University Collegiate School is a mixed

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) ...

in central Bolton, England, now classed as a free school. It opened in 2015 on a new site on the University of Bolton campus as Bolton UTC, a

university technical college A university technical college (UTC) is a type of specialist secondary school in England that is led by a sponsor university and has close ties to local business and industry. These university and industry partners support the curriculum developm ...

for students aged 14–19; in September 2020 it was renamed and began accepting students at age 11.

Description

In September 2020, the school became a member of The Keys Federation Academy Trust and reopened as a free school, the University Collegiate School, in response to demand for secondary school places in Bolton. At that time the Principal, Nicola Glynn, described it as a "school and college". During the 21/22 academic year a number of staff left, including the Principal, Nicola Glynn. In December 2022, the school was inspected by Ofsted and was judged 'inadequate' in every category. Dave Terry was appointed as interim Principal in February 2023.

Predecessor UTC

Bolton UTC was officially opened in November 2015 by

Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex and Forfar, (Edward Antony Richard Louis; born 10 March 1964) is a member of the British royal family. He is the youngest child of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and the youngest sibl ...

. It specialised in

health sciences The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to health sciences: Health sciences are those sciences which focus on health, or health care, as core parts of their subject matter. Health sciences relate to multiple acad ...

and technology, and its £10million facilities included laboratories for optometry, clinical dentistry, pharmaceutical consulting, medical simulation, robotics and electronics. The UTC used a

project-based learning Project-based learning (PBL) is a student-centered pedagogy that involves a dynamic classroom approach in which it is believed that students acquire a deeper knowledge through active exploration of real-world challenges and problems. Students le ...

pedagogy. It offered a core

GCSE The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a particular subject, taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. State schools in Scotland use the Scottish Qualifications Certificate instead. Private sc ...

curriculum to its 14–16-year-old students which included English Language,

Mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...

, English Literature,

Biology Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary i ...

Chemistry Chemistry is the science, scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the Chemical element, elements that make up matter to the chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions ...

Physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which r ...

, Geography, History, Spanish,

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

, Computer Science, Psychology, Sport Science and Health and Social Care. At

A-level The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational aut ...

, students were given a choice of pathways: engineering or health sciences focused. At A-level they could study English Language, Mathematics, Further Mathematics, English Literature, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Geography, Psychology, Computer Science,

BTEC BTEC may refer to: * Begumgonj Textile Engineering College, a college in Bangladesh * Biomass Thermal Energy Council, a US advocacy organization * Business and Technology Education Council, a British body, now part of Edexcel, which awards vocationa ...

Level 3

Applied Science Applied science is the use of the scientific method and knowledge obtained via conclusions from the method to attain practical goals. It includes a broad range of disciplines such as engineering and medicine. Applied science is often contrasted ...

and

Level 3 Health and Social Care. The UTC entered 'special measures' after it was rated 'inadequate' in all categories at its first

Ofsted The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) is a Non-ministerial government department, non-ministerial department of Government of the United Kingdom, His Majesty's government, reporting to Parliament of the U ...

inspection in 2017. The inspection report said there had been "considerable failures at the most senior leadership level", governors had been ineffective, and links with local industry were weak. Pupils said they had little opportunity to use the "outstanding facilities". In 2018, the Education and Skills Funding Agency issued a "final notice to improve" to the UTC, after a review found inadequate financial controls and breaches of policies. At the next full inspection in 2019 the UTC was rated 'good' in all categories; at that time 159 were enrolled although its capacity was 600.

References

External links

*
The Keys Federation Multi Academy Trust
{{Schools in Bolton Secondary schools in the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton Educational institutions established in 2015 2015 establishments in England University of Bolton Free schools in England