        War showed how far we lagged academically. Far greater opportunities opened to boys of ability. Between 1940 and 1946, a dozen boys proceeded to read Science. One went to Bangor to study forestry, one to London to read Law, and three to 0xford for English and history.

        In the post-war era from 1947 to 1957, the VI From grew from a handful to 86. Nine boys gained State Scholarships, while no fewer fewer than 47 passed through University and are now graduated or in process of graduating. They are almost equally divided between Arts and Science.

        But Grammar School education is not merely a preparation for Universities. A certain number of boys leave after taking the Ordinary level. In 1956 the number was twice that of 1927.

        Throughout his 29 years Mr. Booth freely admitted he could not have carried on without the assistance of Mrs. Booth who always took a most active interest in all the school activities.

        Both Mr. and Mrs. Booth helped to shape the new Borlase of 1956. The perpetual noise of bulldozers and electric drills wore them down, and they decided to retire to Penzance where, we hope, they may have a long life of peace and happiness having accomplished a worthwhile job.

E. M. HAZELTON

        The new headmaster, after taking his degree in Natural Sciences and Physics at Fitzwilliam House, Cambridge, took a post at Portsmouth Grammar School, where he helped to start a Scout Troop and inaugurated the Field Club. In 1936 he went to Epsom College where he instituted a second day-boy house. In 1938 he led an expedition of University men and senior Public School boys to Sörsjön in Sweden to collect specimens for the Natural History department of the British Museum.

        In 1943 he became head of the Physics Department and resident House Tutor at Clifton College and later House Master of one of the two day-boy houses. His recreations include cross country running, field athletics, rock climbing, skiing and sailing. He is married, has three children, including twins, the first Headmaster of Borlase with a family since 1880, and the first to live away from the School.

        This last change was made inevitable by the changed conditions. The old drawing room has become a classroom, the junior dormitory a staff room, and the rest of what was left of the house a maisonette for the caretaker.

        Mr. Hazelton started with what was virtually a new school. Where once stood the Old Barn, where 18th Century masters kept their ponies and stored their crops from the Barley Field, stands now the South Block, with classrooms below and a large Art Room above. On the site of the old Cricket nets pitch, or if you are younger, of the tennis courts, is now the North Block. An Assembly Hall, which can become a Gymnasium when Mr. Trevor Williams takes P. T. or a theatre for Mr. Sage or a concert hall for Mr. Pierce, takes up about half the space. The rest is more classrooms and an up-to-date Geography room. The old Gym. is now a cloakroom, the old Art Room a Chemistry Lab. and the old dining room a Physics Lab.

        At the moment there are 360 boys in the School and a staff of twenty-two, far more of both than ever before in the history of the School. And that raises problems, for, owing to the encroachment of the new buildings, the playing fields are smaller, and the Chapel will now hold only half the pupils at a time. Moreover, the larger the School becomes, the less is the chance of the average boy to make the School XV, XI, VIII or IV or to get a part in a play or a place in the orchestra.

        Everybody does not know everybody else, and that will make it more difficult to preserve the family spirit which is so characteristic of the School. p. 28

E. M. HAZELTON  1956-1974

extracted from Borlase, 1957-1984 by Russell H. Sage, 1984.

 p. 36       It used to be said that the history of a school is moulded by its headmasters. This may be less true today, but there are still few institutions where one man can exercise so much influence and power and whenever there is a change in the headship a new chapter invariably opens in the life-of a school. For that reason, although the appointment of Mr. E.M. Hazelton was briefly recorded in J.C. Davies' History, our story must begin with his arrival in 1956. That date is further indicated as a starting-point by the changes that took place then in the buildings and amenities, with their effect on the size of the school.

        In 1956, there were 338 boys in the school, in 1957 366 and 392 in 1958. The new buildings provided seven new classrooms, a Geography room and an Art room, as well as a new Gymnasium with a stage at one end and a changing room and showers close by. The old art room became a chemistry laboratory. In the next two or three years the former Headmaster's house was completely taken over, partly as a caretaker's residence, partly as the Headmaster's study, the Deputy Head's room and the School Office, located in what had been Mr. Booth's dining-room in the oldest part of the School buildings. As the School staff grew larger, the old Staff Common Room, near the old Gymnasium (which had its floor raised to the level of the cloisters and became the Small Hall), was far too small and a new Staff Room was provided in what had been a dormitory above the Drawing Room, which now became a classroom for the Arts Sixth Form.

        The reinstatement of the grounds after the building operations included the provision of tennis courts at the top of Home Meadow, to replace those laid down in 1936, now the site of the new South Block, consisting of Gymnasium, Changing Room, Geography Room and four classrooms.

        These developments brought about some significant changes in the character of the School. In Mr. Booth's time, the school was small enough to be run as a large family. When I joined the staff in 1934 there was 146 boys on the roll. In an emergency, the Headmaster could (and did!) gather the boys round him in an impromptu assembly at a clap of his hands. As the editorial of the 1956 School Magazine puts it: "A new epoch has begun in the history of Borlase". Close personal contact between the boys and the Headmaster was replaced by delegated authority extending downwards to prefects and house-prefects, but with the Headmaster as a focal point, the nerve centre of the system. For the first time a School Office with a full-time secretary came into being and played a key part in the processing and storing of information on every aspect of the life of the School. Miss Elsie Horrox, appointed in 1958, has been School Secretary ever since, aided by various assistants, and her devoted work has smoothed the path for both the Headmasters she has so loyally served.

        With his experience of larger schools, Mr. Hazelton was particularly suited to this major task of organisation. An indefatigable worker, he devoted himself to the School with great energy overcoming by his example the inertia of those looking back to the "good old days", and building a a new image of assurance and confidence, symbolised by the lavish (by Borlase standards) arrangements for his first Speech Day, with a marquee seating 800 guests as the central part of a programme lasting from 11 a. m.  to tea-time. This was to be the style throughout Mr. Hazelton's term of office, and it brought much material benefit to the School.

        In all spheres, Mr. Hazelton's headship was a time of growth: more boys, more staff, wider choice of subjects for study, more varied opportunities for sport. His stewardship also left its mark on the building: the Chapel- gateway with the School crest and the adjoining brick boundary wall (the Headmaster worked like a Trojan at grubbing out the old hedge which it replaced!); the swimming-pool, for which he devised an elaborate scheme of loans and gifts in order to encourage the generous efforts of parents and Old Borlasians; the reintroduction of boarding by the opening of Sentry Hill and the Heights (about which we shall say more later) the acquisition of Colonel's Meadow and Quoitings Piece and the gilded railings in West Street!

        To assist him in these endeavours Mr. Hazelton found many friends and allies. He found them in the Governing Body, on the teaching staff, among Old Borlasians and the townsfolk of Marlow. The Senior Master (the title of Deputy Head had not been invented) Mr. J. C. Davies retired in 1956 after thirty-three years devoted service to the School. His name must surely be inscribed among the legendary heroes of Borlase history, along with Canon Graves.   Sir George Higginson, Commander Owen Wethered, Sergeant Foreman and all. As a mark of affection the Old Borlasian Club did him the great honour of electing him as their President. Other members of the staff, some appointed before the 1939-45 war, all well indoctrinated by Mr. Booth with the "Borlase spirit", were closely involved in this period of transition. Mr. W. O. Robertson, who for many years had helped the Headmaster with secretarial work, now became Deputy Headmaster, responsible for much of the discipline and day-to-day running of the School. Mr. W. F. Jones (Mathematics), Mr. C. B. Davenport (English), Mr. G. A. Dewhurst (Geography), Mr. F. J. Davies (Chemistry) and Mr. F. W. M. Peirce (scripture and English) were among these established members of the staff, as indeed I was too, as Head of Modern Languages.

        The School Governors have always been supportive and loyal to the Headmasters they have appointed and Mr. Hazelton received much friendly advice from such men as Robin Laird who was Chairman of Governors when he came, and Commander O. F. M. Wethered, who was Chairman from 1962 until 1977. Like Robin Laird, the latter was an Old Boy of the School and one of its staunchest friends whose passing in 1981 was a great sorrow to all Borlasians. He worthily maintained the long tradition of his family as benefactors of the School. Sir Aubrey Ward gave the School a link with the County Council, as did Mr. E. J. Routly, who was particularly helpful at the time when the existence of the School was threatened by the move to comprehensive education. Clifford Jefkins, an Old Borlasian and still today an enthusiastic friend of the School; Freddie Cleare, who was a boarder in the days of Rev. Skinner, for years Chairman of the Old Borlasian Club, whose death in 1982 was a great loss to the School--these are typical of a host of Old Boys ready to give generously of their time and efforts.

        Now let us look more closely at some of the topics we have briefly indicated.

        Setting aside the early history, there were boarders at Borlase from its establishment as a grammar school in the early 1880's until 1928 when the demand for boarding places dwindled away. Soon after his arrival, Mr. Hazelton received many enquiries about boarding facilities, especially from RAF Headquarters at Medmenham. With his previous boarding school experience, the new Headmaster was anxious to start a boarding house, but the chance of finding suitable premises seemed a pipe dream. However, the impossible happened and a large house came on the market, standing in its own beautiful grounds of eleven acres sloping down towards the river, situated half a mile from the School along the Henley Road. This house, known as Sentry Hill, was ideal in every way for conversion to a boarding house and the County authorities acquired it, converted it and furnished it in a style worthy of the building. What is more, they added a residence for the Headmaster, since, as we have seen, the old Headmaster's house had been taken over for teaching and administration. In April 1961 the boarding house opened with 29 boys who, while awaiting the completion of the building work, had been lodged with an assistant master and his wife, Mr. and Mrs. G.A . Dewhurst. It was not long before Sentry Hill was full, since no parents, contemplating boarding for their sons, could resist the charm of this delightful house. In the Autumn of 1963 a large area in the grounds was levelled to provide a much needed rugby football pitch, since the Home Meadow was insufficient and the School had been dependent for some time on the good offices of Marlow Rugby Football Club for additional pitches.

        To digress a moment about playing fields, in 1965 Colonel's Meadow, which had been leased to the School at a peppercorn rent since 1890, was purchased by the County. In 1966 the land to the north of Colonel's Meadow known as Quoitings Piece was also bought, to provide a pitch for hockey and junior rugby and cricket. These acquisitions of playing fields, besides their obvious value to School games, had the additional benefit of permitting an increase in the number of pupils on the roll.

        With Sentry Hill filled to capacity, more boarding accommodation was urgently needed. Soon another unbelievable piece of good luck occurred when "The Heights", a large house standing next door to Sentry Hill, became vacant and was acquired as a junior Boarding House. At its peak, the number of boarders was 65.

        With so many facilities literally on their doorstep, the boarders at Sentry Hill were able to take part in every kind of activity, in the grounds and on the river close by. They were almost all allocated to the Normans House which became the top house in most athletic contests owing to the superior fitness of its boys. There were social occasions as well. Dancing classes were introduced. On most Sundays the boarders went to Matins at the Parish Church and sat where their predecessors had sat fifty years before. The annual Christmas Dinner was a grand occasion, with toasts and formal speeches from invited guests. In this microcosm of the main school one had the impression that the Headmaster, at home with his family and his other. larger family, was really happy and closest to his boys.

        The history of Sentry Hill cannot be told without mentioning Miss. E. D. Smith who was Matron when the house opened and has remained so ever since. A great debt of gratitude is due to her for twenty-two years of devoted service.

        In 1959, in order to raise money to buy a new eight, the School Boat Club, under the leadership of one of the rowing masters, Mr. A. W. Malim, organised a committee of parents to run a fete as a fund raising device. It was such a success that its potential as a source of funds for the School as a whole was quickly realised, and the Fete became an annual event in the School calendar. The immediate target was the provision of a swimming pool, urgently needed since the old Marlow bathing place could no longer be used owing to water pollution in the Thames and the School was obliged to transport boys to Burnham Beeches pool for classes. Mr. D. T. Williams, the Games master, became the driving force in the School, while the Fete was organised and run by a strong committee of parents, led by its Secretary Mr. E. Stanley, the first of a series of devoted workers who have held that office.

        By 1963 the swimming pool was built, the money raised by the Fetes being supplemented by generous contributions by parents and the Old Borlasian Club. Built on the site of the old Headmaster's vegetable plot, it is 25 metres long and 3 metres deep at the deep end.

        The Fete Committee went on to provide funds for many amenities which could not be provided by the County authorities, the most useful possibly being a minibus, a red Transit van bought in 1971. This Fete Committee, as we shall see, was also important in a new development which occurred after the arrival of Mr. R.R. Smith.

        Right from the start of Mr. Booth's headship, he and Mrs. Booth had been very keen on drama in the School and had produced plays on the miniscule platform still in existence in Room 2. When I joined the staff, I continued to use this woefully inadequate stage and eagerly looked forward to using the new stage on which the first production was The Merry Wives of Windsor in February 1957. After some obvious defects in the design and equipment had been corrected, many successful productions followed, including The Critic (at which the well-known actor Paul Daneman, who had played the Prince in the School production of Hamlet in 1940, was an enthusiastic member of the audience), OEdipus Rex, The Lark, The Importance of Being Ernest and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead.

        If I may be allowed a personal reflection, I should like to confess that some of my dearest memories of my forty-two years at Borlase are linked with these productions and with the dedication and enthusiasm of the boys who worked so hard in them.

        I am glad that after a period of uncertainty the annual play is again flourishing, thanks to the enthusiasm of Mr. Stafford who has successfully directed The Miser, She Stoops to Conquer and A Midsummer Night's Dream. The stage curtains and lighting set installed in 1957 have had a much needed overhaul, thanks largely to the Parents' Association, and the stage, although the design still gives problems, is once more adequately equipped for many more successful productions.

        The new hall (as we drama enthusiasts called the new gymnasium) was also welcomed by Mr. F. W. M. Peirce and later Mr. D. J. Colthup who worked hard to organise School orchestras and choirs, in spite of the poor provision for music in the crowded timetable. Mr. N. H. Bateman also organised many concerts and musical talent was always well in evidence in the School.

        To encourage these activities, Mr. Hazelton started in the Christmas Term of 1957 House Competitions in Music and Drama in which the competing teams were trained and directed by senior boys of the Houses, without intervention by members of the staff. The result was not without its minor disasters, but there were successes as well and the performers, and especially their instructors undoubtedly learnt a lot from their experiences.

        The history of the School Boat Club during the Hazelton period is one of the brave endeavours of a small school to get on terms with much bigger and more experienced clubs. Unlike most school games, rowing takes place at a national level and success does not come easily. But first there was a problem to resolve. Ever since the School had its own boats (in 1938) they had been housed in a building on the Bucks bank. In 1956 Messrs J. G. Meakes Limited needed this building for re-development and the Boat Club.was homeless. Mr. Hazelton started lengthy negotiations which led to an arrangement by which racks were made available in Marlow Rowing Club boathouse in return for financial assistance in the construction of a sculling boathouse for the Club. We thus renewed our association with Marlow Rowing Club where our boats, now greatly increased in numbers, still remain. The most successful year of this period was 1959 when the School won two cups for eights at Reading Clinker Regatta and junior Eights at Marlow. In 1960 we sent an eight to Henley Royal Regatta for the first time. This was repeated in 1974. In 1964 Michael Muir-Smith became our first 'Blue', being in the winning Cambridge boat in the University Boat Race. In 1974 this distinction was also gained by Chris Langridge. In 1972, I had the great honour of having a School eight named after me, a strange experience, like attending one's own funeral! In 1964 a School Regatta was held for the first time and has remained a feature of the end of the Summer Term.

        By 1956 Rugby Football was firmly established at Borlase as the main winter game. In that year Mr. D.T. Williams joined the School as the first full-time Games and P.E. Master, which undoubtedly raised the standard of fitness and skill. The Rugby fixture list gradually improved as the School became able to hold its own with larger schools. An Easter tour to Wales took place in 1959 and was followed by others to Wales and Yorkshire. In 1963 a match with the Lycee Michelet in Paris started a series of games against the French boys. The fact that all the P.E. masters during this period were themselves keen Rugger men helped in the production of good sides.

        It might be thought that cricket suffered by having to compete with the growing popularity of rowing during the period concerned, but in fact schoolboys seem to be divided by Nature into "Wet-bobs" and "Dry-bobs" and only exceptional individuals are equally good at both. Indeed the record throughout the period is one of hard work and enthusiasm by teams and coaches (notably Mr. B. Welch), producing a very praiseworthy record of results, against schools with many more players to draw on.