Purley High School for Boys

Purley High School for Boys existed from 1914 to 1988. Originally located in Purley from 1914, in 1936 it relocated to Placehouse Lane, Old Coulsdon, London Borough of Croydon. The school was Purley County Grammar School from 1914 to 1969, becoming Purley Grammar School for Boys and then, in 1973, Purley High School for Boys after the abolition of the Grammar School system and the implementation of the Comprehensive System.

Purley Boys' High School
Address
Placehouse Lane Coulsdon , Greater London , CR5 1YA England
Coordinates	51°18′20″N 0°07′15″W
Information
Motto	Fas et Patria
Established	1914
Closed	1988
Local authority	London Borough of Croydon
Department for Education URN	126815 Tables
Ofsted	Reports
Gender	Boys
Age	14 to 18

As Purley High School for Boys it was a senior secondary school, for students aged 14 to 18.

Purley High School had a reputation for strictness and for the frequent use of corporal punishment; records showing a peak in canings of 43.7 per 100 pupils in the year 1977/78.[1] Its record on canings came to the attention of STOPP during the 1970s and 1980s. This was because STOPP happened to be based in Croydon at the time, and managed to get the Local Education Authority to publish an analysis of statistics collated from school punishment books, the first time this had happened in the UK. This resulted in Purley High School for Boys being mentioned in numerous articles in the national press regarding what was criticised as its excessive corporal punishment record.[1] However, statistics for the use of corporal punishment later appeared from other areas of England and Wales, suggesting that Purley's caning record, compared with some other boys' secondary schools, was not quite as extraordinary as STOPP had originally claimed, once the fact that Purley was a 14–18 school (and therefore had about twice the proportion of 14- to 16-year-olds as an 11–18 school) was taken into account, 14–16 being almost invariably the peak age group for getting into trouble at school.[2]

The school motto was Fas et Patria, meaning Faith and Country. The Headmaster from 1968 to 1988 was Mr Derek Akers (Oxon).

After 52 years at the Placehouse Lane location, the school was closed in 1988, being replaced by Coulsdon Sixth Form College.

The 1930s Placehouse Lane school buildings were completely demolished during 2010–2011 and have been replaced by new college facilities.

Notable alumni

• Nigel Harman, actor
• Simon Jordan, entrepreneur, Chairman of Crystal Palace football club
• Kevin Lewis, author of best selling novel The Kid
• Graham Nearn, founder of Caterham Cars

Purley County Grammar School

• Michael Atkinson CMG MBE, Ambassador to Romania from 1989 to 1992, and to Ecuador from 1985–9
• Prof Stanley Bertram Chrimes, Professor of History at Cardiff University from 1953 to 1974
• Prof Martin L. Brown, Professor of Mathematics since 1992 at the Institut Fourier, France.
• David Clayman, managing director of Esso UK from 1986 to 1995, and President of Ukpia from 1988 to 1990
• Arthur Collins OBE, High Commissioner to Papua New Guinea from 1982–5
• Peter Cushing, actor, horror movies
• Prof Gary Gibbons, Professor of Theoretical Physics since 1997 at the University of Cambridge
• Donald Harper, Chief Scientist of the RAF from 1980–3
• Brian Hord CBE, Member of the European Parliament for London West from 1979 to 1984
• Captain Keith Leppard CBE, Station Commander of RNAS Yeovilton from 1972–4
• Rear-Adm Jack Llewellyn CB, commander of HMS Victorious from 1960–3
• Roger Maynard, British Airways executive
• Alec Mitchell, Director of the Admiralty Marine Technology Establishment from 1977 to 1984
• Gordon Pirie, multi world track record holder and silver medal winner at 5000m at the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games
• Prof Colin Smith CBE, Professor of Oral Pathology at the University of Sheffield from 1973 to 2003, President of the British Society for Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology from 1980–1
• Stewart Storey, Cricketer – Surrey CC 1960 to 1976 and Sussex CC 1978
• Chris J Bain, PCGS 1956–61. Squadron Leader RAF, fighter pilot and test pilot
• Steve Jones – entrepreneur and negotiation expert 1970–1977

See also

• Coulsdon Sixth Form College, which now occupies the school site.

External links

• Map and aerial photos
• Fas et Patria – Purley Boys School 1914–1988

References

1. See "Top CP schools: Purley High School for Boys" at World Corporal Punishment Research.
2. See e.g. "Schools high in beating league", Shields Weekly News, 28 July 1983; and "Anger over 60 canings at Kinnock's old school", Today, London, 31 May 1986.