- Nailsea School
-
Nailsea School 
Established 1959 Type Mixed State school Headteacher Mr David New Chair of Governors Mrs Sally-Ann Hancock Specialism Technology and Media Location Mizzymead Road
Nailsea
North Somerset
BS48 2HN
United KingdomLocal authority North Somerset DfE URN 109310 Ofsted Reports Students 1,216 Ages 11–18 Houses Dragon, Phoenix, Unicorn, Griffin Website nailseaschool.com Nailsea School, located in Nailsea, North Somerset, England, is a mixed, comprehensive secondary school and sixth form. It has Technology and Media Arts College specialist school status.
Nailsea School was opened in 1959 as a grammar school with just over 90 students. In 1966 the school became a Secondary Comprehensive,[1] catering for students from 11 to 18 years[2]
In 2006, the school population was more than 1,350, with a planned admission number of 240 students per year. The current enrolment is 1,216.[3]
In 2009, a brand new building was opened to house the school.
Contents
Academic performance
2006
Its A/AS-Level performance and pupils' improvement was only slightly below the national average, and its overall performance then was 4th in North Somerset.[4]
2007
In 2007, its GCSE performance rose by 8%[5] from 51% to 65%.
Its A/AS-Level points rose [5] and its overall performance was maintained as 4th in North Somerset.[6]
2009
In 2009, described by the school as a 'truly outstanding year', 74% of year 11 students achieved 5 A* to C grades at GCSE.[7] This represents the highest achievement at GCSE level in the school's history, despite the possible disruption caused by the impending move to the new school site.
2009 saw excellent results from the Nailsea School Sixth Form students. Six students achieved at least three A grades at A-level with one fifth of all exams taken by the students resulting in A grades. 62 per cent were at least a C grade.[8] In addition, 6 A Level students achieved offers from Oxbridge.
2010
GCSE results at the school broke all previous records set by previous year groups. The results for 2010 showed that 79% of students gained at least five grades at A*-C,[9] while 65% obtained five A* to C including maths and English.
Nailsea School Sixth Form students also obtained excellent results in 2010. Nailsea School staff described this year's A-level results as 'outstanding' as they beat records set last year.[10] Almost 79 per cent of all students achieved A*-C grades. 12 per cent of students achieved three or more A or A* grades. Six students gained places at either Oxford or Cambridge, while one student obtained a place at the Royal Academy of Music.
New building 2007–2010
In September 2006 Nailsea School was selected to be one of the schools in the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) project funded by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES). This approximately £28.8 million fund was one of the largest projects taken to date.[11] The new building, which now houses the whole school, was constructed within the grounds and completely replaced the previous buildings. The opening coincided with the celebration of Nailsea School's 50th year anniversary.
The new building comprises accommodation for all the students, and includes a dedicated Sixth Form area for years 12 and 13. The lower floor has a large walk through atrium, allowing access to the library and social areas. The building has a state-of-the art 350 seat theatre which is used for school performances, such as plays, fashions shows and music events. Science teaching can make use of a 150 seat lecture theatre and two large super-laboratories for practical work. Music has its own dedicated space with practice rooms as well as a recording studio. Sports facilities include a sports hall, a dance studio with a sprung floor and ballet bar, and a 4th generation rubber-crumb all-weather pitch for a variety of team sports. Outdoor facilities also include a running track around the playing field and a courtyard garden, designed by the some of the students of the school.[12]
The annual Nailsea School Community Showcase was held at the new school building for the first time in March 2010.[13]
The new building was officially opened by His Royal Highness the Duke of Gloucester in September 2010.[14]
Press coverage
During the lead up to the new school being built students were invited to contribute to the discussion about the facilities that they wished to see in the new school.[15]
During 2009 an issue about a brand of trousers caused controversy. Mr New, Headteacher, ruled that that "Miss Sexy" trousers were unacceptable and they have been banned from the school, as they revealed the shape of the students underwear and created a "negative impression" of the school.[16] To coincide with the move to the new building a new uniform was designed by the students of the school and from September 2010 all students are wearing the uniform they chose. However, in September 2010, an issue concerning the banning of short skirts caused controversy when the parents of one of the students claimed that the recommended retailer for school uniforms did not stock a skirt which fitted their daughter and conformed to the school rules, and that because of their daughter's size it was difficult to find such a skirt.[17][18][19]
The summer of 2010 saw an It's a Knockout competition being held at Nailsea School.[20] This event was organised to raise money for the Livingstone Tanzania Trust. The trophy was won by a group of former students - their team was called Team Marine.
Notable alumni
- Professor Nigel Thrift PhD DSc FBA, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Warwick and distinguished geographer.[1][21]
- Claire Perry MP - Conservative Member of Parliament for Devizes.
Nailsea School Radio
Nailsea School Radio Broadcast area Nailsea Slogan The Heart of the Community Format Speakers inside Nailsea School / Live Streams Owner Nailsea School Webcast http://www.nsradio.co.uk Website http://www.nsradio.co.uk - Nailsea School Radio or NSR is a student led Internet radio station broadcasting from Nailsea School in North Somerset.
The station started out as an idea by a Nailsea School pupil, Edd Burrell, who drew up a business case including budget and predicted costs before approaching the school to seek support.[22] He and a small team then began to create pilot episodes to show if the station would be viable in June 2007. In January 2008 the school approved the team's application and began to fund the radio station through its Technology and Media Arts College specialist school status. The team then worked on creating weekly podcasts until September 2008 where NSR in its current format was born, with daily live shows.
The station's primary output is aimed at the pupils of the school, with its daytime output consisting of school news and current hit music. After school output can vary, from the Live Requests Show to more specialist shows such as the Genre Show.[23] All the shows are created by the pupils, with students taking all roles within the station from presenting, producing, Web design, journalism and the station management. Currently the station has over 22 pupils working with the project.[24]
The station also takes part in many community based broadcasts covering a wide array of events within Nailsea and the wider area. As a specialist school status project, the station is constantly evolving by trying new technology and training its team with strong links to the schools media department offering advice on media practices.
A typical fortnight's output currently has 19 shows (approximately 1 hour per show), but will be expanding to a full 20 hours by April 2010 [24]
The station is currently recruiting new DJs, and will soon have another list of shows going out live.
A team from Nailsea School Radio also produced 6 shows which went out on Bristol's BCFM called "the voice", which was the teenage debate show on the station. The team explored some of the big issues of the day and gave teenagers in the city a voice, along with hearing about teenage projects and showing the cultural diversity of the city. The team behind this show was Edd, Matt, Greaeme, Josh, Jack and Seth, all from Nailsea School Radio.
References
- ^ a b Arnot, Chris (11 September 2007). "Nigel Thrift: From bootstraps to the jet set". The Guardian (London). http://education.guardian.co.uk/higher/news/story/0,,2166260,00.html. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
- ^ http://www.young-minds.net/ym/participants1/countriesschools1/england/schoolname/index.php Young Minds
- ^ http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/oxedu_providers/full/(urn)/109310/(type)/8192/(typename)/Secondary%20education
- ^ BBC School Tables http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/bsp/hi/education/06/school_tables/secondary_schools/html/802_4137.stm
- ^ a b "BBC News, School league tables 2007, North Somerset LA". BBC News. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/bsp/hi/education/07/school_tables/secondary_schools/html/802_4137.stm. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
- ^ "BBC News, School league tables 2007, North Somerset LA". BBC News. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/bsp/hi/education/07/school_tables/secondary_schools/html/802.stm. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
- ^ http://www.nailseaschool.com/documents/2009-OutstandingYear.doc
- ^ http://www.thisissomerset.co.uk/clevedon/news/education/Old-school-bows-exam-triumph/article-1271406-detail/article.html
- ^ http://www.thewestonmercury.co.uk/content/twm/news/story.aspx?brand=Westonmercury&category=newsNorthSomerset&tBrand=westonmercury&tCategory=znews&itemid=WeED24%20Aug%202010%2009%3A42%3A15%3A763
- ^ http://www.thisisbristol.co.uk/news/Long-wait-finally/article-2570487-detail/article.html
- ^ University of Bristol news http://www.bristol.ac.uk/news/2007/5375.html
- ^ http://www.thisissomerset.co.uk/clevedon/news/education/New-163-32million-school-wow-factor/article-1355029-detail/article.html#StartComments
- ^ http://www.nailseapeople.co.uk/news/Nailsea-School-community-showcase/article-1925457-detail/article.html
- ^ http://www.thewestonmercury.co.uk/content/twm/news/story.aspx?brand=Westonmercury&category=newsNorthSomerset&tBrand=westonmercury&tCategory=znews&itemid=WeED21%20Sep%202010%2013%3A49%3A48%3A730
- ^ http://www.thewestonmercury.co.uk/content/twm/news/story.aspx?brand=westonmercury&category=news&tBrand=westonmercury&tCategory=znews&itemid=WeED16+Apr+2007+08%3A45%3A21%3A683
- ^ "School ban for Miss Sexy trousers". BBC News. 2009-10-07. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/bristol/8294666.stm. Retrieved 14 December 2009.
- ^ Willey, Jo (22 September 2010). "School threatens to ban 5ft10in girl for wearing short skirt". Daily Express. Northern and Shell Media Publications. http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/200943/School-threatens-to-ban-5ft10in-girl-for-wearing-short-skirt. Retrieved 24 January 2011.
- ^ "Girl, 14, threatened with expulsion from school for 'too short' skirt after growth spurt sees her soar to 5ft 10in". Mail Online. Associated Newspapers. 22 September 2010. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1313925/Schoolgirl-threatened-expulsion-short-skirt-growth-spurt.html. Retrieved 24 January 2011.
- ^ "Chloe Mafia uses talent show to increase her call girl rates". Costa News. 30 September 2010. http://www.costa-news.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6051&Itemid=148. Retrieved 24 January 2011.
- ^ http://www.thewestonmercury.co.uk/content/twm/news/story.aspx?brand=Westonmercury&category=newsNorthSomerset&tBrand=westonmercury&tCategory=znews&itemid=WeED22%20Jul%202010%2015%3A59%3A56%3A537
- ^ "Going up in the world: Warwick's rank ambitions". The Independent (London). 13 September 2007. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/higher/going-up-in-the-world-warwicks-rank-ambitions-402122.html. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
- ^ "Edd Burrell". 4WordMusic. http://www.4wordmusic.co.uk/4_Word_Music/Edd_Burrell.html. Retrieved 8 October 2011.
- ^ http://nsradio.webnode.com/shows/
- ^ a b http://nsradio.webnode.com/
External links
- Nailsea School website
- DfES Report for GCSE 2006
- DfES Report for GCSE 2007
- Ofsted for Nailsea School
- Ofsted 2008 D&T inspection (PDF)
- Ofsted 2006 inspection report
Education in the ceremonial county of Somerset Middle (deemed secondary) Fairlands Middle School · Hugh Sexey Church of England Middle SchoolSecondary (maintained) Broadoak Mathematics and Computing College · Broadlands School · Brymore School · Chew Valley School · Chilton Trinity Technology College · Clevedon School · Court Fields Community School · Culverhay School · East Bridgwater Community School · Frome Community College · Heathfield Community School · The King Alfred School · King Arthur's Community School · Nailsea School · Ralph Allen School · Robert Blake Science College · St Gregory's Catholic College · St Mark's CofE · Wadham School · Worle Community SchoolSecondary (academy) Ansford School · Backwell School · Beechen Cliff School · Bishop Fox's Community School · The Blue School · Bucklers Mead Community School · The Castle School · Churchill Academy and Sixth Form · Crispin School · Gordano School · Hans Price Academy · Haygrove School · Hayesfield Girls' School · Holyrood Academy · Huish Episcopi Academy · The Kings of Wessex Academy · Kingsmead School · Norton Hill School · Oldfield School · Preston School · Priory Community School · Sexey's School · Somervale School · Stanchester Academy · St Dunstan's Community School · The Taunton Academy · Wellsway School · Westfield Community School · Whitstone School · West Somerset Community College · Writhlington SchoolIndependent (preparatory) All Hallows Preparatory School · Downs Preparatory School · King's Hall School · Millfield Preparatory School · Hazlegrove Preparatory School · Paragon School · Springmead Preparatory School ·Independent (secondary) Bruton School for Girls · Chilton Cantelo School · Downside School · King Edward's School, Bath · King's College, Taunton · King's School, Bruton · Kingswood School · Millfield · Monkton Combe School · Park School · Prior Park College · Queen's College, Taunton · Royal High School, Bath · Sidcot School · Taunton School · Wellington School · Wells Cathedral SchoolSpecial schools Former City of Bath Technical School · Ladymead Community School · Ravenscroft School · The St Augustine of Canterbury School · St Brandon's SchoolUniversities For complete lists of establishments in each area see: Somerset, Bath & North East Somerset, North SomersetCoordinates: 51°25′51.64″N 2°45′30.47″W / 51.4310111°N 2.7584639°W
Categories:- Educational institutions established in 1959
- Comprehensive schools in Somerset
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