Torquay Boys' Grammar School

Torquay Boys' is the kind of school where a boy can be serious about his work and still throw himself into music, sport or a dozen clubs without ever having to choose. The Good Schools Guide rates it among the top 20 boys' schools in the country, but the line parents tend to hold onto is simpler, one mother's verdict that 'every child has the opportunity to achieve their full potential.' Sport, maths, languages and the arts are all given the same weight, so most boys find their thing somewhere.

Perched at Shiphay, a stone's throw from the town and the English Riviera coast, the school has a long memory. It opened in 1904 as the Pupil Teacher Centre, became Torquay Secondary School in 1915, and settled into its present home in 1983. Music threads through school life, with a steady run of concerts and a musical every year, and the sporting tradition is real enough that the school has lifted the national football title three times in recent years. Boys arrive from more than 70 primary schools, around 400 sitting the entrance test each year, and girls join for the sixth form.

The school has been led since September 2024 by headteacher Dr James Hunt, and parents speak warmly about the pastoral care, built on two plain watchwords, 'respect' and 'responsibility'. It suits an able, curious boy who wants to be stretched but also wants room to breathe, try new things and find his people.