The Voyager School
Encyclopedia
The Voyager Academy is a comprehensive
secondary school
in Peterborough
in the United Kingdom
. The school was formed in 2007 by the amalgamation of Walton Community School and Bretton Woods Community School.
In 2004, the decision to create these new schools was given the green light, and the decision to close both Walton Community School and Bretton Woods Community School was decided. Both schools were to be merged to form The Voyager School, with £26 million of the investment being poured into the new school.
Much consultation occurred between parents, students and members of the public involving the merging of the two schools and whilst at first there were several objections about closures, primarily from Bretton Woods School, many people came around to the idea of this new school.
In January 2005, the headteacher of TVS was announced at town hall. He would oversee the development and then become the headteacher when the school opened in September 2007. The Head, known for his turn-about of other new and failing schools felt the opportunity was an "exciting new challenge" and was "looking forward to taking up his role".
In February 2005, the building contractor for what was known, at the time, as North School was being debated. Out of 3 possible candidates, the city decided on Bouygues
Education/Mills group, a French company, well known for its educational building project, to begin construction in March '06.
It was in March 2006 that The Voyager School launched its bid to become Peterborough's first Media Arts College
. The bid offered local businesses the opportunity of helping the school achieve the £50,000 sponsorship necessary to draw on government funding of £1 million.
The Voyager School's uniform was unveiled in June 2006, as students from both schools took to the catwalk to showcase the schools designs. The uniform focuses on the idea of "identity" as well as being in keeping with the approach to the establishment of the school and is characterized by flair, panache and innovation.
As both schools began to work together through a series of "Mission Impossible" transition events to promote team building, leadership and innovate skills. The first of these in February '07 was used to create The Voyager School Senior Executive Group (SEG), a new form of student leadership within the school where a group of six students would work to create and manage the leadership scheme of The Voyager with Deputy Headteacher, Jane Mullan.
After nearly a year of developing the proposal, The Voyager School finally achieved Media Arts Status in January-February 2007 before it had even opened following a successful application to the Department for Education and Skills.
In 2008 the school received its first sets of results.
The A-Level results showed good pass rates,
but only 23% of students achieved the benchmark of 5 GCSE passes at A*–C including English and mathematics.
A report in the Evening Telegraph suggested the school had been given 12 months to improve.
However, the school's first Ofsted
inspection in November 2008 noted several good features of the school, and stated that the school had created the effective management needed to overcome a legacy of low achievement at the predecessor schools.
After over 3 years in the role, in September 2010, Headteacher Hugh Howe decided to step down from the role but continued to work within the school until a replacement was found.
In October 2010 replacement head-teacher Tony Evans was enrolled in the job of leadership within the school. This was a temporary contract until a permanent replacement was found in the summer of 2011. His replacement is Dr. Birch. He has made many changes through behaviour and changed the structure of the school day. Many changes have been implemented to reduce the bad behaviour. The behaviour levels are:
Level 1 - verbal warning.
Level 2 - name on the board.
Level 3 - recording on SIMS.
level 4 - on call.
Dr. Birch also implimented an anarchy, which wiped the record of the students clean, effectively giving them a fresh start.
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
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...
in Peterborough
Peterborough
Peterborough is a cathedral city and unitary authority area in the East of England, with an estimated population of in June 2007. For ceremonial purposes it is in the county of Cambridgeshire. Situated north of London, the city stands on the River Nene which flows into the North Sea...
in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. The school was formed in 2007 by the amalgamation of Walton Community School and Bretton Woods Community School.
Development
The development of The Voyager School began in September 2003 when consultation began on the £100 million transformation of secondary schools in Peterborough. 4 schools were planned for the city and 7 schools would be refurbished or expanded.In 2004, the decision to create these new schools was given the green light, and the decision to close both Walton Community School and Bretton Woods Community School was decided. Both schools were to be merged to form The Voyager School, with £26 million of the investment being poured into the new school.
Much consultation occurred between parents, students and members of the public involving the merging of the two schools and whilst at first there were several objections about closures, primarily from Bretton Woods School, many people came around to the idea of this new school.
In January 2005, the headteacher of TVS was announced at town hall. He would oversee the development and then become the headteacher when the school opened in September 2007. The Head, known for his turn-about of other new and failing schools felt the opportunity was an "exciting new challenge" and was "looking forward to taking up his role".
In February 2005, the building contractor for what was known, at the time, as North School was being debated. Out of 3 possible candidates, the city decided on Bouygues
Bouygues
Bouygues S.A. is a French industrial group headquartered in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, France. Bouygues is listed on Euronext Paris exchange and is a blue chip in the CAC 40 stock market index. The company was founded in 1952 by Francis Bouygues and since 1989 has been led by his son Martin...
Education/Mills group, a French company, well known for its educational building project, to begin construction in March '06.
It was in March 2006 that The Voyager School launched its bid to become Peterborough's first Media Arts College
Arts College
Arts Colleges were introduced in 1997 as part of the now defunct Specialist Schools Programme in the United Kingdom. The system enabled secondary schools to specialise in certain fields, in this case, the performing, visual and/or media arts...
. The bid offered local businesses the opportunity of helping the school achieve the £50,000 sponsorship necessary to draw on government funding of £1 million.
The Voyager School's uniform was unveiled in June 2006, as students from both schools took to the catwalk to showcase the schools designs. The uniform focuses on the idea of "identity" as well as being in keeping with the approach to the establishment of the school and is characterized by flair, panache and innovation.
As both schools began to work together through a series of "Mission Impossible" transition events to promote team building, leadership and innovate skills. The first of these in February '07 was used to create The Voyager School Senior Executive Group (SEG), a new form of student leadership within the school where a group of six students would work to create and manage the leadership scheme of The Voyager with Deputy Headteacher, Jane Mullan.
After nearly a year of developing the proposal, The Voyager School finally achieved Media Arts Status in January-February 2007 before it had even opened following a successful application to the Department for Education and Skills.
Operation
In September 2007, The Voyager School finally opened its doors to its students and staff, as well as the local community, ready to begin the adventure to go "above and beyond". With an emphasis on student leadership, it was the first school in the city to appoint students to the board of governors.In 2008 the school received its first sets of results.
The A-Level results showed good pass rates,
but only 23% of students achieved the benchmark of 5 GCSE passes at A*–C including English and mathematics.
A report in the Evening Telegraph suggested the school had been given 12 months to improve.
However, the school's first Ofsted
Ofsted
The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills is the non-ministerial government department of Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Schools In England ....
inspection in November 2008 noted several good features of the school, and stated that the school had created the effective management needed to overcome a legacy of low achievement at the predecessor schools.
After over 3 years in the role, in September 2010, Headteacher Hugh Howe decided to step down from the role but continued to work within the school until a replacement was found.
In October 2010 replacement head-teacher Tony Evans was enrolled in the job of leadership within the school. This was a temporary contract until a permanent replacement was found in the summer of 2011. His replacement is Dr. Birch. He has made many changes through behaviour and changed the structure of the school day. Many changes have been implemented to reduce the bad behaviour. The behaviour levels are:
Level 1 - verbal warning.
Level 2 - name on the board.
Level 3 - recording on SIMS.
level 4 - on call.
Dr. Birch also implimented an anarchy, which wiped the record of the students clean, effectively giving them a fresh start.