The Becket School
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The Becket School is a comprehensive school in Nottingham, England, (Mixed comprehensive secondary 11 - 18) was formed in 1975 by the amalgamation of two schools. At present the school is split between two sites. The Upper School, on the site of the old Becket School, houses Year 11 and the Sixth Form and is situated in West Bridgford in the neighbouring parish of the Holy Spirit.
The Becket Main School houses Years 7 to 10. It is situated on Ruddington Lane, Wilford and as such lies within Corpus Christi parish.
The school's catchment area is vast, widely covering the City of Nottingham, such as places like St Anns, Carlton, Clifton, West Bridgford and many more.
For Years 7 to 11 there are six forms, designated by the initial letter of Saints Bernadette, Edmund, Nicholas, Patrick, Robert and Teresa.
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[edit] Performance
Year after year, the school excels with high GCSE and A Level results. The Sixth Form is an integral part of the school's success, with high AS and A Level results each year, giving the school an excellent reputation despite (or perhaps because of) its current split-site nature.
Of the Year 11 of 2003/2004, who took their GCSE Examinations, 68% passed with A* - C grades. Many of this Year 11 have continued onto the Becket Sixth Form, where they have been joined by many pupils from schools throughout Nottinghamshire. The A Level results from the same year resulted in an average points total of 334.4, well above the national average. The school has since built upon both these results: in August 2006, the pass rate at A level reached 100%[1]. The average points score per student was 388.5 (including General Studies and fourth AS levels). This placed the Becket Sixth as the second highest performing comprehensive school in the country, post 16 (source: the Guardian, 18.8.06).
The results are, however, somewhat distorted due to the school's comparatively low intake, especially at 'A'-Level. A few AS students who gain grades below A-C do not continue into A2, although this usually depends on a correspondence between the school and the individual concerned, and exceptions have been made.
The Sixth Form is sometimes accused of being particularly selective of gifted students,[citation needed], with the school often accepting pupils whose average grades fall below a C. Nevertheless, the current school premises do not permit a larger sixth form, as the buildings are already overcrowded, but applications always exceed capacity, so some pupils do have to be turned away. The new school site (see below) will allow for a considerably larger sixth form.
[edit] History
The Becket School was founded in 1929 by two priests (Fr Aidan Kenny and Fr Bede Horwood) from the Order of the Augustinians of the Assumption. The school was for boys only and was based at the Wilford Lane site, now currently occupied by the Upper School. During the period 1929-1968, the school enjoyed a close association with the Order's other school, St Michael's College, Hitchin, with which there was frequent interchange of staff. During the 1960's the school was particularly renowned for its sporting achievements at a national level, producing several national schoolboy champions in both athletics and rowing.
In 1975, the Becket amalgamated with Corpus Christi school to form the present Becket School. Corpus Christi had opened in September 1958 as a Bilateral Secondary School. It offered to boys and girls Grammar, Technical and Secondary Modern courses. The school was planned by Reginald W Cooper, FRIBA, of Nottingham, and was built by A Mason Ltd of Mansfield. It cost approximately £100,000.
A new school site, constructed 2007-08, is on Gresham Fields, Wilford Lane which will have more classrooms and a better, more modern look for the Becket. The project is intended to be completed in time for the intake of 2008. Both the current sites will then be redeveloped as well with the joint construction with Emmanuel.
[edit] Notable Alumni
- Andrew Armour, lecturer & researcher in nanoelectromechanics
- Sandy Burnett, record producer
- Julie Crane, athlete and silver medalist
- Luke Dimech, international footballer
- Andrew Gower, lead developer of Jagex Ltd
- Jermaine Jenas, international, Tottenham Hotspur footballer
- Chris Maslanka, writer and broadcaster
- Jervis Johnson, games designer
- Hayley Bishop, Actress
