Located in the London Borough of Islington, Central Foundation Boys’ School is a voluntary-aided comprehensive secondary school. Founded in 1866 as the Middle Class School, it originally occupied the site of the old French Protestant Hospital in Bath Street but very soon outgrew this location. A new site in Cowper Street was purchased and the Lord Mayor of London laid the foundation stone in 1868. Cowper Street opened its doors in 1869 although it took another 4 years for the great hall to finished.
The Reverend William Rogers, the principal founder of the school was a pioneer in the education of children and in the early years when legislation for compulsory child education had just been introduced, was involved in opening many schools in the east end of London. Rogers soon realised that as well as a need for simple elementary education for children, there was a need for a more extended form of tuition directed towards the sons of skilled workmen and tradesmen who were able to pay only a limited amount towards their sons education and which would prepare them for entry to business, the professions and university.
Central Foundation boys school has delivered high quality education to the local area for over 150 years. They look to the past with pride and gratitude – and forward, to an exciting future. Their aim is for every single one of their students to achieve outstanding outcomes in their education; in terms of both qualifications and the development of the skills, attributes, knowledge and understanding necessary to thrive in a rapidly changing world. It is these outcomes that will transform their futures. Many students have flourished upon leaving the school, with many leading successful careers across a variety of industries including: academia, sports, the arts, science, business, law and medicine.
Since 1952 many improvements have been carried out by the trustees, both major and minor, with the help of the Local Education Authority and grants from the Education Ministry. In 2005, the former Shoreditch County Court was returned to the possession of the trustees. It was transformed, at a cost of approximately £6,000,000, into a modern educational building. It houses new technology rooms, a library, general classrooms and a lecture theatre.
In more recent years, the school has been undergoing a major redevelopment of its campus. Phase 1 of the redevelopment project was completed in the autumn term 2021 and delivered a brand new Science Centre with a new reception area and a refurbished Maths and Humanities Block with general classrooms and a heritage gym. Phase 2 of the campus redevelopment project is underway and due to be completed in April 2023. The Phase 2 works include the construction of an underground sports hall and a performing arts centre housed in a former methodist chapel. The performing arts centre will contain a theatre, music practice rooms and classroom, and two art studios.
The School has 750 pupils aged between 11 & 16 all of whom are boys. There are around 200 sixth form students aged 16 to 19 both boys and girls. The school takes in around 150 new students each year and is rated as “outstanding” the highest ranking a school can achieve by Ofsted.
