Brighton Hill Community College
 | |
| Established | 1975 |
|---|---|
| Type | Comprehensive |
| Headteacher | Mr P Nicholson |
| Chair of Governors | Mrs J Pratt |
| Location |
Brighton Way Basingstoke Hampshire RG22 4HS United Kingdom Coordinates: 51°14′47″N 1°06′52″W / 51.2465°N 1.1145°W |
| Local authority | Hampshire |
| DfE URN | 116441 Tables |
| Ofsted | Reports |
| Staff | 150 |
| Students | 1084[1] |
| Gender | Coeducational |
| Ages | 11–16 |
| Houses | Dorney, Greenwich, Portland, Stratford |
| Colours | Navy blue and yellow |
| Nickname | BHCS |
| Website |
www |
Brighton Hill Community School (known locally as BHCS) is located in Brighton Hill, Basingstoke in the county of Hampshire in the south of England. The Acting Interim Headteacher is Mr Paul Nicholson, but the role will be taken over by Mr Christopher Evans in January 2017, when he will join the school as the new Headteacher.
Brighton Hill has run exchange trips with Marienschule, a school in Basingstoke's twin town, Euskirchen. It runs sport-related trips, as well as trips for other subjects. It holds annual Gifted and Talented events for Sports students.
Brighton Hill Community School is also a Training School.
Curriculum
The students at the school begin their GCSE subjects in year nine, which allows them to complete some GCSEs at the end of year ten and spend year eleven studying a different subject. There are some options that have double the number of lessons. The school has a one-week timetable, which include compulsory English and Mathematics (Daily), Science, Physical Education, Key Skills Qualification ICT, Citizenship, Religious Education and Personal Social and Health Education (which is referred to as 'Prep 4 Life') for all students.
All Key Stage 3 students also study French, German,Spanish, Geography, History, Philosophy, Ethics and Beliefs, Food Technology, Textiles, Woodwork, Graphics, Music, Art and Drama. From Year Nine, students choose up to four courses to continue studying, including all of the above courses, Business Studies, Pre-Vocational Studies, Separate Sciences.
Uniform
Brighton Hill School's uniform consists of a daffodil-yellow shirt or blouse, black trousers or skirt, a navy blue jumper, a navy blue blazer and a yellow, blue and green tie for the boys. This uniform has earned the students a nickname of "Yellowbellies" among locals. The PE kit consists of a Navy blue and orange shirt with navy blue shorts In 2010, a yellow polo shirt was introduced for summer uniform, compulsory for the academic year 2010/2011.
History
In 2005/2006, Brighton Hill School changed its tutoring system by introducing mixed-year tutor groups. This change led to subsequent pupil protests that were covered in the regional news.[2] The college also changed its house system, consisting of the houses Austen, Dickens, Kingsley, White and Adams, to a community system with communities called Athens, Barcelona, Montreal, Rome, Sydney and Tokyo. In a recent Ofsted inspection, the school was highly praised. However, it was also criticised for poor communication with parents.[3] In recent years, the school has constantly ranked above local and national averages.[4]
In June 2008, the college was featured again in the local newspaper after over 200 pupils were suspended following a protest on the school field against an extension of 20 minutes to the school day, and the plans to force the entire school of 1,300 students to queue all at once. The protest was started by a small group of year ten students before the beginning registration of the day. These students quickly spread word about their plans and after 1–2 hours there were around 200 students on the far side of the field from the main school buildings. Many children came and went throughout the day due to a warning issued by the head master, which stated that for every missed lesson a student must suffer one hours detention, and if the whole day is missed the student will be suspended for the rest of the week. This also happened to be the last week of school for the year.
Shortly before the school day had ended, senior members of staff forced the protesting students off the field before other students finished their lessons to avoid difficulties. All students turned up as normal the following day. A teacher was waiting at the school gates with a list of 117 names of those who were to be sent home, due to being excluded for the rest of the week. This caused complaints from parents because of the disorganisation and inconvenience caused by the school towards the parents and students.
Halfway through the school summer holiday, all 117 excluded students were sent a letter stating that expelled students had had the punishment erased from their records, as discussed between the head master and the school governors.[5]
Until 2016, the core subjects of English, Mathematics and Science had been taught in sets based on aptitude in the subject. However, these sets were changed to mixed-ability classes in the academic year 2016-17.
Head teachers
Mr Christopher Edwards has been appointed for the replacement of Charlie Currie and is due to start in January 2017. Charlie Currie was head teacher from 2013-2016. Currie served as interim head teacher for two terms after the resignation of David Eyre in 2011, before becoming appointed permanent head teacher for the start of the 2013-2014 term. Other previous head teachers include Lawrie Shaw, Bill Wright and Andy Kilpatrick. Wendy Small was acting head mistress for one year, for the academic year 2009-2010.
Notes
- ↑ Brighton Hill's Ofsted Information
- ↑ Shake-up drives pupils to protest
- ↑ "Brighton Hill Community College" (PDF). Ofsted Report.
- ↑ "BBC News, School league tables 2007, Hampshire LA". BBC News. Retrieved 2010-04-26.
- ↑ Head bans over 100 pupils after protest