Whickham School 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 ...

secondary school and

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-l ...

located in

Whickham Whickham is a village in Tyne and Wear, North East England. It is in the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead. The village is on high ground overlooking the River Tyne and south-west of Newcastle upon Tyne. It was formerly governed under the histor ...

(near

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...

) in

Tyne and Wear Tyne and Wear () is a metropolitan county in North East England, situated around the mouths of the rivers Tyne and Wear. It was created in 1974, by the Local Government Act 1972, along with five metropolitan boroughs of Gateshead, Newc ...

, England. Formerly Whickham Comprehensive School, it opened in 1962 as a replacement for the small, 'all-age' Victorian school in the village centre. A much larger school was required due to the large house-building programme that was taking place. It holds around 1700 pupils between the ages of 11-19 and has 300 members of staff. It offers a range of vocational and traditional qualifications at Key Stage 4 and 5, including GCSE, BTEC and A-Level.

School performance

The school has good academic achievement, and is the largest sixth form in Gateshead. The last Ofsted inspection judged the school as Good with five areas of the school judged Outstanding. The ‘Outstanding’ areas were: 1 - The quality of learning for pupils with special educational needs and /or disabilities and their progress 2 - The extent to which pupils feel safe 3 - Pupils’ attendance 4 - The effectiveness of care, guidance and support 5 - The effectiveness of partnerships in promoting wellbeing

Fire

On 21 March 2008, there was a fire which destroyed the staff room, library, two music rooms, sixth form common room and study area. New and improved Sixth Form facilities opened ready for the academic year beginning in September 2009.

Legal challenge to school uniform

In June 1999, University Professor Claire Hale took legal action against the School when they refused permission to allow her daughter Jo Hale to wear trousers. Amongst others, the Equal Opportunities Commission decided to back the case. On 24 February 2000 the school avoided a legal battle by announcing that, in future, girls would be able to wear trousers.

Notable Former Pupils

* Richard Brodie, footballer * Beverley Fullen, former drummer in UK pop band

Hepburn (band) Hepburn were a four-piece British all-female pop rock band. The band released an album and three singles between 1999 and 2000, but were best known for their first single " I Quit", which reached number 8 on the UK charts. Hepburn was best kn ...

* Conor Newton, footballer *

Mark Stoneman Mark Daniel Stoneman (born 26 June 1987) is an English cricketer who plays for Middlesex County Cricket Club and for England. He made his international debut for England in August 2017. He bats left handed and normally plays as an opening bats ...

, cricketer for Middlesex County Cricket Club and

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

References

External links

School website
{{authority control Academies in Gateshead Secondary schools in Gateshead