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I was about to launch into a tirade against DT1 for the socialist let's-get-rid-of-public-schools-just because-they-exist dogma that was touted around by the Labour Party of Harold Wilson, Jim Callaghan and Michael Foot in the 70s and 80s, but then I reread his posts and found them to be reasoned, well argued and not reeking of jealousy, so my apologies for thinking such thoughts initially.
I went to public school.
I make no apologies for it.
I went to Christ's Hospital School in Horsham, founded in the City of London in 1553 by King Edward VI, the boy king (son of Henry VIII) who died just six days after signing the documents. Christ's Hospital was founded by Royal Charter for the orphans and sons of the poor who couldn't otherwise afford an education, and this remains the case today, although in modern times the harsh realities of economics now means that the entrance qualifications mean that 50% of boys who enter the school are now fee-paying. I understand that the fees are in the region of £3500 per term and thus are for sons and daughters of the wealthy.
The other 50% comprises sons and daughters of those who cannot afford private education, but who would still like their children to receive the benefits that come with going to such a school. The intake at Christ's Hospital is in the order of 120 per year, which means that roughly 60 are the children of orphans and single parents, serving Armed Forces personnel of rank Warrant Officer or below (or the equivalent rank in the Royal Navy), families of special needs from County and Borough District Councils in England and Wales and from direct grant bodies from organisations and charities who are approached by people in need. There is an entrance board which reviews each applicant individually to assess the true need of the family and child in order to maintain 450 years of ensuring that it is those who really deserve who receive one of the finest educations in the world.
It is a privileged education which all the schoolchildren who attend Christ's Hospital are taught very strongly; each pupil who leaves is given a Bible with the inscription "I charge you never to forget the great benefits you have received in this house......." as the last thing they do before leaving. Christ's Hospital is still to this day a charity, and children of fee-paying parents are never removed from the school if the parents fall on times of difficulty.
The famous "Dambusters" raid of 16th & 17th May 1943 saw 56 RAF crew lose their lives over Holland and Germany; the scientist who invented the bouncing bomb, Dr Barnes Wallis, happened to be a former pupil of Christ's Hospital, and so distressed was he by the loss of life to RAF personnel caused as a result of his invention that he established a trust for the sons of RAF personnel to be educated at Christ's Hospital, using all the money he was paid for his invention. Thus 3 children of RAF background are admitted into Christ's Hospital every autumn, and in 1971, I happened to be one of those 3. My father had contracted tuberculosis whilst serving in Egypt with the RAF in the 40s and 50s and this affected his ability to work properly. He was assigned to a desk job on reduced hours, Mum couldn't work with 2 small kids, so we were deemed as eligible to apply for admission into Christ's Hospital.
My best friend at school (Neil) was the son of a single parent whose father had been killed by a hit and run driver in Crawley when Neil was less than 1 year old.
I can honestly say that I loved being at the school - it is very much a privileged existence and I was abundantly aware that the facilities open to me were not shared by kids of my age back on the RAF bases that were my home. We were taught that, despite the second-to-none facilities, despite the tuition that was of the highest standards and despite the fact that we alienated by local kids (thugs) who thought we were all upper-class morons who looked down on everybody else, we were inordinately lucky to be there. The message got through.
The reason for telling you all this is to illustrate that it's really difficult to tar all public schools with the same brush. Christ's Hospital School is one of many such schools with Charity status all around the country - there are a succession of King Edward Schools in existence ('Bluecoat' Schools) all of which were founded on similar lines and with much the some doctrine and tenets as Christ's Hospital. I ask you all to consider whether ridding the country of public schools is really a good thing. I accept that not all schools are like the one I went to - many are a place for the wealthy and privileged to send their kids to, but do you really think that if they were abolished tomorrow the rich would allow Harriet and Olly to attend the state school down the road? Of course not, they'd just send them to private schools abroad. One must also bear in mind that the public schools of Great Britain are among the finest in the world, to the extent where the children of Kings, Queens, Presidents and the upper levels of society around the globe send their children to be educated over here. That represents a significant income to this country as well as providing jobs for teachers, instructors, cleaners, drivers, medical staff and many more. This debate is so much more than merely looking at what public schools offer with green eyed jealousy; the practicalities have to be borne in mind as well - and I ask you to think that not all who come out of public school are hooray Henries.
Thanks for reading this lengthy and probably boring post.