Wakeman School
Encyclopedia
The Wakeman School and Arts College is a co-educational comprehensive school
located in Shrewsbury
, the county town
of Shropshire
, England
. The school is the only secondary school in the town centre, located just to the east of the English Bridge
. There are about 450 pupils on roll and the age range is 11–16 years.
The school has recently been awarded the ‘Artsmark Gold’ by Arts Council
England, and the development of a state-of-the-art recording and media studio for the school, as well as a new ICT facility, was completed during the summer holidays 2008.
Following its successful bid for specialist college status, the Wakeman School became the Wakeman School and Arts College, with specialisms in Visual and Performing Arts and Music.
The school's motto of 'Achievement through Caring' sums up its genuine inclusive and caring ethos and it is an ethos that is fundamental to its teaching. In its most recent inspection, in March 2011, Ofsted judged the school to be 'Good' with 'Outstanding' features. The report praised "the outstanding leadership of its headteacher" and wrote "This is a good school which has improved rapidly. All groups of students make at least good progress... Students, parents and carers repeatedly told inspectors that the school is one big, warm family." In 2011 the school progressed to 61.5% of students achieving at least 5 GCSEs at grades A* to C, including English and Maths.
On 7 September, Shropshire Council voted to close the school. Following this, on 23 September, the Lichfield Diocesan Board of Education announced that the decision was "questionable" and that it had referred the case to the office of the Schools' Adjudicator for review, taking it out of Shropshire Council's hands. The decision of the Church of England to intervene in the case of a non-church school is rare. Shropshire Council's proposal and consultation regarding the school are also being reviewed by the Local Government Ombudsman, and the school's Open Evening for new pupils for 2012 is on Thursday 29 September.
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...
located in Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury is the county town of Shropshire, in the West Midlands region of England. Lying on the River Severn, it is a civil parish home to some 70,000 inhabitants, and is the primary settlement and headquarters of Shropshire Council...
, the county town
County town
A county town is a county's administrative centre in the United Kingdom or Ireland. County towns are usually the location of administrative or judicial functions, or established over time as the de facto main town of a county. The concept of a county town eventually became detached from its...
of Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
, 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...
. The school is the only secondary school in the town centre, located just to the east of the English Bridge
English Bridge
The English Bridge is a masonry arch viaduct, crossing the River Severn in Shrewsbury, Shropshire. The present bridge is a 1926 rebuilding and widening of John Gwynn's design, completed in 1774. A bridge is known to have stood at this spot since at least Norman times. Historically, it was known as...
. There are about 450 pupils on roll and the age range is 11–16 years.
Arts council
An arts council is a government or private, non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the arts mainly by funding local artists, awarding prizes, and organizing events at home and abroad...
England, and the development of a state-of-the-art recording and media studio for the school, as well as a new ICT facility, was completed during the summer holidays 2008.
Following its successful bid for specialist college status, the Wakeman School became the Wakeman School and Arts College, with specialisms in Visual and Performing Arts and Music.
The school's motto of 'Achievement through Caring' sums up its genuine inclusive and caring ethos and it is an ethos that is fundamental to its teaching. In its most recent inspection, in March 2011, Ofsted judged the school to be 'Good' with 'Outstanding' features. The report praised "the outstanding leadership of its headteacher" and wrote "This is a good school which has improved rapidly. All groups of students make at least good progress... Students, parents and carers repeatedly told inspectors that the school is one big, warm family." In 2011 the school progressed to 61.5% of students achieving at least 5 GCSEs at grades A* to C, including English and Maths.
On 7 September, Shropshire Council voted to close the school. Following this, on 23 September, the Lichfield Diocesan Board of Education announced that the decision was "questionable" and that it had referred the case to the office of the Schools' Adjudicator for review, taking it out of Shropshire Council's hands. The decision of the Church of England to intervene in the case of a non-church school is rare. Shropshire Council's proposal and consultation regarding the school are also being reviewed by the Local Government Ombudsman, and the school's Open Evening for new pupils for 2012 is on Thursday 29 September.
- Wilfred OwenWilfred OwenWilfred Edward Salter Owen MC was an English poet and soldier, one of the leading poets of the First World War...