Oakbank School, Keighley

Updated on Jan 14, 2024

Edit

Comment

Established 1871 Headteacher Mr David Maxwell DfE URN 107441 Tables Local authority City of Bradford Number of students 1,597 Gender Mixed-sex education		Type Foundation school DfE number 380/5402 Phone +44 1535 210111 Founded 1871 Staff 200
Location Oakworth Road Keighley West Yorkshire BD22 7DU England Address Oakworth Rd, Oakworth, Keighley BD22 7DU, UK Similar Parkside School, South Craven School, Beckfoot School, Bingley Grammar School, Titus Salt School

Oakbank School is a mixed secondary school and sixth form located in Keighley, West Yorkshire, England. It is situated near Ingrow Lane on Oakworth Road (B6143) in the west of Keighley. It became a Sports College in 1997, and gained Technology College accreditation in 2004.

Grammar school

Oakbank was founded from the Drake and Tonson School as Keighley Trade and Grammar School in 1871. Around 1900 it became Keighley Boys' Grammar School (KBGS) on Alice Street. Following a fire in 1962 in the Mechanics Institute (which also provided the school with its assembly hall and some classrooms) new buildings were built in 1964. Parents and staff over a 4-year period also raised £25,000 for the original swimming pool, now built over. On its move it became firstly and rather confusingly Keighley School for a few years despite still being a grammar, then in 1968 became Oakbank Grammar School with new uniform and oak leaf badge, when administered under Keighley Committee for Education. It is perhaps ironic that the name change to Oakbank Grammar coincided with its change to comprehensive status. Sixth form retained the green blazers with white stripes at this time, and a "third year sixth" was offered for Oxford and Cambridge candidates to prepare.

Comprehensive

It became a co-educational school in 1967 with one year's intake of sixth form girls, then the following year in 1968 a comprehensive school for ages 14 to 18, under the new name Oakbank Grammar School. The move from a boys grammar school was phased over a few years with new co-ed comprehensive intakes in what was then known as the Fourth Form. It changed its name to Oakbank School in 1990. During the same period of time the school, with students aged 13 to 19, moved to its current site from Bronte Upper School. In 2000 it became a secondary school for 11- to 19-year-olds through a re-organisation of British schools.

Throughout the years the school has gained improved status and is currently a double specialist school in sports and technology, the first awarded in 2001 and the second in 2004.

The school was visited by former Minister for Sport, Gerry Sutcliffe.

Curriculum

The school has been graded as satisfactory or better in all areas of the curriculum in its last two Ofsted inspections. Around 52% of students achieved five A* to C grade passes at GCSE in 2008.

Sixth form and Cove

Oakbank pupils have the choice of staying on tosixth form for further study and to gain further qualifications. In 2003 the new six form block opened, facilitating a higher number of pupils. In 2004 the Cove Centre of Vocational Excellence building was opened to provide more space

Notable former pupils

John Cryer, Labour MP from 1997 to 2005 for Hornchurch

Paul Hudson – BBC weather forecaster

Tommy Lee – footballer currently playing for Chesterfield

Keighley Boys' Grammar School

Gordon Bottomley, poet

Asa Briggs, Baron Briggs, Chancellor of the Open University 1978–94, Vice-Chancellor 1967–76 of the University of Sussex. and Professor of History 1961–76

Sir Herbert Butterfield, Vice Chancellor of the University of Cambridge 1959–61 and Master of Peterhouse, Cambridge 1955–68, Professor of Modern History 1944–63 at the University of Cambridge and President 1955–58 of the Historical Association

Prof James Cameron, Professor of Philosophy 1960–71 at the University of Kent

Sir Wilfred Cockcroft, mathematician, Vice-Chancellor 1976–82 of the New University of Ulster, Chief Executive 1983–88 of the Secondary Exams Council, and President since 1992 of the British Accreditation Council

John Hatch, Baron Hatch of Lusby

Dr Kevin Hawkins OBE, Director-General 2004–08 of the British Retail Consortium

Sir Trevor Holdsworth CVO, Chairman of GKN 1980–88 and of National Power 1990–95, and Chancellor 1992–97 of the University of Bradford

David Jeanes, rugby league player

John Moffatt, Provost 1987–93 of The Queen's College, Oxford

Percival Moore, illustrator

Don Mosey, sports journalist and cricket commentator for Test Match Special

Harry Riley, Professor of Inorganic and Physical Chemistry 1932–47 of King's College, Durham (Newcastle University)

Peter Roe, rugby league player and coach

Sir Bracewell Smith, Conservative MP 1932–45 for Dulwich

Leonard James Spencer CBE, geologist and President 1936–39 of the Mineralogical Society

Prof Geoffrey Tillotson, Professor of English Literature 1944–68 at Birkbeck, University of London

George Watson, Professor of Medicine 1933–38 at the University of Leeds

Lieutenant

Notable former staff

Robert Westall, children's author (taught art at boys' grammar 1958–60)

References

Oakbank School, Keighley Wikipedia

(Text) CC BY-SA

Contents