The Blue Coat School, Oldham
Encyclopedia
The Blue Coat School is a mixed gender Church of England
Academy for 11–18 year olds, located in the town of Oldham
, Greater Manchester
, England.
The school caters for pupils aged 11–18, offering A-level and GCSE
courses. It is one of the few schools in the country to hold Leading Edge Partnership programme and science college status. Prior to becoming leading edge, Blue Coat had been a beacon school
. This means the school has social responsibility to help develop other secondary schools in the area, as well as themselves.
The motto of the school is from the Latin: Semper Quaereamus Virtutem – "Let us always seek virtue".
, who died in 1810, left the sum of £40,000.29 (£ as of ) for the endowment of the Blue Coat School. The estate was tied up in litigation for many years but was eventually released. As no provision had been made for the cost of the building, a public meeting was held in Oldham in September 1825, when offers of land were received, and a public appeal was launched for funds to build the school. From the design of the architect Richard Lane
, a start was made in 1829 when the foundation stone was laid, and the school was opened in 1834. Throughout the remainder of the 19th century, the school continued to maintain and instruct between 100 and 130 boys.
In July 1952, the trustees decided that, as the number of boarders in residence was gradually decreasing, Blue Coat should be closed as a residential school and the building converted for use as a secondary modern day school. This plan was effected, and the school became co-educational accommodating approximately 400 students.
The Oldham Henshaw and Church of England Educational Trust, constituted in 1950, had as one of its aims the building and maintenance of new secondary schools, and one of its objectives was to provide a Special Agreement secondary school by extending and reorganising the Blue Coat into a comprehensive school. This plan was realised in September 1966 when the Blue Coat School became fully comprehensive. It is now a nine form entry voluntary aided
comprehensive school admitting 211 boys and girls each year, with a sixth form
, the majority of whom go on to Higher Education
. Voluntary aided status means that the governors of the school are responsible for the upkeep of all buildings and have to rely on the financial support and generosity of parents and friends of the school.
Also, the building near the entrance gates has been refurbished and had structural work done, forming a new building for more music activities, such as those who have music lessons (vocal, strings, brass and more) to improve musical abilities.
The Blue Coat school serves a broad catchment area, providing an education for those who live in the areas of Oldham
, Manchester
, Tameside
and Rochdale
. Physically, the school and is located within easy walking distance of Oldham Town Centre. Currently, there are around 1050 pupils in the main school, with an additional 200 in the sixth form. There are also almost 100 members of staff, teaching or otherwise.
During a school year, there are three communions
(Christmas, Easter and end of year) and the assemblies during the school time have a strong Christian theme. Reflecting the strong Christian ethos of the school, Religious Studies continues to be compulsory taught subject for pupils at GCSE level.
As is the case in most English secondary schools, in years seven to nine, pupils study a broad range of subjects in Key Stage 3
, before taking Standard Attainment Tests (SATs) in the core subjects of Mathematics, English and Science in year 9. These examinations test the competency of both the pupils' understanding of each subject as well as the standard of their teaching. Years ten and eleven Key Stage 4
involves work which leads to General Certificate of Secondary Education
(GCSE) qualifications. Pupils must take the core subjects of Mathematics
, English (Language and Literature), Science Double
or Triple
R.S, Religious Studies
. In addition to these, pupils are given the option of four more subjects, which could be an additional language, History, Geography, Drama Studies, Information Technology, Physical Education
, Business Studies
, or one of several Design and Technology courses. They will also choose a reserve subject, in case they cannot get in a class of one of the subjects or there isn't enough people to make a class. The reserve subject will then replace this subject.
After finishing GCSEs, further education is not compulsory. Pupils can choose to stay at the sixth form for years twelve and thirteen. Alternatively they could choose another sixth form college, such as Oldham Sixth Form College
or Ashton Sixth Form College
. However, some students look for work by this stage, for a variety of reasons. Should pupils stay on at Blue Coat in year 12, they will be required to choose four subjects to study for AS-level. The school currently offers around 30 different and diverse courses. In year 13, each student keeps at least three of these subjects for A2-level. Students will have the option of keeping all of their subjects through A2, doing three A2-levels and one new AS-level, or just three A2-levels in year 13. The intensity of sixth-form is high, with a large amount of coursework expected in each subject, as well as exams at the end of each year. This is in-line with the narrower and more focused nature of the AS and A2-level qualifications.
Having completed sixth form, students have several options. These include going to University
, finding work or taking a gap year
.
The most recent Ofsted
inspection was in 2008. The school received an outstanding report overall, receiving an excellent rating for teaching in several areas and for management and leadership. The Blue Coat School has the most successful state Sixth Form Centre in the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham
, from A/AS Level Results in 2007. The school has traditionally excelled in the league tables under measures of absolute GCSE and A-Level attainment. However the achievement gap between Bluecoat and other local schools is less-stark under the new contextual value added
measures of absolute educational progress, introduced by the UK government. In fact in 2008, Grange School in the town, achieved a higher level 2 CVA score than Blue Coat overall, despite having only a 28% GCSE pass rate compared with Bluecoat's 81%. Although it is to be cautioned that small differences in overall CVA scores may not be statistically significant, it is still interesting that schools with such differing GCSE performance overall could have such similar CVA scores.
Recently, the school website has been nominated for the TES
'Outstanding School Website of the Year', the badge is on Bloodle the school's VLE
.
; for all students within the school. When students join the school they are allocated to one of three houses - Birley Hall, Lord Mothersill and Rountree Wrigley - all named after former headteachers at the school. Students whose elder family members have studied at the school are usually put within the same houses as those relatives. In some cases both parents and children have studied at the Blue Coat School and have been in the same house as each other (in some more extreme cases, with the same head of house).
There are nine "forms" in the School between years seven and eleven, and each house looks after three. The names of the forms are Birley, Hall, Birley Hall, Lord, Mothersill, Lord Mothersill, Rountree, Wrigley, and Rountree Wrigley. They will then have their year number added onto the name of the form to get their exact form name e.g. Birley in year 7 is Birley 7, Rountree in year 11 is Rountree 11. In the sixth form, there are eight forms within each year.
Each house used to have a head and deputy, but despite still being allocated to houses, the students are now looked after in year groups. Each year group now has a Director of Learning. They look after pastoral care and discipline for students within that year. The school has House Coordinators to arrange and coordinate house events to ensure the school still retains its house system and to enable the students to retain their house identity.
The students have a twenty minute break after two, one hour lessons and a one hour break after a further two, one hour lessons then assembly then one more, one hour lesson.
The Year Eleven and Sixth Form students are expected to offer guidance and leadership to students in the lower years of the School. Older students are more likely to take an active part in the houses religious celebrations around Christmas and Easter.
The Sixth Form (Years 12 and 13) has an Assistant Head Teacher in overall charge supported by separate Heads of year. These take over the main pastoral responsibilities from the house heads for students within that year group . They also take on greater responsibilities for that year group such as preparing the student for external exams and guiding students on their future after leaving the School. They also write the reference for the student on application forms for higher education and jobs after leaving the school. The Sixth Form and year eleven and ten have their own social facilities.
Both Blue Coat, and also sister school Crompton House
in Shaw, have a consistently excellent track record of high achievement at GCSE and A-Level, in an area of entrenched educational underachievement. However both schools, have received heavy criticism in the past for their Christian-only admissions policies. These used to ensure that the children of non-Anglican families were excluded from the two best schools in the Oldham area on entirely religious grounds. This faith-based admissions policy proved controversial, and led to accusations that the predominantly white, Christian school was wholly unrepresentative of the ethnic makeup of the local area. It should be noted that approximately 25% of Oldham's 250,000 strong population consists of Muslim families, the majority of which are originally of Pakistani and Bangladeshi extraction
These policies caused the school to be thrust uncomfortably into the glare and scrutiny of the media spotlight in the aftermath of the Oldham Riots
, and the schools attracted criticism. The Liberal Democrat education spokesman Phil Willis
cited Blue Coat as an example of a school which has only a few non-white pupils despite being in a predominantly ethnic-minority area. This erroneous statement was made even though he had never visited the area, which is in a predominantly white working class area. Consequently both schools found themselves open to accusations of racism, and that they were helping to foster educational "apartheid" by helping to further perpetuate the high-levels of racial segregation in the town.
However, the admissions policy has changed markedly in recent years. The 2008 school admissions policy for Year 7 pupils welcomes applications from any religion that is part of the UK Inter-Faith Network This includes the Muslim, Sikh and Jewish faiths, along with many others. This document states that applications from members of these faiths will be judged using the same criteria as for Christian applicants.
Even with this recent change in policy to broaden the basis of selection, the fact still remains that Blue Coat is still effectively a selective school albeit on religious rather than financial or academic grounds. As might be expected, church schools such as Blue Coat are keen to stress their egalitarian philosophy and principles, and the good work performed by school pupils in the local community. To the school's credit it is a regular supporter of many local good causes, with Rochdale Hospice in particular traditionally being a major benefactor.
As might be expected though, this central pillar of the school's admission policy has made it an easy target for critics of religious selection who have sought to criticise the school in the past. Such critics typically seek to argue that although selection exclusively on religious grounds might seem outwardly egalitarian, it actually does just as much to reinforce inequality as the academic selection practiced by grammar schools or the implicit financial selection inherent in independent schools. However in terms of its admissions policies, Bluecoat is arguably no different from any number of similar faith schools across the UK who maintain similar admissions practices. Indeed given the recent changes to the school's policies there is a good case to be made that is more equitable than most. Unfortunately, Bluecoat has had this misfortune of being located in an area that suffered from a race riot, which has inevitably led to a spotlight being focussed on the school's policies at a national level. Such attention has arguably made it an 'easy target' for such criticism.
Despite the change in admissions criteria to include those of other faiths, as of 2010 Blue Coat School has not admitted any pupils that are not regular attenders at Anglican churches for the past two years. Extract from their Guidance to Parents on Admissions:
The following information is offered as an indication of patterns and trends.
Criteria 4 is defined by the school as, "Children whose parent (s) or legal guardian (s) show evidence[1] that the child and one parent/ legal guardian are active members of the Church of England, by a worship attendance of not less than fortnightly over a period of three years as of 31st August 2010. “Fortnightly” means attendance at least 24 weekly services per year."
Criticisms of this are:
An example of this is the following parent's comment on Richard Dawkin's attack on Faith Schools:
"I think you’re mistaking parents who send their children to CofE or RCC church primaries for believers when many are not. All over the country determined and motivated parents attend “feeder” churches to ensure their children meet the entry requirements for the best primaries. These churches are packed with young families. Once the children are older, and the school places obtained, the family’s church attendance drops off or ceases entirely, only to be replaced in the pew by the next ambitious young family."
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
Academy for 11–18 year olds, located in the town of Oldham
Oldham
Oldham is a large town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amid the Pennines on elevated ground between the rivers Irk and Medlock, south-southeast of Rochdale, and northeast of the city of Manchester...
, Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
, England.
The school caters for pupils aged 11–18, offering A-level and GCSE
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...
courses. It is one of the few schools in the country to hold Leading Edge Partnership programme and science college status. Prior to becoming leading edge, Blue Coat had been a beacon school
Beacon School
Beacon School was a government designation awarded to outstanding primary and secondary schools in England and Wales from 1998 to August 2005. The Beacon Schools programme identified schools that were examples of good practice and funded those schools to enable them to build partnerships with each...
. This means the school has social responsibility to help develop other secondary schools in the area, as well as themselves.
The motto of the school is from the Latin: Semper Quaereamus Virtutem – "Let us always seek virtue".
History
Thomas HenshawThomas Henshaw (benefactor)
Thomas Henshaw was an English hatter from Oldham, Lancashire. He bequeathed the funds for the foundation of Blue Coat School in Oldham and Henshaws Society for Blind People.-Early life:...
, who died in 1810, left the sum of £40,000.29 (£ as of ) for the endowment of the Blue Coat School. The estate was tied up in litigation for many years but was eventually released. As no provision had been made for the cost of the building, a public meeting was held in Oldham in September 1825, when offers of land were received, and a public appeal was launched for funds to build the school. From the design of the architect Richard Lane
Richard Lane (architect)
Richard Lane was a distinguished English architect of the early and mid 19th century. Born in London and based in Manchester, he was known in great part for his restrained and austere Greek-inspired classicism. He also designed a few buildings – mainly churches – in the Gothic style...
, a start was made in 1829 when the foundation stone was laid, and the school was opened in 1834. Throughout the remainder of the 19th century, the school continued to maintain and instruct between 100 and 130 boys.
In July 1952, the trustees decided that, as the number of boarders in residence was gradually decreasing, Blue Coat should be closed as a residential school and the building converted for use as a secondary modern day school. This plan was effected, and the school became co-educational accommodating approximately 400 students.
The Oldham Henshaw and Church of England Educational Trust, constituted in 1950, had as one of its aims the building and maintenance of new secondary schools, and one of its objectives was to provide a Special Agreement secondary school by extending and reorganising the Blue Coat into a comprehensive school. This plan was realised in September 1966 when the Blue Coat School became fully comprehensive. It is now a nine form entry voluntary aided
Voluntary aided school
A voluntary aided school is a state-funded school in England and Wales in which a foundation or trust owns the school buildings, contributes to building costs and has a substantial influence in the running of the school...
comprehensive school admitting 211 boys and girls each year, with a sixth form
Sixth form
In the education systems of England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, and of Commonwealth West Indian countries such as Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Belize, Jamaica and Malta, the sixth form is the final two years of secondary education, where students, usually sixteen to eighteen years of age,...
, the majority of whom go on to Higher Education
Higher education
Higher, post-secondary, tertiary, or third level education refers to the stage of learning that occurs at universities, academies, colleges, seminaries, and institutes of technology...
. Voluntary aided status means that the governors of the school are responsible for the upkeep of all buildings and have to rely on the financial support and generosity of parents and friends of the school.
Current information
Recent government grants have enabled the school to venture into a multi-million pound building scheme. So far additions have been a wheelchair lift to increase disabled access; and the reconstruction and further reconstruction of the school's main entrance. In 1994 the school completed a major fund-raising campaign, enabling it to build a new science department building, which was completed in 1995. Completed in 2005, the new multi-million pound sports hall opened on the west side of the school grounds, and due to this increase in PE space, the school has converted the old girls' gym into the new whole-school restaurant, also this building was extended with more eating areas downstairs, and a second floor mezzanine for the 6th form students. With the whole school catered for in the restaurant, the house block which contained the old cantines was closed down. This has now been turned from a dated 1960s 6 classroom building into a 12 classroom 21st century building still housing the 3 houses on each floor.Also, the building near the entrance gates has been refurbished and had structural work done, forming a new building for more music activities, such as those who have music lessons (vocal, strings, brass and more) to improve musical abilities.
The Blue Coat school serves a broad catchment area, providing an education for those who live in the areas of Oldham
Oldham
Oldham is a large town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amid the Pennines on elevated ground between the rivers Irk and Medlock, south-southeast of Rochdale, and northeast of the city of Manchester...
, Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, Tameside
Tameside
The Metropolitan Borough of Tameside is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester in North West England. It is named after the River Tame which flows through the borough and spans the towns of Ashton-under-Lyne, Audenshaw, Denton, Droylsden, Dukinfield, Hyde, Mossley and Stalybridge. Its western...
and Rochdale
Rochdale
Rochdale is a large market town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the foothills of the Pennines on the River Roch, north-northwest of Oldham, and north-northeast of the city of Manchester. Rochdale is surrounded by several smaller settlements which together form the Metropolitan...
. Physically, the school and is located within easy walking distance of Oldham Town Centre. Currently, there are around 1050 pupils in the main school, with an additional 200 in the sixth form. There are also almost 100 members of staff, teaching or otherwise.
During a school year, there are three communions
Eucharist
The Eucharist , also called Holy Communion, the Sacrament of the Altar, the Blessed Sacrament, the Lord's Supper, and other names, is a Christian sacrament or ordinance...
(Christmas, Easter and end of year) and the assemblies during the school time have a strong Christian theme. Reflecting the strong Christian ethos of the school, Religious Studies continues to be compulsory taught subject for pupils at GCSE level.
As is the case in most English secondary schools, in years seven to nine, pupils study a broad range of subjects in Key Stage 3
Key Stage 3
Key Stage 3 is the legal term for the three years of schooling in maintained schools in England and Wales normally known as Year 7, Year 8 and Year 9, when pupils are aged between 11 and 14...
, before taking Standard Attainment Tests (SATs) in the core subjects of Mathematics, English and Science in year 9. These examinations test the competency of both the pupils' understanding of each subject as well as the standard of their teaching. Years ten and eleven Key Stage 4
Key Stage 4
Key Stage 4 is the legal term for the two years of school education which incorporate GCSEs, and other exams, in maintained schools in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland—normally known as Year 10 and Year 11 in England and Wales, and Year 11 and Year 12 in Northern Ireland, when pupils are...
involves work which leads to 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...
(GCSE) qualifications. Pupils must take the core subjects of Mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
, English (Language and Literature), Science Double
Double Award Science
In the United Kingdom, Double Award Science is the combined study of GCSE biology, chemistry and physics that results in two GCSEs. The double award is not as in-depth as studying the individual sciences, and unfortunately a pupil choosing this subject has fewer subjects to choose from at GCSE...
or Triple
Triple Award Science
Triple Award Science is the name for a course in the United Kingdom which delivers three separate GCSEs in Biology, Chemistry and Physics.The course is usually studied throughout Years 10 and 11, but may be started in the latter stages of Year 9...
R.S, Religious Studies
Religious studies
Religious studies is the academic field of multi-disciplinary, secular study of religious beliefs, behaviors, and institutions. It describes, compares, interprets, and explains religion, emphasizing systematic, historically based, and cross-cultural perspectives.While theology attempts to...
. In addition to these, pupils are given the option of four more subjects, which could be an additional language, History, Geography, Drama Studies, Information Technology, Physical Education
Physical education
Physical education or gymnastics is a course taken during primary and secondary education that encourages psychomotor learning in a play or movement exploration setting....
, Business Studies
Business studies
Business studies is an academic subject taught at higher level in Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe and the United Kingdom, as well as at university level in many countries...
, or one of several Design and Technology courses. They will also choose a reserve subject, in case they cannot get in a class of one of the subjects or there isn't enough people to make a class. The reserve subject will then replace this subject.
After finishing GCSEs, further education is not compulsory. Pupils can choose to stay at the sixth form for years twelve and thirteen. Alternatively they could choose another sixth form college, such as Oldham Sixth Form College
Oldham Sixth Form College
Oldham Sixth Form College is a government-funded college of further education in Oldham in Greater Manchester, England. Opened in 1992 as a specialist centre for advanced-level study, the Principal of the college is Jayne Clarke....
or Ashton Sixth Form College
Ashton Sixth Form College
Ashton-under-Lyne Sixth Form College is a sixth form college located in Ashton-under-Lyne in Greater Manchester, England.-Admissions:The college mostly accepts students graduating from the two secondary schools in Ashton-under-Lyne, as well as from the larger Tameside area...
. However, some students look for work by this stage, for a variety of reasons. Should pupils stay on at Blue Coat in year 12, they will be required to choose four subjects to study for AS-level. The school currently offers around 30 different and diverse courses. In year 13, each student keeps at least three of these subjects for A2-level. Students will have the option of keeping all of their subjects through A2, doing three A2-levels and one new AS-level, or just three A2-levels in year 13. The intensity of sixth-form is high, with a large amount of coursework expected in each subject, as well as exams at the end of each year. This is in-line with the narrower and more focused nature of the AS and A2-level qualifications.
Having completed sixth form, students have several options. These include going to University
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
, finding work or taking a gap year
Gap year
An expression or phrase that is associated with taking time out to travel in between life stages. It is also known as sabbatical, time off and time out that refers to a period of time in which students disengage from curricular education and undertake non curricular activities, such as travel or...
.
The most recent Ofsted
Office for Standards in Education
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 ....
inspection was in 2008. The school received an outstanding report overall, receiving an excellent rating for teaching in several areas and for management and leadership. The Blue Coat School has the most successful state Sixth Form Centre in the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham
Metropolitan Borough of Oldham
The Metropolitan Borough of Oldham is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It has a population of 219,600, and spans . The borough is named after its largest town, Oldham, but also includes the outlying towns of Chadderton, Failsworth, Royton and Shaw and Crompton, the village of...
, from A/AS Level Results in 2007. The school has traditionally excelled in the league tables under measures of absolute GCSE and A-Level attainment. However the achievement gap between Bluecoat and other local schools is less-stark under the new contextual value added
Contextual value added
Contextual value added is a statistic used by the government of the United Kingdom to assess the performance of schools.The statistic is intended to show the progress children have made whilst attending a particular school...
measures of absolute educational progress, introduced by the UK government. In fact in 2008, Grange School in the town, achieved a higher level 2 CVA score than Blue Coat overall, despite having only a 28% GCSE pass rate compared with Bluecoat's 81%. Although it is to be cautioned that small differences in overall CVA scores may not be statistically significant, it is still interesting that schools with such differing GCSE performance overall could have such similar CVA scores.
Recently, the school website has been nominated for the TES
Times Educational Supplement
The Times Educational Supplement is a weekly UK publication aimed primarily at school teachers in the UK. It was first published in 1910 as a pull-out supplement in The Times newspaper. Such was its popularity that in 1914, the supplement became a separate publication selling for 1 penny.The TES...
'Outstanding School Website of the Year', the badge is on Bloodle the school's VLE
Virtual learning environment
Defined largely by usage, the term virtual learning environment has most, if not all, of the following salient properties:* It is Web-based* It uses Web 2.0 tools for rich 2-way interaction* It includes a content management system...
.
Pastoral care
Blue Coat School uses a house systemHouse 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...
; for all students within the school. When students join the school they are allocated to one of three houses - Birley Hall, Lord Mothersill and Rountree Wrigley - all named after former headteachers at the school. Students whose elder family members have studied at the school are usually put within the same houses as those relatives. In some cases both parents and children have studied at the Blue Coat School and have been in the same house as each other (in some more extreme cases, with the same head of house).
There are nine "forms" in the School between years seven and eleven, and each house looks after three. The names of the forms are Birley, Hall, Birley Hall, Lord, Mothersill, Lord Mothersill, Rountree, Wrigley, and Rountree Wrigley. They will then have their year number added onto the name of the form to get their exact form name e.g. Birley in year 7 is Birley 7, Rountree in year 11 is Rountree 11. In the sixth form, there are eight forms within each year.
Each house used to have a head and deputy, but despite still being allocated to houses, the students are now looked after in year groups. Each year group now has a Director of Learning. They look after pastoral care and discipline for students within that year. The school has House Coordinators to arrange and coordinate house events to ensure the school still retains its house system and to enable the students to retain their house identity.
The students have a twenty minute break after two, one hour lessons and a one hour break after a further two, one hour lessons then assembly then one more, one hour lesson.
The Year Eleven and Sixth Form students are expected to offer guidance and leadership to students in the lower years of the School. Older students are more likely to take an active part in the houses religious celebrations around Christmas and Easter.
The Sixth Form (Years 12 and 13) has an Assistant Head Teacher in overall charge supported by separate Heads of year. These take over the main pastoral responsibilities from the house heads for students within that year group . They also take on greater responsibilities for that year group such as preparing the student for external exams and guiding students on their future after leaving the School. They also write the reference for the student on application forms for higher education and jobs after leaving the school. The Sixth Form and year eleven and ten have their own social facilities.
Senior Students
Since 2008, at the end of their lower 6th year (year 12), student's in the sixth form are able to apply for a position as a senior student. These positions include the house captains as well as the head boy and head girl. They are responsible for taking a leading role in school life and representing the school at various community events. In 2008 this included the Head Boy Ryan Wan and Head Girl Olivia Price appearing on TV during The Royal British Legion's "Festival of Remembrance".Annual events
- Founder's Day - The commemoration of the school's founder Thomas Henshaw. This is usually held towards the end of July and involves the school's pupils parading in front of the residents of Oldham as they march down to the parish churchOldham Parish ChurchThe Oldham Parish Church of St. Mary with St. Peter is the Church of England parish church for Oldham in Greater Manchester, England. It forms part of the Diocese of Manchester, and is one of several Grade II* listed buildings in Greater Manchester....
. Here, there is a service which recognises the achievements of the founder, with a wreath laid at "the Old Blues' Grave". The assembled school then proceeds back to the grounds of the school where a wreath is laid in front of Henshaw's statue.
- Speech Night - Usually held on the second Friday in November, this recognises the achievements of pupils over the past academic year. Notable feature of the ceremony are the speech by the headteacher and the many awards given to pupils for the previous year's work. Over previous years, the ceremony has taken place at Manchester Cathedral and Oldham's Queen Elizabeth Hall.
- Christmas Fayre - It occurs on the last academic day of the year and the pupils are encouraged to raise money for charity by paying to wear non-uniform, watch/take part in a talent show and buy items at the fayre itself. Over £6000 is raised in the one day benefiting 3 charities nominated by the pupils there is also a staff pantomime
- Community (service) Day - This occurs towards the end of the year. It involves pupils integrating on a social plane. A typical day may involve picking up litter inside the school grounds (encouraging social responsibility), playing softball (encouraging teamwork), clearing rivers and other community activities. Before the days of Julie Hollis, this was known as 'Activities Day' and involved pupils choosing to go to one of a variety of school trips run by members of the staff. It was changed to Community Day in 2002 due to the worry that some pupils would not be able to afford the more expensive trips and to encourage a positive work ethic amongst pupils.
- Work Experience- This is usually a week-long time where pupils in Year 10 participate in schemes in the work place. This usually occurs in June during "special week"
Admissions policy and criticism
The area in Oldham where the school is based consists predominantly of the most deprived areas in the North West. However despite this local deprivation it is unclear, to what extent local pupils benefit from the presence of the school. This is an unfortunate side-effect of the school's policy of religious selection - in many cases those who live closest to the school are denied access with their places assigned to students who live further away, but better meet the School's arbitrary religious selection criteria. For this reason the catchment area of the school is very broad, and extends over much of Rochdale, Oldham, Manchester and Tameside.Both Blue Coat, and also sister school Crompton House
Crompton House
Crompton House Church of England High School is a mixed gender voluntary aided Church of England secondary school and sixth form for 11–18 year olds, located in the High Crompton area of Shaw and Crompton in the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, Greater Manchester, England...
in Shaw, have a consistently excellent track record of high achievement at GCSE and A-Level, in an area of entrenched educational underachievement. However both schools, have received heavy criticism in the past for their Christian-only admissions policies. These used to ensure that the children of non-Anglican families were excluded from the two best schools in the Oldham area on entirely religious grounds. This faith-based admissions policy proved controversial, and led to accusations that the predominantly white, Christian school was wholly unrepresentative of the ethnic makeup of the local area. It should be noted that approximately 25% of Oldham's 250,000 strong population consists of Muslim families, the majority of which are originally of Pakistani and Bangladeshi extraction
These policies caused the school to be thrust uncomfortably into the glare and scrutiny of the media spotlight in the aftermath of the Oldham Riots
Oldham Riots
The Oldham riots were a short but intense period of violent rioting which occurred in Oldham, a town in Greater Manchester, England, in May 2001...
, and the schools attracted criticism. The Liberal Democrat education spokesman Phil Willis
Phil Willis
George Philip Willis, Baron Willis of Knaresborough is a politician in the United Kingdom. He is a Liberal Democrat member of the House of Lords, and was Member of Parliament for Harrogate and Knaresborough from 1997 until retiring at the 2010 general election...
cited Blue Coat as an example of a school which has only a few non-white pupils despite being in a predominantly ethnic-minority area. This erroneous statement was made even though he had never visited the area, which is in a predominantly white working class area. Consequently both schools found themselves open to accusations of racism, and that they were helping to foster educational "apartheid" by helping to further perpetuate the high-levels of racial segregation in the town.
However, the admissions policy has changed markedly in recent years. The 2008 school admissions policy for Year 7 pupils welcomes applications from any religion that is part of the UK Inter-Faith Network This includes the Muslim, Sikh and Jewish faiths, along with many others. This document states that applications from members of these faiths will be judged using the same criteria as for Christian applicants.
Even with this recent change in policy to broaden the basis of selection, the fact still remains that Blue Coat is still effectively a selective school albeit on religious rather than financial or academic grounds. As might be expected, church schools such as Blue Coat are keen to stress their egalitarian philosophy and principles, and the good work performed by school pupils in the local community. To the school's credit it is a regular supporter of many local good causes, with Rochdale Hospice in particular traditionally being a major benefactor.
As might be expected though, this central pillar of the school's admission policy has made it an easy target for critics of religious selection who have sought to criticise the school in the past. Such critics typically seek to argue that although selection exclusively on religious grounds might seem outwardly egalitarian, it actually does just as much to reinforce inequality as the academic selection practiced by grammar schools or the implicit financial selection inherent in independent schools. However in terms of its admissions policies, Bluecoat is arguably no different from any number of similar faith schools across the UK who maintain similar admissions practices. Indeed given the recent changes to the school's policies there is a good case to be made that is more equitable than most. Unfortunately, Bluecoat has had this misfortune of being located in an area that suffered from a race riot, which has inevitably led to a spotlight being focussed on the school's policies at a national level. Such attention has arguably made it an 'easy target' for such criticism.
Despite the change in admissions criteria to include those of other faiths, as of 2010 Blue Coat School has not admitted any pupils that are not regular attenders at Anglican churches for the past two years. Extract from their Guidance to Parents on Admissions:
The following information is offered as an indication of patterns and trends.
- In 2007 all Anglican applicants were admitted. Thirteen applicants from Churches Together in Britain and Ireland were admitted.
- In 2008 only Anglicans up to and inclusive of Criteria 4 were admitted.
- In 2009 only Anglicans up to and inclusive of Criteria 4 were admitted.
Criteria 4 is defined by the school as, "Children whose parent (s) or legal guardian (s) show evidence[1] that the child and one parent/ legal guardian are active members of the Church of England, by a worship attendance of not less than fortnightly over a period of three years as of 31st August 2010. “Fortnightly” means attendance at least 24 weekly services per year."
Criticisms of this are:
- Exclusion of the children from socially deprived backgrounds
- Unrepresentative of ethnically diverse population, which can lead to racial tensions between schools
- Pressurising families from socially deprived areas to attend Anglican churches for the sole purpose of securing a place for their child in a good school
- Failure to apply the core ethos of the school as demonstrated in criticisms 1-3.
An example of this is the following parent's comment on Richard Dawkin's attack on Faith Schools:
"I think you’re mistaking parents who send their children to CofE or RCC church primaries for believers when many are not. All over the country determined and motivated parents attend “feeder” churches to ensure their children meet the entry requirements for the best primaries. These churches are packed with young families. Once the children are older, and the school places obtained, the family’s church attendance drops off or ceases entirely, only to be replaced in the pew by the next ambitious young family."
Buildings
- Main Building - the original structure from the 19th century and designed by Richard LaneRichard Lane (architect)Richard Lane was a distinguished English architect of the early and mid 19th century. Born in London and based in Manchester, he was known in great part for his restrained and austere Greek-inspired classicism. He also designed a few buildings – mainly churches – in the Gothic style...
. Contains the school library, and also holds the maths classrooms and staff rooms. - Main Hall - Used for most assemblies, and also school concerts and performances. The surrounding rooms are used as music classrooms, rehearsal space and a drama theatre.
- North East Building (formally known as Junior Block) - A three story structure which contains twelve classrooms, used to teach English and RS. Recently part of the roof blew off in the high winds of January 2007, and pupils were forced to evacuate the area in and around the block Fortunately nobody was hurt.
- Kirkman House - the old vicars house, contains many classrooms, designated for sixth form classes. Also has a secret staircase leading to the attic of the building.
- Art and Technology Block. - Contains the art classrooms, as well as design technology, product design, graphics, food and textiles.and one it classroom
- House Block - Three stories each belonging to one of the three year groups in ks3. The top floor is run by year 7, the middle by year 8 and the bottom by year 9. The space is mainly used socially at lunch times, also since the recent refurbishment geography, history, maths and MFL departments have moved into the building.it also houses the ks3 lockers.
- Sports Hall - the newest edition to the school. Containing a huge sports hall, 2 classrooms changing rooms and staff facilities.
- Restaurant - previously the gym, on one side is the whole school restaurant, and on the other side the recently refurbished old boys gym, and now upstairs the 6th form mezzanine (mezz) used during study periods and at lunch and break times by the 6th form.
- Science Block- A three-storey building with rooms dedicated to science teaching. The cellar has recently been converted into a social space for pupils in year 10. However the third story is off limits to students.
- IT building - the downstairs is mainly used as a social space for year 11 pupils. Upstairs contains IT and business studies classrooms.
- JT Block- Used for Modern Foreign Languages a pre fabricated building on the west of the school
- Sociology Block - contains two modern classrooms equipped with store rooms dedicated to each classroom. It is used to teach social sciences such as psychology and sociology. Teachers such as Miss A Ash and Mrs S Devine now teach there. Commonly known amongst pupils and staff as 'the huts'.
- The Lodge - built around the same time as the main building, situated at the bottom of the drive, as a gatehouse. This was the caretakers lodge, but has now been converted into a set of music practice rooms.and is used for music lessons.
Notable members of staff
- Tony BallantyneTony BallantyneTony Ballantyne is a British science-fiction author known for his debut trilogy of novels, including Recursion, Capacity and Divergence...
- AuthorAuthorAn author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
, best known for writing the novel RecursionRecursion (novel)Recursion is Tony Ballantyne's first novel. It is in the science fiction genre and follows three separate characters and their stories in a futuristic dystopia....
. - Tony WilsonTony WilsonAnthony Howard Wilson, commonly known as Tony Wilson , was an English record label owner, radio presenter, TV show host, nightclub manager, impresario and journalist for Granada Television and the BBC....
- acclaimed record label owner, radio presenter, TV show host, nightclub manager, impresario and journalist was a teacher of English and Drama in 1968.
Notable alumni
- Stephen BywaterStephen BywaterStephen Michael Bywater, is an English professional football player who plays as a goalkeeper. He has made appearances for seven clubs, most notably his current club Derby County, where he won the 2007 Championship Playoff final and West Ham United, where he spent eight seasons and made over 60...
- A notable football player, Stephen was signed for West Ham UnitedWest Ham United F.C.West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London. They play in The Football League Championship. The club was founded in 1895 as Thames Ironworks FC and reformed in 1900 as West Ham United. In 1904 the club relocated to their current...
in 1997, after being spotted by a talent scout whilst training for Rochdale A.F.C.Rochdale A.F.C.Rochdale Association Football Club is an English professional football club based in Rochdale, Greater Manchester. They play their home matches at Spotland Stadium. Formed in 1907, they were accepted into the Football League in 1921...
. He now plays at Derby CountyDerby County F.C.Derby County Football Club is an English football based in Derby. the club play in the Football League Championship and is notable as being one of the twelve founder members of the Football League in 1888 and is, therefore, one of only ten clubs to have competed in every season of the English... - Matthew WolfendenMatthew WolfendenMatthew 'Matty' Wolfenden is an English footballer currently playing for FC United of Manchester. Wolfenden started out at Oldham Athletic, his hometown club, before moving to Wales to play for Wrexham in the summer of 2009.-Early life:...
- Another footballer, Wolfenden is currently a player for FC United of Manchester after beginning his senior career at Oldham Athletic A.F.C.Oldham Athletic A.F.C.Oldham Athletic Association Football Club is an English association football club based at Boundary Park, on Sheepfoot Lane in Oldham, Greater Manchester. The club currently competes in the Football League One, the third tier of the English league... - Alex CarterAlex Carter (British actor)Alex Carter is an English actor and radio presenter.Carter got his TV break in 1999 when he was cast as Craig Harrison in 9 episodes of the Sunday evening drama Where the Heart Is. He then had a small walk on role in Coronation Street...
- drama student who attended Blue Coat, Alex played 17 year old Lee Hunter in the televisionTelevisionTelevision is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
programme HollyoaksHollyoaksHollyoaks is a long-running British television soap opera, first broadcast on Channel 4 on 23 October 1995. It was originally devised by Phil Redmond, who has also devised shows including Brookside and Grange Hill...
, aired on Channel 4Channel 4Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
, before joining the cast of EmmerdaleEmmerdaleEmmerdale, is a long-running British soap opera set in Emmerdale , a fictional village in the Yorkshire Dales. Created by Kevin Laffan, Emmerdale was first broadcast on 16 October 1972...
in 2006. Prior to joining Hollyoaks in 2001 he appeared in Adam's Family TreeAdam's Family TreeAdam's Family Tree was a children's television comedy programme that was first broadcast in January 1997 and ran until February 1999. The show was broadcast on CITV, the children's segment of ITV. The show ran for three series. The series was filmed in Yorkshire....
and Where the Heart IsWhere the Heart Is (1997 TV series)Where the Heart Is is a British television drama series set in the fictional town Skelthwaite.First shown in 1997, it was created by Ashley Pharoah and Vicky Featherstone...
on TV as well as some plays for Radio 4BBC Radio 4BBC Radio 4 is a British domestic radio station, operated and owned by the BBC, that broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history. It replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. The station controller is currently Gwyneth Williams, and the...
. - Dale Longworth - of the group N-TranceN-TranceN-Trance are a British electronic music group, from Oldham, Greater Manchester, who were formed by Kevin O'Toole and Dale Longworth, in 1990. The group has sold over 5 million records worldwide and some of their hit singles include "Set You Free", "Forever", as well as covers of the popular 1970s...
- Stephen J. GordonStephen GordonStephen Gordon, Steven Gordon or Steve Gordon is the name of:*Stephen Paul Gordon , Security Specialist, class of 1977*Stephen J. Gordon , English chess grandmaster*Stephen P...
(born 4 September 1986) is a chess Grandmaster. In September 2004, he took a break from his A-level studies of Further Mathematics and Physics to compete in the thirteenth Monarch Assurance Isle of Man International Championship, where he achieved 33rd place. - Sarah Howarth - Sarah has appeared in the BBC television series Robin HoodRobin HoodRobin Hood was a heroic outlaw in English folklore. A highly skilled archer and swordsman, he is known for "robbing from the rich and giving to the poor", assisted by a group of fellow outlaws known as his "Merry Men". Traditionally, Robin Hood and his men are depicted wearing Lincoln green clothes....
playing the character of Rosa. She has also previously appeared in Coronation StreetCoronation StreetCoronation Street is a British soap opera set in Weatherfield, a fictional town in Greater Manchester based on Salford. Created by Tony Warren, Coronation Street was first broadcast on 9 December 1960...
.
External links
- The Blue Coat School Web Site
- Bloodle - The Blue Coat School VLE Virtual Learning EnvironmentVirtual learning environmentDefined largely by usage, the term virtual learning environment has most, if not all, of the following salient properties:* It is Web-based* It uses Web 2.0 tools for rich 2-way interaction* It includes a content management system...
- - The Blue Coat School Home Access