Carlton le Willows Academy

History

The idea of a grammar school, along with a secondary technical establishment, had long been petitioned for by the residents of Carlton in the years leading up to an event concerning the deliverance of the Butler Education Act in May 1948, where it was proposed that both be built on the same spacious site of Burton Road, backing on to Wood Lane. Initially, plans went ahead for the construction of a grammar school in 1952, with county architect E.W. Roberts' architectural designs permitting the comfortable accommodation of 540 students. The first pupils were enrolled in 1953, but were educated at separate locations due to ongoing construction at the Wood Lane site; the girls at the West Bridgford Grammar School and the boys at the Henry Mellish Grammar School. Indeed, the recruitment of these students so soon after the Second World War have led some to contend that Carlton le Willows was the first grammar school in England to be established post-1945; most believe it was certainly the first in Nottinghamshire. The school saw an expansion of its playing fields in 1954, with the acquisition of several acres of land previously owned by the Smith banking family through their ownership of the Grade II listed Gedling House, which is a mere 0.3 miles away from campus. Educationalist Lord Wolfenden officially opened the school in 1956, in the same year that the school cafeteria had enlarged to accommodate a growing intake of pupils. The aforementioned secondary technical school, later known as Carlton le Willows Technical Grammar School was also completed in September 1962 and operated on the same site as the main grammar school, allowing for greater 'campus organisation' through the sharing of academic resources and equipment. It initially admitted 209 pupils, whom were taught by 15 members of staff at the time of the school's official opening in November 1963.

1973 saw the amalgamation of the grammar and technical schools, alongside two secondary modern schools as the era of the tripartite education system concluded; Carlton le Willows became a comprehensive school. Chandos Street Secondary School, located in Netherfield, had been founded in 1906 and remained a boys school until the year of the merger; similarly, Carlton Girls' Secondary Modern School, founded in the same year, was gender exclusive. The latter's building, located on Station Road, was annexed by Carlton le Willows until 1988 to ease the encumbrance on the Wood Lane site with regard to the large amount of newly enrolled students brought upon by the union between the schools.

Recent developments

In its later years as a comprehensive, modern facilities such as a Drama Suite and centres for Pastoral care were constructed, the Michael Naisbitt Sixth Form Centre, named after an eponymous headteacher, opened in July 2009. The school was also designated a Technology College, after achieving academic specialism in 2002, though the school has now lost any specialty through conversion to Academy status. Carlton le Willows converted to an academy on 1 April 2011 (after the Academies Act 2010 was granted Royal Assent) and was renamed Carlton le Willows Academy. However, the school continues to coordinate with Nottinghamshire County Council for admissions.

Governance

With academy status, Carlton le Willows runs itself as a trust. As a result, in order to maintain financial and supportive stability within the school, there is an agreed upon list of articles of association that the school must comply with before making decisions on its behalf. The governing body now consists of up to eight community governors, a minimum of two parent governors, four staff governors and the headteacher.

Curriculum

Carlton le Willows historically specialised in a wide range of subjects. Potter (1964) lists the Grammar school as one of the leading secondary institutes on the teaching of American studies in the country. The German department of the school also received acclaim, with Mead (1965) referring to the lessons as an "ideal demonstration". More conventionally, technical subjects were also highly regarded; the school was a member of the Institute of Metals from as early as 1986 (official technology specialism was granted in 2002 and repealed in 2010).

As of 2014, the school follows the National Curriculum (with the addition of Astronomy at GCSE level) in Years 7–11 and offers a range of GCSEs (national exams taken by pupils aged 14–16) and A-Levels (national exams taken by pupils aged 16–18). The school has no affiliation with a particular religious denomination, but religious education is given throughout the school, and pupils may opt to take the subject as part of their GCSE course. Pupils participate in a number of educational visits throughout their school career and Year 10 pupils are offered the opportunity to participate in a work experience program, which usually lasts for a week (an additional week is scheduled for students in the sixth form).

Typical subjects that are studied at GCSE and BTEC level at the Academy include English Language, English Literature, History, Geography, French Language, German Language, Graphic Design, Food Technology, Hospitality, Mathematics, Chemistry, Biology, Physics, Music, Drama, Business Studies, Art, Citizenship, Religious Studies, Information Technology, Computing, Physical Education, Electronics, Photography, Astronomy, Media Studies and Construction.

The majority of sixth form pupils take four A-levels subjects in Year 12, with most choosing to focus on three in Year 13. Typical subjects that are studied at A-Level at the Academy include most available at GCSE level, minus Citizenship, Computing, Astronomy and Construction; with the addition of Economics, Politics, Further Mathematics and Psychology.

The school year runs from September to July, split across three terms: the autumn term (September to December), spring term (January to April) and the summer term (April to July). Students receive two weeks off for Christmas and Easter, a six-week summer break, and three "half term" breaks.

Extra-curricular activities

Activities outside the standard curriculum include house captaincies, a school council, a ceramics club and art/photography groups in addition to many others. The Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme is also available to students from as early as Year 9. Further pursuits at the Grammar school included a Rambling Club, Foreign Exchange Committee, Dramatics Society, and sailing on the school's yacht, known as the Salix.

Musical opportunities at the school include Samba Society, Ukulele Group, Choir and the School Orchestra. All of which have the opportunity to perform carols in the All Hallows' Anglican Church, Gedling around Christmas time. Coaching in musical instruments is also available throughout the school, for which a fee is charged. Drama is also prominent at the school, with an annual performance in the school's drama theater routine. Past performances have included renditions of Oklahoma! and Grease. Though drama was popular among students in the foundation years of the school thanks to the large assembly hall, many plays with an all-staff cast were performed for charitable causes; and were later critiqued by students in the school newspaper, with one performance described by a student to possess "a vein of hilarious comedy which flourished throughout". Plays of this nature included interpretations of the likes of Queen Elizabeth Slept Here and Charley's Aunt.

Examination

According to statistics from the Department for Education in 2011, 70% of pupils achieved five GCSEs grade A*-C compared to a 59% national average, this rose in 2012 to 74% under the same criteria compared to a 59.4% average. In 2013, Carlton le Willows achieved 84%, the highest ever achieved by the school and the second best results, on average, in Nottinghamshire (bar independent schools); placing the equivalent of 37th in the country according to a league table of non-selective state schools released by The Telegraph (though the school did not provide its data for ranking). In the same year, A-level students attained an average of 825.9 QCDA points, compared to a national average of 709.1.

Houses

The academy has four Houses named after trees found in and around the school grounds; Cedar, Ash, Oak and Birch. Each House is run by a House Leader who is typically a member of the senior teaching staff, with other staff taking an active role in the support and success of their house. Every pupil is a member of a House throughout their education at the school, with appointed House captains responsible for overall control and discipline of the House. Events for competition are wide-ranging, including sport, art, drama, music, science, languages, and quizzes. Current house colours include purple for Cedar, green for Ash, silver for Birch and red for Oak.

Uniform

The lower school uniform principally consists of a royal blue blazer, embroidered with the school logo and motto, a jumper of similar description may be worn underneath. A tie must be worn by all students, with two coloured diagonal stripes indicating the student's house. Black trousers/knee-length skirts as well white shirts are essential as are black socks/tights. Any deviation to the uniform is not permitted and will lead to penalty. Sixth formers are not required to wear uniform, but are to adopt a smart casual dress code. This typically consists of (depending on gender) trousers, smart jeans or a skirt of a reasonable length; a shirt, blouse, smart polo or T-shirt and/or a sweater or cardigan. Footwear requirements demand appropriate shoes, boots or smart training shoes.

Sport

Carlton le Willows' well equipped 32 acre rural campus has meant that sport has become a major feature of school life over several decades. Rugby was popular among male pupils in the 1960s, and the school successfully competed in several European tournaments and exhibitions, with tours to France and the Netherlands well documented in the school newspaper over the time period. Cricket was also heavily played in the foundation years of the school, with several members of the under 14 team being selected to train at Trent Bridge in 1957. Sports days (such as the one held in 1970), were held as a joint event for both the grammar school and the technical institute; frequent events included hurdling, high-jumping and a 100m sprint.

The later amalgamation of these institutions (and their facilities) greatly increased the variety of locations in which many sports could be practiced; doubling the amount of gymnasiums, rugby and football pitches alongside an established cricket field, the large sports hall located at the East site (known among students as the 'Barn') and later, a fitness suite for more intensive exercise. Other sports regularly played at the academy include netball, gymnastics, dance, trampolining, badminton, basketball, athletics and rounders.

Wood Lane, Gedling (1953-present)

At the time of high demand for grammar school provision for the Arnold and Carlton areas in the mid to late 1940s, it was agreed upon by the Nottinghamshire Education Committee that the remaining sections of nearby parks would be constructed upon "in the preparation of the Development Plan". Unusually, this concept would accommodate both the coeducational grammar school, but also a technical secondary institute (which were rare at the time due to the considerable running costs) however, they would be separated into two distinct buildings. This concept came into effect in 1954 and 1963, when the grammar school and technical institute were founded respectively. Due to the close geographical proximity to the colliery of Gedling, the risk of mining subsidence also had to be considered in the design of the school, something that would later come as a necessity during a 1957 earthquake, despite the school seeing little damage.

The former separated state of the site has meant that Carlton le Willows as it stands today has two sizable assembly halls, two libraries and twice the amount of playing fields as a result of the merger. The nature of two main structures has also resulted in the comparatively older grammar school building being known as the 'Upper School', and the former technical building the 'Lower School' among students (despite the West and East sites being the official terms).

Grounds of Gedling House (1954-present)

The 32 acres covered by the school in present times was all previously owned by the owners of Gedling House in the 18th and 19th centuries when the grounds saw significant expansion. More recently, however, Nottinghamshire County Council acquired a sizable portion of the already depleted grounds in 1954 from the War Department on the school's behalf. Like many rural spaces, the area was used for military training exercises in the Second World War effort, and mock trenches were dug as a result. The immediate boundaries of Gedling House's grounds are still visible in the surrounding areas today, including those encompassed on Carlton le Willows' current campus.

Station Road, Carlton (1974-1988)

Through the amalgamation of pupils from Carlton Girls' Secondary Modern School and Chandos Street Secondary School, the previous buildings would naturally be left largely unused in favor of the spacious buildings on Carlton le Willows' main site of Wood Lane, Gedling. As a result, Chandos Street Secondary School's facility was allocated to primary education immediately in the year of the merger. However, the recent significant influx of students as a result of the union between the schools had meant that the Wood Lane site as it stood would be inadequate for accommodating the amount of students brought upon by including Netherfield into the school's catchment area. In order to mitigate this issue, the school decided to acquire the schoolhouse left behind by Carlton Girls' Secondary Modern School at Station Road. The facility was demolished in 1988 in response to better facilities at the Gedling site and was later replaced by industrial units.

Notable former pupils

The school and its forerunner institutions have educated several well known figures in a wide range of fields. Writers and journalists include science fiction author John Peel, author of the Diadem series; Martin Daubney, long serving editor of the magazine Loaded; Richard Spendlove, veteran BBC producer and presenter, and Wilfrid Eggleston Chief Censor for war-time Canada, and prominent political journalist. Former pupils in the music industry include Graham Russell of Australian soft rock duo Air Supply, and singer/songwriter Sam Beeton. Noted sportspeople include Surrey County Cricket Club bowler Mark Footitt; and footballer Frederick Pepper, who played for Notts County F.C., and was a pioneer in the organisation of the sport in the United States. Other notable former students include Stephen Tetlow, senior British Army officer and engineer; Stephen Need, former dean of St. George's College, Jerusalem, and Alan Oakley, known for designing the Raleigh Chopper.