North Halifax Grammar School
Encyclopedia
The North Halifax Grammar School (NHGS) is a grammar school
, specialist science college and specialist languages college in Illingworth
, Halifax
, West Yorkshire
, England. It is situated in the east of Illingworth, towards Holmfield and Holdsworth. Holy Trinity Church of England Senior School
and St Catherine's Catholic High School
(both faith schools) are very close to the school.
to administer an admissions test, admitting 155 students each year through an entrance examination which consists of Verbal Reasoning, Mathematics and English tests. There are 155 places at 11+ stage for September 2010. Admissions are also accepted at the 16+ stage, without a formal quota.
. It became known as the Princess Mary School in 1969 and was situated on Francis Street. When the school closed, there was a Service of Thanksgiving in July 1985 in Halifax Parish Church. The buildings became part of Percival Whitley College, then Halifax New College, which became Calderdale College
when it combined with Halifax School of Integrated Arts. The former site is now to be redeveloped (knocked down).
The Highlands School on Moorbottom Road had around 750 boys and girls. It was originally the Halifax Technical High School, which was formed in 1957 before its Moorbottom Road premises were completed and opened in May 1959 by the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Leeds
. It had around 700 boys and girls and became the Highlands School in 1969.
In 1999, the school became a foundation school
, giving the governing body ownership of the buildings and site and more executive powers. After a long fundraising campaign, the school achieved Specialist Science College status in 2004, which funded the refurbishment and extension of existing laboratories and the construction of a new one.
s to be rated outstanding in its previous three inspections. The school also receives criticism, however, as it is one of the few "highly selective" schools in England taking just the top ten per cent of students.
Absence is low, with the Department for Education and Skills reporting the school's unauthorised absence rate negligible.
From 2009 the North Halifax Grammar School sixth form centre was built and finished for use. It is designed to give the sixth form more space around the school. This extended the common room and added six brand new classrooms.
Grammar school
A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and some other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching classical languages but more recently an academically-oriented secondary school.The original purpose of mediaeval...
, specialist science college and specialist languages college in Illingworth
Illingworth, West Yorkshire
Illingworth is a village within the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale, in West Yorkshire, England.It is situated north-west of Halifax.The village of Illingworth has competitive sports teams within the area including Crossleys Juniors , Illingworth C.C. and Illingworth A.R.L.F.C...
, Halifax
Halifax, West Yorkshire
Halifax is a minster town, within the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale in West Yorkshire, England. It has an urban area population of 82,056 in the 2001 Census. It is well-known as a centre of England's woollen manufacture from the 15th century onward, originally dealing through the Halifax Piece...
, West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
, England. It is situated in the east of Illingworth, towards Holmfield and Holdsworth. Holy Trinity Church of England Senior School
Holy Trinity Church of England Senior School
Holy Trinity Church of England Senior School, is the only church aided 11 to 18 co-educational comprehensive school in the Diocese of Wakefield, founded in the 1815 by the then Vicar of Halifax...
and St Catherine's Catholic High School
St Catherine's Catholic High School
St Catherine's Catholic High School is a Catholic comprehensive secondary school in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England. The school is named after Catherine of Siena....
(both faith schools) are very close to the school.
Admissions
The school has approximately one thousand students aged 11 to 18. NHGS works with Crossley Heath Grammar SchoolCrossley Heath Grammar School
The Crossley Heath School is a selective grammar school located in Savile Park, Halifax, West Yorkshire, England.- Entrance exam :Admission to The Crossley Heath School, is by an entrance examination of prospective pupils' academic ability andattainment...
to administer an admissions test, admitting 155 students each year through an entrance examination which consists of Verbal Reasoning, Mathematics and English tests. There are 155 places at 11+ stage for September 2010. Admissions are also accepted at the 16+ stage, without a formal quota.
History
The Princess Mary High School (also known as Halifax High School for Girls before 1931) had around 350 girls and was opened on 21 September 1931 by Mary, Princess Royal and Countess of HarewoodMary, Princess Royal and Countess of Harewood
The Princess Mary, Princess Royal and Countess of Harewood was a member of the British Royal Family; she was the third child and only daughter of King George V and Queen Mary. She was the sixth holder of the title of Princess Royal...
. It became known as the Princess Mary School in 1969 and was situated on Francis Street. When the school closed, there was a Service of Thanksgiving in July 1985 in Halifax Parish Church. The buildings became part of Percival Whitley College, then Halifax New College, which became Calderdale College
Calderdale College
Calderdale College is a further education college based in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England.-External links:*...
when it combined with Halifax School of Integrated Arts. The former site is now to be redeveloped (knocked down).
The Highlands School on Moorbottom Road had around 750 boys and girls. It was originally the Halifax Technical High School, which was formed in 1957 before its Moorbottom Road premises were completed and opened in May 1959 by the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Leeds
University of Leeds
The University of Leeds is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England...
. It had around 700 boys and girls and became the Highlands School in 1969.
Amalgamation
The North Halifax Grammar School was formed with the amalgamation of the Highlands School and the Princess Mary School with some current teachers working at one of these schools before the amalgamation. It was more a simple closure of the Princess Mary School than an amalgamation, with all teaching taking place at the Highlands site from 1987.In 1999, the school became a foundation school
Foundation school
In England and Wales, a foundation school is a state-funded school in which the governing body has greater freedom in the running of the school than in community schools....
, giving the governing body ownership of the buildings and site and more executive powers. After a long fundraising campaign, the school achieved Specialist Science College status in 2004, which funded the refurbishment and extension of existing laboratories and the construction of a new one.
Performance
The school consistently achieves highly, being one of only 19 secondary schoolSecondary 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...
s to be rated outstanding in its previous three inspections. The school also receives criticism, however, as it is one of the few "highly selective" schools in England taking just the top ten per cent of students.
Absence is low, with the Department for Education and Skills reporting the school's unauthorised absence rate negligible.
Sixth Form
The Sixth form is the largest in Calderdale, currently offering a large range of academic A-levels. In 2006, 449 A2 entries were made, with a 98.7% pass rate.From 2009 the North Halifax Grammar School sixth form centre was built and finished for use. It is designed to give the sixth form more space around the school. This extended the common room and added six brand new classrooms.
Notable former pupils
- Emma WilliamsEmma Williams (actress)Emma Williams is a British actress. After, going to North Halifax Grammar School and studying at the Stage84 stage school in Idle, West Yorkshire, she has had a successful career in TV, film and on stage....
- actress - Gary FellowsGary FellowsGary Matthew Fellows is a first-class cricketer, who has represented Yorkshire County Cricket Club, and played twice for Matabeleland in Zimbabwe in 1996....
- YorkshireYorkshire County Cricket ClubYorkshire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Yorkshire as one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure....
cricketerCricketerA cricketer is a person who plays the sport of cricket. Official and long-established cricket publications prefer the traditional word "cricketer" over the rarely used term "cricket player".... - Joe TylerJoe TylerJoe Tyler - born 1 April 1982 in Halifax, West Yorkshire is a Freestyle skier. He has appeared as a Free rider in various ski movies and skied in the first London Freeze Festival at Battersea Power Station's 2008 snow event. He appeared on Turkish media in 2007 skiing in Erzurum, Turkey...
- skier - Hannah MayhoHannah MayhoHannah Mayho is an English road and track cyclist from Cullingworth, West Yorkshire, and a member of British Cycling's Olympic Academy Squad. A former county netball player and cross-country runner, Mayho began cycling in 2006 having been spotted at her school by British Cycling's Talent Team, she...
- British Cycling's Olympic Academy Squad member
The Highlands School
- Julie KirkbrideJulie KirkbrideJulie Kirkbride is a British former politician. She was the Conservative Party Member of Parliament for the Conservative stronghold of Bromsgrove from 1997 until 2010-Early life:...
- ConservativeConservative Party (UK)The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
MPMember of ParliamentA Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for BromsgroveBromsgrove (UK Parliament constituency)Bromsgrove is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first-past-the-post voting system...
from 1997-2010, and former Daily Telegraph journalist - Richard Leishman, Olympic swimmer at the 1992 Olympics - still holds the 100m ButterflyButterfly strokeThe butterfly is a swimming stroke swum on the breast, with both arms moving simultaneously. The butterfly kick was developed separately, and is also known as the "dolphin kick"...
junior record for English schools, set in 1983
The Princess Mary High School
- Phyllis BentleyPhyllis BentleyPhyllis Eleanor Bentley, OBE , was an English novelist.The youngest child of a mill owner, she grew up in Halifax in the West Riding of Yorkshire, and was educated at Halifax High School for Girls and Cheltenham Ladies' College. During World War I she worked in the munitions industry...
OBE, novelist - wrote InheritanceInheritance (TV series)Inheritance was a 1967 Granada produced ITV drama based on a 1932 novel by Phyllis Bentley.The ten-part period drama revolved around the fortunes of the Oldroyds, a Yorkshire mill owning family from 1812 to 1965. The early part of the series featured the Luddite riots involving the burning of mills... - Stella Robson, Chairman from 1998-2002 of the Northern SinfoniaNorthern SinfoniaThe Northern Sinfonia is a British chamber orchestra, based initially in Newcastle upon Tyne, and currently in Gateshead. For the first 46 years of its history, the orchestra gave the bulk of its concerts at the City Hall, Newcastle upon Tyne. Since 2004, the orchestra has been resident at The...
, Mayor of Darlington from 2005-6