Waddesdon Church of England School
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| Waddesdon Church of England School | |
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| Established | 1962 |
| Type | Secondary modern voluntary aided school |
| Religious affiliation | Christian - Church of England |
| Headteacher | Mr Peter Norman |
| Specialisms | Visual Arts Mathematics & Computing |
| Location | Waddesdon Buckinghamshire England  |
| LEA | Buckinghamshire |
| Ofsted number | 110534 |
| Students | 950 |
| Gender | Co-educational |
| Ages | 11 to 18 |
| School colours | Green and Black |
| Publication | Waddesdon Voice |
| Website | www.waddesdonschool.com |
| Coordinates: | |
Waddesdon Church of England School is a mixed secondary school in the village of Waddesdon, in Buckinghamshire. It is a voluntary aided school, which takes children from the age of 11 through to the age of 18. The school has approximately 950 pupils, including a sixth form of approximately 200 students.[1] It is a Church of England school and is the only CofE secondary school in Buckinghamshire. It is administered by the Oxford Diocese.
The school was opened in July 1962 with about 200 students. It was built on land from the Waddesdon Manor estate, which was donated by Dorothy de Rothschild. The school maintains a close relationship with the Rothschild family and the school badge combines the five arrows from the Rothschild coat of arms with the Christian symbol of the cross.
Ofsted has judged the school to be "outstanding" on three successive inspections, and the school is included in Ofsted's outstanding providers list.[2]
Waddesdon School was awarded Beacon school status in September 1998 and this was renewed in March 2001. The Beacon Schools programme was phased out in 2005 and was replaced with the Leading Edge Partnership programme.[3] In September 2004, Waddesdon became the lead school in the Aylesbury Vale Leading Edge Partnership, which also included The Grange School and Quarrendon School.
In September 2003 the school was awarded specialist school status as a Visual Arts College, by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES).[4] In December 2007 the school was awarded a second specialism in in Mathematics and Computing.
Since September 2006, Waddesdon has been part of the Buckingham School Sports Partnership.[5] The partnership is led by the Buckingham School, which has specialist Sports College status, and also includes the Cottesloe and Royal Latin secondary schools, as well as about forty local primary schools. Waddesdon School also has Sportsmark status from Sport England, recognising its PE and games provision.
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[edit] School site
The school is located on the edge of Waddesdon, away from the A41 road which bisects the village. It adjoins the Waddesdon Estate and open countryside.
Over the years the school has grown significantly and various buildings have been added or refurbished to meet the school's needs. The main buildings date from the original opening of the school in 1962. They contain the school hall, library, canteen and drama studios, as well as a variety of classrooms and school offices. The science labs are contained in the Parker building. The Dorothy de Rothschild building, which was opened by Lord and Lady Rothschild in 1999, houses the school's English and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) departments. The Thorp building is named after the Reverend Tom Thorp, a former Chairman of Governors, who died in office in 2003. The building was officially opened in 2005 and named in his memory. It includes a teaching block that houses the Modern Languages department, a suite of art studios and a sports hall. In 2007 the school added a new all-weather pitch to its sports facilities. The sports facilities were named the "The Alan Armstrong Sports Complex" in honour of the outgoing headteacher and former PE teacher.
[edit] Organisation
[edit] Houses
In 1963, shortly after its opening, the school introduced a house system, with four houses competing against each other in sports and academic endeavours. The four houses were called Courtney, Lipscomb, Dixon and Goodwin.[6] The house system was discontinued in 2001, in favour of a system focused on year groups. This new arrangement still retains the previous competitions, but they are now solely between the forms within each year group.
[edit] Year groups
The school promotes a learning culture based on year groups. Each year group focuses on a specific learning target. Each year group also has their own title, colour and motto in order to create a year group identity. The details are as follows:[7]
| Year Group | Title | Colour | Target | Motto |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year 7 | The Waddesdon Way | Green | Organisation | "Treat others with dignity and respect" |
| Year 8 | Aim Higher | Sky Blue | The acquisition of knowledge and Life skills | "The sky’s the limit" |
| Year 9 | Within the Community | Red | Sharing knowledge | "Take an active part" |
| Year 10 | Responsibility and Reality | Purple | Time Management | "I can and I care" |
| Year 11 | Run the race : the final lap | Gold | Self-assessment | "Go for PB (Personal Best)" |
[edit] Student roles
The school has a Student Council which includes an elected representative from each form and members of the school's senior management team.
In year 12 students are invited to volunteer to carry out senior student roles. A head boy, a head girl, and their respective deputies are elected by their peers as the collective Heads of School. About fifty students, from those who volunteered, are selected to serve as prefects.
[edit] Headteachers
Since its opening in 1962, Waddesdon School has had five headteachers.
[edit] Alan Armstrong (1985-2007)
Alan Armstrong joined the school in 1985, and led it for twenty two years. During that time the school increased in size and added a sixth form. The school was adjudged to be "outstanding" in three successive Ofsted reports, and repeatedly improved its exam results. Mr Armstrong and Waddesdon School also supported other local schools, particularly the Grange and Quarrendon schools.[8] In 2006 he was identified as an outstanding leader by the National College for School Leadership and included in their initial list of sixty eight National Leaders of Education.[9][10] Mr Armstrong retired at Easter 2007.
[edit] Peter Norman (2007-present)
Peter Norman joined the school in 2007. He had previously been the headteacher of The Warriner School, Bloxham in Oxfordshire, and had also worked in several local schools, including Aylesbury Grammar School, Bicester Community College and Lord Williams's School in Thame.[11]
[edit] References
- ^ Schools Directory. Buckinghamshire County Council. Retrieved on 2007-01-25.
- ^ Outstanding providers list. Ofsted. Retrieved on 2008-01-08.
- ^ The Standards Site: Leading Edge Partnership programme. Department for Children, Schools and Families. Retrieved on 2008-01-28.
- ^ Specialist Schools Home. DfES (July 2006). Retrieved on 2006-09-29.
- ^ Buckingham Partnership. Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes School Sports Partnership. Retrieved on 2007-07-09.
- ^ House Results. Ex-Waddies. Retrieved on 2007-07-12.
- ^ The Waddesdon Learning Culture. School website. Retrieved on 2007-07-11.
- ^ Cabinet Minutes 16 April 2007. Buckinghamshire County Council. Retrieved on 2007-07-12.
- ^ National Leaders of Education (NLE)/National Support Schools (NSS). The National College for School Leadership (NCSL). Retrieved on 2007-07-12.
- ^ National Leaders of Education (NLE) October 2006. The National College for School Leadership (NCSL). Retrieved on 2007-07-12.
- ^ Peter Norman Welcome Letter - 18 Apr 07. School website. Retrieved on 2007-07-12.
[edit] External links
- Waddesdon Church of England School website
- Ofsted Reports
- SIAS (Statutory Inspections of Anglican Schools) Report 2006
- DfES Performance Tables
- Ex-Waddies, the official website for former students of Waddesdon Church of England School
