Writhlington School

Academy in Somerset, England

51°17′15″N 2°25′51″W / 51.2874°N 2.4308°W / 51.2874; -2.4308InformationTypeAcademyEstablished2011School districtRadstockTrustMidsomer Norton Schools PartnershipDepartment for Education URN137548 TablesOfstedReportsHead teacherKeith HowardGenderMixedAge11 to 18Enrolment1,571 pupilsCapacity1,547Websitehttp://www.writhlington.org.uk/

Writhlington School is a secondary school for pupils aged 11–18 in Writhlington, Bath and North East Somerset, England. It is the main secondary school in the Radstock area, providing further education to local children and some pupils who live outside the catchment area. The school became an academy in October 2011.

Around 70% of year 11 pupils apply to attend sixth form.^[1] The school is notable for its orchid project,^[2] which has won numerous awards including a gold medal at the 2009 Chelsea Flower Show.^[3] The school has also won awards in business with their enterprise companies. It is one of the few state schools to have its own non-compulsory Combined Cadet Force (CCF) with over 150 pupils involved from years 9 to 13.

In March 2017, the school received a "requires improvement" critical status rating from Ofsted. This is currently still in place.

A turf-cutting ceremony was held at the start of a major rebuilding programme funded by the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) as part of the Building Schools for the Future programme. It is designed to increase the capacity of the school to 1,300+ pupils and was due for completion in January 2010.^[4] The school moved into the new building in April 2010.^[5] The British Council for School Environments, an education charity which pioneers and supports the creation of effective and efficient learning environments, declared the Writhlington School project as Winner of the Excellence in Design for Teaching and Learning: Secondary New Build and Winner of the Badge in Excellence in Design for Virtual Learning.^[6]

Notable alumni

Francis Bourgeois, trainspotter and social media personality
David Hempleman-Adams, explorer^[7]
Ashley Barnes, footballer^[8]

Notable teacher

Andy Robinson,^[9] ex Bath and England rugby union flanker, ex England and Scotland head coach, and current director of rugby for Bristol.

References

^ "Writhlington School Ofsted Report: 28 February 2007". Writhlington School. Archived from the original on 11 October 2008. Retrieved 25 July 2008.
^ "WSBEorchids". WSBEorchids. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 25 July 2008.
^ "Chelsea Flower Show 2009: Continuous Learning Awards" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 June 2009. Retrieved 23 May 2009.
^ "Turf cutting marks start of exciting new era for Writhlington School". Press Release. Bath and North East Somerset Council. 24 July 2008. Retrieved 11 October 2010. ^{[permanent dead link]}
^ "Writhlington School – Major Milestone for Writhlington School". Bath and North East Somerset Council. Archived from the original on 20 October 2010. Retrieved 11 October 2010.
^ "Building award wins for Writhlington School". Bath and North East Somerset Council. 3 July 2012. Retrieved 6 July 2012. ^{[permanent dead link]}
^ "David Hempleman-Adams LVO OBE at menspeakers.co.uk". Retrieved 11 April 2010.
^ "From Paulton Rovers to the Premiership – that's the aim for Ashley Ba…". Archived from the original on 5 May 2013.
^ http://www.scotsman.com/sport/andy_robinson_urges_scots_to_take_control_of_their_own_destiny_1_767795 ^{[dead link]}