Bruntcliffe High School

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Bruntcliffe High School is a comprehensive secondary school in Morley, West Yorkshire, England with an intake of students between 11 and 18, of both male and female gender. The school is a Specialist Business and Enterprise College, with a business college for sixth form students. It is situated on Bruntcliffe Lane in Morley, and is one of three secondary schools in the area. The current Headteacher is Lynda Johnson. There are just under 1500 students at the school, with Ofsted in 2007 reporting that the school was largely satisfactory with some areas of good teaching and education, with a good capacity to make necessary improvements. As a Business and Enterprise College, Bruntcliffe supports and initiates schemes including student businesses and ventures, and offers support for student organisations and community events. The school has currently pioneered a potential nationwide scheme, called 'Moneybox', an enterprise programme initially launched by West Yorkshire Trading Standards and Ge Money, which led to congratulation from Schools Minister Ed Balls who said of his visit "Of all the schools I have visited, I don't think I have been in one as enterprising as Bruntcliffe." The school also received recent attention from ASDAN, the UK award body for personal and self development, who recognised that Bruntcliffe's CoPE project was a successful, developing project for students. CoPE has seen a section of the school be turned into a garden and allotment, with students having the capabilities to sell produce and plants to the wider community. This project has been very succesful, leading to a team assisting a wider group in converting and maintaining areas of land throughout the Morley area, including a previously waste-land site in Gildersome.

In May 2008, the Headmistress confirmed rumours of a major building project at Bruntcliffe, explaining an announcement would be made in due course.

[edit] Academics

Summer 2007 saw some of the highest GCSE results ever for the school, from the 2006/2007 students, which subsequently led to the highest ever intake of students to the Sixth Form College within the school.

The school has a School Council, which has been in operation since Autumn 2005. Years 8 to 13 have two representatives which are normally elected in whole year group elections, whilst Year 7 representatives are normally revealed during Spring of the academic year of starting. Seperately, Miles Walmsley is currently school president, elected by a group of teachers on behalf of the students at the beginning of 2008. Laura Colbeck is currently Sixth Form President.

The school, over the years, has built up a strong showgroup, which until 2008 put on large productions. In 1989, Trevor Perry and Bruce Dalgleish directed a team for the first time, leading to thirty shows over a 18 period year, ranging from Bugsy Malone in 1989 until Annie in 2007. The showgroup during the ninties included show trips to Germany, and performed at the Leeds City Varieties, West Yorkshire Playhouse and in the Leeds Breeze Festival. The shows are normally performed during the first or second week of July, with evening performances from Tuesday right through to Saturday, with the last day including a matinee. However, the record for the most shows performed within a single year at Bruntcliffe, was during 1997 and 2000, when four shows were produced.

[edit] Notable alumni

Leeds United player Jonathan Howson attended the school leaving in 2004. In 2008, Leeds United reached the League One Play-Off Final at Wembley, due to Howson's goals against Carlisle which led them to win the game due to aggregate. Subsequently, the school received local and national attention, especially after one of the Sky Sports commentators mentioned Bruntcliffe. His old PE teacher, Alex Tate, appeared on local television congratulating Johnny Howson, and Leeds.