Every major facility from which pupils benefit today, including the Great Hall, the Chapel, the Cripps Library, the Adamson Centre, the Stahl Theatre, the Pickard Fives Courts, SciTec and the Patrick Engineering Centre, as well as the JM Mills Pavilion and most recently the new Sports Centre, has only been made possible through the generosity of the Oundle community.
We are delighted that the new Sports Centre, and flagship of the School’s Sports MasterPlan is now complete; offering maximum flexibility in the provision of physical well-being activities for all, as well as supporting sport at a top competitive level.
The multi-functional space accommodates a new fifty metre swimming pool with a submersible boom and movable floor, an eight court hall offering adaptable playing space for a range of sports, as well as the opportunity for whole School assemblies through use of retractable bleacher seating. In addition there is a fully equipped fitness suite, a dedicated dance studio, three further multi-purpose studios and a café.
The Sports MasterPlan also includes the new athletics track, eight additional tennis courts, two new AstroTurfs and six additional netball courts; all complementing the award-winning JM Mills Cricket Pavilion which opened in 2015.
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Completed in two phases from 2004 – 2016, the SciTec facility hosts world class laboratories in the Stringer Biology Department, as well as advanced, industry-standard technologies in the Patrick Engineering Centre. The development was made possible by nearly £8m in donations from OOs, parents and supporters, in addition to support from the Grocers’ Company and other institutional funders.
The J M Mills Pavilion commemorates Mike Mills’ astonishing 80 year involvement with the School, and was the flagship of the first phase of the Sports MasterPlan. It boasts four changing rooms, a dedicated scorebox, umpires’ facilities and a unique triangular tea-room and balcony with a view across the Main to St Peter’s Church spire. It was generously supported by the OO Club, over 100 cricketing OOs and many parents.
Occupying the former mathematics and science building opposite SciTec, the Adamson Centre was made possible by the legacy of Fred Adamson (D 37) and by other donations, including a Sony language laboratory. A beautiful, modern refurbishment meets the vernacular architecture seamlessly, and provides a stimulating environment for the study of Oundle’s broad range of modern languages.
Completely refurbished in 2011 thanks to over £500,000 in donations, the Cripps Library provides a welcoming and studious environment for individual pupils and classes. Its collection comprises over 24,000 books, alongside rooms for group study and presentations in the Dudley Heesom and Peter Ling Rooms, as well as the Rare Book Room.
| The De Angeli Bursary | Julian F De Angeli (Sc 70) was a bibliophile with a deep fascination for natural sciences, military history, and the theatre. He was proud to have rowed for School House and treasured his rowing pennant throughout his life. He generously left a sizeable legacy to the Oundle School Foundation, the income from which funds bursary support for boys in School House, specifically. |
| The Frank Spragg Scholarship | Frank Spragg was a much-loved Housemaster of St Anthony’s and coach of Oundle’s rugby teams of the 1950s, including the unbeaten 1st XV of 1955. He was noted for his relaxed yet disciplined approach to all aspects of School life, and for getting the best out of his pupils with a dry sense of humour and fun. The Frank Spragg Scholarship Endowment Fund was created on the initiative of OOs in his memory and reached its target entirely through voluntary donations. It now provides financial support to a promising all-round performer from amongst the School’s boarders. |
| The John Adams Scholarship | John Adams (S 48) was a generous contributor to our scholarship funds throughout his life and the continued generosity of his family enables the award of four substantial scholarships to promising pupils, with a preference for day pupils in Laxton. |
| The Matthews General Scholarship | This scholarship is named for a popular former Housemaster of Sanderson House, and later Second Master of the School, and his wife, Win. He was described as ‘someone whose authority was unquestioned, whose knowledge of the School was detailed, and whom you addressed with some trepidation as ‘sir’.’ Raised through voluntary subscriptions, the endowment fund now provides a general scholarship worth 10% of fees. |
| The Dudley Heesom Scholarship | Following a distinguished career as a scholar at St John’s College Cambridge and a Davidson Scholarship to Princeton University, Dudley Heesom ran the History department from 1934 to 1960 and additionally served as a tireless and inspirational Housemaster of Bramston from 1939 to 1956. The scholarship endowment fund established in his name supports a talented historian at the School. |
| The Nicholson Engineering Award | Established in honour of a number of Old Oundelians from the Nicholson family, and funded by a family member, this award commemorates the family’s involvement in UK engineering and provides a prize to an Upper Sixth Form pupil who has chosen to study engineering in one of its many forms at university. |
| The Manners Wood Trust | Funded by a substantial legacy, this Trust provides scholarships and exhibitions supporting one or more musically talented pupils pursuing the study of stringed instruments. |
| The Alan Midgley Bursary | This award is funded by a single benefactor in honour of long-serving history master, Alan Midgley, who inspired the donor to go on to read Modern History at Oxford. The award is a Life-Changing Bursary awarded to a promising pupil from a disadvantaged background, and is worth 100% of the fee, tenable throughout the child’s time at the School. The recipient will have, upon entry to the School, a disposition towards the humanities and toward the study of History in particular. |
| Purbrook General Scholarship | Thommy Purbrook’s career at Oundle was tragically cut short in December 2008 when she died of a meningococcal infection while on a School trip to St Petersburg. Her time at Oundle was marked by her enthusiasm, energy and determination. Thommy made a considerable contribution to the life of the School. She had the ability to inspire and encourage people, showed great concern for her friends and fellow pupils, and took full advantage of the many opportunities that Oundle offers. Thommy’s parents, therefore, established a charitable fund in order to finance a Thommy Purbrook General Scholarship at Oundle as a fitting memorial to Thommy. The scholarship is awarded to a child who, like Thommy, is the sort of pupil who will take full advantage of the academic and extra-curricular opportunities that Oundle has to offer. It makes an Oundle education accessible to someone from a family that might not otherwise be able to afford the fees. The scholarship award is further supported by associated bursary funding as and when necessary. |
| The Sir Howard Stringer Bursary | The Sir Howard Stringer Bursary is awarded to a promising all-rounder, whose family would otherwise be unable to consider an independent education, but who would be especially likely to benefit from the specialisms and challenges that Oundle offers. It is worth up to 100% of the fee from Third Form to Sixth Form, and is likely to be awarded to a pupil who has benefitted from a bursary at a UK prep school. |
| The OO Lodge Bursary Fund | The OO Lodge Bursary Fund exists to support a candidate, male or female, in need of emergency support during their time at the school irrespective of any masonic connections. The Old Oundelian Lodge is a Freemasons’ lodge whose members are all OOs of current or former members of School Staff. Although the lodge is not formally part of the OO Club it has been active since 1937, and contributes regularly to the fund. Whilst there is not, yet, a female OO Lodge, enquiries about the OO Lodge can be directed via https://www.oundelianfreemasons.org/ |
