Skipton Girls' High School
| Established | 1886 |
|---|---|
| Type |
Grammar school; Academy |
| Head of Academy |
Jenn Plews (from 2013) |
| Location |
Gargrave Road Skipton North Yorkshire BD23 1QL England Coordinates: 53°57′49″N 2°01′39″W / 53.963576°N 2.02747°W |
| Local authority | North Yorkshire |
| DfE URN | 136664 Tables |
| Ofsted | Reports |
| Students | 810 |
| Gender | Female |
| Ages | 11–18 |
| Houses | Former: Broadbent, Larner and Wise Current: Bronte, Johnson, Curie and Franklin |
| Colours | Bronte - Red, Johnson - Green, Curie - Yellow, Franklin - Blue |
| Website | School website |
Skipton Girls' High School, founded in 1886 by the Petyt Trust, is an all-girls selective grammar school situated in Skipton, North Yorkshire, England. The school is a founding member of Northern Star Academies Trust and leads Northern Lights Teaching School Alliance and Northern Lights SCITT. Around 810 girls aged 11 to 18 are educated at the school, of which 240 are in the sixth form. The current Headteacher Jenn Plews (formally Head of Academy) replaced Janet Renou (Executive Head) in September 2014.
Status
The school was awarded specialist status as an Engineering College in September 2003, becoming the first all-girls school to achieve this status.[1] It also has Investors in People accreditation and Fair Trade FairAchiever status. On 1 April 2011, the school became an academy and on 1st April 2015, the school established the Multi-Academy Trust Northern Star Academies Trust.
Admission
As an academy Trust the Governors are responsible for admissions. Girls who wish to join the school sit a selection test. There is no selection test for entrance into sixth form as pupils are admitted on the basis of their GCSE grades. Pupils joining the sixth form are expected to have achieved 5 A*-C inc English and Maths and at least a grade B at GCSE in the subjects they want to study at A-level.
Ofsted inspections
Before the school's conversion to academy status in 2011, it underwent an Ofsted inspection, in 2008, followed by an interim assessment in March 2011. In the 2008 inspection the school was rated Grade 1 (outstanding) for overall effectiveness, in all separate areas of assessment, and throughout all pupil years.[2]
Old Girls' Guild
The Old Girls' Guild was started on 24 November 1917. The Guild still meets twice each year, for the Spring Reunion and Autumn Luncheon. The idea of the guild developed during Miss Larner's years as Headmistress during which staff and former pupils would meet. Miss Broadbent continued this, organising social events. The Guild's first magazine was published in 1918 and with the exception of 1920 one has been published every year. Bound copies of the magazine are held at Skipton Reference Library.
Houses
Every girl from Year 7 to Year 13 is in one of the four houses, each of which has a house colour. Each house is named after a woman or women of note from history: Bronte (red) is named after the Brontë sisters, Curie (yellow) after Marie Curie, Franklin (blue) after Rosalind Franklin and Johnson (green) after Amy Johnson. The house mottos are "Sisters of the Past, Present and Future", "Cure Ignorance; Radiate Knowledge", "Success is in Everyone's Genes" and "Soaring in the Skies of Success" respectively. Inter-house collaboration and competitions take place to earn house points, and at the end of the terms and year, they are counted up to reveal winners. Competitions range from baking cakes and carving pumpkins to Artistic and literary competitions and talent shows. Pupils are also rewarded for their positive attitude to learning, effort and mindset as well as personal achievement and attendance.
The original four houses of Skipton Girls' High School were Clifford (yellow), de Romille (red), Norton (blue) and Pembroke (green). These were names that linked the school to the Craven area - Clifford, de Romille and Pembroke all being related to Skipton Castle.
Sixth form
Sixth form results typically put the school in the top 100 state schools in the country for A-Level results. In 2015 the pass rate was over 99%, with 74% of entries reaching either A* A or B grade. A significant number of pupils go on to Oxford, Cambridge and the Russell Group Universities each year. The Sixth form curriculum is broad and balanced and includes high numbers of pupils studying mathematics, science and language and arts subjects.
Sixth form pupils follow the school's "business" dress code of black suit, optional coloured top, and dark-coloured shoes. They use facilities exclusively in West Bank House – across the road from the main school – including study areas, classrooms and a bistro. Events are arranged by pupils over the year to raise money for 13 Summer balls.
The school teaches twenty-two A- and AS-Level courses – including some shared with Ermysted's Grammar School sixth form – and the AQA Baccalaureate. The Baccalaureate requires a pupil to gain at least 3 A-Levels in any combination of subjects, while undertaking an extended project (EPQ) and 100 hours of activity over the two years of the course. This covers three areas: Community Service, Personal Development and Work-Based Learning.
Notable former pupils
- Claire Brooks (1931–2008) – Lib Dem politician
- Elizabeth Harwood (1938–1990) – opera singer
- Ruzwana Bashir – first British Asian woman to become President of the Oxford Union
- Katherine Langrish – fantasy writer
See also
- Ermysted's Grammar School
- Harrogate High School - joint founder of Northern Star Academies Trust
References
- ↑ "Skipton Girls' High School – Specialist Engineering College". Specialist Schools and Academies Trust. Retrieved 26 March 2008.
- ↑ "Skipton Girls' High School", Ofsted inspection reports 2005/2008. Retrieved 6 February 2014