Bruton

1. Sexey’s school Bruton

3. Sexeys school HistorySexeys to-dateOldest living sexian

4. History Sexey's School is named after Hugh Sexey, the son of poor parents living in the Bruton area. His baptism is recorded in Bruton Parish Church on 18th November 1556. Although he attended Bruton Grammar School, he was apparently largely self-taught and, despite his humble origins rose to an important government position when in 1599 he was appointed as a Royal auditor to Elizabeth I and later James I, becoming a rich man in the process. After his death in 1619, Sexey's Hospital was established by the trustees of his will, to care for twelve poor, elderly persons, but now caters for 30. The current school was the inspiration of the Right Honourable Henry Hobhouse, who was the first Chairman of Governors. Hobhouse was a leading national politician who drafted the 1902 Education Act and founded the school in 1889 as a Trade School. The school soon became a boys grammar school and established a reputation for academic excellence which has been its hallmark to the present day. After the 1944 Education Act the school became Voluntary Controlled. In 1977 the school decided to return to the original intention of the Founder by accepting girls and, in the first half of the 1980s expanded boarding provision to become one of the largest state boarding schools in the country. At the same time, the Sixth Form expanded as a major provider of post-16 education in South Somerset.

5. Sexey’s to-date Sexey’s is an 11-18 Church of England Academy for boarding and day students. Sexey’s are the principal provider in East Somerset of post-16 education and as a boarding school they cater for the needs of young people and their families across the UK and abroad. As a Leading Edge School the school's performance is consistently in the top ten per cent nationally for academic attainment and progress. ‘Sexey’s school is academic, safe and pleasant.’

6. Oldest living Sexian- information Philip Biggin joined Sexeys School in Bruton in 1925 at the age of 12. He had passed his exam at primary school which qualified his admission. His Favourite subject was botony. The school was lit by coal gas generated from Bruton. And the heating was coke. There was no electricity. Electricity came in in 1930-1931. There was compulsory sport for boarders on 3 evenings per week plus each Saturday afternoon. Philip lodged with a lady in Bruton, along with several other pupils, as the boarding house in the school, Cliff House, could only accommodate about 30 boarders. The school chemistry teacher lived next to Philip's landlady,, and he and his wife, took in about 4 pupils to board. There were few cars on the road at the time, so Philip and his brother Lewis, would cycle home to Queen Camel on a Friday evening and cycle back to Bruton each Monday morning ( a distance of about 9 miles.) After leaving school, he was a pilot in the second world war and then came home and joined the family butcher business in Queen Camel. Click for more context.

7. A message from Philip Biggin in reply to an email I sent. • Previously I mentioned how strict everything was at school, there was no talking between pupils and nothing was done without first raising one`s hand and getting` yes Biggin?’ The lack of facilities also remains so memorable compared with today. There was no hot water in the school. One gas geyser was installed during the time I was there which the old cleaner used to light to provide some hot water for the first few down from the soccer field after games. • As there were no vacuum cleaners cleaning amounted to what could be done with a brush. Toilet arrangements were disgraceful even by the standards then. Day boys coming by bike or train from Evercreech, Wincanton or Frome brought sandwiches in their satchels and sat at their desks to eat as there was no provision at all by way of catering. The only source of drinking water was from a cast iron fixture on the wall of the wash room with an iron cup chained to the wall. Another memory very vivid is the inadequate heating, no electricity meant that the system depended on convection for circulation. In one very cold spell ( 1926or 27) it was so cold in the physics lab that we were allowed to fix asbestos squares to retort stands and then heat them with Bunsen burners, the danger associated with asbestos was not known then. Memories of 80 odd years ago but still very vividly remembered. I hope this helps a little to explain how different things are today. Kind regards. Philip Biggin

8. Bruton Town

9. History of Bruton Bruton has many interesting and historical buildings including the medieval Packhorse Bridge, St Mary's Church, Sexeys Hospital and the Dovecote. Bruton was settled in the 7th century as can be seen by the evidence of St. Aldhelm and King Ine having visited Bruton. In 1985 during the building of the flood relief scheme about 1 mile East of Bruton a Saxon sword possibly dating from the 9th century was found, this is now kept in Taunton museum with a replica in Bruton museum.There are also other areas which have natural history such as Pen selwood to see more visit. http://www.brutontown.com/

10. Location of Bruton Bruton is located in the southwest of England in Somerset. It is in the Brue Valley and has the river Brue flow through it. The village is an ancient small town and has a population of around 3000 occupants. There are now two main industries in Bruton these are farming and education. There are five schools in Bruton: King's School, founded in 1519, Bruton School for Girls, Sexeys School, Bruton Primary school and the Meadow School for Steiner Education.

11. Present day Bruton Brutonpresent day has a population of around 3000 residents. The high street now has more stores and shops with the inclusion of the Chapel, a modern styled restaurant with an oven located at the back for baking.The chapel also has a bakery where you can buy bread and pizza’s for on the go. As the population of Bruton has increased the amount of leisure facilities and restaurants have increased. This makes Bruton an ideal place for anyone with a family as of the surrounding schools and recreational space available.

12. Thank you for your time By Harry Atkinson