The Hammond is a specialist performing arts offering training and education to students across school, college and degree courses.

History

In 1917, Irene Hammond, a dance teacher and performer from Cheltenham, moved to Chester where she began teaching dance for Amy Broom, née Webster, who was known for her classes at the Grosvenor Ballroom. The Webster School was already an established enterprise in Chester having been run by Broom’s father, Edgar, since 1833. The school was originally opened by Louis Doré of London in 1823. By 1919, Hammond had officially taken over the school, which became known as the Miss Irene Hammond School. Over the last century, The Hammond has grown and developed, changing and adapting with the times. Betty Hassall, an early student of Hammond, took over the running of the school in 1946 in partnership with Madeline Chambers. At that time, eight hundred children were enrolled at the school and attending weekly classes across Cheshire and Shropshire. In 1951, the school leased Hampton Lodge and boarding began. The school purchased Hampton Lodge in 1953 and by 1962, the school had expanded its teaching provision into Liverpool Road where it flourished until 1968. Betty Hassall was then instrumental in securing Hoole Bank House in Hoole Village for the school’s Education Department and by 1969, the entire school had moved to the site.

Overview

Today, The Hammond comprises a secondary school, sixth form and university for pupils aged 11years+, which offers specialist vocational training in Dance, Drama and Music. It also has a three-year professional course leading to the National Diploma in Professional Dance or the National Diploma in Musical Theatre, validated by

Trinity College, London Trinity College London (TCL) is an examination board based in London, United Kingdom, which offers graded and diploma qualifications (up to postgraduate level) across a range of disciplines in the performing arts and English language learning and ...

. Sixth form also offers a BTEC in Performing Arts (acting) combined with 2 A levels. The school is accredited to the Council for Dance Education and Training and is a member of the Independent Schools Association. The Hammond is a MADE (Music and Dance Excellence) School, one of 8 schools in England funded by the Music and Dance Scheme, offering full bursaries to talented young people. The school's patron is

Irek Mukhamedov Irek Dzhavdatovich Mukhamedov OBE (russian: Ирек Джавдатович Мухамедов: tt-Cyrl, Ирек Җәүдәт улы Мөхәммәтев; born 8 March 1960), is a Soviet-born British ballet dancer of Tatar origin who has danced ...

– famed ballet dancer of the Bolshoi Ballet and

Royal Ballet The Royal Ballet is a British internationally renowned classical ballet company, based at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, London, England. The largest of the five major ballet companies in Great Britain, the Royal Ballet was founded in ...

– who teaches students with a dancing Master Class at The Hammond every two years. In 2018 The Hammond was listed by

The Stage ''The Stage'' is a British weekly newspaper and website covering the entertainment industry and particularly theatre. It was founded in 1880. It contains news, reviews, opinion, features, and recruitment advertising, mainly directed at those wh ...

as one of "Seven drama schools where academic achievement is also top class".

Alumni

Notable alumni include: Chris Barton actor and singer, finalists in

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...

's '' Any Dream Will Do''.

Jonny Clarke Jonny Clarke, (born 6 June 1992) is an English actor. He is best known for playing the character of Bart McQueen in the channel 4 soap opera ''Hollyoaks''. Career Jonny Clarke's early roles include two small roles on TV, including the award winn ...

actor, played

Bart McQueen Bart McQueen is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera ''Hollyoaks'', played by Jonny Clarke. He first appeared onscreen at his stepmother's funeral in August 2010, introduced by producer Paul Marquess as a member of the McQ ...

on the

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...

soap ''

Hollyoaks ''Hollyoaks'' is a British soap opera which began airing on Channel 4 on 23 October 1995. It was created by Phil Redmond, who had previously conceived the soap opera ''Brookside (TV series), Brookside''. Since 2005, episodes have been aired on ...

''.

Jorgie Porter Jorgina Porter (born 25 December 1987) is an English actress and model. She is known for portraying the role of Theresa McQueen in the Channel 4 soap opera ''Hollyoaks'' from 2008 until 2016 and again from 2020. Early life Porter was born in Tr ...

actress and model, portrayed

Theresa McQueen Theresa McQueen is a fictional character from the British Channel 4 soap opera ''Hollyoaks'', played by Jorgie Porter. She made her first appearance on 24 November 2008. The character was introduced as an extension of already established McQueen ...

on the

soap ''

'' and for being a contestant on '' I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!'' and '' Dancing on Ice''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hammond School Schools of the performing arts in the United Kingdom Educational institutions established in 1917 1917 establishments in England Specialist arts colleges in England