The Park Community School is a

coeducational Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to t ...

secondary school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' secondary education, lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) ...

located in

Barnstaple, Devon Barnstaple ( or ) is a river-port town in North Devon, England, at the River Taw's lowest crossing point before the Bristol Channel. From the 14th century, it was licensed to export wool and won great wealth. Later it imported Irish wool, but i ...

, England.

History and houses

It was founded in 1910 as Barnstaple Grammar School, and was the first secondary school to be built by

Devon County Council Devon County Council is the county council administering the English county of Devon. Based in the city of Exeter, the council covers the non-metropolitan county area of Devon. Members of the council (councillors) are elected every four years to ...

, educating the youth of much of North Devon. The school's name was changed to The Park School in 1973 when the school became a comprehensive. From 2002 to 2003 the school underwent extensive remodelling with a new maths and science building linking the old North and South Buildings, and a new food hall was also built whilst many of the old classrooms were redesigned and refurbished. Previously a

foundation school In England and Wales, a foundation school is a state-funded school in which the governing body has greater freedom in the running of the school than in community schools. Foundation schools were set up under the School Standards and Framework A ...

administered by

, in February 2019 The Park Community School converted to academy status. The school is now sponsored by the Tarka Learning Partnership. The school used to consist of four houses, each of which was named after a prominent person from Devon:

Sir Francis Drake Sir Francis Drake ( – 28 January 1596) was an English explorer, sea captain, privateer, slave trader, naval officer, and politician. Drake is best known for his circumnavigation of the world in a single expedition, from 1577 to 1580 (t ...

, Hugh Fortescue, 4th Earl Fortescue,

Charles Kingsley Charles Kingsley (12 June 1819 – 23 January 1875) was a broad church priest of the Church of England, a university professor, social reformer, historian, novelist and poet. He is particularly associated with Christian socialism, the working ...

, and

Sir Walter Raleigh Sir Walter Raleigh (; – 29 October 1618) was an English statesman, soldier, writer and explorer. One of the most notable figures of the Elizabethan era, he played a leading part in English colonisation of North America, suppressed rebellion ...

. In 1999, owing to the number of pupils attending the school, a fifth house, Chichester, named after Barnstaple born Sir

Francis Chichester Sir Francis Charles Chichester KBE (17 September 1901 – 26 August 1972) was a British businessman, pioneering aviator and solo sailor. He was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II for becoming the first person to sail single-handed around the worl ...

, was created.

Subjects

The school used to specialise in teaching technical subjects, including food, electronics, product design, graphics and textiles, and students were able to take small classes in these subjects.

Notable former pupils

Barnstaple Grammar School *

Michael Bowering Michael Ernest Bowering (25 June 1935 – 25 April 2015) was Archdeacon of Lindisfarne from 1987 until 2000. Bowering was educated at Barnstaple Grammar School; Kelham Theological College; and York St John University College. After curacies in M ...

Ann Cleeves Ann Cleeves (born 1954) is a British mystery crime writer. She wrote the Vera Stanhope, Jimmy Perez, and Matthew Venn series, all three of which have been adapted into TV shows. In 2006 she won the Duncan Lawrie Dagger for her novel ''Rav ...

* Jonathan Hanmer *

Nicholas Hooper (1654–1731) Sir Nicholas II Hooper (1654-1731) of Fullabrook, Braunton and Raleigh, Pilton in Devon, was a lawyer who served as Tory Member of Parliament for Barnstaple 1695-1715. Origins He was the son of Nicholas I Hooper of Fullabrook, Braunton, Devon, 5 ...

Charles Johnston (priest) Charles Francis Harding Johnston (b Barnstaple, 6 October 1842 -d Warrington 22 August 1925) was Archdeacon of Bombay from 1888 until 1890. Johnston was educated at Barnstaple Grammar School and Christ's College, Cambridge; and ordained in 1867. ...

John Johnston (priest) John Octavius Johnston (1 November 1852 – 6 November 1923) was a British Anglican priest and theologian. Life Johnston was born in Barnstaple, Devon, and educated at Barnstaple Grammar School, before studying at Keble College, Oxford, from 1874 ...

Thomas Lee (1794–1834) Thomas Lee (Jnr) (1794 – 5 September 1834), the son of Thomas Lee of Barnstaple, Devon, was an English architect. He was educated at Barnstaple Grammar School and left to train briefly in 1810 at Sir John Soane's office, where his father no ...

Gervase Frederick Mathew Gervase Frederick Mathew (11 February 1842 – 10 February 1928) was an English naval officer and entomologist. Gervase Mathew was born in Barnstaple and educated at Barnstaple Grammar School and Blundell's School. He entered the Royal Navy as As ...

, naval officer and entomologist *

Cuthbert Mayne Cuthbert Mayne (c. 1543–29 November 1577) was an English Roman Catholic priest executed under the laws of Elizabeth I. He was the first of the seminary priests, trained on the Continent, to be martyred. Mayne was beatified in 1886 and canonise ...

, martyr *

David Shepherd (umpire) David Robert Shepherd (27 December 1940 – 27 October 2009) was a first-class cricketer who played county cricket for Gloucestershire, and later became one of the cricket world's best-known umpires. He stood in 92 Test matches, the last ...

David Spiegelhalter Sir David John Spiegelhalter (born 16 August 1953) is a British statistician and a Fellow of Churchill College, Cambridge. From 2007 to 2018 he was Winton Professor of the Public Understanding of Risk in the Statistical Laboratory at the U ...

, statistician *

David Vine David Martin Vine (3 January 1935 – 11 January 2009) was an English television sports presenter. He presented a wide variety of shows from the 1960s onwards, most notably his coverage of major snooker tournaments for the BBC. Early life Born i ...

, commentator

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Park Community School Secondary schools in Devon Buildings and structures in Barnstaple Academies in Devon