Gordano School
Encyclopedia
Gordano School is a comprehensive secondary school
with academy status located in Portishead
, North Somerset
, England. In 1999, the school was awarded Specialist Schools
Technology College
status. Gordano School has 1,860 students aged 11 to 18.
man was found, who was nicknamed Septimus because he was discovered on the seventh day of the seventh month. Roman building remains were also found in the grounds before the school opened on 17 September 1956, with 300 pupils, 18 teachers, and 12 classrooms.
The official opening took place on 12 July 1957. The school had cost £146,000 and still needed work to the playing fields. By September of that year, pupil numbers had increased to 500 and councillors were demanding more classrooms. The increase was attributed to the "post-war bulge". In 1965, £209,000 was allocated for new buildings. The education department forecast the school numbers would treble by 1975. In 1994, an astroturf sports playing surface was laid at a cost of £260,000. Numbers had grown to 1,589 students and 88 teachers.
Since 2000 the school has undergone a £9,500,000 re-development, adding a new hall incorporating a drama room. Included in the building work was a new maths and social sciences block, music block extension, new science and technology classrooms, and a canteen extension. The Sixth Form Centre also underwent renovation. The new buildings were officially opened in December 2006.
In November 2007 Gordano School became a Foundation School. Technology College status was redesignated in October 2007.
The school is also home to Gordano Valley Church as well as many local clubs and societies including the successful Portishead town band which rehearses regularly on the site.
In December 2009 it was announced that headmaster Graham Silverthorne was leaving at the end of the academic year to take up a new post in Hong Kong
. Gary Lewis became the new headmaster in August 2010.
The school has since had a new English block built and old science classrooms and common room regenerated into science labs and lecture style classrooms (finished summer 2011). This will also result in subject departments moving to different locations around the school. Additionally,in July 2011, the school secured a £2,000,000 grant from the YPLA in order to extend and redevelop the existing Sixth Form facilities. The bid was supported by Dr Liam Fox, the local MP. The building project should be completed by Summer 2012.
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
with academy status located in Portishead
Portishead, Somerset
Portishead is a coastal town on the Severn Estuary within the unitary authority of North Somerset, which falls within the ceremonial county of Somerset England. It has a population of 22,000, an increase of over 3,000 since the 2001 census, with a growth rate of 40 per cent, considerably in excess...
, North Somerset
North Somerset
North Somerset is a unitary authority in England. Its area covers part of the ceremonial county of Somerset but it is administered independently of the non-metropolitan county. Its administrative headquarters is in the town hall in Weston-super-Mare....
, England. In 1999, the school was awarded Specialist Schools
Specialist school
The specialist schools programme was a UK government initiative which encouraged secondary schools in England to specialise in certain areas of the curriculum to boost achievement. The Specialist Schools and Academies Trust was responsible for the delivery of the programme...
Technology College
Technology College
Technology College is a term used in the United Kingdom for a secondary specialist school that focuses on design and technology, mathematics and science. These were the first type of specialist schools, beginning in 1994. In 2008 there were 598 Technology Colleges in England, of which 12 also...
status. Gordano School has 1,860 students aged 11 to 18.
History
The school was originally proposed in 1937, with a projected cost of £27,000. However, the project was cancelled due to the Second World War. New plans were drawn in 1952, and excavation of the site started in 1954. During excavations, the skeleton of an Iron AgeIron Age
The Iron Age is the archaeological period generally occurring after the Bronze Age, marked by the prevalent use of iron. The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of such material coincided with other changes in society, including differing...
man was found, who was nicknamed Septimus because he was discovered on the seventh day of the seventh month. Roman building remains were also found in the grounds before the school opened on 17 September 1956, with 300 pupils, 18 teachers, and 12 classrooms.
The official opening took place on 12 July 1957. The school had cost £146,000 and still needed work to the playing fields. By September of that year, pupil numbers had increased to 500 and councillors were demanding more classrooms. The increase was attributed to the "post-war bulge". In 1965, £209,000 was allocated for new buildings. The education department forecast the school numbers would treble by 1975. In 1994, an astroturf sports playing surface was laid at a cost of £260,000. Numbers had grown to 1,589 students and 88 teachers.
Since 2000 the school has undergone a £9,500,000 re-development, adding a new hall incorporating a drama room. Included in the building work was a new maths and social sciences block, music block extension, new science and technology classrooms, and a canteen extension. The Sixth Form Centre also underwent renovation. The new buildings were officially opened in December 2006.
In November 2007 Gordano School became a Foundation School. Technology College status was redesignated in October 2007.
The school is also home to Gordano Valley Church as well as many local clubs and societies including the successful Portishead town band which rehearses regularly on the site.
In December 2009 it was announced that headmaster Graham Silverthorne was leaving at the end of the academic year to take up a new post in Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
. Gary Lewis became the new headmaster in August 2010.
The school has since had a new English block built and old science classrooms and common room regenerated into science labs and lecture style classrooms (finished summer 2011). This will also result in subject departments moving to different locations around the school. Additionally,in July 2011, the school secured a £2,000,000 grant from the YPLA in order to extend and redevelop the existing Sixth Form facilities. The bid was supported by Dr Liam Fox, the local MP. The building project should be completed by Summer 2012.
Awards
The school has gained the following awards:- Training School
- Arts Mark
- Technology College
- Sport England
- Investors in PeopleInvestors in PeopleLaunched in 1991 Investors in People is a business improvement tool administered by UK Commission for Employment and Skills and supported by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills ....
- A Leading Edge School
- European Award for Languages
Houses
Gordano School is divided into six houses which were previously named after the house heads' surname - now each is named after shipping areas around the UK:- LundyLundyLundy is the largest island in the Bristol Channel, lying off the coast of Devon, England, approximately one third of the distance across the channel between England and Wales. It measures about at its widest. Lundy gives its name to a British sea area and is one of the islands of England.As of...
(Formerly Berridge) - FitzRoyRobert FitzRoyVice-Admiral Robert FitzRoy RN achieved lasting fame as the captain of HMS Beagle during Charles Darwin's famous voyage, and as a pioneering meteorologist who made accurate weather forecasting a reality...
(Formerly Smith) - PortlandPortland HarbourPortland Harbour is located beside the Isle of Portland, off Dorset, on the south coast of England. It is one of the largest man-made harbours in the world. Grid reference: .-History:...
(Formerly Prevett) - CromartyCromartyThe Royal Burgh of Cromarty is a burgh in Ross and Cromarty, Highland, Scotland.-History:It was previously the county town of the former county of Cromartyshire...
(Formerly Mckay) - ShannonRiver ShannonThe River Shannon is the longest river in Ireland at . It divides the west of Ireland from the east and south . County Clare, being west of the Shannon but part of the province of Munster, is the major exception...
(Formerly Stanley) - BiscayBay of BiscayThe Bay of Biscay is a gulf of the northeast Atlantic Ocean located south of the Celtic Sea. It lies along the western coast of France from Brest south to the Spanish border, and the northern coast of Spain west to Cape Ortegal, and is named in English after the province of Biscay, in the Spanish...
(Formerly Offer)