Churchill Community School
Encyclopedia
Churchill Academy and Sixth Form, previously known as Churchill Community Foundation School and Sixth Form Centre, is an academy situated in the village of Churchill
, North Somerset
, England, surrounded by countryside and overlooked by the Mendip Hills
. It educates students from ages 11 to 18 and offers General Certificate of Secondary Education
, A-levels
and BTEC courses. In 2002 the school was granted specialist Arts College
status. In August 2011, the school became an academy.
The current headteacher is Dr Barry Wratten.
The school, which has 1,538 students, is organised by house system
, with the houses named after royal dynasties of Britain: Stuart (green), Hanover (gold), Tudor (red) and Windsor (blue).
The school publishes a weekly newsletter, a termly publication called The Churchill and an arts newsletter, Spotlight.
2006 marked the school's half-century on its site. This was celebrated with a series of events culminating in Jubilee Party in the grounds of the school.
, drama
and music
studios support the school's specialist Performing Arts status and the school regularly stages dramatic productions at the Playhouse Theatre
in Weston-super-Mare
.
The school also has a successful choir
, string ensemble
, concert band
and jazz
group. Pupils are also active in chess
, Duke of Edinburgh Award and sailing
.
In recent years the school has organised visits to, among others, Paris
, New York
, Russia, China, Bolivia, Tanzania and Kyrgyzstan. The schools award winning senior gospel choir, Youthful Spirit
have toured in Greece, Germany and Austria.
, running and rugby union
, where school teams have been successful in the Daily Mail Cup
. Its rugby team has toured in Europe, Africa and South America, before Barry Wratten decided to actively fund and encourage music tours to the Czech Republic. The school benefits from being situated alongside Churchill Sports Centre, which houses an indoor swimming pool, squash and tennis courts and playing fields. The school formed its first girls' rugby team in 2003.
-based debating organisation. The school has won its annual competition three times.
Churchill, Somerset
Churchill is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England. It is located in the unitary authority of North Somerset, on the western edge of the Mendip Hills about east of Weston-super-Mare...
, North Somerset
North Somerset
North Somerset is a unitary authority in England. Its area covers part of the ceremonial county of Somerset but it is administered independently of the non-metropolitan county. Its administrative headquarters is in the town hall in Weston-super-Mare....
, England, surrounded by countryside and overlooked by the Mendip Hills
Mendip Hills
The Mendip Hills is a range of limestone hills to the south of Bristol and Bath in Somerset, England. Running east to west between Weston-super-Mare and Frome, the hills overlook the Somerset Levels to the south and the Avon Valley to the north...
. It educates students from ages 11 to 18 and offers General Certificate of Secondary Education
General Certificate of Secondary Education
The General Certificate of Secondary Education is an academic qualification awarded in a specified subject, generally taken in a number of subjects by students aged 14–16 in secondary education in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and is equivalent to a Level 2 and Level 1 in Key Skills...
, A-levels
GCE Advanced Level
The Advanced Level General Certificate of Education, commonly referred to as an A-level, is a qualification offered by education institutions in England, Northern Ireland, Wales, Cameroon, and the Cayman Islands...
and BTEC courses. In 2002 the school was granted specialist Arts College
Arts College
Arts Colleges were introduced in 1997 as part of the now defunct Specialist Schools Programme in the United Kingdom. The system enabled secondary schools to specialise in certain fields, in this case, the performing, visual and/or media arts...
status. In August 2011, the school became an academy.
The current headteacher is Dr Barry Wratten.
The school, which has 1,538 students, is organised by house system
House system
The house system is a traditional feature of British schools, and schools in the Commonwealth. Historically, it was associated with established public schools, where a 'house' refers to a boarding house or dormitory of a boarding school...
, with the houses named after royal dynasties of Britain: Stuart (green), Hanover (gold), Tudor (red) and Windsor (blue).
The school publishes a weekly newsletter, a termly publication called The Churchill and an arts newsletter, Spotlight.
2006 marked the school's half-century on its site. This was celebrated with a series of events culminating in Jubilee Party in the grounds of the school.
Performing Arts
Its danceDance
Dance is an art form that generally refers to movement of the body, usually rhythmic and to music, used as a form of expression, social interaction or presented in a spiritual or performance setting....
, drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
and music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
studios support the school's specialist Performing Arts status and the school regularly stages dramatic productions at the Playhouse Theatre
The Playhouse, Weston-Super-Mare
The Playhouse is a 664 seat theatre in Weston-super-Mare, England that hosts a largely entertainment based programme of shows all year round including opera, ballet, comedy, music and pantomime performances....
in Weston-super-Mare
Weston-super-Mare
Weston-super-Mare is a seaside resort, town and civil parish in the unitary authority of North Somerset, which is within the ceremonial county of Somerset, England. It is located on the Bristol Channel coast, south west of Bristol, spanning the coast between the bounding high ground of Worlebury...
.
The school also has a successful choir
Choir
A choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...
, string ensemble
Musical ensemble
A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...
, concert band
Concert band
A concert band, also called wind band, symphonic band, symphonic winds, wind orchestra, wind symphony, wind ensemble, or symphonic wind ensemble, is a performing ensemble consisting of several members of the woodwind instrument family, brass instrument family, and percussion instrument family.A...
and jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
group. Pupils are also active in chess
Chess
Chess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...
, Duke of Edinburgh Award and sailing
Sailing
Sailing is the propulsion of a vehicle and the control of its movement with large foils called sails. By changing the rigging, rudder, and sometimes the keel or centre board, a sailor manages the force of the wind on the sails in order to move the boat relative to its surrounding medium and...
.
In recent years the school has organised visits to, among others, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, Russia, China, Bolivia, Tanzania and Kyrgyzstan. The schools award winning senior gospel choir, Youthful Spirit
Youthful Spirit
Youthful Spirit is an award winning Gospel music Choir from Churchill Community School, North Somerset, England. It consists of students at the school from Year 9. Occasionally it is only Year 10 as it is felt that voices in Year 9 may not be mature enough to cope with some of the songs in the...
have toured in Greece, Germany and Austria.
Sports
The school's sports teams compete with other schools in footballFootball (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
, running and rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
, where school teams have been successful in the Daily Mail Cup
Daily Mail Cup
The Daily Mail RBS Cup is the annual English schools' rugby union cup competition. The semi-finals are now held at Broadstreet Rugby Club. The final is held at Twickenham Stadium. Competitions are held at the U18 and U15 age group levels...
. Its rugby team has toured in Europe, Africa and South America, before Barry Wratten decided to actively fund and encourage music tours to the Czech Republic. The school benefits from being situated alongside Churchill Sports Centre, which houses an indoor swimming pool, squash and tennis courts and playing fields. The school formed its first girls' rugby team in 2003.
Other activities
Since 1995 the school has been a member of the Gabblers Club, the BristolBristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
-based debating organisation. The school has won its annual competition three times.