Hammersmith Academy is a non-denominational, all-ability, co-educational secondary

academy An academy ( Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy ...

for 11- to 18-year-olds specialising in creative and

digital media Digital media is any communication media that operate in conjunction with various encoded machine-readable data formats. Digital media can be created, viewed, distributed, modified, listened to, and preserved on a digital electronics device. ' ...

and information technology, located in the

London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham The London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham () is a London borough in West London and which also forms part of Inner London. The borough was formed in 1965 from the merger of the former Metropolitan Boroughs of Hammersmith and Fulham. The borou ...

, West London, England. Opened in September 2001, the Academy is jointly sponsored by the

Worshipful Company of Mercers The Worshipful Company of Mercers is the premier Livery Company of the City of London and ranks first in the order of precedence of the Companies. It is the first of the Great Twelve City Livery Companies. Although of even older origin, the c ...

(the oldest livery company in the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London fr ...

) and the

Worshipful Company of Information Technologists The Worshipful Company of Information Technologists, also known as the Information Technologists' Company, is one of the livery companies of the City of London. The company was granted livery status by the Court of Aldermen on 7 January 1992, ...

(the 100th Livery Company). The academy is based in a four-storey building which has facilities such as a Theatre, Sports Hall, Library, Fitness Suite and Digital Editing & IT suites.

Background

In 2006, only 38% of local children in the

went to local state schools. This led the council to launch its Schools of Choice programme which aimed to provide more choice to meet the growing demand for school places in the borough and reduce the need for parents to send their children to schools outside of Hammersmith and Fulham. Plans were later announced in 2007 for the building of a new academy within the borough which would be sponsored by the

Mercers' Company The Worshipful Company of Mercers is the premier Livery Company of the City of London and ranks first in the order of precedence of the Companies. It is the first of the Great Twelve City Livery Companies. Although of even older origin, the c ...

and the Information Technologists Company. The new academy would open in September 2010 and be designed to accommodate up to 780 mixed ability students aged 11–18, with the site of the former Stamford House young offenders selected. The opening was later pushed back to September 2011 and building work began in June 2009. It was founded by

Tom Ilube Thomas Segun Ilube (born July 1963) is a British entrepreneur and educational philanthropist and chair of the Rugby Football Union making him the first black chair of a major sport in England. He was ranked first in the '' Powerlist 2017'', an ...

, a British-Nigerian entrepreneur and educational philanthropist.

Facilities

The building encompasses: * Large Learning Bases which provide flexible teaching areas for student groups * Science Laboratories designed and equipped to provide large areas of accessible space for practical work * Whiteboard technology in all teaching areas * Independent Learning Centres with full access to online resources * Library * Video and Music editing space complete with green-screen and a radio station * Two large technology workshops served by Computer Aided Design and Computer Aided Manufacture. * Dance/Drama Studio with sprung floors and full length mirrors * Theatre with tiered seating * Multi Use Games Area and 250m running track * Fitness Suite. * Multi-purpose Sports Hall. *Sen department

Ofsted

* The Academy was rated as 'Good' with some 'Outstanding' features in its first Ofsted inspection despite being open less than 18 months.

Year structure

The new year structure goes. L,A,J,M,K. L for Lovelace, A for Attenborough, J for Johnson, M for McQueen and K for Khan. The new houses refer to the inspirational people Such as the mathematician

Ada Lovelace Augusta Ada King, Countess of Lovelace (''née'' Byron; 10 December 1815 – 27 November 1852) was an English mathematician and writer, chiefly known for her work on Charles Babbage's proposed mechanical general-purpose computer, the A ...

, The biologist

David Attenborough Sir David Frederick Attenborough (; born 8 May 1926) is an English broadcaster, biologist, natural historian and author. He is best known for writing and presenting, in conjunction with the BBC Natural History Unit, the nine natural histor ...

, The NASA mathematician

Katherine Johnson Katherine Johnson (née Coleman; August 26, 1918 – February 24, 2020) was an American mathematician whose calculations of orbital mechanics as a NASA employee were critical to the success of the first and subsequent U.S. crewed spaceflights. ...

, The film director

Steve McQueen (director) Sir Steve Rodney McQueen (born 9 October 1969) is a British film director, film producer, screenwriter, and video artist. He is known for his award-winning film ''12 Years a Slave'' (2013), an adaptation of Solomon Northup's 1853 slave narrat ...

and the architect Khan. These will be the houses for all the years from Year 7-13.

GCSE Options

Mandatory

* Science * Maths * English * Spanish * RE * PE ( Physical ) * Either Geography or History

Optional

* Art * Computer Science * Design Technology * Drama * Economics * Media studies * Music * PE ( Theory ) * Triple Science *Students that know other languages other than Spanish are able to do that as a GCSE #

Famous Visits

In 2015

Prince William William, Prince of Wales, (William Arthur Philip Louis; born 21 June 1982) is the heir apparent to the British throne. He is the elder son of King Charles III and his first wife Diana, Princess of Wales. Born in London, William was educa ...

visited Hammersmith academy for an anti-bullying campaign known as the Princess Diana anti-bullying campaign, The campaign focused on Cyber-bullying and LGBTQ+ bullying. Another famous visit was in the January of 2022 when the education secretary

Nadhim Zahawi Nadhim Zahawi ( ar, ناظم الزهاوي, translit=Nāẓim az-Zahāwī; ku, نەدیم زەهاوی, translit=Nedîm Zehawî; born 2 June 1967) is an Iraqi-born British politician serving as Chairman of the Conservative Party and Minister ...

was invited for a tour around the academy, later on the BBC news he had positive opinions on the academy.

References

External links

* {{authority control 2011 in London 2011 establishments in England Educational institutions established in 2011 Academies in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham Digital media schools Secondary schools in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham

Academy An academy ( Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy ...