Soham Village College
Encyclopedia
Soham Village College is a state secondary school
with specialist Foundation Technology College
and Language College
status in Soham
, Cambridgeshire
, England
. It has around 1350 students, aged 11 to 16. It has a wide catchment area
which does not include Ely
, although some students from Ely and the neighbouring villages attend the school. The college is split over two adjacent sites, Beechurst (formerly a large house) and Lodeside, built more recently.
The School is controlled by Cambridgeshire
LEA
.
, Charles Morbey. The Grammar School
took boys aged 11-18 from surrounding villages, and was also home to a few weekly boarder
s.
The name Soham Village College comes from the former secondary modern style Village College
which was established in 1958. The original village college took boys and girls between the ages of 11 and 15, and was built on a 17 acres (68,796.6 m²) site next to the Soham Lode known as Moat Fields. The village college system was the brainchild of Henry Morris, the Chief Education Officer at Cambridgeshire County Council
. The College was officially opened by the Baronet
and MP
Sir Edward Boyle, a former Minister for Education. Morris's emphasis was on a community based establishment, and indeed the College was equipped with a public library and a youth leader.
The present day village college came into being in 1972 when the modern co-educational Village College merged with the long-established Grammar School. The merger was a direct result of the government raising the school-leaving age to 16
.
Throughout the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s building work was carried out under the headships of A.E. Lawrence (between 1972 and 1985) and Dr. A.W. Bullock (between 1985 and 1999). This included the construction of the Ross Peers Sports Centre, a music block, and a science and technology block.
In 1993 the village college gained grant maintained
status. This allowed for generous donations, such as the funds donated in the mid 1990s by Simon Gibson for the extension to the Mathematics and English departments (known as the Gibson Block in his honour).
In June 1998 the 'M Block', which contains science, humanities, ICT and languages rooms, was opened by Princess Margaret.
In August 2002 the school became infamous as the place where double child killer Ian Huntley worked as school caretaker. Clothing from the murdered children was found on the school grounds, leading to Huntley's arrest and eventual conviction in the Soham Murders
case. Huntley's house on the school site, and the storage hangar where the clothing was found, were both later demolished.
However, students wishing to continue onto sixth form
studies must change schools, usually attending establishments in nearby Ely
or Cambridge
.
on the 3rd November 2011.
college and a new college green. The Sixth Form
would be built at the current location of Soham's playing fields and the College green would be in-between St Andrew's C of E Primary, the new Performing Arts Centre and Beechurst.
They were built on what was Lodeside Playground and Opened in March 2011
- Bronze Award, International School Award
, School Achievement Award, Sport England
SportsMark Award, Basic Skills Quality Mark and Becta
ICT Mark for Excellence in ICT.
The students are also awarded many different forms of awards for various achievements by the school, such as outstanding attendance, distinctive progression, and extra-curricular activities out of school such as sport. Scarlet ties are awarded to students who excell within sport, whether that be dedication to school teams or county sport participation, Emerald ties are awarded to those who are dedicated to the school's performing arts or county-level performing organisations. Tri-coloured ties are awarded to those within either the performing arts or sports at a national level.
However, some students come from other nearby settlements outside of the catchment area including:
The principal feeder primary schools are:
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 specialist Foundation 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...
and Language College
Language 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...
status in Soham
Soham
Soham is a small town in the English county of Cambridgeshire. It lies just off the A142 between Ely and Newmarket . Its population is 9,102 , and it is within the district of East Cambridgeshire.-Archaeology:...
, Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It has around 1350 students, aged 11 to 16. It has a wide catchment area
Catchment area (human geography)
In human geography, a catchment area is the area and population from which a city or individual service attracts visitors or customers. For example, a school catchment area is the geographic area from which students are eligible to attend a local school...
which does not include Ely
Ely, Cambridgeshire
Ely is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, England, 14 miles north-northeast of Cambridge and about by road from London. It is built on a Lower Greensand island, which at a maximum elevation of is the highest land in the Fens...
, although some students from Ely and the neighbouring villages attend the school. The college is split over two adjacent sites, Beechurst (formerly a large house) and Lodeside, built more recently.
The School is controlled by Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire County Council
Cambridgeshire County Council is the county council of Cambridgeshire, England. The council currently consists of 69 councillors, representing 60 electoral divisions. The Conservative Party has a majority on the council, having gained control in the 1997 local elections...
LEA
Local Education Authority
A local education authority is a local authority in England and Wales that has responsibility for education within its jurisdiction...
.
History
The College has its origins in the Soham Free School, established in 1686. The School became known as the Soham Grammar School from 1878 and occupied a site on Churchgate Street. In 1925 the Grammar School moved to Beechurst House, located on Sand Street. Beechurst House (built in 1901) was formerly the home of the late Newmarket jockeyJockey
A jockey is an athlete who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing.-Etymology:...
, Charles Morbey. The Grammar School
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...
took boys aged 11-18 from surrounding villages, and was also home to a few weekly boarder
Boarder
A boarder may be a person who:*snowboards*skateboards*bodyboards*surfs*stays at a boarding house*attends a boarding school*takes part in a boarding attackThe term may also refer to*The Boarder...
s.
The name Soham Village College comes from the former secondary modern style Village College
Village College
The village college is an institution specific to Cambridgeshire, England . It caters for the education of 11 to 16 year olds during the day,...
which was established in 1958. The original village college took boys and girls between the ages of 11 and 15, and was built on a 17 acres (68,796.6 m²) site next to the Soham Lode known as Moat Fields. The village college system was the brainchild of Henry Morris, the Chief Education Officer at Cambridgeshire County Council
Cambridgeshire County Council
Cambridgeshire County Council is the county council of Cambridgeshire, England. The council currently consists of 69 councillors, representing 60 electoral divisions. The Conservative Party has a majority on the council, having gained control in the 1997 local elections...
. The College was officially opened by the Baronet
Baronet
A baronet or the rare female equivalent, a baronetess , is the holder of a hereditary baronetcy awarded by the British Crown...
and MP
Member of Parliament
A 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,...
Sir Edward Boyle, a former Minister for Education. Morris's emphasis was on a community based establishment, and indeed the College was equipped with a public library and a youth leader.
The present day village college came into being in 1972 when the modern co-educational Village College merged with the long-established Grammar School. The merger was a direct result of the government raising the school-leaving age to 16
Raising of school leaving age
The raising of school leaving age is an act brought into force when the legal age a child is allowed to leave compulsory education increases...
.
Throughout the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s building work was carried out under the headships of A.E. Lawrence (between 1972 and 1985) and Dr. A.W. Bullock (between 1985 and 1999). This included the construction of the Ross Peers Sports Centre, a music block, and a science and technology block.
In 1993 the village college gained grant maintained
Grant-maintained school
Grant-maintained schools were state schools in England and Wales between 1988 and 1998 that had opted out of local government control, being funded directly by a grant from central government...
status. This allowed for generous donations, such as the funds donated in the mid 1990s by Simon Gibson for the extension to the Mathematics and English departments (known as the Gibson Block in his honour).
In June 1998 the 'M Block', which contains science, humanities, ICT and languages rooms, was opened by Princess Margaret.
In August 2002 the school became infamous as the place where double child killer Ian Huntley worked as school caretaker. Clothing from the murdered children was found on the school grounds, leading to Huntley's arrest and eventual conviction in the Soham Murders
Soham murders
The Soham murders was an English murder case in 2002 of two 10-year-old girls in the village of Soham, Cambridgeshire.The victims were Holly Marie Wells and Jessica Aimee Chapman...
case. Huntley's house on the school site, and the storage hangar where the clothing was found, were both later demolished.
Academic reputation
In the school's 2010 public exam results, 73% achieved at least 5 grade A-C GCSEs. The school still attracts many students from many schools both within and outside the catchment area. Many students have the opportunity to take extracurricular GCSE's, including Astronomy, Society Health & Development, Italian and Spanish.However, students wishing to continue onto sixth form
Sixth form
In the education systems of England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, and of Commonwealth West Indian countries such as Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Belize, Jamaica and Malta, the sixth form is the final two years of secondary education, where students, usually sixteen to eighteen years of age,...
studies must change schools, usually attending establishments in nearby Ely
Ely, Cambridgeshire
Ely is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, England, 14 miles north-northeast of Cambridge and about by road from London. It is built on a Lower Greensand island, which at a maximum elevation of is the highest land in the Fens...
or Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
.
New Inclusion Facility
In April 2010 the 'The Lode Centre' was refurbished to incorporates an new inclusion facility and is now known as 'The ISLE'. The centre will continue to house the Youth Development Team as well as being used for after school clubs.Academy Status
As of 7th December 2010, the school governors voted unanimously to convert the school into an academy. A meeting was held with parents, who generally received this well. A final decision was announced on 30th January 2011. On 2nd February, the school announced that it would go forward with the conversion. The school will become an academy as of 1st April 2011.New Performing Arts Block
On 6th April 2010, the school began the construction of a new Performing Arts Centre. It will be used for lessons (and activities) in music, dance and drama. The centre was finished in mid-2011 and opened by Ian LavenderIan Lavender
Arthur Ian Lavender , better known as Ian Lavender, is an English stage, film and television actor, best known for his role as Private Frank Pike in the BBC comedy series Dad's Army.-Early life and career:...
on the 3rd November 2011.
Proposed New Sixth Form and College Green
During April 2010, East Cambridgeshire District Council issued the final draft of the Soham Masterplan Vision, a proposed improvement/redevelopment of the town over the next 20 years. The plan included a Sixth FormSixth form
In the education systems of England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, and of Commonwealth West Indian countries such as Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Belize, Jamaica and Malta, the sixth form is the final two years of secondary education, where students, usually sixteen to eighteen years of age,...
college and a new college green. The Sixth Form
Sixth form
In the education systems of England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, and of Commonwealth West Indian countries such as Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Belize, Jamaica and Malta, the sixth form is the final two years of secondary education, where students, usually sixteen to eighteen years of age,...
would be built at the current location of Soham's playing fields and the College green would be in-between St Andrew's C of E Primary, the new Performing Arts Centre and Beechurst.
New Multi-Purpose Tennis Courts
From January 2011 the Construction of new State of the Art Tennis Courts began to replace the original tennis courts which were demolished in order for the new Performing Arts block to be Built.They were built on what was Lodeside Playground and Opened in March 2011
Awards
The Village College holds many awards. Currently it is a Foundation College with specialist status in technology and languages. The College has also been awarded the ArtsmarkArtsmark
Artsmark is a national award scheme managed by Arts Council England. The scheme, that is open to all schools in England, recognises schools with a high level of provision in the arts.There are three levels of award:* Artsmark Gold* Artsmark Silver...
- Bronze Award, International School Award
International School Award
The International School Award is a British Council accreditation scheme rewarding schools with a notable global element in their curriculum.The scheme began in 1999 and since then, over 1000 International School Awards have been granted....
, School Achievement Award, Sport England
Sport England
Sport England is the brand name for the English Sports Council and is a non-departmental public body under the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
SportsMark Award, Basic Skills Quality Mark and Becta
Becta
Becta was a non-departmental public body ] funded by the Department for Children, Schools and Families, in the UK It was a charity and a company limited by guarantee. In the post-election spending review in May 2010, it was announced that Becta was to be abolished...
ICT Mark for Excellence in ICT.
The students are also awarded many different forms of awards for various achievements by the school, such as outstanding attendance, distinctive progression, and extra-curricular activities out of school such as sport. Scarlet ties are awarded to students who excell within sport, whether that be dedication to school teams or county sport participation, Emerald ties are awarded to those who are dedicated to the school's performing arts or county-level performing organisations. Tri-coloured ties are awarded to those within either the performing arts or sports at a national level.
Catchment area
The school has a wide catchment area, owing to its rural location. Students come mainly from the following areas:- SohamSohamSoham is a small town in the English county of Cambridgeshire. It lies just off the A142 between Ely and Newmarket . Its population is 9,102 , and it is within the district of East Cambridgeshire.-Archaeology:...
- BarwayBarwayBarway is a small village in Cambridgeshire, England, about three miles south of Ely. It is on Soham Lode, which flows into the River Cam....
- WickenWicken, CambridgeshireWicken is a small village on the edge of the fens near Soham in East Cambridgeshire, 10 miles north east of Cambridge and 5 miles south of Ely. It is the site of Wicken Fen National Nature Reserve.-History:...
- FordhamFordham, CambridgeshireFordham is a village in rural Cambridgeshire, England. Fordham is part of the East Cambridgeshire district. It is four miles north of Newmarket, as well as being close to the settlements of Soham, Burwell, Isleham, Mildenhall and Chippenham.-History:...
- IslehamIslehamIsleham is a small village and civil parish in the English county of Cambridgeshire. It is part of the Fens.-Geography:Isleham is located in the Fens of south-east Cambridgeshire. The western parish boundary is formed by the Crooked Ditch, the eastern boundary largely by the Lea Brook and the north...
- ChippenhamChippenham, CambridgeshireChippenham is a village and civil parish in Cambridgeshire, England, part of East Cambridgeshire district around north-east of Newmarket and north-east of Cambridge.-History:The parish of Chippenham covers at the eastern end of Cambridgeshire...
- SnailwellSnailwellSnailwell is a small village and civil parish in East Cambridgeshire, England around north of Newmarket.-History:The parish of Snailwell covers an area of in the extension of eastern Cambridgeshire that surrounds the town of Newmarket in Suffolk...
- KennettKennett, CambridgeshireKennett is a small village and civil parish at the very eastern tip of Cambridgeshire, England. Situated around north-east of Newmarket and north-west of Bury St Edmunds, it falls into the district of East Cambridgeshire.-History:...
- BurwellBurwell, CambridgeshireBurwell is a large fen-edge village and civil parish in Cambridgeshire, England, about 10 miles north east of Cambridge. It is situated on the south-eastern edge of The Fens, a large area of relatively flat former marshland which lies close to sea level and covers the majority of Cambridgeshire...
However, some students come from other nearby settlements outside of the catchment area including:
- StuntneyStuntney-Location:Stuntney is located between Ely and Soham. It is just off the main road going from Newmarket to Ely, the A142.-Archaeology:The region between Devil's Dyke and the line between Littleport and Shippea Hill shows a remarkable amount of archaeological findings of the Stone Age, the Bronze Age...
- ElyEly, CambridgeshireEly is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, England, 14 miles north-northeast of Cambridge and about by road from London. It is built on a Lower Greensand island, which at a maximum elevation of is the highest land in the Fens...
- LittleportLittleport, CambridgeshireLittleport is the largest village in East Cambridgeshire, England, approximately north of Ely and south-east of Welney. It lies on the Bedford Level South section of the River Great Ouse, close to Burnt Fen and Mare Fen...
- Newmarket
- Little DownhamLittle DownhamSituated in the east of Cambridgeshire, the village of Little Downham is located just north of the city of Ely. The Parish of Little Downham comprises Little Downham and Pymoor...
- WitchfordWitchfordWitchford is a small village near Ely in Cambridgeshire, England.Witchford houses the secondary school Witchford Village College that serves all of the surrounding villages, including Haddenham, Little Thetford, Mepal, Stretham, Sutton, Wilburton and Witcham.The village hosts the Grunty Fen Half...
- StrethamStrethamStretham is a small village and civil parish south-south-west of Ely in Cambridgeshire, England, about by road from London. Its main attraction is Stretham Old Engine, a steam-powered pump used to drain the fens. The pump is still in use today although converted to electric power. It has open...
- WilburtonWilburtonWilburton is a small village of just over 1,000 inhabitants, situated in Cambridgeshire, England. It is 6 miles south west of Ely.While nominally an agricultural village, many of the inhabitants work in Cambridge, Ely or London.-History:...
- HaddenhamHaddenham, CambridgeshireHaddenham is a village and civil parish in Cambridgeshire, England. In the 2001 census the parish had a population of 3,228.It has several shops and a regular bus service to the cathedral city of Ely, which is about north-east of the village....
The principal feeder primary schools are:
- St Andrew's C of E PrimarySt Andrew's Primary School (Soham)St Andrew's Primary School is a primary school located in Soham, Cambridgeshire, England. It is twinned with the local parish church of the same name....
(Soham) - The Weatheralls (Soham)
- Fordham C of E Primary
- Isleham C of E Primary
- Kennett Primary
- Burwell Village College (Primary)
- Ely St. Johns (Primary)
- Ely St. Mary's (Primary)