Woodham Academy
 | |
| Motto | Achievement for all[1] |
|---|---|
| Established | 1970[2] |
| Type | Academy School |
| Headteacher | Mrs Christine Forsyth [3] |
| Location |
Washington Crescent Woodham, Newton Aycliffe County Durham DL5 4AX England  Coordinates: 54°38′N 1°34′W / 54.63°N 1.56°W |
| Local authority | County Durham |
| DfE URN | 114304 Tables |
| Ofsted | Reports |
| Students | 759 |
| Ages | 11–18 |
| Houses | Brancepeth, Lambton, Raby |
| Colours | black and green[4] |
| Website | Woodham Academy |
Woodham Academy is a school and former sixth form college[5] in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, England. The school was previously known as Woodham Community Technology College (from 2000 to 20) and was initially opened as Woodham Comprehensive School in 1970.[6]
Current Position
Admissions
The school gained technology college status in 1999.[7] It is one of two secondary schools within Newton Aycliffe, the other being Greenfield School Community and Arts College.[8]
Woodham CTC had 897 students as of January 2012.
It is situated just south of Woodham Burn, not far (west) from the northern junction of the A167 and the B6443 Central Avenue. Aycliffe School is nearby to the east. Access over Woodham Burn is via the Great Aycliffe Bridge.
Academic performance
It gets GCSE results slightly below the England average and average for North East England. A recent Ofsted report states the school "is a good school that is improving strongly". It also goes on to say that the school's behavioural standards are improving, which is having a large effect on the school's achievement. The school also thrives on a highly positive view from students: one student when asked in an Ofsted interview replied with ‘The people here make this school what it is – friendly relationships, but teachers are strict when necessary.’ Each inspection reviews the school as rapidly improving. See the difference in reports by viewing them here
Historical Results
| Summary of Key Stage 4 results[9] | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of students in the Year Group | 226 | 203 | 219 | 181 | TBC |
| Number of boys in the Year Group | 118 | 106 | 126 | 102 | TBC |
| Number of girls in the Year Group | 108 | 94 | 93 | 79 | TBC |
| Percentage of students achieving 5 A*-C | 59% | 63% | 68% | 80% | TBC |
| Percentage of students achieving 5 A*-C including GCSE English and Maths | 41% | 54% | 49% | 52% | 57% |
| Percentage of students achieving 5 A*-G | 96% | 98% | 97% | 98% | TBC |
| Percentage of students achieving English Baccalaureate | n/a | n/a | 14% | 25% | TBC |
| Percentage of students expected progress in English | n/a | n/a | n/a | 76% | TBC |
| Percentage of students expected progress in Mathematics | n/a | n/a | n/a | 50% | TBC |
| Percentage of students achieving 1 A*-G | 98% | 98% | 97% | 100% | TBC |
| Average Points Score | 372 | 377 | 434 | 501 | TBC |
Local School Comparison
| Percentage achieving 5+ A*-C GCSEs including English and maths [10] | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Woodham | 41% | 54% | 49% | 52% | 57% | 58% |
| Greenfield | 34% | 44% | 44% | 50% | 55% | 70% |
Facilities
Within the school there are a wide variety of facilities including several science laboratories, a swimming pool, a music suite, technology workshops and over 370 networked computers. Also there are a number of Apple products for students to use in lessons.[11]
In June 2012, the school announced that in the new school year it will introduce an Apple Mac computer suite. This will be an independent room with around 20 Apple Mac computers which will be used for media creation.
Also new to the school is the Learning Centre. This room is situated where the old library was, it is a large room where students can go during free lessons, lunch and after school to catch up on work and revision as well as one-to-one tuition with teachers.
Sports Academy
In September 2012 Woodham opened its Sports Academy which aims to offer "high quality coaching opportunities to elite athletes in a range of sports" [12]
House System
In September 2011 the Woodham house system was re-introduced for year seven to ten. The houses are named after local castles. The houses are Brancepeth, Lambton and Raby. Students collect points for their house by working hard and taking part in extracurricular activities. Each house had a staff head of house (organising the rewards, competitions and assemblies) and a student house captain (responsible for ensuring as many students turn up, promoting competitions and being a role-model for younger students .
| Year | Winning House | Student house captain | Staff Head of house |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Lambton | Owen Dickinson | Stacey Reay |
| 2013 | Lambton | Owen Dickinson | Stacey Reay |
| 2014 | Lambton | Owen Dickinson | Stacey Reay |
| 2015 | Brancpeth | no captain | no head |
In 2015 there was no house captains or head of house due to the departure of two of the head of houses and all the house captains. Stacey Reay was a temporary head of house for all three and oversaw the whole house system.
History
There was a third secondary school in Newton Aycliffe called "The Avenue Comprehensive" - which was demolished in 1992, itself merged from two former secondary schools - "Marlowe Hall Secondary Modern School" and "Milton Hall".[13] It was amalgamated with Woodham.
Woodham Comprehensive School was built under the CLASP program (Consortium of Local Authorities Special Programme). It was officially opened on 29 June 1970 by Alice Bacon, Baroness Bacon, a former Labour MP.
Academy Conversion
In March 2012 the school's head teacher Christine Forsyth announced that she will be submitting a request to turn the school into an academy. The school introduced a new uniform in September 2012 for the new Academy. The old Woodham CTC uniform was a black polo shirt with the logo on the left side of the chest and the Technology College logo on the right arm. The new Woodham Academy uniform is a grey suit jacket over a white shirt with a tie. The tie is a combination of green, gold and black. For years 7-9 the tie is a clip on and years 10 & 11 have a traditional tie with the new school logo sewn into it. Boys are required to wear straight cut trousers and girls either straight cut trousers or a school skirt that is no shorter than knee length.
The school insists that, while the school may undergo dramatic physical changes, its moral standards of Achievement For All will remain.
Arson
On 4 July 1990 the school was set alight by arsonists. Around a third of the school's teaching area was destroyed and an estimated £1 million of damage was caused. The damaged section of the school was rebuilt and reopened on 12 December 1992.[2]
Loss of sixth form
When the sixth form closed there were 22 students pursuing A-level courses. Well established colleges such as Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form and New College Durham are popular choices for Woodham's students now. Many students go on to study further and higher education.[14]
Changes to tutor system
Students sometimes keep one form tutor through Years 7 to 10, but more commonly they experience 2-3 different tutors in their school life. In Year 11 students are supported by a specialist Year 11 tutor.
Head teachers
| Years | Head teacherb[2] |
| 1970–1980 | John Pearson (OBE) |
| 1980–1990 | Katherine Carr |
| 1990–1994 | Andrew Bennett |
| 1994–2010 | Steven Harness |
| 2010–Present | Christine Forsyth [15] |
Notable alumni
- Mark Gatiss (actor, screenwriter and novelist)[16]
- Paul Magrs (writer and lecturer)[17]
- Jason Steele (footballer)[18][19]
- Ross Turnbull (footballer)[18][19][20]
- Angela Winstanley-Smith (Water Polo)
- Kate Avery (Athlete)
Gallery
Fire damage in The Auckland Sector of the school
Before and after the fire
Notes
References
- ↑ "Woodham Academy - About Woodham". Woodham Academy. Archived from the original on 2010-11-14. Retrieved 2010-08-17.
- 1 2 3 "The History of Woodham Academy". Woodham Academy. Archived from the original on 2010-11-14. Retrieved 2010-06-25.
- ↑ "The Governing Body". Woodham Academy. Archived from the original on 2010-11-14. Retrieved 2010-06-25.
- ↑ "Uniform Information". Woodham Academy. Archived from the original on 2010-11-14. Retrieved 2010-06-25.
- ↑ as nobody wants to attend the school%2F&date=2010-11-14 "School cuts back sixth form (From The Advertiser Series)" Check
|archiveurl=value (help). The Advertiser. Archived from the original on 2010-11-14. Retrieved 2010-08-17. - ↑
- ↑ "Technology College Status". Woodham Community Technology College. Archived from the original on 2010-10-14. Retrieved 2010-06-25.
- ↑ "Schools in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham". school-search.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2010-11-14. Retrieved 2010-06-25.
- ↑ "Woodham KS4 Performance Table". Department For Education. Retrieved 2012-09-10.
- ↑ "Greenfield KS4 Performance Table". Department For Education. Retrieved 2012-09-10.
- ↑ "Facilities at the College". Woodham Community Technology College. Archived from the original on 2010-11-14. Retrieved 2010-06-25.
- ↑ "Woodham Opens Sports Academy". Newton News.
- ↑ "History of Newton Aycliffe". Great Town Council. Archived from the original on 2010-11-14. Retrieved 2010-09-22.
- 1 2 "2009 Ofsted Report". Ofsted. Archived from the original on 2010-11-14. Retrieved 2010-06-25.
- 1 2 "Christine Forsyth - New Head Teacher". Woodham Community Technology College. Archived from the original on 2010-11-14. Retrieved 2010-06-25.
- ↑ "Mark's in league of his own". Sunday Sun. Archived from the original on 2010-11-14. Retrieved 2010-08-18.
- ↑ "Paul Magrs". Fantasticfiction.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2010-11-14. Retrieved 2010-08-19.
- 1 2 "Small town is in safe hands". The Northern Echo. Archived from the original on 2010-11-14. Retrieved 2010-08-19.
- 1 2 "Woodham Community Technology College - Parents' Mailing (March 2010)" (PDF). Woodham Community Technology College. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-11-14. Retrieved 2010-08-19.
- ↑ "Ross Turnbull". The Northern Echo. Archived from the original on 2010-11-14. Retrieved 2010-06-25.