In May 2007, Belfast High was awarded Specialist Status in the field of Languages, one of only 13 schools to receive such a status.^[3] It is consistently awarded the International Schools Award, once from 2008–11 and again from 2011–14, and it is one of only five schools in the UK and the only one in Northern Ireland to win The European Language Label Award from the European Commission.{{citation needed|date=August 2013}} These awards have culminated in the school receiving half a million pounds in additional funding for the study of languages.{{citation needed|date=August 2013}}

Belfast High School is academically selective, meaning that all pupils wishing to gain admission to the school must sit a specially designed exam and attain over a set boundary in order to matriculate. In 2011, 59% of applicants to the school were admitted.

History

The institution now known as Belfast High School opened in 1854. In 1874, it moved to new premises at Glenravel Street, Belfast.

Since the school was founded, there have been 7 head teachers:

• (1854–1867) John Pyper He established the school as Pyper Academy, before changing its name to the Belfast Mercantile Academy shortly thereafter.
• (1867–1917) James Pyper, the school's longest-serving headmaster. He was responsible for the building of what the Ulster Star described as "Mr Pyper's splendid new seminary"^[4] in Glenravel Street.
• (1917–1937) Spring Pyper
• (1938–1966) Dr Robert Harte, who changed the school's name to its current title. Under his headship the school purchased Ardilea House, a large 19th century villa in Jordanstown, in 1953. Between then and 1963, when the entire school re-located from Glenravel Street, its then Vice-Principal, Harry Towell, headed a small suburban campus at the site. The house now forms the administration block, containing the staff room, sick bay, and offices of the principal, her secretary, the bursar and vice-principal. Dr Harte suffered a severe stroke in 1964 and his son acted as temporary head until the appointment of Mr Dunlop in 1966. Dr Harte was a Doctor of Philosophy and an eminent classical scholar.
• (1966–1987) Samuel H Dunlop, who saw the building of a new science block (1970), the closure of Somerton House (the school's preparatory department) in 1981 and the enlargement of the school library (1980s)
• (1987–2006) Stephen R Hilditch, who saw the Harte Building opened in the 1990s to house Home Economics, Careers, Technology, ICT and a science lab, the refurbishment of the science block (2001–2003) and the refurbishment and enlargement of the Music Department
• (2006–2018) Lynn F Gormley, who oversaw the installment of a state-of-the-art sports and fitness building which was opened by Dame Mary Peters in 2016.
• (2018-present) Former Deputy Principal and Acting Principal Charlotte Weir becomes Principal

Houses

The school has a house system. The tie a pupil wears is blue with a thick yellow band pattern, and a thinner band pattern of an additional colour representing the pupil's house.

The houses and their colours are as follows:

• Boyd (green)
• Pyper (blue)
• Storey (red)
• Watson (yellow)

Results

Most of Belfast High School's pupils go on to study at university-level, with 87% of the pupils in 2011 going on to higher education. The majority of these go on to study at top-performing British universities, and the School regularly sends pupils to Oxford and Cambridge.{{citation needed|date=August 2013}}

Sports

The three main sports at Belfast High are cricket, hockey, and rugby.^[5]

Notable former pupils

• Steve Aiken, Member of the Northern Irish Assembly
• George Cassidy, former Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham
• Tommy Cassidy, Northern Ireland international footballer, who played for Newcastle United and Burnley
• Edward Samuel Wesley de Cobain, MP, disgraced Conservative politician
• Fred Henderson, Socialist writer
• George MacDowell Kane, Artist and sculptor
• Alex Crawford, international footballer: Distillery and Cliftonville right-half and Captain of Ireland in 1880s and 1890s
• Jonny Evans, Leicester City and Northern Ireland international football player
• Sir Ronnie Flanagan, retired Chief Inspector of Constabulary, Northern Ireland
• Alan McNeill, professional football player
• Stephen Rea, film actor
• Mark McCrea, Ulster rugby player
• Maurice Field, former Ulster and Ireland rugby player
• Paul Stirling, Ireland cricketer
• Sinéad Morrissey, poet

See also

• List of grammar schools in Northern Ireland

References

External links

• {{Official website|http://www.belfasthigh.org.uk/|Belfast High School official website}}