Nova Hreod
Encyclopedia
Nova Hreod College is a comprehensive school
in Swindon
, Wiltshire
, educating children between the ages of eleven and sixteen. The school is a dual specialist Science College
and Mathematics and Computing College
, designated as such in September 2006.
Hreod is the Anglo Saxon word for a reed. The small stream that runs along the bottom of the field where the school was built is called the Hreod Burna, from which the first school got its name. It is a term found in the Domesday Book
entry for the locality and describes a minor tributary of the River Ray
which still runs through the valley in which Nova Hreod lies.
Hreod Burna High School was opened in 1966. The children who attended were aged 14 to 18 years, which means it had a VIth form. Initially, children were drawn from Moredon Secondary, and Ferndale Secondary .
The Head Teacher of Hreod Burna was Dr Blackwell, who remained at the school until 1984 when schools in Swindon
stopped taking VIth form students, and New College was opened to educate them all together. Hreod Burna High School was then amalgamated with Moredon Secondary School and re-named Hreod Parkway School, under the headship of Mr Cleall. Both Ferndale and Pinehurst Secondary Schools were closed, and their buildings used for other activities by the local council.
Hreod Parkway School received children from the same area covered by Hreod Burna; the new age range of pupils being 11 to 16 years. However, it is widely acknowledged that council under-funding, combined with a catchment area with a high number of low-income families who could not pick up the shortfall, were significant factors in Ofsted
putting the school into special measures as a failing school in April 1996. In 1997, Andrew Fleet took over as Head Teacher and set about repairing the school’s academic reputation and rebuilding the campus, which had fallen into serious disrepair.
The inspectors identified a number of areas of improvement since the last inspection in 1996, all of which they say have been influenced by Mr Fleet…..
The school was re-organised in 1998 so that the lower and upper schools were split either side of Akers Way. Plans have now been drawn up to completely rebuild the school. Mr Fleet has introduced many new systems and procedures to try to raise standards, but these measures are yet to be applied consistently across the school by all teachers.
"We have not suddenly started work on these problems since Ofsted visited," he said. "We have been addressing our problems ever since I arrived, but in some areas progress has been slower than we'd hoped. Being in special measures will actually help us accelerate certain changes that we need to make, as it will enable greater intervention by the school and the LEA to address the problem areas."
After the Easter
of 2007, Mr Fleet achieved his goal of a new campus when Hreod Parkway was vacated and everyone moved into the new campus built on an adjacent green field site. The new school was re-named Nova Hreod College; Nova (supernova
) being the name a dying red star re-born into brightness, as well as the Latin word for “new”.
However, the dilapidation of the old buildings and the disruption of the move affected GCSE results and the school achieved a poor score on the contextual value added (CVA) tables and for truancy; however the GCSE results that followed Andrew Fleet’s retirement and the appointment of Julie Tridgell as Head Teacher in September 2008 put Nova Hreod College on the list of the most improved schools in the country.
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 Swindon
Swindon
Swindon is a large town within the borough of Swindon and ceremonial county of Wiltshire, in South West England. It is midway between Bristol, west and Reading, east. London is east...
, 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...
, educating children between the ages of eleven and sixteen. The school is a dual specialist Science College
Science College
Science Colleges were introduced in 2002 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, science and mathematics...
and Mathematics and Computing College
Mathematics and Computing College
Mathematics and Computing Colleges were introduced in England in 2002 as part of the Government's Specialist Schools Programme which was designed to raise standards in secondary education. Specialist schools focus specifically on their chosen specialism but must also meet the requirements of the...
, designated as such in September 2006.
Hreod is the Anglo Saxon word for a reed. The small stream that runs along the bottom of the field where the school was built is called the Hreod Burna, from which the first school got its name. It is a term found in the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
entry for the locality and describes a minor tributary of the River Ray
River Ray
The River Ray is a river in Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire, England. It rises at Quainton Hill and flows west through a flat countryside for around 25 km or 15 miles. It passes the village of Ambrosden and then flows through Otmoor...
which still runs through the valley in which Nova Hreod lies.
Hreod Burna High School was opened in 1966. The children who attended were aged 14 to 18 years, which means it had a VIth form. Initially, children were drawn from Moredon Secondary, and Ferndale Secondary .
The Head Teacher of Hreod Burna was Dr Blackwell, who remained at the school until 1984 when schools in Swindon
Swindon
Swindon is a large town within the borough of Swindon and ceremonial county of Wiltshire, in South West England. It is midway between Bristol, west and Reading, east. London is east...
stopped taking VIth form students, and New College was opened to educate them all together. Hreod Burna High School was then amalgamated with Moredon Secondary School and re-named Hreod Parkway School, under the headship of Mr Cleall. Both Ferndale and Pinehurst Secondary Schools were closed, and their buildings used for other activities by the local council.
Hreod Parkway School received children from the same area covered by Hreod Burna; the new age range of pupils being 11 to 16 years. However, it is widely acknowledged that council under-funding, combined with a catchment area with a high number of low-income families who could not pick up the shortfall, were significant factors in 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 ....
putting the school into special measures as a failing school in April 1996. In 1997, Andrew Fleet took over as Head Teacher and set about repairing the school’s academic reputation and rebuilding the campus, which had fallen into serious disrepair.
The inspectors identified a number of areas of improvement since the last inspection in 1996, all of which they say have been influenced by Mr Fleet…..
The school was re-organised in 1998 so that the lower and upper schools were split either side of Akers Way. Plans have now been drawn up to completely rebuild the school. Mr Fleet has introduced many new systems and procedures to try to raise standards, but these measures are yet to be applied consistently across the school by all teachers.
"We have not suddenly started work on these problems since Ofsted visited," he said. "We have been addressing our problems ever since I arrived, but in some areas progress has been slower than we'd hoped. Being in special measures will actually help us accelerate certain changes that we need to make, as it will enable greater intervention by the school and the LEA to address the problem areas."
After the Easter
Easter
Easter is the central feast in the Christian liturgical year. According to the Canonical gospels, Jesus rose from the dead on the third day after his crucifixion. His resurrection is celebrated on Easter Day or Easter Sunday...
of 2007, Mr Fleet achieved his goal of a new campus when Hreod Parkway was vacated and everyone moved into the new campus built on an adjacent green field site. The new school was re-named Nova Hreod College; Nova (supernova
Supernova
A supernova is a stellar explosion that is more energetic than a nova. It is pronounced with the plural supernovae or supernovas. Supernovae are extremely luminous and cause a burst of radiation that often briefly outshines an entire galaxy, before fading from view over several weeks or months...
) being the name a dying red star re-born into brightness, as well as the Latin word for “new”.
However, the dilapidation of the old buildings and the disruption of the move affected GCSE results and the school achieved a poor score on the contextual value added (CVA) tables and for truancy; however the GCSE results that followed Andrew Fleet’s retirement and the appointment of Julie Tridgell as Head Teacher in September 2008 put Nova Hreod College on the list of the most improved schools in the country.