Bellemoor School

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Bellemoor School
Type	Secondary School
Headteacher	Ms Cassie Ellins
Location	Bellemoor Road Southampton Hampshire England
LEA	Southampton
Ofsted number	116457
Students	525
Gender	Boys
Ages	11 to 16
Website	http://www.bellemoorschool.org

Bellemoor School is currently a Foundation boys' comprehensive school in Southampton, Hampshire, in the south of England. In September 2008 the school changes its name to Upper Shirley High and becomes co-ed. At the same time it becomes a Specialist Maths and Computing College.

The most recent Ofsted inspection was 29 September 2006.^[1] The inspectors report stated that "The school has made good progress since being subject to special measures following the last inspection in November 2004. It now provides an acceptable standard of education and, from the evidence of the significant improvements made; there is a clear capacity to continue this improvement under the direction of the headteacher and senior leadership team."

Key stage 3 Maths results now place school in top 25% of UK schools and a successful start to accelerated curriculum resulted in high number of GCSE level 8 awards. The school continues to enjoy sporting success across all sports including rowing and athletics.

All the changes to the school have resulted in the school being over-subscribed for September 2008.

Its most notable former pupil is the R&B singer Craig David. Other famous ex-pupils include former Southampton Football Club defender Francis Benali and former Hampshire County Cricket Club wicket keeper Adrian Aymes.

Bellemoor was featured in The Guardian newspaper in January 2007, in a story about satellite photos on the internet, which show a 6-metre-long depiction of a penis on the school lawn. Two unnamed pupils had drawn it using weed killer two years previously and although the areas had since been reseeded, the photos were taken before this.

Results for GCSE students in 2007 were 41% of pupils managing to gain 5 A*-C grades, and 36% managing to gain A*-C grades in English and Maths. Bellemoor school claim that these results are "excellent" as they have beaten their target of 33%.^[2]

New developments will be the taking on of the British Council International Award and development of the International Baccalaureate, both of which will impact on students' learning through international pathways. Current partnerships include Johannesburg in South Africa and Gdansk in Poland. This is an exciting time for the school.