Westbourne School, Penarth
Coordinates: 51°26′17″N 3°10′30″W / 51.438°N 3.175°W
 | |
| Established | 1896 |
|---|---|
| Type | Boarding School, Nursery,Common Entrance and GCSE |
| Headteacher | Mr Kenneth Underhill |
| Founder | Caroline Ferris |
| Location |
4 Hickman Road Penarth Vale of Glamorgan CF64 2AJ  Wales |
| Staff | 24 |
| Students | Over 200 |
| Gender | Co-educational |
| Ages | 3–18 |
| Houses | 3 |
| Colours |
Black and Red |
| Former Pupils | Old Westbournians |
| Fundraising Society | Friends of Westbourne |
| Website | Westbourne School Website |
Westbourne School is a small coeducational independent day school, nursery and prep school for children between the ages of 3 and 18 located in the holiday resort town of Penarth, in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales 5.2 miles (8.4 kilometres) south west from the Welsh capital city of Cardiff.
Traditionally the school was strictly boys only. However, in the mid 1980s the decision was taken to also accept girls and become a coeducational school. There are currently 162 pupils on roll. Westbourne School opened its new 6th form for the Autumn term of 2008. The school introduced the speciality of the Diploma Programme of the International Baccalaureate Organisation.
The school is housed within two buildings, approximately half a mile apart. The first houses the nursery and infants, the other the prep school and senior school. With 24 permanent staff and 2 teaching assistants the class sizes remain small, varying from a maximum of 17 down to as low as 9 in some subjects. The academic results are consistently excellent and Westbourne School is nationally recognised as a high achieving school. The school is now owned by the Montague Place Group of Independent Schools.[1]
History
Foundation
The school first opened in 1895 at Ebenezer House on Westbourne Road, Penarth. However the school's foundation is deemed to be during the following year in 1896 under the headship of Mrs Caroline Ferris. Mrs Ferris renamed Ebenezer House as Westbourne House and the school was therefore retitled as Westbourne House Preparatory School for Boys.
In 1901 the school relocated to the large corner property at 13 Stanwell Road, which still forms part of the current school building.
Expansion
In 1975 the adjoining property at 4 Hickman Road was also purchased and the combined properties were developed as Westbourne Senior School. The school opened a junior college for children aged between 9 and 11 years of age. It was decided to make the additional purchase of the struggling independent St Alma’s Girls School located in Victoria Road and, with the purchase, the combined school became coeducational.
The school today
Organisation
The Victoria Road facility now houses the nursery school and junior school. The prep school, senior school and the sixth form are located in the main school building on the corner of Stanwell and Hickman roads.
Examinations are held for Years 3-10 during the Summer Term followed by a detailed written report. Examinations for Year 8 and Years 10-11 are also held at the end of the Winter Term. Assessments may also be held at other times during the year, on the basis of which mark sheets are prepared and interviews arranged with parents. GCSE examinations for Years 10 and 11 and Common Entrance examinations for Year 8 are held in May and June.
Westbourne School also benefits from the expertise of occasional visiting teachers and tutors from local Cardiff schools, colleges and universities. School facilities include gymnasium, IT suite, library, science laboratories, sports hall as well as access to high quality local sports facilities including athletics track, Penarth RFC Rugby pitch and the public owned swimming pool.
Sixth form
The Autumn term 2008 saw the establishment of the school’s first sixth form, housed in a new "state of the art" Research and Media Centre with its separate sixth form common room and roof terrace with its new revolutionary ICT and Computing Department.
Westbourne School now offers the internationally recognised Diploma Programme of The International Baccalaureate Organisation – considered to be the modern global ‘gold standard’ in secondary education and a perfect vehicle for achieving the school’s vision for the future of its students.
Educationalists view the International Baccalaureate as academically rigorous, relevant and forward-looking. The range of opportunity that it provides is designed to present students with the best possible chance of success in a fast moving world.
Inspection
The latest inspection of the school by the ‘’’Independent Schools Council’’’ (ISC) can be found at the ISC website [2]
Results
Results in GCSE exams remain consistently high. In 2007 the school achieved a 100% pass level in over 200 GCSEs, with 98% of those passes at grades A*, A, B and C. The recent banner mounted on the school's fence indicates "1st in Wales, 4th in the UK".
Notable former pupils
- Adrian Goldsworthy (born 1969) - is a British historian and military writer. Goldsworthy attended Westbourne House School. Later, after studying ancient and modern history at St John's College, Oxford, he completed a D.Phil in ancient military history from Oxford University in 1994, using his doctoral thesis in his first book, The Roman Army at War 100 BC - AD 200. Goldsworthy was a Research Fellow at Cardiff University for two years and has taught in different university departments where he has produced various articles on Greco-Roman warfare.