Wadham School
 | |
| Motto | 'Making opportunities to learn and achieve' |
|---|---|
| Established | 1971 |
| Type | Community school |
| Religion | Church of England |
| Headteacher | David Derbyshire |
| Specialism | Business and Enterprise College |
| Location |
Mount Pleasant Crewkerne Somerset England Coordinates: 50°53′18″N 2°47′09″W / 50.8884°N 2.7859°W |
| Local authority | Somerset County Council |
| DfE URN | 123893 Tables |
| Ofsted | Reports |
| Students | 628 |
| Ages | 13–18 |
| Publication | Wadham Words |
| Website | www.wadham.somerset.sch.uk |
Wadham School is a school for children aged 13–18 situated on a 20-acre (81,000 m2) site on the outskirts of Crewkerne in Somerset, England.
School site
Wadham School opened in purpose built accommodation in 1971, as a Church of England, Voluntary Controlled, Upper Comprehensive, replacing the local Grammar School The buildings are designed in reconstructed hamstone and include the following 'blocks':
- A central block containing Administrative Offices, Staff Room, Sixth Form Centre, Assembly area and Lecture Theatre, Drama Studio, Music Room, Art Studios, Home Economics Suite, Library Resource Centre.
- Named year Blocks and associated specialist departmental areas
- A Science Block containing seven laboratories and prep-rooms
- A Design and Technology Block
- Sports Hall (also used for examinations), smaller multi-purpose Hall, Playing Fields, Red-Gra (red gravel) pitch. A second community sports centre resides on the school campus and provides facilities for the whole school and local community
- Learning Support Centre
- Community Room with associated offices and kitchen
- Four business suites equipped with computers, and associated staff offices.
Links with middle schools
Wadham School receives students from two Middle Schools (ages 9–13), Maiden Beech in Crewkerne and Swanmead in Ilminster. Close links are maintained with these schools, with members of the senior management teams of the three schools meeting regularly and departments maintaining constant liaison through INSET, by visits to each other’s schools and by formal meetings. From time to time the three schools hold joint INSET (in-service education and training program) days. (There is also very close collaboration with other schools in the area particularly in the field of professional development courses for staff.)
There are nine First Schools (5-9) from where students eventually come on to Wadham School, six servicing Maiden Beech and three Swanmead. There are many informal contacts such as Sixth Formers helping teachers in First School classrooms, Year 10 Work Experience students spending a week in such schools, visits by the Drama Department to give performances.
Business and Enterprise specialist status
In September 2003 Wadham successfully gained Business and Enterprise status.[1] This benefited the school in a number of ways with extra funding allowing:
- The conversion of the John DeCombe Hall into computer suites and staff offices
- Interactive whiteboards in nearly every classroom
- Personal laptops for every teacher
- Refurbishment of many classrooms
House system
When students reach Wadham School they are allocated into one of four houses, these are:
- Berry (Blue)
- Gibson (Green)
- Cooper (Yellow)
- Powell (Red)
Blocks of the school are named after each of the four houses. Until September 2008, students ties matched the colour of their respective house, however this was abolished in the uniform restructure. Students and occasionally members of staff, compete against other houses from their own, in house matches such as football, rugby and hockey, which are usually organised by the house captains in the Sixth Form. Once a year the school also arranges a 'House Athletics Championship' or more commonly known as 'Sports day', where students participate in many field and track events in order to win the house cup. The current champions that hold the house cup are Cooper.
Ofsted; Special Measures
In November 2005, Wadham was placed into Special measures after failing an Ofsted inspection.[2] This resulted in headmistress Gillian Gee stepping down from her post in December 2005, citing health concerns. Andrew Hutchings also resigned from his post as Chair of Governors. Subsequently, the Local Authority appointed the headteacher and deputy headteacher from The Kings of Wessex School in Cheddar as Executive and Acting headteachers of Wadham School.
In May 2006, interim headmistress Maggie Mooney led the school until the Summer of 2006. The current headteacher, who has been in post since September 2006, is Mr. David Derbyshire.
In June 2007 Wadham successfully left Special Measures, after a full Ofsted inspection showed the school had sufficiently progressed.[3] Much progress is still to be made.
Notable alumni
- Gary Mortimer, hot air balloon pilot
References
- ↑ "Specialist Status for Somerset schools". BBC news. 2003-07-01. Retrieved 2008-10-06.
- ↑ "On Special Measures". Falmouth Packet. Retrieved 2013-12-03.
- ↑ "School is out of special measures". Smallholder. Retrieved 2013-12-03.