Bridgemary Community School

Bridgemary School, formally Bridgemary Community Sports College, is an 11-16 secondary school with academy status in Gosport, Hampshire, England.

Bridgemary School takes part of its cohort from the most deprived ward in Gosport. However, it has never been categorised as a failing school, by Ofsted. In 2001 staff were given a Dfes bonus for significant improvement, of more than 7%, in the GCSE A*-C pass rate. Results continued to rise, until a fall of 4% in 2004 brought it back to 25% (Dfes, 2004). This was despite Ofsted's assertion, in July 2004, that: 'Results in 2003 were in line with those in similar schools at the end of Year 9, and above average for similar schools at the end of Year 11'. (Ofsted Report, 2004. pg.8) The school was also identified by the Department for Education and Skills as being among 148 nationwide which were likely to have a "high number of persistent truants". It is perhaps to the credit of staff and external agencies, working with the community, that unauthorised absence remained as low as 3.5% during this time.(Dfes, 2004.ibid)

The former principal richard- introduced some ability-centred no-age-related classes (with year groups: E1,E2,E3,L1 and L2), and by 2006 the GCSE A to C pass rate had risen to 35%.

In September 2006 it was announced that Bridgemary College was to be the first school in the country to offer teaching around the clock with teaching and extra-curricular activities taking place from 7am to 10pm and learning modules being available online at any time. The scheme was to be phased in over four years, beginning in September 2007. In the first and second stages, the school planned to ensure that teaching support was available 24 hours a day and in four different time slots for four different groups of students. Stage three would see teaching expanded to 364 days a year, while stage four envisages community users integrated into the pupils' school experience.

Famous quotes containing the words community and/or school:

    The most perfect political community must be amongst those who are in the middle rank, and those states are best instituted wherein these are a larger and more respectable part, if possible, than both the other; or, if that cannot be, at least than either of them separate, so that being thrown into the balance it may prevent either scale from preponderating.
    Aristotle (384–322 B.C.)

    Dad, if you really want to know what happened in school, then you’ve got to know exactly who’s in the class, who rides the bus, what project they’re working on in science, and how your child felt that morning.... Without these facts at your fingertips, all you can really think to say is “So how was school today?” And you’ve got to be prepared for the inevitable answer—”Fine.” Which will probably leave you wishing that you’d never asked.
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