Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School
Encyclopedia
The Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School (BHBS) is a mixed comprehensive
secondary school in the Tupsley district of Hereford
, England
. It is a voluntary aided school
, which takes children from the age of 11 through to the age of 16. It is a Church of England
school and is administered by the Hereford Diocese
. The current headteacher is Sara Catlow-Hawkins, who succeeded Andrew Marson in September 2007. Marson had led the school for 21 years.
In September 1997 the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) awarded the school specialist school
status as a Technology College
. The school has also been awarded a further specialism in Languages
and was among the first schools to receive training school
status in 2000.
The school is divided into four houses which are named after Christian campaigners. The houses are Ashley
, Cheshire
, Livingstone
and Shaftesbury
.
switched from a selective, grammar school
and secondary modern, system to a comprehensive
education system. The new comprehensive school was formed by the merger of two CofE secondary modern schools; the Bishop’s School, founded in 1958, and the Bluecoat foundation, which dated back to 1710. In 1983 BHBS joined the Woodard Corporation
group of Church of England schools.
Gold Awards for its Arts provision. It employs twenty-four peripatetic instrumental staff who teach nearly 300 pupils who are regularly entered for National Music Grades
(213 pupils have passed a grade, with a quarter of pupils achieving grade 4 - diploma standard)
Specialist professional instrumentalists lead 24 instrumental ensembles which include a Concert Band, Brass Band, Sax Choir, Guitar Group, Orchestra, Viol Consort, Steel Pans, String Ensembles, Ceilidh Band, Flutes Ensembles, Boys Woodwind Quartet, Keyboard Group, guitar group, boys choir, girls choir, a chamber choir, a Parent Staff Choir, a soul band and a Japanese Koto Group.
The school's concert programme has included recent performances by its Chamber Choir
in Morocco
, instrumentalists and singers performing in Symphony Hall
and the Royal Albert Hall
as well as in Lichfield
, Hereford
and Worcester
Cathedrals. It performs in the BBC Herefordshire Musicians showcase and achieves numerous accolades from Herefordshire Festival each year.
The school is also an Arts Award Centre, which runs the bronze and silver award as part of its fast track music provision as well as early entry at AS-level
. Its Head of Music is Paul James M.A. who has served the school for 20 years who also leads and developed the teacher training programme for The Robert Owen Teacher Training Consortium.
. Teams between Under 12 and Under 16 are fielded most weeks during the winter and spring terms.
The school has achieved a high standard in the Under 15 Daily Mail Cup
. Recently reaching the last 32 of the competition three times in five years. The school’s best result in the competition was in 2007, when they reached the semi-finals, where they lost to eventual runners-up St Paul’s School. The school organises regular tours, and have toured South Africa, New Zealand
, France
and Canada
.
In 2011 the Hereford Times
reported that Herefordshire Council
were in discussions with developers who wanted to purchase the school's sports field to build 100 houses.
Comprehensive school
A comprehensive school is a state school that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude. This is in contrast to the selective school system, where admission is restricted on the basis of a selection criteria. The term is commonly used in relation to the United...
secondary school in the Tupsley district of Hereford
Hereford
Hereford is a cathedral city, civil parish and county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, southwest of Worcester, and northwest of Gloucester...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It is a voluntary aided school
Voluntary aided school
A voluntary aided school is a state-funded school in England and Wales in which a foundation or trust owns the school buildings, contributes to building costs and has a substantial influence in the running of the school...
, which takes children from the age of 11 through to the age of 16. It is a Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
school and is administered by the Hereford Diocese
Diocese of Hereford
The Diocese of Hereford is a Church of England diocese based in Hereford, covering Herefordshire, southern Shropshire and a few parishes within Worcestershire in England; and a few parishes within Powys and Monmouthshire in Wales....
. The current headteacher is Sara Catlow-Hawkins, who succeeded Andrew Marson in September 2007. Marson had led the school for 21 years.
In September 1997 the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) awarded the school specialist school
Specialist school
The specialist schools programme was a UK government initiative which encouraged secondary schools in England to specialise in certain areas of the curriculum to boost achievement. The Specialist Schools and Academies Trust was responsible for the delivery of the programme...
status as a Technology College
Technology College
Technology College is a term used in the United Kingdom for a secondary specialist school that focuses on design and technology, mathematics and science. These were the first type of specialist schools, beginning in 1994. In 2008 there were 598 Technology Colleges in England, of which 12 also...
. The school has also been awarded a further specialism in Languages
Language College
Language Colleges were introduced in 1995 as part of the Specialist Schools Programme in the United Kingdom. The system enables secondary schools to specialise in certain fields, in this case, modern foreign languages...
and was among the first schools to receive training school
Training school
For a juvenile correctional facility, see youth detention center-----A training school is an official designation, awarded by the Department for Children, Schools and Families, to schools in England that provide exceptional facilities for in-service and work experience training of teachers...
status in 2000.
The school is divided into four houses which are named after Christian campaigners. The houses are Ashley
Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 7th Earl of Shaftesbury
Anthony Ashley Cooper, 7th Earl of Shaftesbury KG , styled Lord Ashley from 1811 to 1851, was an English politician and philanthropist, one of the best-known of the Victorian era and one of the main proponents of Christian Zionism.-Youth:He was born in London and known informally as Lord Ashley...
, Cheshire
Leonard Cheshire
Group Captain Geoffrey Leonard Cheshire, Baron Cheshire, VC, OM, DSO and Two Bars, DFC was a highly decorated British RAF pilot during the Second World War....
, Livingstone
David Livingstone
David Livingstone was a Scottish Congregationalist pioneer medical missionary with the London Missionary Society and an explorer in Africa. His meeting with H. M. Stanley gave rise to the popular quotation, "Dr...
and Shaftesbury
Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 7th Earl of Shaftesbury
Anthony Ashley Cooper, 7th Earl of Shaftesbury KG , styled Lord Ashley from 1811 to 1851, was an English politician and philanthropist, one of the best-known of the Victorian era and one of the main proponents of Christian Zionism.-Youth:He was born in London and known informally as Lord Ashley...
.
History
The school was formed in 1973, which was the year that HerefordshireHerefordshire
Herefordshire is a historic and ceremonial county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire" NUTS 2 region. It also forms a unitary district known as the...
switched from a selective, grammar school
Grammar school
A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and some other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching classical languages but more recently an academically-oriented secondary school.The original purpose of mediaeval...
and secondary modern, system to a comprehensive
Comprehensive school
A comprehensive school is a state school that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude. This is in contrast to the selective school system, where admission is restricted on the basis of a selection criteria. The term is commonly used in relation to the United...
education system. The new comprehensive school was formed by the merger of two CofE secondary modern schools; the Bishop’s School, founded in 1958, and the Bluecoat foundation, which dated back to 1710. In 1983 BHBS joined the Woodard Corporation
Woodard Schools
Woodard Schools is a group of Anglican schools affiliated to the Woodard Corporation which has its origin in the work of Nathaniel Woodard, an Anglo-Catholic clergyman....
group of Church of England schools.
Headteachers
- Peter Baker 1958–1978 (Bishop’s School 1958–1973)
- John Chapman 1978–1986
- Andrew Marson 1986–2007
- Sara Catlow-Hawkins 2007–present
Notable alumni
- Scott BemandScott BemandScott Bemand is a retired English rugby union player. He formerly played for Harlequins, Leicester Tigers and Bath.He was a member of the England squad that toured Australia in 2006....
, rugby union player - Angela Tooby, Olympic athlete
- Susan ToobySusan ToobySusan Tooby is a retired female long-distance runner from Great Britain, who represented Wales during her career. She set her personal best in the marathon at the 1988 Summer Olympics. Tooby is a twin sister of Angela Tooby.- Achievements :- References :*...
, Olympic athlete
Music
The school has achieved four ArtsmarkArtsmark
Artsmark is a national award scheme managed by Arts Council England. The scheme, that is open to all schools in England, recognises schools with a high level of provision in the arts.There are three levels of award:* Artsmark Gold* Artsmark Silver...
Gold Awards for its Arts provision. It employs twenty-four peripatetic instrumental staff who teach nearly 300 pupils who are regularly entered for National Music Grades
Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music
ABRSM is an internationally recognised educational body and charity that provides examinations in music The organisation, based in London, UK, runs exams in centres all over the world...
(213 pupils have passed a grade, with a quarter of pupils achieving grade 4 - diploma standard)
Specialist professional instrumentalists lead 24 instrumental ensembles which include a Concert Band, Brass Band, Sax Choir, Guitar Group, Orchestra, Viol Consort, Steel Pans, String Ensembles, Ceilidh Band, Flutes Ensembles, Boys Woodwind Quartet, Keyboard Group, guitar group, boys choir, girls choir, a chamber choir, a Parent Staff Choir, a soul band and a Japanese Koto Group.
The school's concert programme has included recent performances by its Chamber Choir
Chamber choir
A chamber choir or group of chamber singers is the choral equivalent of a chamber ensemble, using voices instead of instruments. This prestigious choir will usually consist of 20-40 elite and dedicated singers. Several chamber choir formats exist, ranging from barbershop groups to exclusively...
in Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
, instrumentalists and singers performing in Symphony Hall
Symphony Hall, Birmingham
Symphony Hall is a 2,262 seat concert venue located inside the International Convention Centre in Birmingham, England. It was officially opened by the Queen in June 1991, although had been opened on April 15, 1991. It is home to the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and hosts around 270 events...
and the Royal Albert Hall
Royal Albert Hall
The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall situated on the northern edge of the South Kensington area, in the City of Westminster, London, England, best known for holding the annual summer Proms concerts since 1941....
as well as in Lichfield
Lichfield Cathedral
Lichfield Cathedral is situated in Lichfield, Staffordshire, England. It is the only medieval English cathedral with three spires. The Diocese of Lichfield covers all of Staffordshire, much of Shropshire and part of the Black Country and West Midlands...
, Hereford
Hereford Cathedral
The current Hereford Cathedral, located at Hereford in England, dates from 1079. Its most famous treasure is Mappa Mundi, a mediæval map of the world dating from the 13th century. The cathedral is a Grade I listed building.-Origins:...
and Worcester
Worcester Cathedral
Worcester Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Worcester, England; situated on a bank overlooking the River Severn. It is the seat of the Anglican Bishop of Worcester. Its official name is The Cathedral Church of Christ and the Blessed Mary the Virgin of Worcester...
Cathedrals. It performs in the BBC Herefordshire Musicians showcase and achieves numerous accolades from Herefordshire Festival each year.
The school is also an Arts Award Centre, which runs the bronze and silver award as part of its fast track music provision as well as early entry at AS-level
GCE Advanced Level
The Advanced Level General Certificate of Education, commonly referred to as an A-level, is a qualification offered by education institutions in England, Northern Ireland, Wales, Cameroon, and the Cayman Islands...
. Its Head of Music is Paul James M.A. who has served the school for 20 years who also leads and developed the teacher training programme for The Robert Owen Teacher Training Consortium.
Sport
The school’s most notable sport is rugby unionRugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
. Teams between Under 12 and Under 16 are fielded most weeks during the winter and spring terms.
The school has achieved a high standard in the Under 15 Daily Mail Cup
Daily Mail Cup
The Daily Mail RBS Cup is the annual English schools' rugby union cup competition. The semi-finals are now held at Broadstreet Rugby Club. The final is held at Twickenham Stadium. Competitions are held at the U18 and U15 age group levels...
. Recently reaching the last 32 of the competition three times in five years. The school’s best result in the competition was in 2007, when they reached the semi-finals, where they lost to eventual runners-up St Paul’s School. The school organises regular tours, and have toured South Africa, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
In 2011 the Hereford Times
Hereford Times
The Hereford Times is a weekly tabloid newspaper published every Thursday in Hereford, England. Its offices are based in Holmer Road. The editor is Fiona Phillips...
reported that Herefordshire Council
Herefordshire Council
Herefordshire Council is the local government authority for the county of Herefordshire in England. It is a unitary authority.It is a relatively new council, formed on 1 April 1998 following the split of Hereford and Worcester back into two separate counties.It is currently run by Conservatives. It...
were in discussions with developers who wanted to purchase the school's sports field to build 100 houses.