Oriel High School, Crawley
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| Oriel High School | |
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| Motto | Opening Windows of Opportunity |
| Established | 2004 |
| Type | Comprehensive Secondary |
| Headteacher | Ms G Smith |
| Chair of Governors | Mr T Strudwick |
| Specialism | Specialist Arts College |
| Location | Maidenbower Lane Crawley West Sussex RH10 7XW England  |
| LEA | West Sussex County Council |
| Ofsted number | 134042 |
| Students | 1090 |
| Gender | Mixed |
| Ages | 11 to 16 |
| Houses | Africa, Asia, America, Australasia |
| School colours | Purple |
| Website | www.oriel.w-sussex.sch.uk |
| Coordinates: | |
Oriel High School is a maintained comprehensive secondary school for pupils aged 11 to 18. It opened in September 2004 as part of a reorganisation of secondary education in Crawley, catering for just 370 pupils in years 7 and 8. It is expected to grow to around 1450 pupils by 2009.
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[edit] Location
The school is located at Maidenbower Lane in the Maidenbower neighbourhood of Crawley, West Sussex.
[edit] History
The school was opened by West Sussex County Council in 2004 following a wholesale review of education provision in Crawley. After more than 20 years of providing education in a three-tier structure of first and middle Schools, with pupils transferring to secondary school at age 12, the council reverted to the more traditional two-tier structure. Part of the plan for accommodating the larger number of pupils in secondary education in the town was to build a new school for the newly-developed neighbourhood of Maidenbower. Two first schools and one middle school had operated in the neighbourhood for some time, but secondary pupils were forced to travel to Hazelwick School or Thomas Bennett Community College
Oriel High School opened to pupils in September 2004, initially for an intake of around 370 pupils in years 7 and 8. The school continues to accept a new entry of pupils in each academic year, gradually increasing the provision offered. A sixth-form is opening when the oldest pupils reach that age in 2008, with a full 11-18 school operating by 2009. The school is already investigating into what to offer for A-Level.
[edit] Organisation
The school is organised into Learning Communities - the main 4 of which are named for continents. Pupils are taught by specialist teachers, and also belong to a Learning Mentor Group.
Most pupils attending the school live within the catchment area, and transfer from one of the local junior schools:
- Maidenbower Junior School
- Pound Hill Junior School
- Milton Mount Primary School
Other pupils travel from nearby neighbourhoods such as Three Bridges and Furnace Green.
[edit] Problems
When the school was built, the on-site cafeteria was too small. Although it adequately accommodated years 7 and 8 in its first year, the cafeteria got more and more cramped as more years were added. In both 2006 and 2007 the school has attempted to remedy this by letting years groups use the cafeteria at different times.
The school has attempted to resolve this situation by granting students access to the main hall, allowing them to eat in there. This has improved the situation greatly in the eyes of many pupils.
[edit] School Day Change
As the school came to realise the problem that it faced with the cafeteria the board decided that the day needed to be change to accommodate all the students in the cafeteria. So at the start of the new 2006 September term the school day had an extra 10 minutes added to it to make sure that all the students could have a 15 minute break in the morning and a 40 minute lunch; this now means that students have four lessons in the morning and one after lunch. The bus now arrives at 2:45, and again at 3:30 after the pupils complained that the bus came too early and left too early as the school day ended at 2.40pm.
[edit] External links
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