Parklands High School is a coeducational
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
Chorley
Chorley is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Chorley in Lancashire, England, north of Wigan, south west of Blackburn, north west of Bolton, south of Preston and north west of Manchester. The town's wealth came pr ...
,
Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly.
The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...
, England. The school has been judged "good" with "outstanding" in the behaviour and safety of pupils, by
Ofsted
The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) is a Non-ministerial government department, non-ministerial department of Government of the United Kingdom, His Majesty's government, reporting to Parliament of the U ...
in February 2014. There are currently 1085 students on roll. The current headteacher, Mr S Mitchell, is the sixth headteacher of Parklands. He was appointed headteacher in 2017, when the previous headteacher, Mrs. Claire Hollister, retired from the school.
History
Grammar school
The current Parklands High School was originally called ''Chorley Grammar School''. It was originally housed in buildings in Union Street, Chorley which is now home to the public library. It changed its name in 1972, when the school changed from a grammar school to a comprehensive school, to ''Parklands High School''.
From 2003 to 2012, Parklands High School held a specialist language college status. Since 1962, the school badge reads ''Propositi Tenax'', which translates to ''Firm of Purpose''. The current motto of the school is ''Learn, Respect, Aspire, Achieve'', which has been used since the school became an academy.
Buildings
The current school buildings were opened in 1959. This included the hall, concourse, south and north blocks and the gym. Several buildings have been erected since the school was first built. This includes the west block, which was built in 1970s, and is currently used as history, music and ICT classrooms.
The first major building work was the extension of the north block, which added four more English classrooms and two photography rooms, which are currently named as N01, N02, N14, N15, N24 and N25. This addition was constructed when Mr. Ray Landless was the headteacher of the school. The Science Blocks (L1/L2) were constructed in 1989.
There were two major building additions in the 2000s, a new art, RE, drama, and science block which replaced the previous block
ROSLA
The raising of school leaving age (ROSLA) is an act brought into force when the legal age a child is allowed to leave compulsory education increases. In most countries, the school leaving age reflects when young people are seen to be mature enough ...
, which was demolished, a new sports hall, and in 2010, an extension to the front of the building, to extend the dining area and reception. In addition students created a new outdoor social area.
Parklands was first made a
Language College
Language Colleges were introduced in 1995 as part of the specialist schools programme (SSP) in the United Kingdom. The system enabled secondary schools to specialise in certain fields, in this case, modern foreign languages. Schools that successf ...
in 2003. In 2014, the Parklands Pavilion was opened after months of refurbishment. This building is currently used as dance studios, and is also used for assemblies.
In late 2020, the previous science block was renovated to create 8 new English classrooms named after influential authors throughout time. Additionally, four former English classrooms were refurbished; creating two new science suites.
Academy
Parklands High School converted to
academy status in September 2012, meaning the school is now independent of local authority control.
Facilities
The school has its own all astro turf which is used for various PE activities. Extra buildings also include a pavilion, a sports hall, a gym, a fitness suite, and the original hall. All are available for pupil and staff use. New to 2021 there now includes a gender neutral toilets located outside of lower S-Wing
Notable former pupils
*
Paul Grayson, England rugby player
*
Tom Smith, currently with
Lancashire County Cricket Club
Lancashire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Lancashire in English cricket. The club has held first-class status since it was founded in 1864. Lancashire's home is Old Trafford Cricket Ground, although the team also play ...
*
David Unsworth
David Gerald Unsworth (born 16 October 1973) is an English football coach and former professional footballer who is currently the manager of Oldham Athletic. Prior to this, he was most recently academy director and under-23's head coach at Prem ...
, former footballer, coach of
Preston North End F.C.
Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional football club in Preston, Lancashire, England, who currently play in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league syste ...
*
Holly Bradshaw
Holly Bethan Bradshaw (née Bleasdale, born 2 November 1991) is a British track and field athlete who specialises in the pole vault. She is the current British record holder in the event indoors and outdoors, with clearances of 4.87 metres (201 ...
, olympian
*
Bethany Black
Bethany Black (born 24 December 1978) is an English stand up comedian, actor and writer. Described as "Britain's only goth, lesbian, transsexual comedian", Black is known for performing black comedy, dealing with controversial subjects. As a ...
, Comedian, Actor
*
, poet, author, actor
References
External links
Parklands High School Web SiteParklands High School Facilities
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Schools in Chorley
Secondary schools in Lancashire
Educational institutions established in 1962
1962 establishments in England
Academies in Lancashire