Stradbroke Business and Enterprise College is a state-funded secondary school

Secondary school

Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...

 for 11-16 year-olds in Stradbroke

Stradbroke

Stradbroke is a village in Suffolk, England, United Kingdom. It is in the Mid Suffolk District and part of the East of England Region of England. Stradbroke is near to the small Suffolk town of Eye and the larger Norfolk market town of Diss...

, Suffolk

Suffolk

Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...

, United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

. With just 346 students on roll (as of 2006) it is the smallest Business and Enterprise College

Business and Enterprise College

Business and Enterprise Colleges were introduced in 2002 as part of the Specialist Schools Programme in the United Kingdom. The system enables secondary schools to specialise in certain fields...

 (BEC). Founded in 1953 as a secondary modern comprehensive school

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...

 on the southern edge of the village, Stradbroke High School served a catchment covering almost 400 square miles (1,036 km²) including the parishes of Athelington

Athelington

Athelington is a hamlet and civil parish in the Mid Suffolk district of Suffolk, England, about south-east from Diss. The name is derived from the Old English word Aetheling.-External links:it used to be thought to be the smallest parish in England...

 & Horham

Horham

Horham is a village in the county of Suffolk, in the East Anglia region of eastern England, United Kingdom. The village contains a church, St. Mary of Horham. Horham is on the B1117 road, approximately halfway between Eye and Stradbroke.- History :...

, Fressingfield

Fressingfield

Fressingfield is a small village in Suffolk, England, east of Diss, Norfolk. It has a population of over 900, with two shops a medical centre and three churches, with Anglican, Baptist and Methodist congregations. Fressingfield once had five public houses...

, Laxfield

Laxfield

Laxfield is a small ancient village in northern Suffolk, England. It is located at a distinct bend in today's B1117 road.-History:Laxfield arose in Saxon times as it is known that an early church was there and the village itself appears in the Domesday Book...

, Mendham

Mendham, Suffolk

Mendham is a village and civil parish in the Mid Suffolk district of Suffolk in eastern England. Located on the east bank of the River Waveney around a mile east of Harleston, in 2005 its population was 440. The parish includes the hamlets of Withersdale Street...

, Wilby

Wilby, Suffolk

Wilby is a village and civil parish in the Mid Suffolk district of Suffolk in eastern England located around miles south-east of Diss and south of Stradbroke along the B1118. The population of the parish at the 2001 census was 231 in 99 households.. The village has basic services including a...

, Worlingworth

Worlingworth

Worlingworth is a village and civil parish in the Mid Suffolk district of Suffolk in eastern England. Located around ten miles south-east of Diss, in 2005 its population was 750....

 and Cratfield

Cratfield

Cratfield is a village in northern Suffolk, England.Neighbouring villages include Laxfield, Metfield, Cookley, Huntingfield, Heveningham. The nearest town, Halesworth, is approximately 5 miles away. Southwold is a popular, nearby coastal town. The market town of Framlingham is also close...

. As of 2006 this represents a catchment population of some 7500 people. The third head teacher (Dave Shorten) came to the school in 1990 and successfully lead the bid to achieve specialist school

Specialist school

The specialist schools programme was a UK government initiative which encouraged secondary schools in England to specialise in certain areas of the curriculum to boost achievement. The Specialist Schools and Academies Trust was responsible for the delivery of the programme...

 status as a BEC in September 2005. With the new status came a change of name and a new uniform and new logo.

One of just three BECs in Suffolk, the College was made the county hub of the Schools' Enterprise Education Network in May 2006 and one month later the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust

Specialist Schools and Academies Trust

The Specialist Schools and Academies Trust is an independent, not-for-profit, membership organisation with headquarters in the United Kingdom, dedicated to raising standards and achievement in secondary schools in England and internationally...

 appointed its Director of Specialism as National Lead Practitioner Coordinator for Business & Enterprise.

Shorten retired in July 2006 and was succeeded by Perry Linsley, a deputy head from Bungay High School, who then left and was then succeeded by Andrew Bloom

The College's best-known alumnus is television journalist Amelia Reynolds.