Founded in 1904 as County School for Boys and Girls, the school was originally mixed-sex but moved into the present building in 1934 from Frith Road, now the home of Dover Grammar School for Girls. Despite the severe economic circumstances of the depression, the founder and first headmaster of the school, Frederick Whitehouse persuaded the authorities to provide the funds for a new building in Astor Avenue. Whitehouse believed in the maxim often attributed to Winston Churchill that "we shape our buildings and our buildings shape us" and, architecturally, the school mixes both gothic and classical influences. Opened by the Duke of York, the future King George VI of the United Kingdom, DGSB is one of few state school in Britain to have a working organ, which is housed in the Great Hall and leaves for Hamburg every 25 years for expert care and maintenance. During World War II, the school building was requisitioned and used by the Royal Navy as a station for WRNS with pupils and staff evacuated to Ebbw Vale in south Wales. A notable feature of the school building is a large stained glass window showing St. George and bearing the names of past students of the school who fell in World War Two with a separate memorial to students in World War One.
Post-War Developments
Following funding cost pressures, in 1991, the school established a joint 6th form with Dover Grammar School for Girls which continues to this day. In 1994, the school became Grant Maintained after warding off a series of reorganisation proposals from Kent County Council including a relocation to the ex-Castlemount School Site in 1990 as well as the amalgamation of the 2 grammar schools to a new modern construct in Whitfield in 1993. In 2000, a second tower was erected that differed from the design of the existing tower to provide additional access to IT rooms built over the school workshops. In 2006, as a result of its specialist status as a Business and Enterprise College, the school received additional funding from the government, part of which was invested into a new Business & Enterprise suite. In 2008 there were new proposals to move the school to Whitfield to be housed in a new building under the Labour government's Building Schools for the Future programme but this was cancelled after the 2010 General Election by Education Secretary Michael Gove. Students also witnessed the opening of the Brian Haines Suite, formally known as L7. This was to commemorate the exceptional amount of time that Brian Haines had served the school, from 1971 to 2009. It was decided that Brian Haines' dedication to the school earned this honour. In 2019, plans have been drawn to demolish the existing buildings and erect a new modern school on the adjacent playing fields with completion set for 2022.
Athletics
The school has a strong sporting rivalry with Astor College and Sir Roger Manwood's School, a selective Grammar school in Sandwich, Kent. With the arrival to the teaching staff of Major RA Hoeren, USAF Rtd in the early 1970s, American football and softball were particularly popular amongst the student population.
The school also has a Combined Cadet Force which is open to anyone from Year 8 upwards.
Admissions
The school is selective and, in order to gain entry, the prospective student must first pass the 11+ examination, informally known as the "Kent Test".
Headteachers
Mr Frederick Whitehouse MA,
Mr John C Booth MA,
Dr Michael G Hinton MA, PhD,
Mr TS Walker BSc,
Mr Reginald C Colman MA OBE,
Mr Neil A Slater MA,
Mrs Julia Bell BA, PGCE,
Mrs Sally Lees MA,
Dr Richard Moxham BA, PhD,
Mrs Sonette Schwartz BEd,
Mrs Fiona Chapman BSc,
Mr Phillip Hostrup BA,
Notable former pupils
Former pupils are known as "Old Pharosians". The term is derived from the Latin word pharos, which means "lighthouse", and refers to the famous lighthouse at Dubris built by the Romans after their conquest of Britain.
