Kings' School, Winchester

This article is about the school in Winchester founded 1985. For other uses, see King's School.
Kings' School
Motto Una Laborantes ("Working Together")
Established 1985
Type comprehensive community school
Headteacher Matthew Leeming
Location Romsey Road.
Winchester
Hampshire
SO22 5PN
England
Coordinates: 51°03′32″N 1°20′49″W / 51.0589°N 1.3469°W / 51.0589; -1.3469
Local authority Hampshire
DfE URN 116468 Tables
Ofsted Reports
Students 1657
Gender Mixed
Ages 11–16
Website www.kings-winchester.hants.sch.uk

Kings' School is a comprehensive school in Winchester, Hampshire, with approximately 1,650 pupils. The most recent Ofsted inspection (June 2014) brought forward a generally excellent classification with thirty out of thirty-one sections of the report considered outstanding. Kings' School previously had Specialist status as a Business and Enterprise College and as a Language College.

History

Kings' School was formed in 1985 by merging the two previous schools on the site: Danemark School (girls) and Montgomery of Alamein School (boys). These schools trace their roots back to the Wesleyan Day School (1889), St Thomas's School (1893), St Mary's School (1900), and Danemark Central School (1912).

Academic achievement

Between 2012 and 2015, between 74 and 95 per cent of 15-year-olds have achieved five or more GCSE grades A to C, including Maths and English.[1] According to data from 2008 in the BBC League Tables, Kings' is one of Hampshire's top state schools.[2] According to Government League Table data from 2014, King's school is still within the top 50 schools in Hampshire sorted by their A*-C achievement percentage.[3] The school's results in 2015 saw 76% of the 333 pupil cohort achieve 5 or more A* to C GCSE grades, including Maths and English, with 86% achieving 5 or more A* to C grades overall.[4]

Curriculum

The school teaches a large number of subjects, both at Key Stage 3 and Key Stage 4. Most courses are assessed in the form of a GCSE qualification taken at the end of Year 11, but the school does offer a couple of more vocational courses.

Key Stage 3 - Years 7 to 9

Key Stage 3 pupils are taught the UK's National Curriculum. All pupils study the following subjects: English, Mathematics, Science, Business Studies, Physical Education, Religious Studies, History, Geography, Music, Art, Drama, Technology and PSHE.[5] All pupils take a language in Year 7, either French, Spanish, German or Italian. Some pupils are given the opportunity to study a second language in Year 8, either French, Spanish, Latin, German or Italian.[6]

Key Stage 4 - Years 10 to 11

On average, pupils enter 10 GCSE or equivalent qualifications at the end of Year 11.[1] All pupils in Year 10 and 11 study the following examined subjects: English Language, English Literature, Science (BTEC, Combined or Triple), Mathematics and Business Studies.[7] Pupils in Year 10 and 11 also study PSHE and PE, but these subjects are not examined. Other subjects that are offered at GCSE level include: Art, Child Development, Computer Science, Dance, Drama, French, Food Preparation and Nutrition, Geography, German, Graphics, Health and Social Care, History, Italian, Latin, Media Studies, Music, Photography, PE, Psychology, Religious Studies, Resistant Materials, Sociology, Spanish and Textiles.[7] The school also offers OCR National courses in Business Enterprise, ICT and Sport Studies.

Facilities

The school has a number of facilities, including an indoor swimming pool[8] (which is used both by pupils and local swimming schools), an astro turf and The Tower Arts Centre, which is used for drama and dance rehearsals and performances, as well as exercise classes, conferences, meetings and training workshops.[9] The school site also includes a sports hall (which is used both for Physical Education lessons as well as for examinations) a gym, a recording studio and a library.[10]

Catchment area

Kings' School has a large catchment area, from Winchester to the southern surrounding villages. Students from outside the catchment area are brought in by bus from as far north as Andover to as far south as Southampton. Unusually for a State Comprehensive school, Kings' School features a boys' boarding house, the Kings' School House. The boarding house is set to close in August 2015 after a review by Hampshire County Council[11][12]

Criticism

In November 2008, a girl was to be taught in isolation as a result of dyeing her hair.[13] Later that month, several parents complained that new restrictions regarding the colour of underwear were unfair and an invasion of privacy.[14] The school stated that it was a misunderstanding, as it was a suggestion only, not a new rule.[15]

Notable former pupils

References

  1. 1 2 "Performance Tables - The Department for Education - Kings' School, 116468, SO22 5PN". www.education.gov.uk. Retrieved 2016-02-07.
  2. ↑ BBC league tables
  3. ↑ "Government league tables". The Department for Education - Performance Tables - Local Authority results. The Department for Education. 2014. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
  4. ↑ "GCSE Results « Kings' School". www.kings-winchester.hants.sch.uk. Retrieved 2016-02-07.
  5. ↑ "Curriculum Map - Year 7" (PDF). Kings' School, Winchester. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  6. ↑ "Curriculum". Kings' School, Winchester. Retrieved 6 February 2016.
  7. 1 2 "Year 10 Options 2016-2018" (PDF). Kings' School, Winchester. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  8. ↑ "Swimming « Kings' School". www.kings-winchester.hants.sch.uk. Retrieved 2016-02-13.
  9. ↑ "The Tower at Kings’ « Kings' School". www.kings-winchester.hants.sch.uk. Retrieved 2016-02-13.
  10. ↑ "School Information « Kings' School". www.kings-winchester.hants.sch.uk. Retrieved 2016-02-13.
  11. ↑ Leeming, Matthew (August 2014). "Closure of Kings’ School Boarding House – August 2015" (PDF). Kings' School, Winchester. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
  12. ↑ "Hampshire Country Council Executive Decision Record" (PDF). 30 July 2014. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
  13. ↑ "Girls tangled in Kings' School hair dye row". The Southern Daily Echo (Newsquest Media Group). 12 November 2008. Retrieved 16 March 2013.
  14. ↑ "Furious parents claim children are checked for what colour of pants and bras they wear". The Southern Daily Echo. November 2008. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
  15. ↑ "Black and white underwear rule a 'misunderstanding' says head". The Southern Daily Echo. 21 November 2008. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
  16. ↑ Langdon, Julia (10 February 2010). "Albert Booth obituary". The Guardian (London). Retrieved 16 March 2013.
  17. ↑ Wayne Bridge- Biography
  18. ↑ "Comedian Jack Dee collects degree", BBC 21 October 2009
  19. ↑ "Colin Firth: 'I'm no posh pin-up'", Daily Express, 29 September 2007
  20. ↑ Anthony Poutney (sic) – Hard to Budge
  21. ↑ "Philip Somerville – obituary". Daily Telegraph. 16 September 2014. Retrieved 21 September 2014.

External links

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