| Established | 1939 |
|---|---|
| Type | Community School |
| Headteacher | Mr Peter Brown |
| Specialism | Maths & Computing |
| Location | Lemsford Lane Welwyn Garden City Hertfordshire AL8 6YR England |
| Local authority | Hertfordshire |
| DfE URN | 117507 |
| Ofsted | Reports |
| Students | 1054 |
| Gender | Mixed |
| Ages | 11–18 |
| Houses | Ashridge, Brocket, Hatfield, Knebworth, Offley, Sopwell |
| Former name | Welwyn Grammar School |
| Website | Stanborough School |
Stanborough School is a comprehensive secondary school located in Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire, England. The school is directly next to the Stanborough lakes.
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Like most schools, it has a sixth form. It is situated off Stanborough Road (A6129), near the A1(M), and opposite the headquarters of Hertfordshire Constabulary, a golf driving range, and the Gosling Sports Park (with an athletics track and ski slope). The East Coast Main Line is about 500 metres away.
It was founded as The Grammar School, Welwyn Garden City in 1939. It had around 550 girls and boys in the 1960s.
It became a comprehensive in 1968. In the early 1980s it had around 900 boys and girls.
For six years now Stanborough has been a specialist school, focusing on the areas of Mathematics and Computing. This has enabled much funding in these departments with ten dedicated ICT rooms. Though Stanborough specialises in Computing, they refuse to teach the subject at A Level, instead it is taught at Monks Walk School.
Stanborough School consists of six houses. Each Year of the school is divided into six tutor forms, each aligned with one of the six houses. The six houses are:
All houses compete for the Stanborough House Trophy each year. The school year consists of a variety of competitions and tournaments which allow students to gain points for their houses. Notable events include: Run for Stanborough, House Drama and House Music. Furthermore, students can earn points through collecting reward points, having good attendance and contributing to smaller competitions and events.
Each House is led by a small group of staff/sixth formers. Two House tutors will act as House Leaders and two Year 13 sixth formers act as the House Captains. It is the House Captains job to organise their house and lead them to victory through the various competitions throughout the year.
Run for Stanborough: Usually taken place during the autumn months, members of Stanborough School - students, teachers and support staff will walk or run their way around Stanborough Lakes to raise money for the school and for house charities. Some will be in fancy dress, and the runners will be in PE kit, but everyone will have the same purpose - to get as much sponsorship as possible to help worthy causes. The Run also contributes as one of the events during the School year which contributes to the House Cup.
The event usually ends with the eagerly awaited gunging, where students get to see their teachers at the end of the run be gunged with as variety of sloppy concoctions tipped over their heads.
House Drama: Performed shortly before Christmas, House Captains arrange a house production at the beginning of school term which is rehearsed over the months ready for the big event. The cast consists only of house members and is directed and produced solely by the House captains. Each House performance can only be 30 minutes long. This event contributes to the Stanborough House Trophy, but winners of this competition also win a House Drama Trophy. 2008 saw Ashridge win with their performance of Beauty and the Beast, 2nd place was given to Hatfield with their performance of "A Streetcar Named Desire"
School Productions: Every other Year, the Drama department and school members host a School production, performed in the Spring term, rehearsals starting in September. Past performances have been the likes of Oliver and most recently West Side Story.
House Music: Performed in the spring term. Musicians of each house demonstrate a wide range of musical genius by hosting a 30-minute performance full of a variety of musical acts. Performances in the past have been known to include rock bands, singing, instrument solos, musical numbers and rapping.
School Dance Display: Every other Year after the school production, the Dance department and students perform a spectacular series of dance numbers, demonstrating unique and creative talents.
Stanborough Sixth form is part of a wider consortium of many secondary schools in the area. Stanborough offers a range of subjects at A level on site. English, History, Mathematics, Science, Theatre Studies, Psychology are just a few examples. Other schools aligned with the sixth form consortium include:
Stanborough School gets GCSE results above the national average, with 57% of pupils achieving the equivalent of five or more GCSEs grade C or above including English and Maths in 2011. Their A Level results are one of the highest of maintained schools in Hertfordshire.
Neil Burton, Secretary from 1981-6 of the Monopolies and Mergers Commission