Tanfield School
Coordinates: 54°52′37″N 1°42′25″W / 54.877°N 1.707°W
 | |
| Motto | First Things First |
|---|---|
| Established | 1912 |
| Type | Community school |
| Headteacher | Mr Graham Lloyd |
| Location |
Good Street Tanfield County Durham DH9 8AY England |
| Local authority | Durham |
| Gender | Co-educational |
| Ages | 11–16 |
| Colours | Black, yellow and gold |
| Website |
www |
Tanfield School is a comprehensive school in Stanley, County Durham, England, by the border to Tanfield Lea. Tanfield houses both male and female students from the age of 11 to 16. Tanfield has had good Ofsted reports. It supports Anti Bully campaigns, and other causes including charity work and links with other countries.
In 2009, the school had the physical education block and dining hall refurbished.
History
On October 16, 1912, Tanfield Lea Higher Elementary School and Pupil Teaching Centre came into being. Five days later on October 21, it opened its doors to the first intake of pupils. Some of the pupils who arrived that day had transferred to the new premises from the old Pupil Teacher Centre. However, most of the new intake were twelve years old.
Mr. Hardy the first headmaster recorded in the school log that: "The Pupil Teacher and Preparatory pupils attending the Tanfield Lea P.T. Centre (53 in number) and their teachers Mr. Stringer, Mr. Crabb, Miss Clough came to the school and 174 pupils were admitted by examination from 329 candidates". The object of the school, as stated in the 1912 prospectus, was to: "provide education, between the ages of 12 and 15 years, for children who, having previously attended an ordinary public elementary school, give sufficient promise of being able to take up an extended curriculum of such a character as is here provided, and whose parents intend them to remain until they are at least 15 years of age. The previous education of the pupils will be continued and widened and a practical training in special subjects added. The education given is indeed intended to afford, in an essentially practical manner, an intelligent preparation for the duties which will be undertaken when school days are over".
Grammar school
In 1919, the school was re-christened "Alderman Wood School" and took on grammar school status. In the mid-1940s its name was changed to Stanley Grammar School.
Comprehensive
In 1977, Tanfield Comprehensive was formed by the amalgamation of the existing school with Shield Row Secondary School. The school then had about 1,300 pupils and 76 teachers.
1986 saw another change with the phasing out of the Sixth Form and the opening of the Tertiary College at Consett.
11 May 1998 was 'The Great Fire of Tanfield' which led to the demolition of the Tower Block (the 1960s four-storey building used to house all the English, Maths and Science teaching areas). Three years later, the scaffolding was dismantled and the eighteen temporary, demountable, classrooms were lifted from the football and rugby pitches during the summer vacation. In November 2000, OFSTED inspectors commented, "The school has had to cope with very difficult working conditions following a major fire in May 1998, which resulted in the loss of 24 classrooms, school offices, resources, equipment and pupils' coursework". They congratulated the staff on their resilience, the effective management of the situation and the determination of governors to move forward.
In September 2000, pupils moved into a new extension to the Technology suite and redesigned Art accommodation. Together they provide new Textiles, Graphics, Pottery and Art rooms, as well as a third ICT computer room. Visitors to Tanfield now enter through the Reception and Administration Area. Along with five purpose-built Science Laboratories and a Science Prep Room, this forms a part of a newly constructed building which opened in January 2001 on the site of the former Tower Block.
There is now a Maths suite of five specialist rooms on the ground floor, with the English faculty linked to the School Library and Resources Centre, and an ICT room with thirty computers, on the upper floor.
During the past decade, Tanfield has been awarded the International Schools award, Sportsmark award, Artsmark award, Healthy Schools award and financial awards from the Princes Trust and Barclays New Futures. Tanfield School is a Lighthouse School recognised for its work in the community and an EcoSchool working towards improving our environment. It has received a Schools Curriculum Award.
Study support
Some students need support in order to make progress through National Curriculum levels 3-7. Tanfield School can provide a supportive learning environment to students with additional needs.
Alumni
Stanley Grammar School
- John Caine (athlete), 10,000m runner in the 1970 Commonwealth Games, later stadium manager of Gateshead International Stadium, and works for Nova International
- Prof Richard Chambers, Professor of Chemistry from 1976-2000 at Durham University
- Gordon Hindson, 1970s midfielder for Luton
- Fenwick Lawson, sculptor
- Colin Milburn, Northamptonshire cricketer
- Prof Ken Musgrave, Professor of Organic Chemistry from 1960-83 at Durham University, expert in fluorine chemistry, and worked on the secret Tube Alloys project when at the University of Birmingham, trying to separate Uranium-235[1]
- Prof Mainwaring Pescod OBE, Professor of Environmental Control Engineering from 1976-98 at Newcastle University
- Yvonne Ridley, journalist, author and film-maker
- Derek Wright, physiotherapist since 1984 for NUFC