What do you know about Westminster School?
Westminster School is an independent boarding and day school in the heart of Central London next to Westminster Abbey and the Houses of Parliament. Boys can join Westminster at 13+ and girls and boys can join the co-educational Sixth Form at 16+.
Westminster School is a historic public school in London, England, located within the precincts of Westminster Abbey and immediately beside the Palace of Westminster (Houses of Parliament). Westminster School, situated in the middle of the UNESCO Heritage Site of Westminster Abbey, St. Margaret’s, and the Palace of Westminster, has several buildings notable for unique qualities, age, and history.
Westminster’s origins can be traced to the charity school established by the Benedictine monks of Westminster Abbey before the Norman Conquest in 1066. Its continuous existence is certain from the early fourteenth century.
Boys are admitted to Under School at the age of seven and by examination to the senior school at the age of thirteen; girls are admitted to the Sixth Form at the age of sixteen. The school has around 750 pupils; around a quarter are boarders, who mostly go home at weekends after Saturday morning school.
The school motto, Dat Deus Incrementum, is taken from 1 Corinthians 3:6: “I planted the seed and Apollos watered it, but God made it grow”
Westminster is one of the original nine great English Public Schools examined by the Clarendon Commission of 1861 and reformed by the Public Schools Acts.
Westminster School Pancake Greaze
A unique custom which takes place every Shrove Tuesday at Westminster School, London. The school cook makes a substantial pancake which he takes in a frying-pan to the school hall, and tosses over an iron bar which runs across the room, about twenty feet above ground. In a mad scramble, representatives from each form in the school try to grab hold of a piece of the pancake, and whoever succeeds in getting the largest piece wins a guinea from the Dean of the school. The custom has been in existence since at least the mid-18th century.
Westminster School has a long sporting tradition and its pupils achieve considerable success in matches and competitions against other schools and at national and international level. Football, rowing (known as Water) and cricket are the great traditional sports but pupils are able choose from a wide range of sports (or ‘Stations’) which they want to pursue. Over 20 Stations are offered, including fencing, hockey, tennis, fives, swimming, cross-country running, rock climbing, judo, netball (for girls) and shooting.
Fives is a game, played especially in the UK, in which a ball is hit with a gloved hand or a bat against the walls of a court with three walls ( Eton fives ) or four walls ( Rugby fives ).
Westminster School Boat Club is one of the oldest rowing clubs in the world, located on the River Thames. Oxford University Boat Club uses Westminster’s boat house at Putney as its headquarters for the annual Oxford and Cambridge boat race on the Thames.
Thank you for your project, Ruslana. I learnt many new things. I liked their custom, which happens every Shrove Tuesday at Westminster School when the school chef makes a large pancake, brings it in a frying pan to the school hall and throws above an iron bar. It’s such fun when students try to take the largest piece of a pancake. It would be great to have such a funny tradition on our Pancake day.
I like the fact that this school is for both sexes, boys and girls. I was also intrigued by the information about a unique custom which takes place every Shrove Tuesday at Westminster School when the chef throws a pancake through the bar in the hall. It’s cool that you can choose different sports in this school. And I’ve never heard about such a game as ‘fives’.
I heard about Westminster School. Very interesting traditions in this school. The fact that the school is connected with sports is great. My brother will for sure like it. He is interested in sports. I liked the tradition of Pancake Greaze. It would be cool if such competition was held in our school. It would be very fun to compete in it with my friends.
Westminster school has a very interesting history. The school location is amazing. It was interesting to read about their unique custom. I think schools in Ukraine should create someting like that. Also that’s pretty cool that it’s a very sporty school. I like the game called ‘fives’. In my opinion, that’s great that this school is both for boys and girls. If I lived in London, I would be happy to attend Westminster school.
I learnt many new things. It’s cool that you can choose different sports in this school. Westminster School Pancake Greaze I think it is a fantastic competition. I think that it would be amazing if we had in our school such competition.