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The London Oratory School is a Catholic voluntary aided comprehensive secondary school in London educating boys in the age range of 7-16 and boys and girls in the sixth form. There are 1338 pupils, including 354 in the sixth form. The current Headmaster is John McIntosh OBE. He retires at the end of the Michaelmas Term 2006. The new headmaster will be David McFadden, currently Headmaster of the Christian Brothers School, Freemantle, Australia. Mr McFadden is an old boy of the Oratory and also taught biology at the school.
History
Founded in 1852 by the London Oratory Fathers, the school was first situated in King William Street in the City of London. In 1856 two parochial schools were opened in Chelsea, West London. In 1863, a boys school was started in Chelsea, at the request of Cardinal Wiseman who wanted to provide a wider education for Catholic children than was available at that time, and in 1870 a school for girls staffed by the Daughters of the Cross. The schools were fee paying until 1912 when they were amalgamated as Central Schools on a site in Stewart's Grove, Chelsea. In 1962 the Daughters of the Cross were withdrawn after almost a century of devoted work and, in 1963, the school became an all boys, four-form entry school, as there were many other schools for girls in the Diocese. The school moved to its present site in Seagrave Road, Fulham, West London in 1970. It became an all ability school for boys from 11+, admitting 180 boys in the first year. Girls are admitted in the sixth form. In September 1996, a Junior House was opened which admits 20 boys for a specialist musical education with a strong emphasis on Catholic liturgical music. Also opened in 1996, the Arts Centre provides music and art facilities for the pupils. In 1998 the school became a voluntary aided school continuing in the trusteeship of the Fathers of the London Oratory, who own the building and grounds and appoint the majority of the governors, having been a grant maintained school since 1989.
Student life
A very high proportion of pupils go onto higher education, with many accepting places at the country's most prestigious universities. Recent years have seen impressive Oxbridge success. In keeping with the school's policy of catering for a broader range of academic ability, assistance is given in applications to all institutions of higher education. The objective throughout the school is to aim to fulfil each pupil's potential, which of course is different for every individual. The school makes sure students with special educational needs have proper care and support. The school offers an outstanding range of extra-curricular activities. On any single day there may be more than 20 activities on offer, before and after school and during the lunch time. Many of these activities are musical where the school has a real strength. Other activities include the Combined Cadet Force, societies and modern languages enrichment. Such activities allow pupils to experience challenge and to work productively together. In addition there is a wide range of sports fixtures, school journeys, visits and cultural activities. Many sporting activities take place at the Barn Elms sport centre in South West London, however many facilities have been recently added to the school site, including cricket nets and tennis facilities. The Arts Centre provides a venue for exhibitions and performances of a high quality. In the sixth form there is a popular debating society and there is good provision for girls to take part in activities including a successful girls' rugby team. Participation rates in extra-curricular activities are high. In keeping with the ethos of a Catholic school opportunities are provided for pupils to take part in retreats.
It should be noted that the Modern Languages department at the London Oratory School is particularly strong. In 2005, they were given the award for best A-Level results in Modern Languages of all state schools in England. Advanced Extension Awards are offered to those pupils with a particular gift in their subject.
The Schola
The London Oratory School Schola was established in 1996 as a means of providing Catholic boys from the age of seven with a rigorous choral education within the maintained system, something hitherto only available in the independent system. The school's close association with the London Oratory places it in a strong, if not unique, position to provide this form of specialist education and to contribute to the development of traditional liturgical music.
The partnership between the Oratory and the school provides ideal opportunities for the school to train boys within the context of a living tradition of catholic liturgy.
The Oratory is part of a dynamic liturgical and musical tradition which goes back to the sixteenth century when the first Oratory was established in Rome at the time of the Counter-Reformation. Both Palestrina and Vittoria were closely associated with the Oratory and Philip Neri, its founder, and Vittoria became an Oratorian.
In particular, the Oratory in Europe has been closely associated with the development of polyphony and the chant. The Oratory in London has a reputation for maintaining this tradition and for providing some of the finest liturgy and liturgical music in Europe today. The school has a strong musical tradition and for many years has been closely associated with liturgy and music of the Oratory.
The Schola sings at the Saturday evening Mass at the Oratory every week in term time and at other Masses and services during and outside term, and in the School Chapel during the week. In addition to the liturgical commitment, concert work and touring are a regular feature of the choristers' lives. The choir also features on film soundtracks, including the whole of The Lord of the Rings film trilogy and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (film).
Choristers normally join the school at the age of seven and are selected by audition, examination and an exhaustive interview, although places may sometimes be available to boys who join the school later, including during the sixth form. Choristers rehearse at 8 o'clock every morning, for an hour immediately before services, and frequently during the lunch break and after school. Boys are given individual voice training. When their voices change, and the time comes for choristers to step down as trebles and altos, they devote more time to their instrumental music; their interest in singing is kept alive until their voices have developed sufficiently to enable them, where appropriate, to return to The Schola. The Schola is supported by lay clerks, some of whom are members of the Oratory Choir. Choristers are fully involved in other aspects of the musical life of the school.
Former Oratorians
External links
Comprehensive schools in England | Comprehensive schools in London | Educational institutions established in 1852 | Roman Catholic secondary schools | Schools with Combined Cadet Forces
"London Oratory School"