CONTENTS

2 BENEDICTINE ETHOS
6 AC ADEMIC LIFE

10 BOARDING LIFE
16 CO-CURRICULAR LIFE
2 0 OUTSIDE THE CLASSROOM
24 WEEKENDS

APUD BONOS IUR A PIETATIS

BENEDICTINE ETHOS 2 | 3

As soon as the arrival of a guest is

announced, the superior and members of the
community should hurry to offer a welcome
with warm-hearted courtesy.
(Rule of St Benedict 53,3)

BENEDICTINE ETHOS 4 | 5

Benedictine

ETHOS
In 1606 English and Welsh Catholics in exile founded a Benedictine community in Douai, France,
and dedicated it to St Gregory the Great. In 1814 the School moved to its current location
in Somerset where the monastery, Abbey Church and School were built. The monastic influence
is still very strong and is a fundamental part of Downsides character, together with the
community spirit that is such a major part of St Benedicts teaching.

The Benedictine ethos at Downside underpins all aspects

of the School and the Catholic faith is central to a
Downside pupils education. Not all pupils are Catholic
but everyone is expected to participate in the Schools
spiritual life. Mass is celebrated on Sundays and Feast Days
in the Abbey Church and parents are always welcome to
join their children for these services. House Masses and
Reconciliation Services are held every term. If they wish
to, pupils can also be prepared for Confirmation, which
usually takes place during the Summer Term of the Third
Form year. Whilst Downsides monastic community prays
formally six times a day, each House makes their own
arrangements for prayers in the morning and evening.
The School Chapel is always open for those who, as St
Benedict says, just want to go in and pray.
Every year pupils go on retreats tailored to the needs of
their year group; and these are intended to help them
develop their understanding of God. Fourth and Fifth
Form pupils are invited to join the Sodality of St Benedict
where they practise simple skills in meditation and Lectio
Divina (the meditative reading of scripture) under the
guidance of a monk. Since the 17th Century, Sixth Form
pupils have been invited to join the Sodality of Our Lady
under the Head Masters care; this meets regularly for
guided meditation or prayer.

The annual Easter Retreat is very popular and is a time

when current and past pupils can opt to gather together
with their families to celebrate the Triduum. Sixth Form
pupils are also invited to join the popular Order of Malta
Volunteers pilgrimage to Lourdes every summer. Many
pupils continue to join the annual pilgrimage long after
they have left school.
During the Schools last ISI inspection the Inspectors
observed that pupils excellent personal development
draws clearly on the Schools Benedictine ethos, strong
sense of community and excellent pastoral care. Pupils
appreciate the monastic context, respect each others
views and seek to meet the needs of others.
The Chaplaincy is made up of a full-time team of monks
who lead the pupils in prayer and, as necessary, instruct,
reassure and comfort. Chaplains are regular visitors
in the Houses and lead retreats, House Masses and
Reconciliation Services. Together the Chaplains support
the Head Master and House Masters and Mistresses and
are a good point of reference for Old Gregorians (alumni).
Through the sacraments, prayer, catechesis and example, in the
classroom and out of it, both monks and lay staff at Downside
seek to inspire pupils to love and serve God and neighbour.

ACADEMIC LIFE 6 | 7

The strong have something to yearn for

AND the weak nothing to run from.
(Rule of St Benedict 64,19)

ACADEMIC LIFE 8 | 9

Academic

LIFE
Downside is an academic school where examination success is a priority. We encourage all
pupils to aspire to the highest academic standards and discover intellectual interests that
will stay with them for life. The quality of our thinking in the end determines the quality of
our lives; a love of learning for its own sake is fostered in every pupil.

Academic life at Downside bristles with opportunity.

We are committed to ensuring that all pupils fulfill
their learning potential. Intellectual curiosity is nurtured
through stimulating lessons, academic societies, prize
essays, the EPQ (Extended Project Qualification) and
programmes for Academic Scholars and gifted students.
Pupils at Downside achieve and make significant progress.
Almost all our pupils will secure places to study at Russell
Group universities, including Oxford and Cambridge,
and at top universities in Europe and the USA. We set
ambitious targets for each pupil, and we track and monitor
progress so that all pupils are stretched and challenged
relative to their ability. Additional support sessions are
offered for pupils to enrich their subject understanding or
to provide help with revision before examinations. There
is also a full Saturday of lessons and team sports.
The teaching staff are extremely well qualified and
committed to delivering lessons of the highest quality,
especially across the core academic subjects such as
Science, Mathematics, History, English and Modern
Languages. We have a VLE (Virtual Learning Environment),
which is available online; it is full of learning resources
so that pupils can continue their learning beyond the
classroom, in their boarding houses, or at home over the
holidays. In addition, our faculty management structure
ensures that the quality of lessons and pupil progress
within each curriculum area are monitored effectively,
enabling us to maintain high standards.

The Art Department is set in its own buildings and has a

state-of-the-art Mac suite. Pupils can work with textiles,
photography, 3D printers and sculpture techniques and
are also able to take part in numerous trips to exhibitions,
galleries and museums to further their knowledge and
gain more inspiration.
The music at Downside is outstanding. The aim is to
establish a lifelong enjoyment of music by encouraging
as many pupils as possible to play an instrument or sing
enabling them to take part in instrumental and choral
performances. Downside pupils have a remarkable success
rate in the Associated Board of Royal School of Music
Awards, and at the academic stages of GCSE, AS and A
Level.
We have a Learning Support Department, and pupils can
have additional support with Mathematics or in planning
their written work, if necessary. This additional help can
be on a voluntary basis and can take the form of one or
a series of sessions, either one-to-one or within a small
group, with a designated Learning Support teacher. EAL
(English as an Additional Language) pupils and SEND
(Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) pupils make
excellent progress.
Every effort is made to ensure that learning at Downside is an
exceptionally engaging experience at all levels.

BOARDING LIFE 10 | 11

They should even be ready to outdo each

other in mutual obedience so that no one in
the monastery aims at personal advantage but
is rather concerned for the good of others.
(Rule of St Benedict 72, 6-7)

BOARDING LIFE 12 | 13

Boarding

LIFE
Most of the pupils are seven-day-a-week boarders and
weekends are full, busy and purposeful. Downside is
proud of its outstanding levels of pastoral support
for all pupils and has long been known for its
strong sense of community.

As a full boarding school, life revolves around the Houses, where

there are strong supportive relationships between the age groups
and pupils mix easily with each other. The House structure has been
developed to care for pupils at every stage of their time at Downside
and the mix of rivalry and loyalty to a particular House is very strong,
spanning several generations in some cases. Girls entering the School
at 11 join Isabella House, boys join Powell House. After Third Form
at 14, Senior boys will then join one of the 3 boys houses Barlow,
Roberts or Smythe and the girls Caverel or Isabella.
Boarding at Downside enables pupils to learn to live alongside
and support each other with a Christian spirit of compassion and
understanding. The Schools commitment is to retain a traditional full
boarding school where 85% of pupils are full boarders. Pupils come
from the South West, from all over the UK and indeed the world,
mainly Catholic countries in Western Europe and some from South
America and Asia.
Day pupils will belong to a House and can stay at school to do their
prep and join in the activities with the boarders, including House
Music, Sport and Drama.
Weekends are as busy as the week, if more relaxed. There are
barbecues, concerts, clubs, dances and a huge range of outings and
visits as well as trips into Bath for shopping or the cinema. Except
for whole-school exeats, pupils are expected to be at school at
weekends, especially if they are in a team.
Life in the Houses is important as the pupils home away from home
where they work, socialise and relax.

SPORT 20 | 15

CO CURRICULAR LIFE 16 | 17

Idleness is the enemy of the soul and

therefore the brethren should be occupied
at fixed times in the work of their hands and
again at fixed times in Lectio divina.
(Rule of St Benedict 48,1)

CO CURRICULAR LIFE 18 | 19

Co-Curricular

LIFE

Organised games are an integral part of the curriculum at Downside.

Boys and girls of all ages are expected to participate in sport at least twice a week,
the majority of pupils representing the School in mid-week or weekend fixtures.

BOYS: In the Michaelmas Term rugby is the major sport,

football and hockey in the Lent Term, and cricket in the
Summer Term.

GIRLS: Hockey is the major sport in the Michaelmas

Term, netball in the Lent Term, tennis and rounders in the
Summer Term.
Other activities available include aerobics, athletics,
badminton, cross-country, fencing, kayaking, polo, squash
and swimming.
There are extensive sports grounds and facilities with
around 100 acres of playing fields. Downside also has a
fully modernised swimming pool and, within the sports
hall complex, there are fitness machines, facilities for
indoor cricket, tennis, netball, basketball, badminton and
volleyball, as well as squash courts. The all-weather pitch
enables competitive hockey matches with visiting schools
in the Michaelmas and Lent Terms as well as keenly fought
inter-House competitions.
Downside has an impressive main pitch, used for Rugby
and Cricket, overlooked by a smart pavilion built on
higher ground, giving visitors and players a panorama
of the surrounding country, the School and Abbey Church.
During the cricket season, the Angelus bell will ring at 6pm
and, at whatever point of the game, all players stop and
stand still.Visiting teams always remember this tradition.

In both the performing arts and the visual arts, artistic

life is an essential part of a Downside education. Pupils
explore the arts through the academic subjects of Art,
Design, Drama or Music or by participating in the lively
co-curricular Arts activities. Downside has a purpose-built
600 seat theatre, regularly used for concerts, plays and
musical productions.
Drama is enormously popular at Downside, with many
pupils eager to take part. Every year there is a play, a musical
and a junior production. Musicals are mainly produced and
directed by the Sixth Form; recent productions include
Grease, The Sound of Music and Oklahoma! There are also
five House plays directed by the pupils. Drama gives pupils
the opportunity not just to star on stage but also to work
backstage with sound, lighting, set and costume design and
stage management. Whilst drama lessons are included in
the lower school curriculum, specialist teaching is also
available for those taking LAMDA examinations.
There are a number of music ensembles. The Schola
Cantorum includes boys and girls from all year groups in
the School. Founded over 100 years ago, it is the oldest
Roman Catholic school choir in the United Kingdom.
Chamber Choirs boys, girls, mixed and junior sing at
Sunday Mass. Downside offers orchestral music, chamber
music, jazz and rock groups and the CCF and pipe bands,
including a bagpipe band, which is a welcome addition to
the Schools musical life.
Co-curricular life is strong and busy in sport, drama and music,
from inter-House competition to representing the School.

OUTSIDE THE CLASSROOM 20 | 21

Whether they are at the work of God, at

prayer in the oratory, walking about the
monastery, in the garden, on a journey or
in the fields, wherever they may be, whether
sitting, walking or standing they should be
free of any hint of arrogance or pride in their
manner or the way they look about them.
(Rule of St Benedict 7,63)

OUTSIDE THE CLASSROOM 22 | 23

OUTSIDE
the Classroom

Activities outside the classroom are very important for providing new experiences and
opportunities. At Downside the choice is extensive and time is allocated for clubs, societies,
drama, music and sport on every weekday afternoon; a huge range of activities also takes place
outside formal co-curricular times. We endeavour to offer something for everyones interests
and the activities available are being constantly reviewed.

Each year group in the Senior School has its own academic
society, and there are also the Abingdon and Court of
Earls debating societies, the Bede History Society, and the
Knowles, which is a society for Oxbridge candidates. All of
these flourish and are very well attended, allowing pupils
to gain confidence in public speaking and in particular
academic specialisms.
The Downside CCF Band and pipe band are very
popular and play at School occasions. They also represent
Downside in local Remembrance Day parades and are
regularly invited to play at other events.
All pupils follow a programme of activities that includes,
for example, the CCF, the Duke of Edinburgh Awards
Scheme, music, drama, cooking, climbing, publishing, junior
sports and leadership training. It is also a tradition for
some pupils to take part in the annual Ten Tors challenge
on Dartmoor, open to pupils from 14-19 based in the
seven counties of the South West of England. It involves
intensive training and a gruelling walk of up to 55 miles.
Those who complete it are justifiably proud of their
achievement and each year the Downside team aims to
beat the previous years time.
CCF Camp is a popular start to the Summer holidays for
many but during the year pupils will also go on exercise,
both at night and during the day, practising skills learnt in
the classroom. This provides essential team building and
leadership experience.

Service to others is a fundamental part of life at Downside

and all pupils are expected to be involved in charitable and
voluntary work.The School runs an extensive Community
Service programme so pupils can, for example, offer
support for state-maintained primary schools, the
disabled, the elderly and the homeless. They can also take
part in other charitable, community or environmental
projects; such as helping at food bank charities and local
soup kitchens.
A number of pupils also spend time in their holidays fundraising for particular charities and thinking up inventive
ways to obtain support. Pupils devise adventurous
expedition ideas, planning and organising them, such as
a cycle ride from Bristol to Switzerland and a recordbreaking walk across Iceland, all for causes that have made
an impression on the individual pupil.
Regular fund-raising activities for specific charities are
held through the year and many Sixth Formers join the
annual OMV pilgrimage to Lourdes. Old Gregorians are
expected to support the Bruised Reeds, the society that
helps former Downside pupils in difficulties.
The tradition of service at Downside is a noble and muchvalued aspect of pupils lives.

WEEKENDS 24 | 25

They should make sure that there is

no one overcome by idle boredom.
(Rule of St Benedict 48,18)

WEEKENDS 26 | 27

WEEKENDS
As a full-boarding school,
Downside provides a busy programme of lessons,
activities and events at weekends.

Saturday morning lessons are followed by afternoon games fixtures.

In the evenings regular House or year group events occupy the pupils,
from formal dinners, dances and discos to concerts, cinema trips and
socials with other schools in the area.
On Sunday after Mass in the Abbey Church, a bus takes pupils to
Bath, and trips are organised to ensure a lively, stimulating and varied
programme. There are a range of school activities as well as Housebased events. After a busy working week, pupils also enjoy spending
time relaxing with their friends in the Houses or using the Schools
sports facilities, so theres plenty of choice.
First, Second and Third Formers have an activity programme ranging
from paintballing and go-karting, trips to museums and theme parks,
cycling and walks. Adventure activities include mountain biking, caving
and climbing to name but a few.
A full seven-day programme means that boarders are expected to
be in School at the weekend but there is a range of different Exeats:
Closed (Non-Exeat) weekends All pupils have to remain in school
for these weekends, usually the first and last weekends of each half
term. Over these weekends there are inter-House Music and Drama
competitions, School Plays and Musicals.
Open (Exeat) weekends Pupils may go home, after Saturday school
obligations, returning on Sunday evening.
Whole School Exeat weekends From Friday afternoon to Sunday
evening (held twice a term for Junior pupils, twice in the Michaelmas
Term for Senior pupils).
Parents are always welcome and are encouraged to come to
Downside to support matches, plays, concerts and other events.
The priority is to ensure pupils have a full schedule of weekend activities to
keep them busy, engaged and happy.

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