Arts and Media School Islington, is a secondary school located in the Finsbury Park area of the

London Borough of Islington The London Borough of Islington ( ) is a London borough in Inner London. Whilst the majority of the district is located in north London, the borough also includes a significant area to the south which forms part of central London. Islington has ...

. It is classified as a comprehensive trust foundation school and has been a specialist media arts college since 2003. Susan Service was appointed headteacher in 2016 after having served as the deputy head of curriculum for 5 years.

History

The Victorian building, still in use today, was originally Montem St School. Later the school was known as Tollington Park Secondary School and, more recently, as George Orwell School. The school was renamed as Islington Arts and Media School (IAMS) in the school year 1999–2000. Initially, Torsten Friedag was appointed as a "super head" but quit after two terms. Richard Ewen was appointed as headteacher and improvements in the school resulted in a 2004 Ofsted report that read: "Islington Arts and Media school is an effective and rapidly improving school that provides a good quality of education and good value for money." The Ofsted report on the school in 2017 described the school's performance as "Good". The school buildings were used as a filming location in the

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

-nominated 2006 film ''

Notes on a Scandal ''Notes on a Scandal'' (''What Was She Thinking? Notes on a Scandal'' in the U.S.) is a 2003 novel by Zoë Heller. It is about a female teacher at a London comprehensive school who begins an affair with an underage pupil. Heller said to ''The Ob ...

''.

Partnerships

Partners vary from across the curriculum and include The Barbican and

Arsenal FC Arsenal Football Club, commonly referred to as Arsenal, is a professional football club based in Islington, London, England. Arsenal plays in the Premier League, the top flight of English football. The club has won 13 league titles (incl ...

. In addition, the school works closely with a number of local primary schools, sharing skills and expertise in key academic subjects. Each term they open their doors to their primary partners, offering a variety of master classes, workshops, and activity days.

Notable former pupils

* Jermain Jackman, winner of the third series of the BBC television singing competition ''

The Voice UK ''The Voice UK'' is a British singing competition television series. Created by John de Mol, it premiered on BBC One during the spring television cycle on 24 March 2012. Based on the original '' The Voice of Holland'', and part of ''The Voice ...

'' in 2014 *

Don McCullin Sir Donald McCullin (born 9 October 1935) is a British photojournalist, particularly recognised for his war photography and images of urban strife. His career, which began in 1959, has specialised in examining the underside of society, and hi ...

, photo journalist who attended the school in the late 1940s * Justin Pickett, actor who played Sean Ambrose in the

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...

comedy ''

Desmond's ''Desmond's'' is a British television situation comedy broadcast by Channel 4 from 1989 to 1994. Conceived and co-written by Trix Worrell, and produced by Charlie Hanson and Humphrey Barclay, ''Desmond's'' stars Norman Beaton as barber Des ...

'', attended the school in the 1980s *

Kaya Scodelario Kaya Rose Scodelario-Davis ( née Humphrey; born 13 March 1992) is an English actress best known for her roles as Effy Stonem on the E4 teen drama '' Skins'' (2007–2010, 2013), and Teresa in the ''Maze Runner'' film series (2014–2018). Ot ...

, actress *

Jay Simpson Jay-Alistaire Frederick Simpson (born 1 December 1988) is an English professional footballer who plays as a striker or winger for Welling United. A product of the Arsenal Academy, he never played a league game for Arsenal, spending most of h ...

, professional footballer *

Troy Titus-Adams Troy Titus-Adams (born Troy Johanna D. Adams, October 1969) is a British actress and dancer. She began her career touring as a dancer and made her feature film debut in ''Knights and Emeralds'' (1986). She is known for her roles in the soap ope ...

, actress * Most of the members of Afroswing group NSG

References

Secondary schools in the London Borough of Islington Foundation schools in the London Borough of Islington {{London-school-stub Specialist arts colleges in England