- Orton Longueville School
-
Nene Park Academy, formally Orton Longueville School Motto Here to achieve Established 1959 Type Foundation school Headteacher Mr Mark Woods (as of June. 2010) Specialism Business & Enterprise Location Oundle Road
Peterborough
Cambridgeshire
PE2 7EA
EnglandLocal authority Peterborough DfE number ???/5414 DfE URN 110908 Ofsted Reports Students 1200 Gender Coeducational Ages 11–18 Colours Navy & Gold Website OLS Coordinates: 52°33′10″N 0°17′09″W / 52.55275°N 0.28586°W
Nene Park Academy, formally Orton Longueville School is a secondary comprehensive in Peterborough.
Contents
Admissions
The school population in 2010 is nearly 1200. About a quarter of students come from several minority ethnic groups and a small number of students are at an early stage of English language acquisition. An average proportion of students have learning difficulties and/or disabilities and students’ attainment on entry is broadly average. Far fewer students than average come from homes with experience of higher education.[1] As of the start of the term of 2010/2011 year, the headteacher Mark Woods confirmed the school has been given a sum of over £15,000,000 for improvements of the school, after joining with Swavesey Village College as an academy.
History
Grammar school
It began as Orton Longueville Grammar School in 1959. This was originally Fletton Grammar School in Old Fletton (also in Huntingdonshire), which opened in 1910, and moved to the new site. It kept Fletton's motto of Onward and Upward. The former Fletton school became a primary school on London Road. The 1959 Orton school was built by Huntingdonshire County Council (not the Soke of Peterborough which then contained most of Peterborough) on the grounds of Orton Hall, owned by the Marquess of Huntly. The hall is now a Best Western hotel. The grammar school had a catchment area as far south as the Alconburys and Sawtry. It was one of three grammar schools in the former Huntingdonshire (very similar area to the current district).
Comprehensive
Next door to the grammar school, the Orton Longueville Secondary Modern School opened in 1961, which merged with the grammar school in September 1970. This school was originally situated in Woodston. It was administered by Huntingdon and Peterborough from 1965, Cambridgeshire County Council from April 1974, and the City of Peterborough from 1998.
In October 1989, a fire destroyed the Technology and Art & Design block, and a temporary classroom was burnt down in the 1990s.
In 2003 the school was selected by the DfES as a designated Specialist Business and Enterprise College. Two new computer suites were constructed to coincide with designation of specialist school, however these have now been converted into a large "Electronic Learning Center". The school has recently received a large amount of funds to rebuild sections of the school and refurbish others. The rebuild is currently scheduled to take place in 2013.
Academy
On the 31 of August 2011 Orton Longueville School will close and reopen on the 1st of September 2011 as Nene Park Academy. Different uniform will be worn by students and building work will be underway on the school site.
Academic performance
In 2006 the school was given a ‘Notice to Improve’ by Ofsted following a poor ofsted report which rated the schools effectiveness as 'unsatisfactory'. Results during this year were also poor with only 37% of students achieving 5 good GCSE's (Grade A-C's including Maths and English), compared with city's highest state school performer, The Kings School, which achieved 91%. During this year the school also performed poorly at A-Level coming eighth out of ten local sixth forms with a ranking of 572.3 compared with the highest performer - again the Kings School - which scored 956.2. The national average is 721.5. Unauthorized absence stood at 1.5%, compared to the local average of 1.2% and the national average of 1.3%
The following Ofsted report in 2008 displayed some improvements which lead to the school being rated as 'satisfactory'.[2]
In 2009 the school performed well below average at GCSE level with only 33% of students achieving 5 GCSE's at grade A-C including Maths and English.[3] They also performed very poorly at A-level, achieving the second lowest pass rate in Peterborough LEA after The Voyager School.
Publicity - Scott Homer
In June 2006 the school appeared on the front page of local newspaper The Peterborough Evening Telegraph regarding the alleged unfair expulsion of sixth form student Scott Homer by headteacher David Owen. Scott was considered the student political figurehead within his school year due to his huge involvement in the school's extra-curricular agenda. Scott played a role on the student council, a forum for students to voice their concerns and suggestions regarding the day-to-day running of the school to the school's senior management team. In 2003 Scott also helped to appoint the school's new headteacher David Owen who would later be the one personally excluding Scott.
Despite Scott's best efforts to continue his extra-curricular work and communicate the opinions of the student body to the senior management team, the arrival of the new head saw a drastic decision to disregard many of the activities Scott was involved in, including the democratically elected student council. As hostility between the student body and the senior management team escalated, a whole school Question Time was organised so students could finally vent their frustrations at the headteacher. Despite Scott being the only student banned from attending the event, he gained access by convincing the senior management team he would not participate in the questioning. During the opening speech by the head he announced that only questions that had been pre-submitted to him for consideration would be allowed to be asked. Scott and a few others erupted with outrage at this point as they felt the Question Time was nothing more than a desperate attempt to pacify an angry student body with a farcical show of democracy. However other students merely saw this as Scott attempting to appear 'important' amongst his friends. Scott challenged the head and asked unscripted questions that resulted in a rather public humiliation of himself.
Shortly after this the Sixth Form Tuck Shop, which had been running for generations by groups of sixth-form volunteers, was forced to close due to alleged health and safety reasons. When Scott attempted to retain the highly successful Tuck Shop for the Sixth Form he was visited during lessons by the head who informed him he would be immediately excluded for an act of criminal damage he didn't commit. Scott spent the first day of his exclusion sat in silent protest at the school gate, but by the second day other students joined him to show their support for student rights. Scott lost the end of his academic year for staging the protest and contacting the press, but was granted re-admission to the school for his final year of A-Level study due to the fact the head had no evidence to support his accusations of criminal damage. After a damning Ofsted report resulting in the school facing a 'Notice To Improve' ultimatum headteacher David Owen resigned for personal reasons just before Scott finished his studies at the school.
http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-182382268.html - Pupils in Tuck Shop protest.
http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-182396753.html - Orton Longueville head David Owen to leave.Alumni
Orton Longueville Grammar School
- Dr Judy MacArthur Clark CBE, vet and Chief Inspector since 2007 of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Inspectorate, President from 1992-3 of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS), and Chair from 1999-2004 of the Farm Animal Welfare Council
Fletton Grammar School
- George Alcock MBE, astronomer
- Geoffrey Dear, Baron Dear, Chief Constable from 1985-90 of West Midlands Police
References
- ^ http://olsonline.net/_includes/attachments/P11/110908_Orton%20Longueville%20School_inspection%20report.pdf
- ^ http://olsonline.net/_includes/attachments/P11/110908_Orton%20Longueville%20School_inspection%20report.pdf
- ^ http://www.peterboroughtoday.co.uk/news/gcse_results_improve_for_some_schools_1_359735
External links
- News items
Schools in Cambridgeshire Comprehensive Abbey College, Ramsey · Bottisham Village College · Chesterton Community College · Ely Community College · Gamlingay Village College · Hinchingbrooke School · Jack Hunt School · The King's School, Peterborough · Linton Village College · Longsands College · Manor Community College · Melbourn Village College · Netherhall School · Orton Longueville School · Parkside Community College · Sawston Village College · Sawtry Community College · Soham Village College · Stanground College · St Bede's · St Ivo · St John Fisher Catholic High School · St Peter's, Huntingdon · St Neots Community College · Swavesey Village College · Thomas Deacon Academy · The Voyager School · Witchford Village CollegeSixth Form Colleges Independent (preparatory) Cambridge Steiner School · King's College School Cambridge · Magdalene House · St Faith's School · St John's College School · Peterborough High Junior School · The Perse Preparatory SchoolIndependent (senior) Categories:- Business and Enterprise Colleges in England
- Comprehensive schools in Cambridgeshire
- Education in Peterborough
- Buildings and structures in Peterborough
- Educational institutions established in 1959
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.