Badminton School

Girls' school in Bristol, England

Badminton School

The school lodge and gates

Address

Westbury Road

Bristol

BS9 3BA

England

Coordinates| 51°29′08″N 2°37′04″W﻿ / ﻿51.48557°N 2.617705°W﻿ / 51.48557; -2.617705
Information
Type| Private boarding and day school
Motto| Latin: Pro Omnibus Quisque, Pro Deo Omnes
(Each for all, and all for God)
Established| 1858; 167 years ago (1858)
Founder| Miriam Badock
Local authority| Bristol City Council
Department for Education URN| 109337 Tables
Headteacher| Jessica Miles[1]
Gender| Girls
Age| 4 to 18
Enrollment| 550
Capacity| 550
Houses|

* Badock
* Baker
* Burke
* Murray
* Rendall
* Webb-Johnson (Webb-J)

Alumnae| Old Badmintonians
Website| www.badmintonschool.co.uk

Badminton School is a private boarding and day school for girls aged 4 to 18 years situated in Westbury-on-Trym, Bristol, England. Named after Badminton House in Clifton, Bristol, where it was founded, the school has been located at its current site since 1924 and consistently performs well in the government's league tables, particularly at A-Level.[2] In 2008 the school was ranked third in the Financial Times top 1,000 schools.[3] In the 2023 A-Levels, the school saw 48.5% of its candidates score A*/A.[4]

According to the Good Schools Guide, "The secret of the school's success is in its size and a good deal of individual attention."[5]

## School history

[edit]

Badminton School

class=notpageimage|

Badminton School, Bristol

Miriam Badock established a school for girls in 1858 at Badminton House in Clifton, Bristol.[6] By 1898 it had become known as Miss Bartlett's School for Young Ladies.[7]

The school developed a broad curriculum, and extracurricular activities, including sports, were encouraged which was unusual for the time. The school grew steadily in size, and in 1924 moved to the present site, under the headship of Beatrice May Baker (1876–1973). Baker, known as BMB,[8] was fundamental in shaping Badminton's ethos and had a deep personal influence on individual pupils.[9] She encouraged the girls to be aware of world affairs and internationalism.[10] A pioneer in many educational fields, she established Badminton as a much-admired progressive school.[11] She insisted on the rights of young people to freedom of expression and encouraged a questioning approach to learning: "in chapel 'Jesus often had to share the stage with Lenin'".[12] The international outlook she pioneered continues today.

In 1958, the school celebrated its centenary with the opening of a new Science Centre by Countess Mountbatten of Burma. Dame Sybil Thorndike was president of the school at that time, and a new cantata called "The Crown of the Year" by Michael Tippett was specially commissioned to mark the event.

By the late 1960s, the progressive aspects of the school had all but vanished (Royston Lambert speech at Exeter University, 19 November 1971)[13] and it had become a standard independent academic school.

## Old Badmintonians

[edit]

See also: Category:People educated at Badminton School

Alumnae of the school are known as Old Badmintonians.

* Claire Bloom – actress[14]
* Midge Bruford – (9 April 1902 – 1958)[15]
* Mary Fedden – artist[16]
* Indira Gandhi – Prime Minister of India[17]
* Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein – daughter of King Hussein I of Jordan[18]
* Jenny Joseph – poet [19]
* Charlotte Leslie – Conservative Party MP for Bristol North West, 2010–2017
* Phyllida Law – actress[20]
* Dame Iris Murdoch – writer[21]
* Rosamund Pike – actress[22]
* Unity Spencer (1930–2017), British artist[23]
* Shirley Teed – artist[24]
* Polly Toynbee – journalist[25]
* Shirley Hopkins Civil – musician ,[26] French Horn, Wagner Tuba specialist. Born 1933.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Headmistress's Welcome". Badminton School. Archived from the original on 31 January 2018. Retrieved 9 November 2018.
2. ^ "Badminton School". Government of the United Kingdom. Retrieved 26 January 2009.
3. ^ "FT.com – In depth – FT top schools". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 4 March 2009. Retrieved 26 January 2009.
4. ^ "Badminton School: Reviews, Rankings, Fees, And More". Britannia UK. 7 August 2023.
5. ^ "Badminton School, Bristol – The Good School Guide". goodschoolsguide.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2 May 2011. Retrieved 26 January 2009.
6. ^ Watson, Nigel (2008). Badminton School: The First 150 Years.
7. ^ "Our History". Badminton School. Retrieved 15 August 2018.
8. ^ Jean Storry, ed. (1982). At Badminton with BMB by Those Who Were There. Badminton School.
9. ^ "Literary Encyclopedia: Dame Iris Murdoch". litencyc.com. Retrieved 26 January 2009.
10. ^ Watkins, Christopher (May 2007). "Inventing International Citizenship: Badminton School and the Progressive Tradition between the Wars". History of Education. 36 (3). Routledge: 315–338\. doi:10.1080/00467600500419810. ISSN 1464-5130. S2CID 144980232.
11. ^ Child, Hubert Alwyn Thomas (1962). The Independent Progressive School. Hutchinson.
12. ^ "Preface to the online release, October 2007". oup.com. Retrieved 26 January 2009.
13. ^ Lambert, Royston (1972). Alternatives To School. Exeter University Press. ISBN 0-900771-36-4.
14. ^ film adaptations of plays on video By Thomas L. Erskine, James Michael Welsh, John C. Tibbetts.
15. ^ "Midge Bruford". Cornwall Artists Index. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
16. ^ "Tate: Mary Fedden". Tate Etc. Retrieved 21 February 2013.
17. ^ Carol Dommermuth-Costa, Indira Gandhi: Daughter of India.
18. ^ Jordanian Royalty: Jordanian Princes, Jordanian Princesses, Jordanian Royal Consorts, Kings of Jordan, Recipients of Jordanian Royal Pardons.
19. ^ Brownjohn, Alan (19 January 2018). "Jenny Joseph obituary". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 6 July 2023.
20. ^ Notes to My Mother-in-Law – P Law.
21. ^ Iris Murdoch: A life — Peter J. Conradi.
22. ^ Roger Ebert, Roger Ebert's Movie Yearbook 2009.
23. ^ Lambirth, Andrew (23 November 2017). "Unity Spencer obituary". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 December 2017.
24. ^ "Peter Teed, headmaster, and Shirley Teed, artist". The Yorkshire Post. 1 September 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2019.
25. ^ Rank: picturing social order 1516–2009.
26. ^ "Shirley Hopkins Civil". International Horn Society.

## External links

[edit]

* Official website
* Profile on the ISC website

* v
* t
* e

Education in Bristol

General|

* Education in Bristol
* List of schools in Bristol
* Society of Merchant Venturers

Primary schools|

* Bishop Road Primary School
* Bridge Learning Campus
* Merchants' Academy

Secondary schools|

* Ashton Park School
* Bedminster Down School
* Blaise High School
* Bridge Learning Campus
* Bristol Brunel Academy
* Bristol Cathedral Choir School
* Bristol Free School
* Bristol Metropolitan Academy
* City Academy Bristol
* Cotham School
* Fairfield High School
* Merchants' Academy
* Montpelier High School
* Oasis Academy Brightstowe
* Oasis Academy Brislington
* Oasis Academy John Williams
* Orchard School Bristol
* Redland Green School
* St Bede's Catholic College
* St Bernadette Catholic Secondary School
* St Mary Redcliffe and Temple School
* Trinity Academy

Independent schools|

* Badminton School
* Bristol Grammar School
* Carmel Christian School
* Clifton College
* Clifton High School
* Collegiate School
* Queen Elizabeth's Hospital
* Redmaids' High School

Special schools|

* Bristol Gateway School
* Kingsweston School

Further education|

* City of Bristol College
* North Bristol Post 16 Centre
* St. Brendan's Sixth Form College
* South Gloucestershire and Stroud College

Higher education|

* Bristol Old Vic Theatre School
* Trinity College
* University of Bristol
* The University of Law
* University of the West of England

Defunct institutions|

* Andalusia Academy
* Fairfield Grammar School
* Merrywood Grammar School
* Redland High School
* St Christopher's School
* St Ursula's School
* Wesley College

Authority control databases |

* ISNI

|

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template