ST. PAUL’S MISSION SCHOOL, Kolkata
Website
Website : stpaulsmissionschoolkolkata.org/
Address
Address : SENIOR SCHOOL, Raj Kumar Chakraborty Sarani (5, Scott Lane), Kolkata 700009
Phone : 033- 32950583
Email : spmsscottlane@yahoo.co.in
Address
Address : JUNIOR SCHOOL, 73, Serpentine Lane, Kolkata 700014
Phone : 033 32216670 / new contact number 8232016670
Email : spmsscottlane@yahoo.co.in
Email : admin@stpaulsmissionschoolkolkata.org
School Motto
Nil Desperandum meaning Never Despair
The school, a co-educational day school, is affiliated to the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examination (CISCE) and prepares its students for the ICSE at the end of class 10 and the ISC at the end of class 12. The medium of
instruction is English.
Aims
The school aims to inculcate in its students, the virtues of piety, discipline and self reliance. The greatest emphasis is placed on the knowledge and love of God, the formation of a true moral character and an appreciation of family
life. The school also trains its students to be dutiful sons and daughters of the soil as well as to be responsible citizens of the world.
Admission
For details please visit
stpaulsmissionschoolkolkata.org/Admission.aspx
Facilities available
• Computer Laboratory
• Library
• Science Laboratories > Biology Chemistry Physics
Co-curricular activities
• Art Competitions
• Inter-class Debate
• Inter-house Elocution • Quiz
Clubs
Keeping in mind the restless energy among children of the present generation and with a view to channelize the unutilized energy in more creative and productive output, the school has introduced clubs. Every Friday the children take
part in the activities of the clubs:
• Drama
• Nature
• Literary
• Music
• Quiz
GENERAL RULES
• Children are expected to behave in a gentle manner both in and outside the school campus with due honour to the school. Students are reminded to address all members of the staff (teaching and non-teaching) with due respect and
politeness on their way to and from school.
• All students are required to know the National Anthem and the School song. Proper respect must also be shown to the School tie.
• Any change of address should be notified immediately. All communications should be addressed to The Principal, St Paul's Mission School, 5 Scott Lane, Kolkata 700009.
• It is compulsory for a student to have the school calendar which must be brought to school daily. Parents / Guardians are requested to please check for entries regarding work being done in school and lessons set for Homework.
Likewise Parents / Guardians may also make full use of the pages allotted for communicating with the school.
Private Tuition
As per the directive from The Secretary, Diocesan Board of Education (Diocese of Calcutta, Church of North India) teachers are NOT permitted to take private tuition. Hence, no child may take private tuition from a teacher employed at St
Paul's Mission School. Parents are not to request or encourage teachers to do the same.
Discipline
• Any student guilty of indiscipline will be given only two warnings in the form of suspension. Thereafter, his/her name will be struck of the school rolls.
• The word indiscipline should read as playing truant, habitual late coming, disobedience, objectionable behavior, deliberate and willful damage to school property and use of unfair means during examinations. Students are also
cautioned against loitering aimlessly outside the school in school uniform or indulging in activities like group fighting, use of abusive language, etc which are detrimental to the reputation of the school.
• Students are to speak in English in the school campus. Any student found speaking in any other language is liable to be brought to task and dealt with seriously. CDs, DVDs, books, periodicals, newspapers of objectionable nature
are not to be brought to school or exchanged either in campus or in the vicinity of the school. Seizure of the above mentioned items will lead to suspension of the students concerned.
• Any attempt to use unfair means by a student during an examination will entail the student being awarded zero in the paper. A student caught twice will be given a transfer certificate.
• Students are not permitted to bring mobile phones to school. The same if seized will be confiscated for good.
Attendance
• Students who have been absent from class for more than two days must bring their parents to explain their absence. Reasons of a private nature may be intimated by a letter.
• Students absenting on medical grounds must produce a fitness certificate on rejoining school. In case of infectious diseases like chicken pox, measles, mumps etc students must complete the required quarantine period.
• It is compulsory for students to attend school functions like Sports Day, Founder's Day etc. Action will be taken against those failing to do so.
• Parents are to ensure that their wards attend school regularly. Irregular attendance will be taken note of and students with less than 75% attendance (in class 9 and 11) will not be considered for promotion.
• A minimum of 75% attendance is mandatory during the course of an academic year. This is in accordance with the criteria laid down in the Regulations & Syllabus of the CISCE.
Withdrawal
• Before withdrawing a student from the school, a month’s notice is to be given along with one month’s fees. No Transfer Certificate will be issued until all dues are cleared.
• Any pupil failing two years in succession in the same class will be considered as withdrawn from the school and the name will not appear on the class rolls.
• Pupils whose fees are overdue for three months will be debarred from sitting for the examinations and are liable to have their names struck of the rolls.
Brief History
The history of St Paul’s Mission School is a checkered one and dates back to a little more than 125 years. Initially it was owned, managed and controlled by The Diocese of Calcutta under the Church of India, Pakistan, Burma
and Ceylon (CIPBC). With the formation of The Church of North India (CNI) in 1970, the Diocese of Calcutta (CIPBC) merged with the Church of North India .The school thus began to be owned and managed by the Diocese of Calcutta, CNI and
it still is to this day.
This great institution had a very humble beginning when some ladies of the Women’s Fellowship for Christian Services (WFCS) of St Paul’s Cathedral, Calcutta, decided to open a Home for the less fortunate girls of
Sealdah area. The Girls’ Home was started at 134 Beliaghata with as few as 5 girls, but the Ladies did not give up and under the leadership of H.E. Lady Carmichael they set about the task of making the Girls’ Home a true
Home for these little children .The Home then shifted to Bowbazar in 1875, then to 26 Scott Lane in 1876, to 2 Huzuri Mall’s Lane in1882 and finally to the premises at 73, Serpentine Lane in 1884. Under the patronage of the St
Paul’s Cathedral, the school was renamed ST PAUL’S MISSION SCHOOL.
The untiring efforts of H. E. Lady Carmichael and her team of dedicated ladies had finally come to fruition, but they were still not completely satisfied. That there were still so many Christian children who were not getting
the benefit of a good education further strengthened their resolve to do something for the emancipation of the poor and destitute of Sealdah. With grit and determination the ladies of The Society began to scout the lanes and bylanes of
the area, picking up a child or two from among those families who valued education but couldn’t afford it. There were some parents who were opposed to the idea of sending their children to school; these families had to be
convinced of the need to have their children have the very basic education. The ladies of the society were undeterred and they managed to get a number of children together to start regular classes at Serpentine Lane. Lady Carmichael
laid the foundation stone for the main building of the school at 5 Scott Lane, and thus began the story of St Paul’s Mission School as we know it today.
“Suffer Little Children to Come Unto Me” reads the marble plaque at the entrance of the building at Serpentine Lane. Inspired by these words of Christ, the founders of the school threw open its gates to any poor and needy
child that was brought to them, irrespective of their religious denominations or monetary constraints. The Inspector of Schools of that time was so impressed with the school that he remarked “Yours is a true Mission serving the
needy of the city. A Mission such as yours deserves every kind of support.”
Rev Jackson, the first Rector/Principal, was a very able administrator and a man dedicated to making a success of St Paul’s Mission School. A succession of equally dedicated Principals followed who devoted their energies to
bringing the school at par with the other established schools in the city. Among these, special mention must be made of Rev Robson, appointed by the Vicar of St Paul’s Cathedral, as Rector of the school.
After him came Canon Catley, who performed the dual role of Vicar of St Paul’s Cathedral and Rector of St Paul’s Mission School. Rev Cyril Manuel is another name to be remembered in the formation of the school. His love for
children was so great that he literally went out searching for children to study in the school. These children not only got free education but were given free clothes, books and anything else they required in school. He was succeeded by
Mr Wilbur Pratt a typical gentleman with typical English mannerisms. After him Canon Basil Manuel became Rector of St Paul’s Mission in 1971. Though he did a commendable job at keeping the school running, the first signs of
problems began to be noticed. It was at this time that the school started facing a financial crunch that almost shut it down permanently. Interestingly enough, it was at this point that the school achieved great success in the field of
sports and extracurricular activities. Hawey Rieman has written his name in the annals of the school in athletics. Placed against established and renowned sportsmen like Milford Hennesey of La Martiniere, he surprised the spectators in
a 100m sprint and 110m hurdle even setting an inter-school record in the hurdles. In boxing, G Wilson and Jason Rephung were names to reckon with and instilled fear in their opponents. Many girl students also made a mark in athletics at
inter-school events. Mention must be made of Sarah Jordan who was adjudged champion girl athlete at the YMCA inter-school meet. The list of the many students who have brought laurels to the school and are pride to the name of St
Paul’s Mission School is endless.
Unfortunately, as was the case with many boarding schools, an acute paucity of funds compelled the then Board of Governors to consider closing the hostels permanently. At this time help came from the most unexpected quarter, the Lady
Principal of Pratt Memorial, Mrs Phyllis Pearson, who always had a soft corner for St Paul’s Mission. She offered to take the girls into her school and in 1971 the girls were sent to Pratt Memorial School and the girls’
hostel at Serpentine Lane was shut down. The boys’ hostel continued to run for some time with help from the Mother church and other benefactors, but things were getting more and more difficult and funds that much more scarce. It
was now only a matter of time of finding suitable accommodation for the 100 or so boys who were almost permanent residents of the hostel. Then Mr David Cameron, Principal of St Thomas Boys’ School, Kidderpore, offered to take the
boys in and in 1977 the boys’ hostel finally closed.
In 1977, Mr David Raja was appointed by the Board of Governors with the idea of bringing St Paul’s Mission back to its former glory. He did a commendable job and took St Paul’s to new heights. His tenure in the school is
often referred to as the golden years of the school. It was because of his bold initiative that the ISC (12) Science stream was introduced and St Paul’s Mission achieved another milestone in her glorious history.
The Centenary Year, 1984, was celebrated with much aplomb. The celebrations were meticulously planned by the Principal, Mr David Raja. It was made all
the more meaningful when the then Bishop of Calcutta, the Rt Rev D C Gorai unveiled plaques at Serpentine Lane and Scott Lane to commemorate the occasion and reminded everyone present of the ideal of the Founders of the school, one of
Caring and Sharing. There was much media coverage of the celebrations with The Statesman newspaper specially acknowledging St Paul’s Mission School’s 100 years of dedicated love and service to the children of Calcutta. A
weeklong of celebrations took place and many students, past and present contributed their time and efforts working along with the staff and management to make the celebrations meaningful.
After Mr Raja’s departure to Australia, Mr Richard Flynn took over the reins in 1986. With his many years of experience and much encouragement from the Board of Governors, Mr Flynn took the school to greater heights and it was
once again recognized among the better or elite schools of the city. In 1996, to meet the ever increasing demands for higher studies and to make it easier for St Paul’s children seeking admission into the plus two, Mr Flynn
started the “Afternoon Session” for the Commerce and Humanities streams. Those children opting for Commerce or Humanities (ISC) did not have to run from pillar to post seeking admission. The move was an instant success and
the classes were soon filled to capacity. Mr Flynn left in 1998, after a long and eventful 13 years. He was succeeded by Mr Terrence Ireland who served for a brief 15 months.
Mr Terence Ireland, a noted academician and a keen sportsperson, was very actively involved in co-curricular activities. Under him, the school made excellent progress in different games, especially cricket. He was a successful
disciplinarian who held that mental and physical discipline is the first step towards good academics. Different co-curricular activities were introduced in the school to showcase the existing talent among students.
After Mr Ireland left Mrs Barbara Ann Raha took charge of the school in the year 2000. She was the first Lady Principal and was instrumental in introducing the NCC in the school. The 39 Bengal Battalion NCC Foxtrot Company has performed
extremely well in many fields even at the All India level. Many of the children have received Citations and Cash Scholarships. Mrs Raha brought the Commerce and Humanities sections into the main stream, and they now follow the regular
timings with the rest of the school. She also introduced the Annual School Magazine “Paularian” to give an opportunity to all students to showcase their literary potential. She retired in 2011.
The present Principal, Mrs Sanchita Biswas has brought about a lot of infrastructural upgradation in the school. The century old buildings have been repaired and repainted – not only the facade, but also the interiors. Heavy
cumbersome wooden furniture in the classrooms has been replaced by sleek steel ones. Old blackboards have been changed; bulletin boards have been put up. The staffrooms and school auditorium have been installed with air conditioners.
Washrooms for students have been upgraded; cold filtered water has been made available. The library has become larger and well equipped to accommodate an entire class. Co-curricular programs are being organized regularly and St
Paul’s Mission School is a name to reckon with in the inter-school circuit. The school has also launched its website in 2014.
Today St Paul’s Mission School is a large, bustling, modern co-educational day school, catering to children from all backgrounds. The course of studies prepares children for the ICSE and ISC (Science, Commerce) examinations
conducted by the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations. Teaching and learning is done in the school with all modern amenities and techniques with the medium of instruction being English. The students have full access to
all the facilities of well equipped laboratories, a well stacked Library, state of the art Computer labs and many games facilities. Participation in all co-curricular activities is compulsory and the lack of playing fields is no
deterrent to the indomitable spirit of the children. This has proved time and again at Inter- School Meets where they have shown their mettle and brought laurels to the school.
‘Nil Desperandum’ or ‘Never Despair’, is the school motto and with God’s blessings always on the school, it is certain that St Paul’s Mission School will grow and prosper. It will shine like a beacon
of light for those who walk through its corridors and look upon St Paul’s Mission as their Alma Mater.
Past Rectors
Name: Canon J. R. ROBSON
Year: 1924 – 1957
Name: Canon DERICK CATLEY
Year: 1960 – 1961
Name: Rev. C. MANUEL
Year: 1962 – 1966
Name: Canon B. MANUEL
Year: 1969 – 1970
Past Headmasters
Name: H. O. GLASFIELD
Year: 1924 – 1957
Name: H. PARRIE
Year: 1958 – 1959
Name: T. JOBE
Year: 1960 – 1961
Name: Rev. C. MANUEL
Year: 1962 – 1966
Name: W. R. PRATT
Year: 1967 – 1968
Name: Canon B. MANUEL
Year: 1969 – 1970
Name: A. SAMUEL
Year: 1971 – 1974
Past Principals
Name: H. S. LALL
Year: 1975 – 1979
Name: DAVID RAJA
Year: 1980 – 1985
Name: RICHARD FLYNN
Year: 1986 – 1998
Name: T. H. IRELAND
Year: 1998 – 2000
Name: BARBARA ANN RAHA
Year: 2000 – 2011
Source:
stpaulsmissionschoolkolkata.org
![](https://arked.in/oth-img/smart-classroom-ad-small.png)