Morpeth School
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| Morpeth School | |
| Type | Secondary |
| Headteacher | Sir Alasdair Uist MacDonald, KBE, CBE |
| Specialism | Arts |
| Location | Portman Place London E2 0PX England |
| LEA | Tower Hamlets |
| Ofsted number | 100967 |
| Staff | 100 teaching; 90 support |
| Students | c. 1160 |
| Gender | Mixed |
| Ages | 11 to 16 |
| School colours | Light and dark blue |
| Website | Morpeth School |
| Coordinates: | |
Morpeth Secondary School is an Inner London, England, secondary school with 1200 pupils situated in Bethnal Green, an ethnically diverse area that has some of the most endemic poverty in the Tower Hamlets.
The current headteacher is Sir Alasdair Uist MacDonald, under whose tenure the school has undergone a renaissance. Since his arrival at the school, Morpeth's results at Key Stages Three and Four have improved substantially (most notable was the 76% A-C GCSE pass rate at the end of the last school year 2006). In the last Ofsted Inspection Report, leadership and quality of teaching were both credited as 'outstanding'.
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[edit] Specialist Status
Morpeth is a specialist Arts College in Arts and music, but has also gained some fame in junior table tennis, and offers a wide range of extracurricular activities. Morpeth does not currently have a Sixth-Form but more buildings are being built and the Higher-Education wing of the school should be ready by Summer 2008. Its new Performing Arts building opened in October 2007, almost a month later than expected and was officially opened by Danny Boyle in May 2008.
[edit] Guests Who Visited
Special guests who have visited Morpeth School have included Tony Blair the then British Prime Minister (First Lord of the Treasuary and the Minister for the Civil Service) who visited the school during his first month in office. In 2001 Her Majesty the Queen Elizabeth II also visited the school, greeting teachers and pupils. Other guests include the Rt. Hon David Blunkett MP (Education Secretary at the time) who opened the school library. Sir Trevor McDonald officially opened the 'Portman' buillding in 1995.
Most recently on the 18th July 2007 within his first 2 weeks in power, the new serving Prime Minister Gordon Brown paid a surprise visit to Morpeth School with the Secretary of State for the Department for Children, Schools and Families, Ed Balls, MP, attending the first meeting of the new National Council for Educational Excellence at Morpeth Secondary School. The Council was set up in early July to drive forward the Government's long-term aspirations for children and young people's education. Also took part in the worldwide MUNC (model united nations conference).
As mentioned above, Danny Boyle, a British film director and producer (and former Morpeth parent), visited the school to officially open the Performing Arts building in May 2008.
On 12th June 2008, Morpeth played host to the Film Club launch. Many prestigious guests turned up to the event, including Emma Thompson and Jason Isaacs.
[edit] Music
Morpeth's music department has been extremely busy over the past few years. Most years, the Concert Band and the choir have been on overseas tours to Paris and Madrid and in February 2008, went to Liverpool. Upcoming trips include Iceland, China and New York. The department, run by Peter Romhany, has 3 well-equipped classrooms, a computer suite, practice rooms and a recording studio that offers pupils access to a range of high-tech facilities that furthers their understanding and creativity. As part of an annual Globetown Project, Morpeth performs at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. They have also performed in other prestigious venues such as the Barbican and Claridge's. In May 2008, the music department turned the theatre, in the Performing Arts building, into a jazz club and hosted a jazz concert, joined by the John Bennett Band.
[edit] Sixth Form
Morpeth will soon be able to provide a Sixth Form in many subject areas, which will greatly benefit pupils who would like to stay on at the school to Years 12 and 13. The Sixth Form is due to be ready by September 2009.
[edit] Projects
Morpeth is fortunate enough to be able to offer a wide variety of projects and trips for its students, which can prove to be very worthwhile opportunities. Through Years 10 and 11, a select group of pupils take part in a space project, in which they get to visit many universities and space museums, in order to find out more about the fascinating subject of space. At the end, a few get the chance to go to America and visit NASA. There is also another project run by The Timberland Company, in which pupils get an in-sight into the world of retail and how the company helps the environment - there is also a day trip to Paris for all of those involved.
In Year 8, as part of the curriculum, pupils get to take part in two "Year 8 Projects". Once a fortnight, pupils spend 3 hours in a project of their choice, which include: Rock Factory (music), Cine Club (film making), Sports & Leadership and Living World (science).
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