Kenton comprehensive school
Encyclopedia
Kenton Comprehensive School is a secondary school situated in Newcastle upon Tyne
in Tyne and Wear
, England.
The school is situated near Kenton Lane in Kenton
and is one of the largest schools in the United Kingdom, educating in excess of 2,000 pupils across Key Stage 3 to 5
.
The school is a specialist Arts and Technology School and has been granted several marks of achievement including a Gold Artsmark from the Arts Council of England and a 2008 Sportsmark
.
The sixth form building is used by both sixth formers and pupils attending the main comprehensive school as well as working as a local community college (Kenton College).
In their 2009 Ofsted
school report, the school was judged as Outstanding.
The development of the school continued through the addition of new buildings. East Block was the first to be built - closely followed by West Block in 1961, the plans for these buildings were submitted in 1957 and approved in 1958. South Block was added to the site in 1971, later,in 1980, a green bridge would be added to link South Block to the main school, it ran between South Block and West Block, it lost its colour and appeared grey metal colour all the way until demolition of the buildings between 2008 and 2009. In 1997 North Block was added to the rear of East Block, and finally, most notably in 1999, a new College Building was added to the campus. The College Building was officially opened by the then Schools Minister, Estelle Morris
.
Following 47 years in the original school buildings, the school moved into a new state-of-the-art building in Autumn 2008 and had its official opening on Friday, 2 July 2010.
The new school was officially opened by the acclaimed director and former Kenton School pupil, Mike Figgis
.
Since opening, the school has had seven permanent and one acting Headteacher. The current Head, Mr David Pearmain, is the longest serving having been in post from 1998.
It should be noted the official names were Kenton East, Kenton West, Kenton South and Kenton North. The College building housed:
Science, Physchology, Sociology, ICT and Geography across the Ground Floor corridor, upstairs was ICT, Health & Social Care, ICT, and Business Studies. The top floor included, Leisure & Tourism.
New Building (2008–present)
The College building now includes disused Science rooms on the first floor, Business Studies and Leisure & Tourism upstairs with several Computer Rooms and the Twilight Unit (formerly the Inclusion Unit, based in South Block until 2008.)It is also used for Citizenship, Careers and Work Skills.
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
in Tyne and Wear
Tyne and Wear
Tyne and Wear is a metropolitan county in north east England around the mouths of the Rivers Tyne and Wear. It came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972...
, England.
The school is situated near Kenton Lane in Kenton
Kenton
-Notable people:* Actress Michele Austin, best known as PC Yvonne Hemmingway in ITV's The Bill, attended Claremont High School in Kenton* Cricketer Denis Compton lived in Kenton* TV exercise instructor Mr Motivator lived in Kenton...
and is one of the largest schools in the United Kingdom, educating in excess of 2,000 pupils across Key Stage 3 to 5
Key Stage
A Key Stage is a stage of the state education system in England, Wales, Northern Ireland and the British Territory of Gibraltar setting the educational knowledge expected of students at various ages...
.
The school is a specialist Arts and Technology School and has been granted several marks of achievement including a Gold Artsmark from the Arts Council of England and a 2008 Sportsmark
Sportsmark
Sportsmark is Sport England's accreditation scheme for secondary schools. The scheme recognises a school's out of hours sports provision.Sportsmark awards are given to secondary schools for provision for sport and physical education. They are currently being reviewed along with Activemark awards...
.
The sixth form building is used by both sixth formers and pupils attending the main comprehensive school as well as working as a local community college (Kenton College).
In their 2009 Ofsted
Ofsted
The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills is the non-ministerial government department of Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Schools In England ....
school report, the school was judged as Outstanding.
School history
Construction on the original Kenton School started in 1958 and was opened by the Right Honourable Lord Morrison of Lambeth to pupils and staff on Friday 17 March 1961.The development of the school continued through the addition of new buildings. East Block was the first to be built - closely followed by West Block in 1961, the plans for these buildings were submitted in 1957 and approved in 1958. South Block was added to the site in 1971, later,in 1980, a green bridge would be added to link South Block to the main school, it ran between South Block and West Block, it lost its colour and appeared grey metal colour all the way until demolition of the buildings between 2008 and 2009. In 1997 North Block was added to the rear of East Block, and finally, most notably in 1999, a new College Building was added to the campus. The College Building was officially opened by the then Schools Minister, Estelle Morris
Estelle Morris
Estelle Morris, Baroness Morris of Yardley, PC was a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Birmingham Yardley from 1992 to 2005, and served briefly in the Cabinet as Education Secretary.-Early life:...
.
Following 47 years in the original school buildings, the school moved into a new state-of-the-art building in Autumn 2008 and had its official opening on Friday, 2 July 2010.
The new school was officially opened by the acclaimed director and former Kenton School pupil, Mike Figgis
Mike Figgis
Michael "Mike" Figgis is an English film director, writer, and composer.-Personal life:Figgis was born in Carlisle, England and grew up in Africa. Figgis for several years had a relationship with the actress Saffron Burrows and cast her in several films...
.
Since opening, the school has had seven permanent and one acting Headteacher. The current Head, Mr David Pearmain, is the longest serving having been in post from 1998.
Academy Conversion
- In 2011, the school undertook consultation to investigate conversion to Academy status. This was met with criticism by the NAS/UWT, the NUTNational Union of TeachersThe National Union of Teachers is a trade union for school teachers in England, Wales, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. It is a member of the Trades Union Congress...
, and the ATLAssociation of Teachers and LecturersThe Association of Teachers and Lecturers is a trade union, teachers' union and professional association, affiliated to the Trades Union Congress, in the United Kingdom representing educators from nursery and primary education to further education...
, representatives of whom took strike action in September of that year.
The Buildings
Original site (1958–2008)- East Block- Food Tech, Health & Social Care, English & Art
- West Block- Science, Technology, English, Media, Drama & ICT
- South Block- Music, Maths, Languages & PE
- North Block- Geography, History, ICT, RE & Language Base
It should be noted the official names were Kenton East, Kenton West, Kenton South and Kenton North. The College building housed:
Science, Physchology, Sociology, ICT and Geography across the Ground Floor corridor, upstairs was ICT, Health & Social Care, ICT, and Business Studies. The top floor included, Leisure & Tourism.
New Building (2008–present)
- Finger A - Humanities & ICT
- Finger B - Maths, Photography, Psychology & Social Sciences
- Finger C - Art & Design, English, Media Studies & Drama
- Finger D - MFL & Technology
- Finger E - Science
- Crescent - Music, Hair & Beauty Therapy & RE
- North Block- Motor Vehicle Studies, New Beginnings & Exam Rooms
The College building now includes disused Science rooms on the first floor, Business Studies and Leisure & Tourism upstairs with several Computer Rooms and the Twilight Unit (formerly the Inclusion Unit, based in South Block until 2008.)It is also used for Citizenship, Careers and Work Skills.
Former Headteachers
- Mr Eric Hackett (1960–1965)
- Mr Charles Jary (1965–1972)
- Mrs Doreen Inness (1972–1981)
- Mrs Barbara Payne (1981–1992)
- Mr Fran Done (1992–1993) (Acting)
- Mr Mike Gibbons (1994–1997)
- Mr Fran Done (1997–1998) (Acting)
- Mr David Pearmain (1998 – present)