Smithdon High School (formerly known as Hunstanton Secondary Modern School and Hunstanton School) is a small

comprehensive school A comprehensive school typically describes a secondary school for pupils aged approximately 11–18, that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude, in contrast to a selective school system where admission is re ...

(ages 11–16)

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, ...

, with 627 students in

Hunstanton Hunstanton () is a seaside town in Norfolk, England, which had a population of 4,229 at the 2011 Census. It faces west across The Wash, making it one of the few places on the east coast of Great Britain where the sun sets over the sea. Hunstant ...

, Norfolk. Its buildings are

Grade II* listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

. It changed its status, joining the West Norfolk Academies Trust in 2016. Ofsted rated the school as 'requires improvement' in 2019. The Grade II* listed buildings were designed by

Peter and Alison Smithson Alison Margaret Smithson (22 June 1928 – 14 August 1993) and Peter Denham Smithson (18 September 1923 – 3 March 2003) were English architects who together formed an architectural partnership, and are often associated with the New Brutalis ...

. They were completed in 1954, in the

modernist Modernism is both a philosophy, philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western world, Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new fo ...

style that became known as New Brutalism. They have remained largely unchanged though some of the featured clear glass panels were replaced by black panels to overcome a solar overheating problem. They were listed in 1993.

School history

The school was opened in 1954. It was a product of extreme austerity, intended to educate the boys and girls aged 11 to 15 who had failed the

11-plus The eleven-plus (11+) is a standardized examination administered to some students in England and Northern Ireland in their last year of primary education, which governs admission to grammar schools and other secondary schools which use academi ...

. The school became non-selective following the 1965

Circular 10/65 Circular 10/65 was a government circular issued in 1965 by the Department of Education and Science (DES) requesting Local Education Authorities (LEAs) in England and Wales to begin converting their secondary schools to the Comprehensive System. Fo ...

and in 1972 the

school leaving age The school leaving age is the minimum age a person is legally allowed to cease attendance at an institute of compulsory secondary education. Most countries have their school leaving age set the same as their minimum full-time employment age, thus ...

was raised to 16. The school had a wide catchment area, which includes many small, rural villages receiving students at 11 (year 7) from primary schools and 13 (year 9) from middle schools in the Norfolk three-tier system. This reverted to two tier. After a Good Ofsted Report in 2014, the school changed its status to an academy, within the West Norfolk Academies Trust Group. In 2019, Smithdon High School again received a 'needs improvement' report from Ofsted.

Description

This is a small school, that no longer has a

sixth form In the education systems of England, Northern Ireland, Wales, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and some other Commonwealth countries, sixth form represents the final two years of secondary education, ages 16 to 18. Pupils typically prepare for A- ...

. It has difficulty in recruiting and retaining staff. Pupils feel it is a safe, friendly school though attendance is a problem. The head is seen as strict but fair. The curriculum is well laid out in curriculum plans.

Curriculum

Virtually all maintained schools and academies follow the

National Curriculum A national curriculum is a common programme of study in schools that is designed to ensure nationwide uniformity of content and standards in education. It is usually legislated by the national government, possibly in consultation with state or other ...

, and are inspected by Ofsted on how well they succeed in delivering a 'broad and balanced curriculum'. The school has to decide whether

Key Stage 3 Key Stage 3 (commonly abbreviated as KS3) is the legal term for the three years of schooling in maintained schools in England and Wales normally known as Year 7, Year 8 and Year 9, when pupils are aged between 11 and 14. In Northern Ireland the ...

contains or whether year 9 should be in

Key Stage 4 Key Stage 4 (KS4) is the legal term for the two years of school education which incorporate GCSEs, and other examinations, in maintained schools in England normally known as Year 10 and Year 11, when pupils are aged between 14 and 16 by August 31 ...

and the students just study subjects that will be examined by the

GCSE The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a particular subject, taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. State schools in Scotland use the Scottish Qualifications Certificate instead. Private s ...

exams at 16. Smithdon had decided to take the latter approach they are reconsidering this decision after reading the Ofsted report. Ofsted pointed out that the

In some subjects, pupils have not been given enough time to cover the full curriculum in key stage 3. ... In some subjects, plans are not as well sequenced. This means that pupils do not get a strong enough grasp of important knowledge and concepts. In these subjects, pupils are not as well prepared for their key stage 4 studies. We saw examples of this in art, history and languages.

In 2019, Key Stage 3 and 4 students studied: Potential

Key Stage 5 Key Stage 5 is a label used to describe the two years of education for students aged 16–18, or at sixth form, in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, aligning with previous Key Stages as labelled for the National Curriculum. Key Stage 5 is also ...

students are offered places in the sixth form at Springwood High School in Lynn.

Buildings

Architectural history

Hunstanton School, built between 1949 and 1954, is an important work by

Alison and Peter Smithson Alison Margaret Smithson (22 June 1928 – 14 August 1993) and Peter Denham Smithson (18 September 1923 – 3 March 2003) were English architects who together formed an architectural partnership, and are often associated with the New Brutalis ...

. It was known locally as 'the glasshouse'. The school was strikingly modern in many ways, most notably in its extensive use of glass and steel, and the unusual free-standing water tower. The Smithsons struggled with reuniting

architectural style of the

Festival of Britain The Festival of Britain was a national exhibition and fair that reached millions of visitors throughout the United Kingdom in the summer of 1951. Historian Kenneth O. Morgan says the Festival was a "triumphant success" during which people: ...

with the community. Hunstanton School, with its exposed structure and services, with its references to

Mies van der Rohe Ludwig Mies van der Rohe ( ; ; born Maria Ludwig Michael Mies; March 27, 1886August 17, 1969) was a German-American architect. He was commonly referred to as Mies, his surname. Along with Alvar Aalto, Le Corbusier, Walter Gropius and Frank Lloy ...

was an answer. It was described by architectural critics as New Brutalism. This was the first time this description had been used, and was then adopted to describe all buildings of this genre, and profoundly influenced school design and public buildings. The school's main building was designated a Grade II*

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

in 1993. The school gymnasium was listed at Grade II* the same year.

Description

This is a two-storey, flat roofed, roughly symmetrical rectangular block with two internal courtyards and a central double-height hall spanning two main ranges. The classrooms are all on the first floor reached by individual stair columns- or columns that service at most three classrooms. This was done to prevent the perceived noise and disruption caused by long corridors. The classrooms were fully glazed, with obscured panels below cill height. It was built using a galvanised steel frame with buff sandlime brick infill. The steel framed windows were fitted without subframes. There were single storeyed workshops and kitchens to north. A feature is the steel framed water tower with steel tanks, built between the blocks. The extensive use of glazing was a feature, but has become an environmental problem, as it produced a cold building in winter, and effectively a greenhouse in summer.

References

External links

* {{authority control Hunstanton Grade II* listed buildings in Norfolk Secondary schools in Norfolk Educational institutions established in 1954 Brutalist architecture in England 1954 establishments in England Academies in Norfolk