Thistley Hough Academy is a
coeducational
Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to t ...
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) ...
located in the village of
Penkhull
Penkhull is a district of the city of Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, part of Penkhull and Stoke electoral ward, and Stoke Central parliamentary constituency.
Penkhull is a conservation area, and includes Grade II listed buildings suc ...
in
Stoke-on-Trent
Stoke-on-Trent (often abbreviated to Stoke) is a city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Staffordshire, England, with an area of . In 2019, the city had an estimated population of 256,375. It is the largest settlement ...
, Staffordshire, England. The school was built in 1938 as a girls' grammar school, housed in a classical
Art Deco
Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...
building. The old building has since been demolished and a new £15,000,000 school has been constructed. In September 2011, the new building's opening ceremony took place. The new building was opened in May 2013 by the Chairman of
Stoke City Football Club,
Peter Coates
Peter Coates (born 13 January 1938) is an English businessman, the co-founder of bet365, and the chairman of Stoke City Football Club. He has been listed as the 25th-richest person in British football. He founded Stadia Catering in the 1960s an ...
.
Admissions
Admissions are non-selective. Students can be of any religion or none, and the school does not provide religious instruction. Though the school was initially a girls' school, the school now admits male pupils.
History
The school was first opened in 1938. The current academy colours, green and purple, date from the school's inception as a
grammar school
A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary school ...
for girls. The first headmistress, Miss Bamber, was a member of the
suffragette
A suffragette was a member of an activist women's organisation in the early 20th century who, under the banner "Votes for Women", fought for the right to vote in public elections in the United Kingdom. The term refers in particular to members ...
movement. Local pottery companies donated pieces of pottery for the school's reception area. The pottery is still displayed in the school library today.
Site
In the 1970s, the school was expanded. The new section cost £2 million.
In 1994, the school was refurbished.
In 2013, the new buildings were constructed as part of the government's Schools for the Future Sceme. The site of the demolished old school was converted into parking space and sports facilities. The school was reopened under head teacher Holly Hartley.
Robert Haines
In 2014, former ex-head teacher Robert Haines jailed for 16 months for 8 child sex offences. He had been suspended in 2012 as allegations came to light, and admitted his offences in the Stoke-on-Trent crown court.
Local Community
Abnormally high amounts of students are excluded from schools in the school's county. Despite the high cost at £5000 per pupil, in the 2018/2019 academic year 185 pupils were excluded from Staffordshire schools. Pupils are most often excluded from secondary schools, and were transferred from their last school with unaddressed "complex learning and behavioural needs".
There has often been complaints about pupils' "anti-social" behaviour in the local area. In 2019, increased numbers of local police were sent to patrol the school and its immediate surrounding area.
Sponsors
Thistley Hough Academy was established in September 2013 in partnership with the Creative Education Trust (CET). CET is a charity and social enterprise set up in 2011.
Thistley Hough has adopted the ‘Admissions Criteria for Community Schools’ as determined by Stoke-on-Trent Education Service.
:# Children who are in the care of a local authority
:#
:# Children who have older brothers or sisters at the school at the time that they will start.
:#
:# Children who live nearest to the school as determined by a straight line measurement from the front door of the child’s home address to the main entrance of the school.
Uniform
Pupils are made to wear a plain grey jumper. Headphones are not allowed on school premises.
Notable alumni
*
Neil Morrissey - actor
Thistley Hough Girls' School
*
Chris Keates
Christine Mary Keates (born 10 October 1951) is a British trade unionist.
Early life
Keates grew up in Stoke-on-Trent and attended Thistley Hough Girls' School, a girls' grammar school now called Thistley Hough Academy, before studying Archaeolo ...
, General Secretary since 2004 of the
NASUWT
The NASUWT is a TUC-affiliated trade union representing teachers, including headteachers, throughout the United Kingdom.
The early years 1919–1976; breakaway and the formation of a new union
The origins of the NASUWT can be traced back to ...
References
News items
:
Students should feel very proud , This is Staffordshire:
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This is Staffordshire:
7,000 tons of rubble add up to end of era , This is Staffordshire:
:
:*
This is Staffordshire
External links
Official websiteOfsted inspection reports
{{authority control
Secondary schools in Stoke-on-Trent
Academies in Stoke-on-Trent