Open Academy (formerly Heartsease High School) is a

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) ...

with academy status located in the Heartsease area of

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...

, in the

English county The counties of England are areas used for different purposes, which include administrative, geographical, cultural and political demarcation. The term "county" is defined in several ways and can apply to similar or the same areas used by each ...

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

History

The academy was first formed in September 2008, replacing Heartsease High School and housed in the buildings of the former school, the Open Academy moved to new buildings in September 2010. It is a Church of England school that is sponsored by the

Bishop of Norwich The Bishop of Norwich is the ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Norwich in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers most of the county of Norfolk and part of Suffolk. The bishop of Norwich is Graham Usher. The see is in the ...

and businessman Graham Dacre.

Description

The school offers

GCSEs 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 sc ...

, BTECs and vocational courses as programmes of study for its pupils. The school has a specialism in

environmental science Environmental science is an interdisciplinary academic field that integrates physics, biology, and geography (including ecology, chemistry, plant science, zoology, mineralogy, oceanography, limnology, soil science, geology and physical geograp ...

and offers courses geared towards the specialism.

Key Stage 3

All schools in England are obliged to 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 Federated stat ...

, and are encouraged to teach

Progress 8 Progress 8 (), was a Soviet uncrewed Progress cargo spacecraft which was launched in 1980 to resupply the Salyut 6 space station. Spacecraft Progress 8 was a Progress 7K-TG spacecraft. The eighth of forty three to be launched, it had the seria ...

subjects. Open Academy chooses to spend three years on

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 ...

. All classes except for Maths are taught in mixed ability. German is the modern foreign language. Students and their parents can download a

knowledge organiser A knowledge organiser is an educational template on a single A4 sheet consisting of grids, each with a term and a short explanation, making it clear to the student as to what is essential to learn. Each grid has an overall theme and these vary acco ...

each year.

Key Stage 4

In Year 10 and 11, for

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. ...

, students study the core subjects of English (Language and Literature) Mathematics, Science, PE and Personal, Social, Health, Citizenship and Economic Education (PSHCEE). This Core curriculum occupies 30-hours of lessons per fortnight, with four pathway subjects filling the remaining 20-hours per fortnight.

Sixth form (Key Stage 5)

Open Academy was formerly a part of the Kett Sixth Form College consortium, which also includes

Sprowston Community High School Sprowston Community Academy is a coeducational secondary school located in Sprowston, Norwich, Norfolk, England. Description Ofsted visiting the school, found a larger than average-sized secondary school where an overwhelming majority of stude ...

and

Sewell Park College Sewell Park Academy is a secondary school located on the north-eastern edge of the city of Norwich, Norfolk, England. Admissions It has approximately 481 students aged eleven to sixteen (years 7 to 11). It is situated between St. Clements Hill ...

. The Kett operates as a separate entity to its host schools. As of 2013, the Academy gained a separate Sixth Form, to be known as OA6 . OA6 is a small, but growing Sixth Form, offering a variety of A-Levels and BTECs. *BTEC Art and Design *BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma in Sport *A Level Maths, Physics, Chemistry *A Level Biology, Psychology *A Level History, English Literature

Notable former pupils

Heartsease High School

Stuart Ashen Dr Stuart Clive Ashen (born 16 December 1976), commonly known by his online alias Ashens ( ), is a British comedian, critic and YouTuber known for reviewing various products; his reviews usually include toys, video games and food. , his main Y ...

, actor and YouTube personality/reviewer

References

External links

Open Academy official websiteThe Kett Sixth Form College official website
{{authority control Secondary schools in Norfolk Academies in Norfolk Christian schools in England