Woodside High School is a mixed 11–16 comprehensive school located in the

Wood Green Wood Green is a suburban district in the borough of Haringey in London, England. Its postal district is N22, with parts in N8 or N15. The London Plan identifies it as one of the metropolitan centres in Greater London, and today it forms a maj ...

area of the

London Borough of Haringey The London Borough of Haringey (pronounced , same as Harringay) is a London borough in North London, classified by some definitions as part of Inner London, and by others as part of Outer London. It was created in 1965 by the amalgamation o ...

, England. With a student roll of 1200, the school has been judged by Ofsted as outstanding for two consecutive inspections (2011 and 2014). In September 2006, the school was renamed from 'White Hart Lane secondary school' to 'Woodside High School'. Having had a chequered reputation, its head teacher

Joan McVittie Dame Joan Christine McVittie, (born 1952) is a British head teacher. She graduated from Birmingham University with a BSc in Biological Sciences in 1974.

decided to give the school a make-over, with new uniforms and a new reputation. The school is now one of the best schools in Haringey, being 3rd in the Haringey league tables and in the top 25 of the most improved schools in the country. It carries a new reputation that is highly valued by the students. The school was built in 1962.

History

The history of Woodside High School can be traced back through a number of renamings and mergers since its first predecessor schools were founded in 1884. In 1884 separate boys' and girls' Higher Grade schools were founded in Wood Green but by 1898 had become overcrowded and in 1899 merged when they both moved into a new building in Bounds Green Road. Wood Green Higher Grade school, as it was called, was taken over by the Middlesex education committee in 1921, closed and then reopened as Trinity county grammar school. Technical education, started in 1892 under the Technical Instruction Act of 1889, developed quickly after the opening of Tottenham Polytechnic in 1897. Wood Green county school was established by Middlesex County Council in Glendale Avenue as a mixed grammar school in 1910 and was later renamed Glendale county school. It amalgamated with Trinity county grammar to form Wood Green Grammar school in 1962 and then moved to White Hart Lane, leaving the Glendale Avenue site for Woodside school whilst Trinity county grammar's premises were taken over by the newly established Parkwood school. St. Thomas More upper school took over the Glendale Avenue site in 1967 and at the same time Wood Green Grammar became Wood Green comprehensive school. The new Wood Green comprehensive school also absorbed boys from Woodside school and some girls from Parkwood school. In Tottenham in 1901, Tottenham County School was founded at Grove House in anticipation of the

Education Act 1902 The Education Act 1902 ( 2 Edw. 7 c. 42), also known as the Balfour Act, was a highly controversial Act of Parliament that set the pattern of elementary education in England and Wales for four decades. It was brought to Parliament by a Conservat ...

. It was the first school that offered an alternative to the

Tottenham Grammar School Tottenham Grammar School (TGS) was a renowned grammar school in North London, with local football connections. History A Tottenham grammar school had existed for centuries. Its origins are unclear, possibly dating back to 1456 but in 1631 a le ...

in the area and was also the first co-educational school of its kind in Middlesex.A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 5, Hendon, Kingsbury, Great Stanmore, Little Stanmore, Edmonton Enfield, Monken Hadley, South Mimms, Tottenham. Originally published by Victoria County History, London, 1976. Pages 364–376
/ref> It originally shared Grove House with Tottenham polytechnic but in 1913 moved into a new building on the Green. Like Tottenham high school for girls, established in 1885, it was modelled on the grammar school and these three schools along with the Roman Catholic St. Ignatius's college, provided for Tottenham's educational needs. Tottenham County School in 1963 moved to new buildings at Selby Road, Devonshire Hill, next to the playing fields. In 1967, Tottenham county school premises were taken over by Tottenham school and by 1972 a sixth-form centre and a sports hall had been added. In 1983 Tottenham School vacated the site when it merged with Wood Green comprehensive school and became White Hart Lane School, the premises on Selby Road later becoming the Selby Centre. In 2006 the school once again changed its name becoming Woodside High School.

Location and buildings

The school is located on White hart lane in

, in the

, North London. It is central to many sport facilities such as a football ground and tennis court opposite the building, New River sport centre and a rugby field for London Scholars rugby league are also nearby. The school is approximately a 20-minute walk from Wood Green Shopping Centre

Redevelopments

Over the past few years, the school has approximately spent 650 million pounds on refurbishment and rebuilding works. The school now benefits from a number of facilities, new buildings and technology. A new school for children with disabilities was built on site with Woodside and was named Riverside School.

Specialist and academy status

The school was given specialist status in Business and Enterprise in September 2004. The school converted to academy status in December 2011.

Ofsted reports

The Ofsted Inspections in 2011 and 2014 both rated the school as outstanding. In recent years the school's reports have increased dramatically. The most recent inspection, on 23 Feb 2022 rated the school as good.

Notable former pupils

Wood Green County School

* Stanley Owen Green (1915–1993), known as the Protein Man, a

human billboard A human billboard is someone who applies an advertisement on their person. Most commonly, this means holding or wearing a sign of some sort, but also may include wearing advertising as clothing or in extreme cases, having advertising tattooed on ...

who became a well-known figure in central London in the latter half of the 20th century *

Nicko McBrain Michael Henry "Nicko" McBrain (born 5 June 1952) is an English musician, best known as the drummer of the heavy metal band Iron Maiden since 1982. Having played in small pub bands since 1966 from the age of 14, McBrain paid his bills after grad ...

(born 1954), drummer for

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Glendale County School

* Sir

William Connor Sir William Neil Connor (26 April 1909 – 6 April 1967) was an English newspaper journalist for the ''Daily Mirror'' who wrote under the pen name of "Cassandra". Biography William Connor wrote a regular column for over 30 years between 1935D ...

, journalist who wrote under the name ''Cassandra'' * Prof

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, the first Professor of Geography at

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(KCL) in 1944

Wood Green Grammar School

Trevor Phillips Sir Mark Trevor Phillips (born 31 December 1953) is a British writer, broadcaster and former politician who served as Chair of the London Assembly from 2000 to 2001 and from 2002 to 2003. He presented '' Trevor Phillips on Sunday'', a Sunda ...

(born 31 December 1953), writer, broadcaster and former politician

Trinity County Grammar School

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, who produced ''

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'' and played with

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on their 1958 No.1 hit ''

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'' (''There's a moose loose aboot this hoose!'') *

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, actor * Sir

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, former Chief Executive of

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, largely responsible for creating

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Jack Hawkins John Edward Hawkins, CBE (14 September 1910 – 18 July 1973) was an English actor who worked on stage and in film from the 1930s until the 1970s. One of the most popular British film stars of the 1950s, he was known for his portrayal of mil ...

(1910–1973), actor who worked on stage and in film from the 1930s until the 1970s *

Norrie Paramor Norman William Paramor (15 May 1914 – 9 September 1979), known professionally as Norrie Paramor, was a British record producer, composer, arranger, pianist, bandleader, and orchestral conductor. He is best known for his work with Cliff Ri ...

, record producer and music conductor *

Kenneth Wilkinson Kenneth Ernest Wilkinson (28 July 1912 – 13 January 2004) was an audio engineer for Decca Records, known for engineering classical recordings with superb sound quality. After working for small recording companies, Wilkinson was taken onto th ...

, audio engineer for

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...

Tottenham County School

Deryck Abel Deryck Robert Endsleigh Abel (9 September 1918 – 13 February 1965) was a British author, editor and political activist, who was born in Salisbury, Wiltshire to Frederick and Beryl Abel. He came from a family of teachers, craftsmen and clerks; he a ...

(1918–1965), author and political activist * Maj Alfred Cecil Herring (1888–1966), recipient of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

Max Arthur, ''Symbol of Courage: The Men Behind the Medal'', p320, Pan Macmillan, 2005, , 9780330491334 * Lancelot Thomas Hogben , (1895–1975), experimental

zoologist Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the Animal, animal kingdom, including the anatomy, structure, embryology, evolution, Biological clas ...

and medical statistician * John Henry Marks (born 30 May 1925) – the Chairman of the

British Medical Association The British Medical Association (BMA) is a registered trade union for doctors in the United Kingdom. The association does not regulate or certify doctors, a responsibility which lies with the General Medical Council. The association's headquar ...

from 1984 to 1990 *

Julia McKenzie Julia Kathleen Nancy McKenzie (born 17 February 1941) is an English actress, singer, presenter, and theatre director. She has premièred leading roles written by both Alan Ayckbourn and Stephen Sondheim. On television, she is known for her BAFT ...

, actress *

Roy Perry Roy Perry (born 12 February 1943) is a British Conservative Party politician. He was a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from 1994 to 2004. Background Perry is a graduate of the University of Exeter with a degree in Government and Polit ...

, Conservative MEP from 1994 to 1999 for

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* Prof

Ralph Raphael Ralph Alexander Raphael (1 January 1921 – 27 April 1998) was a British organic chemist, well known for his use of acteylene derivatives in the synthesis of natural products with biological activity. Early life and education Ralph Raphael ...

, Professor of Organic Chemistry, and Head of Department of Organic and Inorganic Chemistry from 1972 to 1988 at the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

, and Regius Professor of Chemistry from 1957 to 1972 at the

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

* Sir

Norman Rowntree Sir Norman Andrew Forster Rowntree (11 March 1912 – 22 July 1991) was a British civil engineer. Rowntree was born in London in 1912 and held a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering... He worked as an engineering consultant for Alcott & L ...

, President from 1975 to 1976 of the

Institution of Civil Engineers The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) is an independent professional association for civil engineers and a charitable body in the United Kingdom. Based in London, ICE has over 92,000 members, of whom three-quarters are located in the UK, whi ...

* Joseph Ivor Silk (born 3 December 1942), former Savilian Chair of Astronomy at the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

White Hart Lane Secondary School

Ali Jawad Ali Jawad (born 12 January 1989) is a British Paralympic powerlifting, Paralympic powerlifter competing in the −59 kg class. Born without legs, he took up powerlifting at the age of 16. He competed in the 2012 Summer Paralympics in Londo ...

, paralympic medalist and former professional powerlifter

References

Evening Standard Article 20 April 2005

External links

Official websiteBBC Education page on the school
* {{authority control Academies in the London Borough of Haringey Secondary schools in the London Borough of Haringey Wood Green