Ruskin Sports College
Encyclopedia
Ruskin Sports College is a mixed comprehensive
secondary school in Crewe
, Cheshire
, England, for pupils aged 11 to 16 years.
) in the early 1960s, the Ruskin Road building became Crewe County Grammar School for Boys.
When secondary education in Crewe was reorganised the school became the Ruskin County High School (and fully comprehensive) in 1978. It achieved Specialist
Sports College
status in 2002 after a successful application to the Specialist Schools Trust and sufficient fund-raising.
. The refurbished Sports Hall was opened in October 2005, whilst a new Dining Hall was completed in spring 2006. When the school was awarded Sports College Status, five floodlit tennis court
s were built at a cost of almost £250,000. It is hoped that further improvements will include better library and science provisions. Ruskin Sports College recently spent £30,000 on interactive whiteboards in 12 classrooms; the school governors are committed to more expenditure on information technology
, and improved library facilities.
The school was renamed Ruskin Sports And Languages College on 26 September 2007, a day chosen because it was the European Day of Languages. The logo on the uniform was not changed.
Ruskin celebrated its centenary year on the Ruskin Road site in 2009. The celebrations officially began on Friday, 9 January 2009, with an assembly involving pupils and staff, ex-staff, ex-pupils, and government officials. Assembly was followed by a tree planting service and concluded with a memorial service, during which a bench was dedicated to each of the three pupils who lost their lives while pupils at the school.
At the beginning of the 2009/2010 academic year the school lost its specialist Language status, reverting to solely a Sports College.
. In keeping with its specialisation in physical education
, the three houses were named after famous athletes: Woods, named after golf player Tiger Woods
; Charlton, named after Sir Bobby Charlton, who officially re-opened Ruskin Sports College on 29 September 2002; and Radcliffe, named after Paula Radcliffe
. Individual students won "merit" stamps for good behaviour or work, which count towards their house's total of merits. The house with the most merits at the end of the year won the school trophy for a year. Students were required to wear differently coloured ties (blue, green and red for Woods, Charlton and Radcliffe respectively) to indicate which house they belonged to.
The school holds annual concerts, including the Jazz Night, a Christmas Concert, and a Summer Celebrtation of Music. The concerts are made up of performances by recongnised individuals and bands ranging in size from three to twenty members. Pianist/Composer Tom Seals started his career performing in said concerts.
Comprehensive school
A comprehensive school is a state school that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude. This is in contrast to the selective school system, where admission is restricted on the basis of a selection criteria. The term is commonly used in relation to the United...
secondary school in Crewe
Crewe
Crewe is a railway town within the unitary authority area of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. According to the 2001 census the urban area had a population of 67,683...
, Cheshire
Cheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
, England, for pupils aged 11 to 16 years.
Admissions
In September 2005 there were 696 pupils on roll at Ruskin Sports College, a number which has risen steadily over the past few years.History
The school was founded in 1902 as Crewe County Secondary School in rooms at the then Technical College in Flag Lane and moved to the new Ruskin Road building in 1909. The name changed to Crewe County Grammar School after the 1944 Education Act. Following the opening of the Girls' Grammar School at Buchan Grove (now King's Grove High SchoolKing's Grove High School
King’s Grove High School is a state-run secondary school on Buchan Grove in Crewe, Cheshire, England. The school has been awarded specialist Business and Enterprise College status.-History:...
) in the early 1960s, the Ruskin Road building became Crewe County Grammar School for Boys.
When secondary education in Crewe was reorganised the school became the Ruskin County High School (and fully comprehensive) in 1978. It achieved Specialist
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...
Sports College
Sports College
Sports Colleges were introduced in 1997 as part of the Specialist Schools Programme in the United Kingdom. The system enables secondary schools to specialise in certain fields, in this case, PE, sports and dance. Schools that successfully apply to the Specialist Schools Trust and become Sports...
status in 2002 after a successful application to the Specialist Schools Trust and sufficient fund-raising.
Recent developments
The school specialises in sport, and briefly modern foreign languagesLanguage College
Language Colleges were introduced in 1995 as part of the Specialist Schools Programme in the United Kingdom. The system enables secondary schools to specialise in certain fields, in this case, modern foreign languages...
. The refurbished Sports Hall was opened in October 2005, whilst a new Dining Hall was completed in spring 2006. When the school was awarded Sports College Status, five floodlit tennis court
Tennis court
A tennis court is where the game of tennis is played. It is a firm rectangular surface with a low net stretched across the center. The same surface can be used to play both doubles and singles.-Dimensions:...
s were built at a cost of almost £250,000. It is hoped that further improvements will include better library and science provisions. Ruskin Sports College recently spent £30,000 on interactive whiteboards in 12 classrooms; the school governors are committed to more expenditure on information technology
Information technology
Information technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications...
, and improved library facilities.
The school was renamed Ruskin Sports And Languages College on 26 September 2007, a day chosen because it was the European Day of Languages. The logo on the uniform was not changed.
Ruskin celebrated its centenary year on the Ruskin Road site in 2009. The celebrations officially began on Friday, 9 January 2009, with an assembly involving pupils and staff, ex-staff, ex-pupils, and government officials. Assembly was followed by a tree planting service and concluded with a memorial service, during which a bench was dedicated to each of the three pupils who lost their lives while pupils at the school.
At the beginning of the 2009/2010 academic year the school lost its specialist Language status, reverting to solely a Sports College.
Traditions
The school formerly had a competitive house systemHouse system
The house system is a traditional feature of British schools, and schools in the Commonwealth. Historically, it was associated with established public schools, where a 'house' refers to a boarding house or dormitory of a boarding school...
. In keeping with its specialisation in physical education
Physical education
Physical education or gymnastics is a course taken during primary and secondary education that encourages psychomotor learning in a play or movement exploration setting....
, the three houses were named after famous athletes: Woods, named after golf player Tiger Woods
Tiger Woods
Eldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods is an American professional golfer whose achievements to date rank him among the most successful golfers of all time. Formerly the World No...
; Charlton, named after Sir Bobby Charlton, who officially re-opened Ruskin Sports College on 29 September 2002; and Radcliffe, named after Paula Radcliffe
Paula Radcliffe
Paula Jane Radcliffe, MBE is an English long-distance runner. She is the current women's world record holder in the marathon with her time of 2:15:25 hours...
. Individual students won "merit" stamps for good behaviour or work, which count towards their house's total of merits. The house with the most merits at the end of the year won the school trophy for a year. Students were required to wear differently coloured ties (blue, green and red for Woods, Charlton and Radcliffe respectively) to indicate which house they belonged to.
The school holds annual concerts, including the Jazz Night, a Christmas Concert, and a Summer Celebrtation of Music. The concerts are made up of performances by recongnised individuals and bands ranging in size from three to twenty members. Pianist/Composer Tom Seals started his career performing in said concerts.