An engineering specialism within a grammar school

We place great emphasis on the School as a community and upon the part played by each pupil within that community. The whole School meets together for Morning Assembly and we seek to bring pupils together to share as many events as possible. The calendar of the school year also includes a number of special occasions when pupils, parents, members of staff and friends of the school join together as a wider school community. Events such as Speech Day, Lower School Prizegiving, The Carol Service, Sports Day and the Commemoration Service in Ripon Cathedral which brings to an end each school year are examples of such occasions.

We believe that our pupils should both work hard and play hard, and we set great store by the wide range of out of classroom activities which are offered to pupils. It is not possible to mention every activity here but what follows is a representative selection. The school has attractive playing fields and excellent sports facilities, and we have a fine record of sporting achievement. The main school games are rugby, cricket, hockey, netball, tennis and rounders. Fixture lists are strong and our pupils regularly gain district and county honours, and occasionally national selection, while school teams have an impressive record in major competitions. Other sports such as swimming and athletics also feature strongly in our programme. We also encourage pupils to pursue many other sporting interests and the school currently boasts high achievers in a wide variety of activities.

The presence of a large Sixth Form in the school offers senior pupils a variety of positions of responsibility, and younger pupils benefit from the kind of leadership provided by School Prefects, Form Prefects, House Captains, etc. The relationship between younger pupils and the Sixth Form is one of the key elements in a thriving school community.

The School's Parents' Association also plays its part, not only organising social and fund raising events, but also contributing actively to school games, to the careers programme, to the work of the Library and to the development of closer links with the school and local industry.

Music and Drama also thrive in the school. Our annual productions of plays, musicals and junior drama are very popular, while the numerous musical activities include the orchestra, training orchestra, swing band, junior and senior choirs and various other ensembles. Instrumental lessons are available from peripatetic music teachers and many of our pupils attend the Saturday Music Centres in Harrogate and Northallerton.

Theatre visits and many other activities offer every pupil ample and varied opportunities to involve themselves in the life of the school. Our Annual Charity Week, rather like a university Rag Week, involves every member if the school in a weird and wonderful range of activities designed to raise funds for a chosen charity, while large numbers of Sixth Form students engage in a variety of social service projects under the guidance of the Ripon Council For Voluntary Services.

Further afield, pupils have the opportunity of a week's outdoor pursuits course in the Third year, while many other field trips and visits are organised to enhance the curriculum. Senior students undertake residential visits to London as part of their Art course, while Ski trips and visits to Russia and Kenya have further enhanced the range of opportunities. Students of French and German are involved annually in foreign exchange visits, while Second Form pupils all have the chance to visit France on our annual study/holiday.

The life of a pupil who joins Ripon Grammar School will therefore be challenging, varied and immensely rewarding.