Backwell School
 | |
|
The main gates | |
| Established | 1954 |
|---|---|
| Type | Secondary Academy |
| Trust | Backwell School Academy Trust |
| Interim Headteacher | Jon Nunes |
| Deputy Headteachers | Paul Conkie, Ben Houghton |
| Chair of Governors | Maurice Moloney |
| Founder | Somerset County Council |
| Location |
Station Road Backwell North Somerset BS48 3BX England 51°24′58″N 2°44′21″W / 51.4161°N 2.7392°WCoordinates: 51°24′58″N 2°44′21″W / 51.4161°N 2.7392°W |
| DfE number | 802/4129 |
| DfE URN | 136722 Tables |
| Ofsted | Reports Pre-academy reports |
| Capacity | 1,728 (Data from January 2015) |
| Students | 1,706 (Data from January 2015) |
| Gender | Mixed |
| Ages | 11–18 |
| Houses |
Cotswold Mendip Quantock Sedgemoor |
| Colours | Navy blue and gold |
| Publications | Backchat, Backwell School Radio and The Toad |
| Teaching school | Yes, since 2012 |
| Specialist school | Yes, performing and visual arts (Arts College) |
| Website |
www |
Backwell School is a comprehensive secondary academy in Backwell, North Somerset, England. It is considered to be one of the best performing state schools in England, leading results at both GCSE and A level in the area and consistently being rated “Outstanding” by Ofsted.
The school is a National Teaching School, through which it leads the North Somerset Teaching Alliance, with Healthy School Plus and International School status. Since March 2011 the school has been a self-governing academy convert. It also holds the Artsmark Gold award and includes a sixth form.
It has 1,738 pupils, of which 387 are in the schools sixth form as of 2016, from the age of 11 (year 7) to the age of 18 (year 13).[1] Backwell has previously been a Beacon School, visual and performing arts college specialist school and National Training School.
History
The original secondary modern school at Backwell was founded by Somerset County Council in 1954 and later became a comprehensive school in 1976 when the tripartite education system was abolished in the area. The school's original building dates from 1954,[2] when Britain was in the midst of a post-war school-building boom.[3]
In 2009, 71% of GCSE pupils achieved at least five GCSE passes above grade C including English and Maths.[4] This is 21% above the national average that year. It is the highest performing state secondary school in North Somerset.[5]
In November 2008, Backwell School was rated as outstanding by Ofsted.[6] It was inspected again in May 2013 (no. 413323) due to the school having converted to an academy two years previous. It was judged to be outstanding in all categories.
On 11 September 2015 a small fire broke out in the Cotswold house building, causing minor damage to the block. All staff and pupils were safely evacuated.[7]
Catchment area
The school's catchment area includes the villages of Backwell, Yatton, Claverham, Cleeve and Kingston Seymour, although several hundred of the school's pupils come from locations outside of its official catchment area from locations such as Nailsea and Bristol. Admissions are managed by the local education authority – North Somerset Council.
School site
The site at Backwell is relatively large, featuring multiple large sports grounds to the North. Buildings vary extremely in design and age with the oldest part of the original school, known as 'Lower School' and the 'Science Corridor', which includes the main theatre, dating back to 1954 – being the same design as at Kingsmead School while the Sixth Form Centre was completed in just 2011.
Backwell Leisure Centre is no longer part of the school grounds, but is situated directly next to the rear entrance of the school, and is used for swimming in PE lessons.
Extracurricular activities
Backwell is known for its strong association with the performing arts, having previously been a specialist performing arts college. Its bi-yearly whole school productions, which last featured the ever-popular musical “Singin' in the Rain”, regular music concerts, as well as the yearly student-organised sixth form production, this year (2016), being the Broadway musical “Hairspray”, with a cast, crew and band of over 100. The year before, the sixth-form organised a production of “High School Musical”, which was a sell out. All sixth form productions raise money for charities, this year's being Alzheimer's Society
In 2015 a radio station was launched, having been set up by the student council.[8][9]
An online school newspaper “The Croak” was launched in 2016. Hosted internally on the school’s network, it provides topical information, stories and support relevant to students.
Notable alumni
- Richard Ottaway, politician
- Joel McIver, author[10]
- Chris Cox, magician
- Chris Dent, cricketer
- Chris Wood, golfer
- Amy Wadge, Grammy-winning singer-songwriter
- Noah Marullo, actor
Former headteachers
- Julian Baldwin (2006–2016)
- Roger Mason
- Richard Nosowski
References
- ↑ "Backwell School" (PDF). Retrieved 8 November 2015.
- ↑ "Planning committee meeting minutes". North Somerset Council. 11 November 2001. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 30 May 2007.
- ↑ "Designing Britain — Schools". Retrieved 25 November 2015.
- ↑ "Backwell School". Education League Tables. BBC News Education. 13 January 2010. Retrieved 7 April 2010.
- ↑ "Secondary schools in North Somerset". BBC News. 13 January 2010. Archived from the original on 23 March 2010. Retrieved 7 April 2010.
- ↑ "Inspection Report". Ofsted. 20 November 2008. Archived from the original on 23 December 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2009.
- ↑ Cardwell, Mark (14 September 2015). "Backwell School evacuated as three fire crews tackle blaze". North Somerset Mercury Website. North Somerset Mercury. Archived from the original on 2015-09-27. Retrieved 26 September 2015.
- ↑ Sparling, Helen (30 January 2015). "Radio Station Launched!" (News Update). Backwell School Website. Backwell School. Retrieved 10 February 2015.
- ↑ Angear, Vicky (28 January 2015). "Pupils take over the airwaves" (News Article). North Somerset Times Website. North Somerset Times. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
- ↑ Interview in Venue magazine, 2008