Talk:King Alfred's Academy

Damning With Faint Praise

As an ex-Alfredian ('64-'71) I was initally pleased to see an entry in Wikipedia for KA's but then puzzled and not a little disappointed at the lack of history.

Where is the list of headmasters (Cedric Bower in my day)? The teachers through the decades? Their nicknames? The school song (Laus Alfredii) from the days when it was King Alfred's Grammar School? The curriculum? The numbering system for years (III form, Lower IV, Upper IV, Lower V, Upper V - streamed a and b - Lower VI, Upper VI)? Exceptional old boys who came back as teachers? The janitor (Mr Morris in my day)?

The houses (Bailey, Butler, Lloyd, School) and their colours (blue, green, and then my memory fails me - red, yellow?)? The CCF and its sections? The subculture and its language - Saturday morning school, grammar grubs, ticks, the Tuck Shop, the three Ds that KA's supposedly churned out (Directors, Drug-addicts, and Drop-outs) - the fact that hardly anyone ever knew your first name?

The changes over the years (the Language Lab that grew out of the old chapel), the "new" Science Block, the swimming pool, the headmaster's office, the almost complete lack of girls and the endless debates over the years about whether to go co-ed?

The blue books (which were yellow) and the school magazine featuring the silhouette of the guy with winkle-pickers, drainpipes and long hair (who never seemed to have existed).

The Old Alfredians (does it still exist?) and matches played against them?

I'm no historian, alas, or I'd willingly have a stab at it. I still have an old Gillman and Soame school picture from 1964 that has seen better days (and I believe the company still has old photos for sale) and a ton of memories (but no paperwork alas). Ahhh, nostalgia. It ain't what it used to be. Or am I thinking of Alzheimer's? AncientBrit (talk) 21:04, 15 August 2009 (UTC)

Removed probable vandalism and NPOV

I took some time to read through the materials here and found entries that are if not apocryphal then at least outright vandalism. I have also deleted sections that provide no evidence for the claims made. If anyone has a problem with the changes, by all means revert them - but make sure you provide supporting references. AncientBrit (talk) 05:53, 2 July 2010 (UTC)

Change of Title

Does anyone know how to change the title for this page? King Alfred's hasn't been called King Alfred's Community and Sports College since it became a Foundation School. In general, the school is only ever referred to as "King Alfred's". This may cause problems as a title so a change to "King Alfred's - A Specialist Sports College" would be more appropriate if "King Alfred's" isn't possible. (March 2011) — Preceding unsigned comment added by 95.149.154.80 (talk) 17:57, 5 March 2011 (UTC)

The contacts page on the school's website[1] appears to use "King Alfreds Specialist Sports College" while the website titles itself as "King Alfred's - A Specialist Sports College"; I only see "King Alfred's" used in less formal contexts. Easy enough to rename the page, just need some consensus what new title to use. DMacks (talk) 19:02, 12 March 2011 (UTC)

DfE URN

The URN 123263 displayed refers to a previous legal entity, now closed. 137140 is the URN for the new school. The 2011 Ofsted report is not directly applicable to the new school. SovalValtos (talk) 10:51, 24 April 2014 (UTC)