Chantry Academy (formerly Suffolk New Academy and Chantry High School) is a secondary school with academy status in the

Chantry A chantry is an ecclesiastical term that may have either of two related meanings: # a chantry service, a Christian liturgy of prayers for the dead, which historically was an obiit, or # a chantry chapel, a building on private land, or an area i ...

area of

Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line ...

in the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

of Suffolk. The school educates children aged 11 to 16 and has around 750 pupils. The current principal, Craig D'Cunha, took up the post in February 2015. In 2018, the academy received a 'good' Ofsted inspection rating.

History

The school opened in September 1962 as a secondary modern school serving the recently established council estate of Chantry in southwest Ipswich. Originally, the school consisted of the two three-floored 'A' and 'G' blocks with a main school hall area. Following the growth of the estate, the school's roll grew rapidly into the 1970s, resulting in the extension of the site. The school remained a secondary modern school until the late 1970s when Suffolk became fully comprehensive and the school was renamed Chantry High School. In March 2012, the school announced its intentions to convert to

academy An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosop ...

status in collaboration with Suffolk New College. This conversion was finalised during the following academic year, when the school was renamed Suffolk New Academy. During the summer of 2014, the old 'G' block was demolished in preparation for the building work of a brand new school on the existing site. This building work took place throughout the 2014–15 academic year, and saw rise to the construction of a three-storey building plus sports hall. The old 'A' block was subsequently demolished in the summer of 2015, with the remaining old buildings due to follow suit. In early 2015, the school revealed that the Active Learning Trust would be taking over sponsorship from September 2015. This would coincide with the opening of the new school building and another name change. In May 2015, following a public consultation, the school announced it would be reverting to the Chantry name under the guise of Chantry Academy, which had received 66% of the public vote. Before Mr D’Chuna took charge of the high school, Ofsted (an organisation which judges schools to determine how efficient a school is) reported that the school was put into ‘special measures’, as of 2018, the secondary school has shown an improvement as it has now been given a rated of ‘good’ by Ofsted.

Sixth Form Centre

In 1981 the school opened a

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 ...

centre. Originally, it served Chantry, East Bergholt, Stoke, Copleston, Kesgrave, and numerous smaller schools, acting as an alternative to the already established Northgate Sixth Form centre. In the 1990s, due to the increase of Sixth Form Centres within Ipswich, Chantry Sixth Form Centre predominantly served just the Chantry and Stoke areas. It closed following the development of the One sixth form in September 2010.

References

External links

Chantry Academy website
Secondary schools in Suffolk Academies in Suffolk Schools in Ipswich Educational institutions established in 1962 1962 establishments in England {{Suffolk-school-stub