AS the month of May approaches, the Bury Grammar School community looks forward to celebrating our Founders’ Day, which is among the oldest traditions in Bury, and takes place every year on the first Friday in May.

It dates back to 1726 when Roger Kay re-endowed the Bury Grammar School, which, in those days, was just for boys.

He left the school with sufficient income to educate the boys, and the service grew out of thanksgiving for his generosity and for that of subsequent benefactors.

The Girls’ School, which came into being in 1884, amalgamated with the Boys’ Grammar School in 1903 and since then all senior pupils have taken part in the service.

Bury Grammar School has, in fact, been at the heart of the Bury community for nearly 450 years, since the first School was built on The Wylde in the 1570s, next to the current parish church.

The blend of pupils from different cultural, social and economic backgrounds has long been a defining characteristic of the school and is something which we feel makes it such a special place.

Readers may have seen our annual Founders’ Day procession in previous years.

Led by the Schools’ Combined Cadet Force, the older pupils process to the war memorial for the laying of a wreath in memory of the war dead and the sounding of the Last Post; this is followed by a service in the Parish Church.

Younger pupils attend a service in our Roger Kay Hall and pupils of other faiths also enjoy their own Founders’ Day observance held at the school.

Parents, former pupils and friends of the school will often join us to celebrate what we see as a key day in our school year.

On Founders’ Day, the generosity of our benefactors is uppermost in the thoughts of the Bury Grammar School staff, pupils, families and supporters.

BGS is a registered charity and we work closely with our BGS community to ensure that the history of benefaction continues to enable the widest access to children of all backgrounds.

Each year, a number of pupils from Bury and the surrounding area receive bursaries to enable them to attend the School — and we are always seeking to increase the number of places we can offer.