Bournemouth School for Girls
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| Bournemouth School for Girls | |
| Type | Foundation school |
| Headteacher | Alistair Brien |
| Head Girl | Hannah Davison |
| Specialism | Humanities |
| Location | Castle Gate Close Castle Lane West Bournemouth Dorset BH8 9UJ England |
| LEA | Bournemouth |
| Ofsted number | 113905 |
| Students | c. 1100 |
| Gender | Girls |
| Ages | 11 to 18 |
| Houses | Austen Curie Franklin Parks Rossetti Shelley |
| School colours | Blue and white |
| Website | Bournemouth School for Girls |
| Coordinates: | |
Bournemouth School for Girls is a grammar school located in Bournemouth, Dorset, exclusively for girls.
It is a girls grammar school and sixth form college aimed at teaching girls of ages 11-18.
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[edit] Academics
Since September 2005, it has been a humanities specialist school. The headmaster is Mr Alistair Brien, a German. The school has roughly 1100 students, including 300 in the sixth form. Many sixth form classes (including, but not limited to Theatre Studies, PE and Psychology) are also open to boys from Bournemouth School, who trek down the hill to do subjects that either they are not offered at their Home school, or that do not fit within timetabled blocks.
The school is represented by a Senior Team led by the Head Girl, Hannah Davison and the Deputy, Katherine Burgess. There are then 6 house captains (Rachel Dingley, Olivia Spieler, Anna Chessher, Penelope Simons, Rachel DiBiaso and Alice Wilson), making up the senior team. Within each house there are designated positions of a sports prefect, performing arts prefect and a charities prefect.
The Heads of Sixth Form are Mrs Miles (psychology) and Mrs Minney (French). There are 6 forms per year group, denoted by their house initials, A, C, F, P, R and S (prior to 2006 they were denoted .1, .2, .3 etc and prior to 1997 they were denoted A, alpha, B, Beta, P and pi). This switches in Year 10 at the start of GCSEs, from having lessons with the form, to having lessons with a teaching group. For this, 2-5 students from each form are allocated, alphabetically, into a new Teaching Group. This remains the same for all Core lessons (maths, sciences, English), and special groups according to choices are made for each student's individual choice of languages, humanities and arts. On Friday afternoon, year 11 have options in PE that include yoga and kickboxing. On a Wednesday afternoon the Sixth form have a Complementary Activities block in which many outside PE classes are run, including yoga, golf, urban funk and basketball. Students also spend time on Work Experience placements and doing work in the local community.
[edit] House System
Since September 2006 a House System was reimplemented (it had traditionally existed when the school was located at the Landsdown site, before moving to its current position on Castle Lane). The Houses were all named after famous, influential women, as follows: Austen, Curie, Parks, Shelley, Franklin, and Rossetti. The emblem of the school is a snowdrop, which features on all the House badges.
[edit] Uniform
The school has a strict but varied uniform code, which consists of blue and white striped shirt, blue skirt or trousers, and blue "tailored jacket" for Year 7, 8 and 9 (the blazer has only been recently introduced); a blue and white striped shirt, blue skirt or trousers and blue jumper for year 10; and black v-neck jumper, white blouse and black skirt or trousers for Year 11. The Sixth Form may wear what they choose as long as this is not sportswear, trainers, stilettos, jeans, or anything deemed unsafe or unsavoury.
[edit] Productions
The school has an award winning handbell team, who have played at the Royal Albert Hall. Every year the school performs either a junior (years 7-10) or senior (all years, except 7) musical. These are usually highly successful and involve the whole school. In recent years these have been Les Misérables, Joseph and his Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat, The Sound of Music', Grease. Girls often help Bournemouth School in their productions as well (including 2005's Pirates of Penzance).
[edit] Other Extra Curricular Activities
Bournemouth School for Girls enters teams every year in the Mock Trial Competition, MACE debating, ESU public speaking, Rotary public speaking and Schools' Challenge competitions. There are also friendly debates fortnightly between BSG and BS, held in Bournemouth School's lecture theatre at lunchtime. There is a lower school debating competition sponsored by local solicitors, HG Walker. Also running are sports clubs for table tennis, a gym club, trampolining and ultimate frisbee; as well as Junior Drama club, History club, Science club, and various support clubs for students having difficulty with subjects. There is now a comdey club which meets in W8 every Friday lunchtime, students benefit from this club and find it eases their thought process on a Friday afternoon. Some infamous BSG jokes are; Jackie walked into a bra.
[edit] CCF
The school also has an active Combined Cadet Force, a rarity for a state-funded school. The CCF currently has over 150 members from both Bournemouth School and Bournemouth School for girls. The CCF is run mostly by senior cadets in the 6th forms at both schools. The CCF is open to pupils in year 9 (age 13) upwards with an annual recruitment usually in February. The CCF is split into three sections; Army, Navy and RAF, all with their own uniform. The structure follows a military system, with three senior cadets, three section ICs and other ranks.
Activities that cadets are able to take part in include gliding, flying, shooting, Ten Tors, national exchanges and camps including Penhale central camp in the summer term
[edit] Ofsted
Bournemouth School for Girls has won praise from Inspectors following their recent visit. Inspectors noted 'the very good teaching and good leadership at all levels that enable pupils to achieve very well and develop into confident young adults.' They comment that 'staff are knowledgeable and supportive; they transfer their love of learning to the pupils and help them to achieve very well.'
Pupils at the school also come in for high praise, not only for 'their very high levels of determination to succeed' but also for their 'exemplary behaviour'. The sixth form is described as ‘highly effective'. 'Provision is very good in academic subjects and for students' personal development.'
Inspectors also comment: The Headteacher provides good leadership, a clear vision and has built a strong leadership team, committed to the continuing success of the school.'
The school has close links with Bournemouth School, the boys' Grammar School which can be reached by walking up the steep hill on East Way, however governors at the school have made it clear that they would not like to make these links stronger, going against recent Ofsted advice.
[edit] External links
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