Hasmonean High School

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Hasmonean High School

Motto	אל תקרי בניך אלא בוניך ("Don't call them your children, rather your builders")
Established	1944
Type	academy
Religion	Jewish
Headteacher	Rabbi David Meyer
Location	Holders Hill Road Hendon London England Coordinates: 51°35′47″N 0°12′51″W / 51.5963°N 0.2143°W / 51.5963; -0.2143
DfE number	302/5409
DfE URN	137539 Tables
Ofsted	Reports Pre-academy reports
Students	1016
Gender	boys and girls on separate sites
Ages	11–18
Website	HHS

Hasmonean High School is a secondary school and sixth form with academy status for pupils from Orthodox Jewish families, situated in the London Borough of Barnet, England.

Admissions

The school comprises two sites, one for boys in the area of Hendon and one for girls in Mill Hill. The school has been awarded specialist Business and Enterprise College status. It is situated on the B551 (towards Mill Hill), north of the A1 in Holders Hill.

History

The school was founded by the late Rabbi Dr. Solomon Schonfeld in 1944 as Hasmonean Grammar School. Rabbi Dr. Schonfeld (1912-1984) rescued thousands of Jews from the Holocaust and pioneered Jewish day school education in England. Dr. Schonfeld saw the need for an Orthodox Jewish school in North West London, which, despite having high numbers of Orthodox Jews, did not have a religious school to cater for them. Many Jews had reached Great Britain from different parts of Nazi-occupied Europe, most of them settling in London. Since Orthodox Judaism places great emphasis on the upbringing of children, the need subsequently arose for a school where the children could be educated in an Orthodox Jewish environment. Haredim discourage mingling of the sexes, especially when they are unmarried, so two separate schools needed to be set up, one for boys and one for girls.

The boys’ school became a voluntary aided Local Authority School in 1957. In September 1975, the girls moved to the present purpose-built Page Street site in Mill Hill. In 1984, voluntary aided status was extended to the girls' school, and the two sections joined as one to become a five-form-entry School. In April 1994, the school became grant maintained, but returned to Voluntary Aided Status in September 1999, following the abolition of grant-maintained schools. In March 2008 Hasmonean was singled out as one of the faith schools in the news for its procedure of demanding contributions from parents as a condition of entry. The school converted to academy status in October 2011.

The school has established a Beis Hamedrash programme for Fifth- and Sixth Form boys (Years 11-13)^[1] and a Midrasha programme for sixth form girls.

Senior staff

Prime Minister David Cameron and Rabbi D. Meyer, Executive Headteacher

The headmaster of the school from its foundation until he retired was Walter W. Stanton. He was succeeded by Rabbi M. Roberg.

The succeeding head teacher was Dr. Dena Coleman who died in June of 2013.^[2] The current Executive Head is Rabbi D. Meyer. The current Head of Boys' School is Mr A. McClusky & the Head of Girls' School is Mrs R. Fink.

Executive Headteachers

Mr. Martin Clark 2005-2007 (currently senior director at GEMS Educational Ventures, Dubai since 2007)
Mr. David Fuller 2007-2009 (Marked Fuller's 94th term in school educating, he resumed to be Director of Schools until 2010)
Rabbi D. Meyer 2009-present

Location

Originally, the school was situated in The Drive in Golders Green until 1947. In that year, the boys' school moved to Holders Hill Road, where it has remained until the present day. Until 1975, the girls' school was accommodated in a two large houses in Parson Street, Hendon, when it was relocated to Page Street.

Transport

As of September 2011, the bus route 240 serves the boys site of the school, with access to Golders Green, Edgware and Mill Hill Broadway Stations for all students. At Mill Hill Broadway there is access to the 221 Bus, 113 Bus, 251 Bus. The closest underground station is Mill Hill East.

Objectives

The school has five primary objectives:

[1] To provide a sound all-round education, so that pupils will be inspired to raise their level of Jewish knowledge and commitment as well as achieving the qualifications necessary for the career of their choice.

[2] To promote the practical application of Jewish values and traditions.

[3] To care for all pupils and to encourage them to realize their potential and to achieve success.

[4] To encourage and support the personality, development and moral values of the pupils, so that they may develop a positive self-image and the ability to cope with change within themselves and within society.

[5] To promote, including by means of extracurricular activities, the character training necessary to enable the pupils to become committed and caring members of the School community and of the wider community.

Governing Body

Soon after its opening, the school became part of the blossoming Jewish Secondary Schools Movement (JSSM). Under the terms of the JSSM scheme, the trustees of the school must be appointed by the rabbis of certain synagogues, namely, the Adath Yisroel, the Golders Green Beth Hamedrash Congregation and the Hendon Adath Yisroel. The trustees in turn appoint the Foundation Governors, who together with the Headteacher, two LEA appointed Governors, three parent-elected Governors, two teacher-elected Governors and the Staff Governor form the Governing Body.

Academic results

The school has produced students with outstanding GCSE results, similar to a grammar school. At A-level, it is reasonably good, in the top three of non-grammar schools in Barnet Local Authority. It has received better A-levels in the past, sometimes (1995) being the best comprehensive in England.

Notable former pupils

Simon Corney, owner Oldham Athletic
Alan Howard (hedge fund manager), Hedge Fund Manager
Dina Rabinovitch, journalist
Yaacov Goldin, Goalkeeper

Hasmonean Grammar School

Samson Abramsky
Prof Michael Freeman, Professor of English Law since 1984 at University College London
David Landau (journalist)
Norman Lebrecht, writer and broadcaster
Jennifer Levine, photographer
Edward Mirzoeff, BBC producer
Prof David Newman, Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at Ben-Gurion University in Israel.

References

↑ Inspection report 2008
↑ http://www.borehamwoodtimes.co.uk/news/10492752._Respected__headteacher_passes_away/. Retrieved 19 June 2013. Missing or empty |title= (help)

External links

v t e Schools and colleges in Barnet

Primary schools	Beis Yaakov Primary School Dollis Junior School Menorah Primary School Pardes House Primary School Rosh Pinah Primary School Trent School Underhill School Wessex Gardens Primary School

Secondary schools	Ashmole Academy Bishop Douglass School Christ's College The Compton School Copthall School East Barnet School Finchley Catholic High School Friern Barnet Secondary School Hasmonean High School Hendon School JCoSS London Academy Mill Hill County High School Queen Elizabeth's School for Girls St Andrew Greek Orthodox School St James' Catholic High School St Mary's CE High School The Totteridge Academy Whitefield School Wren Academy

Grammar schools	Henrietta Barnett School Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School for Boys St. Michael's Catholic Grammar School

Independent schools	Dwight School Holland House School King Alfred School Mill Hill School Susi Earnshaw Theatre School

FE & sixth form colleges	Barnet and Southgate College Woodhouse College

Defunct schools	Aida Foster Theatre School Friern Barnet Grammar School

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