Alder Grange Community and Technology School

Alder Grange Community and Technology School and Sixth Form Centre
Type Community school
Headteacher Mr David Hampson
Location Calder Road
Rossendale
Lancashire
BB4 8HW
England Coordinates: 53°42′30″N 2°16′59″W / 53.70840°N 2.28318°W
Local authority Lancashire
DfE URN 119722 Tables
Ofsted Reports
Students 825
Gender Coeducational
Ages 11–18
Houses A, G, C, T, S
Colours Light blue, dark blue, white
Website www.aldergrange.com

Alder Grange Community and Technology School is a secondary school and sixth form located in the east Lancashire town of Rawtenstall, England.

Facilities

The school's sporting facilities include a gymnasium, a 3G pitch with astroturf, and Alder Grange Sports Centre - a fitness room with sports hall, open for public use. The sports centre offers a variety of gym-based activities provided by Rossendale Leisure Trust. It opened in 2006, and includes badminton courts, table tennis tables, indoor football space and basketball courts,[1] available to use by both pupils and the general public.

Elsewhere, the school has two cafeterias, science labs, specialised technology rooms including a kitchen for food technology, a music room including equipment for school radio broadcasts, and two IT suites. [2]

The school is closely linked to school technology provider Promethean and has taken part in trials of new products, as well as frequently using current ones in day-to-day lessons.

Awards and status

The school has awards for Head Teacher of the Year, and an Outstanding School award from Ofsted. The school is linked with the Design Council, helping to design schools of the future and how to make current schools better.

It previously held specialist school status as a Technology College (since 1993) and a second specialism in Applied Learning.[3] In 2007 it was designated a High Performing Specialist School.[4] The specialist schools programme ended in 2013.

Extra curricular activities

Apart from academic work, students at Alder Grange can participate in other activities. These include the Duke of Edinburgh award scheme (bronze to gold), the Alderbeat radio station, or the Music School (includes extra instrument lessons or taking part in school productions such as a rendition of Grease).[5]

ag6

In January 2011, Alder Grange school opened its new sixth form centre for 16–18 year olds, giving its students an easier choice when they carry on full-time education after 16. The building had a construction cost of £8 million, and offers around 150 student places per academic year.[6]

Facilities

Facilities at the new ag6 building include an industry-standard catering kitchen and café, nursery and crèche facilities for child development, media studio with Mac and PC computers with professional-spec camera equipment, science laboratories, a student social area with library, and horticulture equipment.[7]

Courses

At ag6, students can take academic A levels, vocational BTEC (or similar) qualifications, or a mixture of both. Courses available include classic academic courses such as English literature, mathematics, sociology, the sciences and law, to vocational ones such as performing arts, information technology, creative media and sport. [8]

Students are expected to be part of an enrichment course, such as Duke of Edinburgh (silver or gold), an additional AS level (such as General Studies), or 'Tomorrow's Teachers', an introduction to teaching course provided by Edge Hill University.

Arizona

"Electricity"
Single by Arizona
from the album Electricity - Single
Released July 13, 2014
Format Digital download
Genre Pop
Length 03:34
Label Alderbeat Records
Writer(s) Danny Williams

In 2014, a girl band from Alder Grange, named Arizona, released a single entitled 'Electricity', in order to raise money for Petal Cancer Research. The band comprises year 11 opera singer Grace O’Malley and sixth form students Jess Haworth, Sophie Wooding and Jess Watts.[9]

After the release of the single, the band went on a tour across the north of England, from July 11, 2014 until July 18, 2014. This involved performing to over 20,000 people at venues such as the Cancer Research UK Race for Life event in Ilkley, Yorkshire, town fêtes, and high schools in the area.[10][11]

References

  1. ↑ "Alder Grange". Rossendale Leisure Trust. Rossendale Leisure Trust. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
  2. ↑ "Alder Grange Prospectus". Alder Grange Prospectus. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
  3. ↑ "Establishment: Alder Grange Community and Technology School". EduBase. Retrieved 2011-03-21.
  4. ↑ "About Alder Grange". Alder Grange Community and Technology School. Retrieved 2011-03-21.
  5. ↑ "Alder Grange Prospectus". Alder Grange Prospectus. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
  6. ↑ "ag6 prospectus". ag6 prospectus. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
  7. ↑ "Alder Grange Prospectus". Alder Grange Prospectus. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
  8. ↑ "ag6 prospectus". ag6 prospectus. Retrieved 12 May 2014.
  9. ↑ Rahman, Sophia. "Rawtenstall girl band in bid to raise cancer care charity cash". Lancashire Telegraph. Retrieved 20 July 2014.
  10. ↑ Murray, Bianca. "Arizona arrives". Rossendale Free Press. M.E.N Media. Retrieved 20 July 2014.
  11. ↑ "Girl band hoping to storm the charts". Burnley Express. Johnston Publishing Ltd. Retrieved 20 July 2014.

External links