Community Engagement

We are immensely proud of our links with the community and, from our foundation in 1487 by Sir Edmond Shaa, our place in Stockport’s history, present and future. We continuously look at ways we can engage and develop relationships in support of fellow schools, public bodies, community groups, charities and other organisations.

Our own pupils also benefit from this engagement. By interacting with the world around them, SGS students gain an understanding of different communities and the ways they can have a positive impact.

Here are just a few examples from the 2022-2023 academic year:

Bursaries

Through our means tested bursary scheme, we enable local children whose families could not otherwise afford the fees to attend SGS. Bursaries are available at 11+ and 16+. For more information about the scheme, please visit our Bursaries section. The scheme is primarily funded by the school, assisted by donations from the SGS community. Visit our Support Us page to find out more about how you can help.

Teaching and Learning

Year 5 Maths Competitions

248 young mathematicians from 33 primary schools across Greater Manchester gathered at Stockport Grammar School on the 26th and 27th June for the annual Maths Challenges for Year 5 children. The level of demand means that we hold three competitions across the two days.

Year 5 Art Competition

127 local primary school pupils from 18 schools took part in the Year 5 Art Competition in February. The children’s artwork was also displayed at a special exhibition evening for them and their families to enjoy.

Year 10 Science Competition

The annual Year 10 Science Competition saw 44 Fourth Year pupils from 11 local high schools attend and compete in hour-long tasks in Biology, Chemistry and Physics in the school’s laboratories.

Year 5 Taster Days

In the Summer Term, we held three fully subscribed Taster Days for Year 5s from local primary schools with 264 places booked (plus an additional 30 children on the reserve list), in addition to a Taster Day for SGJS children.

Pupils experienced sessions in a wide range of Senior School subjects as part of their preparation for the transition to secondary school.

Drama

Our Head of Drama and Third Year pupils visited four local primary schools to deliver Theatre in Education workshops to Years 5 and 6.

English Writing Masterclass

The Junior School hosted an English Writing Masterclass for Year 5 and 6 children from local schools as part of an enrichment program.

Staff

SGS staff members support the community in a wide range of ways.

Some are Governors or PTA members at local schools and chair various committees and conferences whilst others volunteer for groups or organisations such as the Scouts or the Lancashire Police and Crime Commissioner.

Others use their skills and knowledge to provide resources and training for organisation such as the Classical Association and some are members of groups like the Manchester and District Local Section of the Royal Society of Chemistry, the University of Manchester Schools and Colleges Forum and the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Education in Art and Design.

Other staff members lead on projects in the community on behalf of the Local Cultural Education Partnership, help local schools to develop work with development programme The Writing Squad and help pupils and staff from state schools with university applications and medical interviews.

The Sports department hosted and ran the SSSSA athletics meeting involving seven state schools and they hosted festivals and tournaments for state schools in rugby, football, netball and hockey. One member of the team is the Cheshire representative on England Schools Rugby committee; Cheshire Schools Rugby Competitions Chair; Chair of England Schools Rugby Competitions Committee; Cheshire Schools representative on North West Regional Player Pathway Group; and sits on the Cheshire Rugby Disciplinary Panel.

The Art department was involved in an Architecture project about St George’s Church and are active on the National Society for Education in Art and Design media platforms which has a YouTube channel with demonstration videos available as open access.

Staff members also work with exam awarding bodies, support schools with the GCSE standardisation and moderation process on an advisory level and supported a state school by leading the appraisal process for the Headteacher.

Facilities

Our swimming pool is used by a number of organisations including Great Moor School, Rotary Club Charity Swimathon, Norris Bank Swimming Club, Aqua Seals, Trafford Artistic Swimming Club and Lucy Hesford Swim School.

The Sports Hall has been used by High Lane Cricket Club, Stockport Georgians Cricket Club, Stockport Trinity Cricket Club, Kingsway Power Netball and Professional Netball Academy.

The Wellspring charity for homeless people in Stockport used our facilities to support their activities.

The school hosted the National Youth Brass Band Championships of Great Britain. Over 1,200 children from 38 bands took part and the event was attended by over 1,000 audience members.

SGS also hosted a Leadership Conference for over 50 teachers from schools in the North West on Core Values and Motivational Leadership.

Artsmark

The school has received the highest possible rating from the Arts Council England, with a Platinum Artsmark Award. The level, which is held by only a small number of schools in the country, indicated that the Arts Council has recognised the exceptional standard of creative and performing arts at SGS, and the school as an ‘opinion former’ ‘making a difference’ in the wider community.

Charity Fundraising

The school is proud to be able to fundraise for charities locally, nationally and internationally.

Both the Senior and Junior Schools have a Charity Club and the pupils work together with staff to choose the causes they would like to support and to create ideas to engage the SGS community. Previous ideas have included fun days, non-uniform days, taking part in physical challenges and food collections.

In the 2022-2023 academic year, Senior School activities raised a total of £5,636:

• EducAid – £3,898
• MIND – £1,064
• Barnardos – £308
• Centre Point – £200 and a Toiletry Bank collection
• Choose Love – £166
• Bare Necessities – Toiletry Bank collection
• Wellspring – Food and clothes donations from Harvest Festival and a reverse advent calendar

In the Junior School, numerous activities raised a total of £6,709:

• NSPCC – £2,049
• Turkey/Syrian Earthquake Appeal (DEC) – £1,347
• Macmillan Coffee Morning – £1,291
• Children in Need – £1,191
• Francis House – £831

There were additional collections of food and other items in support of the Wellspring which helps homeless people in Stockport.

Voluntary Work

Students enjoy undertaking voluntary work at various locations via The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme, of which we are proud to be a Direct Licensed Organisation. Sixth Formers also take part in Voluntary Service on Wednesday afternoons, helping out and gaining valuable skills in a wide range of settings including schools, hospitals and charities.