"Sport provides lessons in life that the classroom doesn't"

Sport provides a lot of good lessons in life that the classroom doesn’tDr John Newton, headmaster Taunton School

If you’re spending Saturdays nosing around classrooms, drama centres and state-of-the-art gyms drawing up a shortlist of destinations for your child, you can’t fail to have noticed the emphasis that independent schools place on sport. Why is this and, apart from the obvious health and social benefits, what other advantages can pupils gain from their time on the pitch, court or river?

Dr John Newton is headmaster of Taunton School in Somerset, a co-educational boarding and day school for pupils aged 2-18. He believes sport gives pupils valuable life skills to take into the world: “Independent schools still believe that sport teaches you to toughen up, to be fit, to win graciously or lose thoughtfully so you can fight back next time,” says Newton.

“Private schools develop mentally agile and resilient individuals. In rugby, you learn to lead or be part of a team. In cricket, you have to keep your nerve and score your runs, surrounded by 11 opponents,” he continues. “When you’re out, you put your bat under your arm and walk off. Sport provides a lot of good lessons in life that the classroom doesn’t. It also programs young people to believe in being active.”

Along with all the usual sports, pupils can try karate, target shooting, yoga and sailing. Former pupils of Taunton include international polo player Paul Withers, Zoe Leach, who played hockey for the England Girls team, and cricketer Matt Bulbeck.

High achievers

Monmouth School in Wales is renowned for its excellent sports facilities and high-achieving boys. “Exercise makes for a healthy body but it also benefits the mind,” agrees headmaster Dr Steven Connors. “These extra curricular activities are profound social learning experiences – competitive events where the individual is challenged physically and learns to relate to the needs of others in a team under pressure. 

“It is very difficult to predict the future working environment of young people. However, people and team skills – which are so difficult to measure in league tables – will always be needed.”

Former Monmouth pupils who’ve excelled in the world of sport include rowers Tom Lucy, who won a silver medal for rowing in Bejing this summer, and Lord Colin Moynihan, winner of a silver medal in 1980. Chairman of the British Olympic Committee and former showjumper David Broome is also among the famous alumni.

Escaping the classroom

Steffan Griffiths, Deputy Head of Magdalen College School, Oxford, a day school for boys aged from 7 to 18, believes that the school’s emphasis on sport contributes greatly to its successful exam results. “We are one of the top schools in the A-level tables this year. I believe strongly that those results are possible because of our balance between academic and extra-curricular activities.

“The charge of being an ‘exam factory’ is misplaced because, to get those results, you have to interest the boys in other areas. Sport is one of the prime ways of doing that,” Steffan continues.

The school shares Oxford University Sports Centre and three Oxford college playing grounds. Along with traditional sports, the school offers athletics, badminton, sailing, rowing, martial arts, climbing and surfing. It is producing a brace of excellent sportsmen.

Tom Stevens has achieved 10 A-grade GCSEs as well as playing rugby for south-west England U16 and old boy Dominic Shaw plays rugby at the Newcastle Falcons Academy. The school had 15 hockey players in county teams last year, Simon Steele has rowed for Great Britain under-16s, while two boys excel at horse riding and another at clay pigeon shooting.

Nurturing talent

Schools such as Magdalen College School are happy to have sporty children in their classes, even if they are not accomplished academically. “When selecting pupils, we don’t only look at exam results,” explains Griffiths. “We take an application from a strong sportsman, musician or actor seriously. We look for a balance of gifts.”

Taunton School, which is not selective, prides itself on bringing out the best in children who may not be ‘top of the tree’. “We look after our pupils and, whether it’s an academic subject, debating or hockey, we’ll find what they’re good at,” says John.

With such a strong belief in physical activity, most private schools have compulsory games up to around year 12.  However, they all stress the importance of offering different options and finding the right level for an individual pupil. 

“We don’t have issues with boys being unfit or not wanting to do sport. We make it fun and have superb facilities and teams to suit every level,” says Steven. “We find that if we give them the right attitude, they seize the opportunity.”

Steffan adds, “We know there are some students for whom contact sports are not an attraction, so we also offer golf, swimming and a fitness suite with machines and free weights.” Fitness suite?  This may conjure a very different image of the bad old days of creaky school gyms and cold showers. 

Steven replies, “There is competition among schools to offer excellent sports facilities, such as our new £2.3 million pavilion. This is a clear statement to prospective parents that sports plays a major part in the life of the school and we are prepared to invest in it.”

Sport for all

Far from being entrenched in tradition, many independent schools encourage boys and girls to try sports that are stereotypically played by one sex. For instance, at Charterhouse in Surrey, girls play cricket as well as boys. It's interesting to note that at Millfield School, that centre of sporting and academic excellence in Somerset, the selective element is played down and no pupil is prevented from taking part in a sport on the grounds of lack of ability.

It’s not just the pupils who benefit from superb facilities and coaching either. With many schools, the local community can come out to play too. Monmouth School’s 25-30 acres of beautifully-maintained sports fields and facilities are available to staff and their families, plus members of the public who have joined their  sports club. “We have almost 2000 members now and it is almost self-funding,” says Steven. Local teams and a Fit Kids activity club are reaping the benefits and the Commonwealth swimming team has used their pool.

Private schools often make a more personal contribution to the local community too. “Magdalen College School boys have strong links with the local tennis, football, rugby and hockey teams,” says Griffiths. At Taunton School, pupils share not just facilities but know-how. ‘Some of our pupils also enjoy doing a bit of coaching and mentoring for the local junior school and Taunton Cricket Club,” says John.

Taunton School is a Tom-Brown.com featured school

Case study

Tom Lucy: from Monmouth School to the Olympic squad

Olympic medalist Tom Lucy learnt to row at Monmouth School, which he attended from 1999 to 2006. He gained his first Great Britain Junior Vest in 2005 when he won bronze medal in the men's four at the World Junior Championships in Brandenburg, Germany.

At the first World Cup of 2008 he raced in the men's four, substituting for an injured rower, and the crew won gold. This year, he was one of the men’s eight who won silver for Great Britain at Beijing.

Headmaster Dr Steven Connors says, “We are immensely proud of Tom. He has trained hard and put a career in the Marines on hold to pursue his Olympic dream.”