Hymers College A GSG School

Other features

All-through school (for example 3-18 years). - An all-through school covers junior and senior education. It may start at 3 or 4, or later, and continue through to 16 or 18. Some all-through schools set exams at 11 or 13 that pupils must pass to move on.

Sports

Fencing

What The Good Schools Guide says

Headmaster

Since 2019, Justin Stanley (40s). Affable and immediately engaging. Himself an 11+ scholarship boy at Stamford he identifies readily with the students and community served by Hymers. A classicist with his degree from Emmanuel College, Cambridge where he also captained rugby and gained his PGCE. Two stints at Manchester Grammar with Nottingham Boys High in between led to deputy headship at Hereford Cathedral School before moving on to Hymers which he describes as ‘the dream job’.

College is viewed as Hull’s academic school and certainly still carries a little of its legacy as a boys’ school. Head is clear that high standards are essential but hopes he has 'softened the ivory tower image’ that historically characterised the school. Our conversations with pupils and parents suggest that is indeed the case and they praise his greater engagement with them and the big changes he has made. He wants Hymers to be ‘fun and purposeful but also transformative, a place where pupils are excited by scholarship and comfortable in the learning environment’. Believes that good relationships with staff help to model these values to pupils and we certainly saw a very hands-on head, visible in the school, comfortable and knowledgeable with pupils who clearly like him and his ethos. Remarkably little staff turnover (mainly retirements) since his arrival, the sure sign of an affiliative leader. Meanwhile the sixth form curriculum adaptations have led to a revival in pupil retention, up by 15 per cent.

He comes back to the word kindness frequently. Also known for being inclusive with a pupil led equality group and student representatives at governors’ meetings providing evidence of this. He has also overseen a much closer and more seamless relationship with Hymers Juniors, which is co-located and the principal feeder for the college. ‘The new head is amazing, he has a fantastic approach to inclusion, zero tolerance of racism,’ said a parent. ‘When things go wrong he and the school deals with it sensibly and with compassion’. Another was ‘so impressed’ that he had stayed in touch during lockdown to enquire about the wellbeing of one of their children (not a student of the school, but the sibling of one).
Married to Rachel, also a career teacher. Their three children are at Hymers.

Entrance

Mostly into year 7. Automatic entry from Hymers Junior School (junior data tracking and reports are used to determine entrance but it would be rare for a pupil not to get in). For others, it’s an online entrance test plus the school’s own English and maths assessments followed by interview with a reading element and an observed problem solving group activity. Head’s view is that if they pass the entrance tests, have the right attitude to get stuck in and have supportive parents they will do well. Some enter at year 9. There has been a rise in students entering with SEN and have a fully trained SENCo from the state sector to assist with this. Traditional four form entry (27 per form) but as the school becomes increasingly popular five form entry is becoming the norm.

A limited number of places are available at sixth form, when candidates need six grade 6s at GCSE, with 7s in the subjects to be studied and 5s in all other subjects. But entry is competitive, so most have 7-9s.

Exit

Around 20 per cent leave post GCSEs. An impressive record for sixth form leavers, with vast majority to university, half of those to Russell Group. Popular destinations include UCL, LSE, Imperial, Manchester, Sheffield and Newcastle. Growing numbers do degree apprenticeships with blue-chip companies such as Microsoft, L'Oreal and Standard Charter. One to Oxbridge in 2024, and eight medics. Occasionally, students head overseas.

Latest results

In 2024, 57 per cent 9-7 at GCSE; 51 per cent A*/A At A level (71 per cent A*-B).

Teaching and learning

A traditional academic curriculum as befits the selective intake. However the school is responding sensibly to the changing nature of student expectations, with developments that the staff buy into and which have been welcomed by students and parents. New A levels, for instance, in psychology, English language and literature and classical civilisation.

Languages are strong throughout. Compulsory for all in years 7-9 (French, Spanish and Latin) although with the option to drop to one language for those who need to focus more on their English, as advised by the learning support department. German has now been dropped from the curriculum, which was lamented by some parents and pupils.

Science does well. Mixture of dual and triple science taken at GCSE. ‘Chemistry is just amazing,’ raved a student, and the school has invested in beautifully colour co-ordinated new labs which must be a pleasure to learn in. Lots of science competition award winners and Olympiads. Beyond A level clubs on Wednesday mornings ‘really get us thinking,’ said a student. There is a commitment to ICT and from 2022 all pupils will have a Chromebook, allowing the school to do away with traditional ICT suites and create more teaching space.

Award-winning careers advice starts in year 7, building up year on year to work experience and careers convention in year 11. Year 12 students use the Centigrade programme and there’s interview training and a series of sixth form lectures given by industry experts. Recently sixth formers have initiated their own academic societies eg med soc, law soc, MFL soc etc, which brings in old Hymerians and other guest speakers and helps develop career goals.

In sixth form, around 15-20 students do the EPQ and around five per cent enrol on the National Citizenship Service. Hymers is the only independent school in the country to act as a service provider for the scheme bringing in its own students and others from across the city during the summer after GCSEs to get involved in volunteering activities. School is also proud of its tradition in business and economics which generates even more degree students than medicine. Four students recently reached the finals of the National Student Investment Challenge.

The school’s enormous library is housed in a magnificent building that includes meeting spaces and teaching rooms. It is every bit as impressive as the sports facilities and certainly inspired us.

Students, staff and parents speak positively about college’s approach to Covid. ‘They were on it from day one’. ‘Online learning gave my kids every opportunity to keep going almost as normal’. ‘We really appreciated the no Zoom days to give us a break from sitting in front of a screen.’ Etc.

Learning support and SEN

New SENCo has come in from the state sector. With good training and a clear grasp of the brief she has wasted no time in bringing the school’s support for different learning needs up to speed. All pupils are now screened and have an individual learning passport on the school’s database to enable individualised and differentiated learning. A programme of professional development is also in place to support staff in improving their practice. Dyslexia, dyspraxia and dyscalculia plus ASD and some aspects of ADHD can be supported, all with proviso that they meet entrance criteria. The nature of the site and some Victorian buildings might make accessibility to some areas an issue for those with physical disabilities but we suspect the college would find a way around this.

The arts and extracurricular

Music is a mainstay of Hymers. The new facilities are exceptional and include a music technology room, conventional classroom, multiple practice rooms, recording studio, percussion suite and performance space. What more could a keen musician wish for? Except, of course, a very large number of instrument lockers for storage of anything from a flute to a double bass – but yes, they have that too! As well as classical performance the school also has space for it budding rock bands with a dedicated band practice room where pictures of the different groups are proudly displayed. We spoke to a sixth former set on a clear path to a degree in medicine who told us, ‘The great thing is we’ve been able to carry on with music to a high level as well as looking at careers which aren’t music related’. Nearly 40 percent of pupils take voice or instrument tuition and there is free instrument loan for an indeterminate period (as long as they use those lockers). College has one of the highest number of pupils in the country taking ABRSM exams. Lots of performances by choirs, ensembles and orchestras both in-house and at venues such as Beverley Minster.

Drama is not neglected, with a purpose built theatre with raked seating – a great performance space. Recent productions have included Les Mis, Annie and Sweeney Todd. Not much student art work on display, but to be fair they’d stripped a lot of work from the walls due to Covid.

There’s a wealth of clubs and societies – as well as the sports teams and music groups, there’s everything from water swimming to animation club, plus time capsule, magic gathering and even building an eco racing car. Trips both home and abroad include rugby tours to Portugal and South Africa, a battlefields trip, sixth form physics trip to Switzerland, skiing and sailing trips and a host of cultural visits within the UK.

Sport

Super sports provision, with something for everyone. Facilities are excellent from the acres of beautifully manicured, rolling green playing fields to the brand new all-weather pitch (second one already in the planning stage). The swimming pool is stunning – not the damp dark Victorian artefact we often see, but a gleaming 25m four lane pool with viewing gallery and huge glass windows onto the playing field. Swimming timetabled as a lesson in years 7 to 9 and available to students for recreational swimming at lunchtime and after school. There’s a lovely sports hall with four badminton courts and another viewing gallery. Multiple tennis and netball courts complete the offering. Lots of sporting success - the girls 1st 11 hockey team recently finished third in the national finals, students have reached the England U18 rugby, U17 hockey and table tennis teams. Fencing is popular and has also enjoyed county success. The school is keen to support students in other sports too. ‘One of the reasons Hymers appealed to us is that they allowed our daughter to compete at a high level in squash without batting an eyelid about her missing some school,’ said one parent.

Ethos and heritage

Hymers opened in 1893 as a school for boys on the site of the former Hull Botanical Gardens (there is lovely lake). School’s founder, the Reverend John Hymers, a Cambridge fellow and Rector of Brandesburton, left money in his Will for a school to be built 'for the training of intelligence in whatever social rank of life it may be found among the vast and varied population of the town and port of Hull'. The school continues this tradition with its generous means-tested bursary scheme. With £1.2 million at its disposal each year and an upper family income threshold of £55,000 the college is able to do a great deal to support able children from across the city of Hull. Buildings a mixture of grand 19th century neo-gothic with Hogwarts style sweeping staircases in front of some very impressive new buildings, mostly focused on sport, music and the library, all overlooking the grounds set in in the former Hull botanical gardens. All well maintained. Despite the religious origins the college is predominantly secular, although there is plenty of good moral education with input from different faith groups including in assemblies. After something of a lull the school is now keen to engage with its alumni not just for fundraising but also for its extensive careers education programme. College is also re-introducing a house system after a 45 year break which will follow on from the existing very successful system in the junior school.

Illustrious old Hymerians include: Dr Emily Mould, scientist, David Oxley, sports administrator, Robert Bishop, tech entrepreneur, Beth Mackay, mezzo-soprano, Professor Anant Parekh, FRS and Fellow of Academy of Medical Sciences, Edward Arthur Milne, astrophysicist, Meera Sodha, chef and food writer, Rob Vickerman, England rugby 7s captain and sports commentator.

Pastoral care, inclusivity and discipline

Head’s mantra is that Hymers should be a kind school. We think he is well on the way to achieving that, though some students feel there is still ‘a slightly too competitive edge’.

As well as the usual system of heads and assistant heads of year the college invests heavily in support services of different kinds. There are two trained school nurses, one of whom also teaches on the PSHE programme, and a medical centre that looked welcoming (and more than a little tempting to us for a lie down in after a hefty day of reviewin)g. Sixth formers regularly volunteer in local primary schools and Hymers Juniors where they work as buddies and support younger pupils’ learning.

Overall the students are a happy bunch of lively teenagers having a great deal of fun learning, playing and achieving. One year 13 on her way to Oxford said, ‘I really feel they’ve equipped me to deal with university not just because of the skills and knowledge they’ve taught me but because of the blend of people I’ve met here'. Another pupil told us, ‘You can be as different as you like here’. The equalities group certainly seems to have a real presence and voice rather than just paying lip service with one-off events. Poor behaviour is a rarity and the students know exactly where the boundaries are and what sanctions to expect. Bullying, when it happens, is dealt with fairly with a mind to reconciliation and changing behaviour. The head is clear that for serious misdemeanours such as drugs or racist conduct, there is the very real possibility of a student being asked to leave.

Pupils and parents

An ethnically diverse parent body from the middle classes of Hull and the surrounding area, some travelling up to an hour to get here. The generous bursary scheme and low fees makes the college accessible to a much more varied community than many independents. Popular with the medical profession and university lecturers. Students we met were unassuming, friendly and welcoming.

Money matters

Around 15 fee remission places per year, all means-tested bursaries covering around 40 per cent of full fees.

The last word

Rapidly shedding its ivory tower image Hymers is a high achieving school where a committed staff and bold, thoughtful head are ensuring that young people from a whole range of backgrounds have the best possible chance to be challenged, to learn, to succeed and to have fun along the way. Great facilities for music and sport that would be hard to match in the area.

Special Education Needs