Hanley Castle

Hanley Castle is a village in Worcestershire, England, between the towns of Malvern and Upton upon Severn and a short distance from the River Severn. It lies in the Malvern Hills district.

Once there was a Norman castle near the present day village but few traces now remain.

The village population is around 1500.

Hanley Castle High School

The secondary school, Hanley Castle High school [http://www.millenniumschools.co.uk/pub/worcs/hanleycastle/a.html] , with a school population of about 1000 pupils and 200 teachers serves Hanley Castle village itself, the nearby town of Upton upon Severn, and other local villages including Hanley Swan, Welland and Castlemorton and is one of three state secondary schools for Malvern children.

The school hosts an annual sporting event known as the 'Hanley run' in which around 900 runners compete in a cross country running race. While the run is compulsory for junior students, everyone from year 10 and above, (including staff) may participate of their own free will.

The school also has a self-contained sixth-form college on site, with around 200 students studying for their A levels. The current headmaster is Robert Harring. The most recent graduation class is the class of '06, (high school students) and shows the largest number of students leaving the school altogether in many years, and the college students looking forward to a consistently high success rate. The school has a large Bebo following of old and current students. The school has recently achieved the status of 'language college', meaning that aside from ordinary German and French language, it will also now teach Spanish, Chinese and possibly Russian. Planning has been granted for work on a new £2 million music block to replace the old 'mobile office' ones.

ee also

*Hanley Castle for information about the castleIt is said that the secondary school "Hanley Castle High School" is built upon the remnants of the castle however further proof is needed on this topic.

Hanley Castle in fiction

W.S. Symonds wrote a historical romance entitled "Hanley Castle" in 1885. This is a romance about two lovers.

P.G. Wodehouse based several stories in the area. Severn End, a local mansion owned by the Lechmere family, was the inspiration for Brinkley Court, the country seat for Bertie Wooster's Aunt Dahlia. In addition, the then Hanley Castle Grammar School was the model for Market Snodsbury Grammar School, with at least one of the stories mentioning the School Hall, now the School Library, in detail.

External links

* [http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/place/place_page.jsp?p_id=9897&st=Hanley%20castle Historical information at Vision of Britain]
* [http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=42863 More history at British History Online]
* [http://www.hanleycastleparishcouncil.co.uk/ Parish Council]
* [http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/reports/116/116981.pdf Hanley Castle High school OFSTED report] (pdf)
* [http://www3.shropshire-cc.gov.uk/intros/T000815.htm Hanley Castle - the novel]
* [http://www.hanleyandwelland.org.uk/ Benefice of Hanley Castle with Hanley Swan and Welland]
* [http://www.francisfrith.com/search/england/worcestershire/hanley+castle/photos/hanley+castle_photos.htm Old photos of HC]
* [http://www.hanleyswan.net/history/literary.html]