Devizes School
Encyclopedia
Devizes School is a mixed comprehensive school
in Devizes
, Wiltshire
, England
, for children aged 11-18 and is the largest school in the town.
and ICT College status. The school is headed by Mr Malcolm Irons. School enrollment in 2007 was 1,194 pupils.
The school is situated in the centre of the town, next to the fire station, between the A342
and A360
.
Each house is named after a historical figure who worked towards understanding using peaceful methods. The names of the houses were selected by a vote. Each house has its own house colour - Gandhi is green, King is blue, Teresa is red and Mandela is yellow.
) to form a comprehensive school.
, due to the availability of space, It was cheap and the Grammar School Lower School was taken over by St. Peter's School with the Upper School Braeside becoming a residential education centre. The Southbroom buildings were enlarged and by January 1973 there were 1,373 pupils on the school roll. Further new buildings have been erected and in 2002 there were 1,065 pupils with a sixth form of around 150.
On 8 August 1990, the Queen attended the school to open the swimming pool at the adjacent Devizes Leisure Centre, when the headmaster was Colin Isted.
Shelley Rudman
, the Olympic skeleton
silver medallist, worked at the school as a classroom manager.
In February 2005, a 52 year old builder, David Evans, was taunted by some teenage boys at the school. He confronted two of them, pushing two of them. Next day the teenage boys reported him to their headmaster, Malcolm Irons, who reported him to the police. Next day Mr Evans hung himself.
Comprehensive school
A comprehensive school is a state school that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude. This is in contrast to the selective school system, where admission is restricted on the basis of a selection criteria. The term is commonly used in relation to the United...
in Devizes
Devizes
Devizes is a market town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. The town is about southeast of Chippenham and about east of Trowbridge.Devizes serves as a centre for banks, solicitors and shops, with a large open market place where a market is held once a week...
, Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, for children aged 11-18 and is the largest school in the town.
Admissions
The school has been awarded specialist Sports CollegeSports College
Sports Colleges were introduced in 1997 as part of the Specialist Schools Programme in the United Kingdom. The system enables secondary schools to specialise in certain fields, in this case, PE, sports and dance. Schools that successfully apply to the Specialist Schools Trust and become Sports...
and ICT College status. The school is headed by Mr Malcolm Irons. School enrollment in 2007 was 1,194 pupils.
The school is situated in the centre of the town, next to the fire station, between the A342
A342 road
The A342 is an A road that runs from Pewsham near Chippenham, Wiltshire to Andover, Hampshire.The road begins at the A4 junction just outside of the small village Pewsham, to the east of Chippenham. It heads south past the village of Derry Hill towards Devizes, briefly meeting with the A3102 near...
and A360
A360 road
The A360 is a minor A road in Wiltshire, England, running from Devizes to Salisbury, through the villages of Potterne, West Lavington, Tilshead, and Shrewton, and passing near Stonehenge....
.
Traditions
Devizes School has a house system compromising of four houses, of which each student, Year 7-13 belongs to: Gandhi, King, Mandela and Teresa.Each house is named after a historical figure who worked towards understanding using peaceful methods. The names of the houses were selected by a vote. Each house has its own house colour - Gandhi is green, King is blue, Teresa is red and Mandela is yellow.
Former schools
The school was formed in 1969 by the merging of the co-educational Devizes Grammar School and the Southbroom Secondary School (a secondary modern schoolSecondary modern school
A secondary modern school is a type of secondary school that existed in most of the United Kingdom from 1944 until the early 1970s, under the Tripartite System, and was designed for the majority of pupils - those who do not achieve scores in the top 25% of the eleven plus examination...
) to form a comprehensive school.
Merger
The new school used the Southbroom site, based around Southbroom HouseSouthbroom House
Southbroom House is currently the main building of Devizes School, Wiltshire, England , and owned by Wiltshire Council.-History:The History of Southbroom House 1501-1980...
, due to the availability of space, It was cheap and the Grammar School Lower School was taken over by St. Peter's School with the Upper School Braeside becoming a residential education centre. The Southbroom buildings were enlarged and by January 1973 there were 1,373 pupils on the school roll. Further new buildings have been erected and in 2002 there were 1,065 pupils with a sixth form of around 150.
On 8 August 1990, the Queen attended the school to open the swimming pool at the adjacent Devizes Leisure Centre, when the headmaster was Colin Isted.
Shelley Rudman
Shelley Rudman
Shelley Rudman is a British Olympic athlete. She won a silver medal at the 2006 Winter Olympic Games in skeleton; the only medal for Great Britain at the games...
, the Olympic skeleton
Skeleton (sport)
Skeleton is a fast winter sliding sport in which an individual person rides a small sled down a frozen track while lying face down, during which athletes experience forces up to 5g. It originated in St. Moritz, Switzerland as a spin-off from the popular British sport of Cresta Sledding...
silver medallist, worked at the school as a classroom manager.
In February 2005, a 52 year old builder, David Evans, was taunted by some teenage boys at the school. He confronted two of them, pushing two of them. Next day the teenage boys reported him to their headmaster, Malcolm Irons, who reported him to the police. Next day Mr Evans hung himself.
Academic performance
At GCSE, the school gets average results, in the bottom half of Wiltshire schools, but does better at A level with above-average results.Devizes Grammar School
- Prof Malcolm Reginald GoddenMalcolm Reginald GoddenMalcolm Reginald Godden is the chair holder of the Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon in the University of Oxford and has occupied the office since May 1991....
, Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-SaxonRawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-SaxonThe Rawlinson and Bosworth Professorship of Anglo-Saxon, until 1916 known as the Rawlinsonian Professorship of Anglo-Saxon, was established by Richard Rawlinson of St. John's College, Oxford, in 1795. The Chair is associated with Pembroke College. 'Bosworth' was added to commemorate Joseph...
since 1991 at the University of OxfordUniversity of OxfordThe University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096... - Sandra HowardSandra HowardSandra Howard, Baroness Howard of Lympne is an English novelist, former model and the wife of Michael Howard, a former leader of the Conservative party....
, wife of Michael HowardMichael HowardMichael Howard, Baron Howard of Lympne, CH, QC, PC is a British politician, who served as the Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition from November 2003 to December 2005...
(briefly) - William Saunders (politician)William Saunders (politician)William Saunders was a British newspaper publisher and Liberal Party politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1885 and 1895....
, Liberal MP from 1885-6 for Kingston upon Hull EastKingston upon Hull East (UK Parliament constituency)Kingston upon Hull East is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.- Boundaries :...
, and from 1892-5 for Newington WalworthNewington Walworth (UK Parliament constituency)Walworth was a parliamentary constituency centred on the Walworth district of South London, within the Newington Vestry...
External links
- School homepage
- Ofsted
- Department for children, schools and families - Attainment Tables
- Wiltshire County Council
- http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/gallery/school/devizes_picF0046.jpgImages of Devizes School Main Building, Southbroom HouseSouthbroom HouseSouthbroom House is currently the main building of Devizes School, Wiltshire, England , and owned by Wiltshire Council.-History:The History of Southbroom House 1501-1980...
, front ]and rear, and the Sports Hall, some classrooms and Science Block. - EduBase
