Bridgewater High School, Warrington
| Type | Academy |
|---|---|
| Headteacher | Tim Long |
| Founder | Sheila Woodyatt |
| Location |
Appleton Warrington Cheshire England Coordinates: 53°21′24″N 2°34′30″W / 53.356791°N 2.575123°W |
| Local authority | Warrington |
| DfE number | 877/4229 |
| DfE URN | 141598 Tables |
| Ofsted | Reports Pre-academy reports |
| Staff | 220+ |
| Students | 1,500+ pupils |
| Gender | Coeducational |
| Ages | 11–18 |
| Colours | Blue and White |
| Publication | The Bridge |
| Website |
www |
Bridgewater High School is a coeducational secondary school and sixth form, located over two sites in Appleton, Warrington, Cheshire. The current Executive Principal is Mr. Tim Long, with Ms Tracey Hatton and Mr Keiron Powell as Deputy Headteachers.
History
The school was formed in 1987 by the amalgamation of Appleton Hall County Grammar School and Stockton Heath County High School. Appleton Hall became the new school's Lower Site, while Stockton Heath (known locally as Broomfields after the attached leisure centre) became the Upper Site.[1]
The school previously held specialist Arts College status with additional specialisms in Science and Maths. It consistently achieves good GCSE results. The most recent OFSTED inspection judged the school to be Outstanding.
The school converted to academy status on 1 December 2014.
Sixth form
The school also has an attached sixth form, called Appleton College, which recently received the highest average A-Level results in Warrington. The 6th Form has approximately 100 pupils over years 12 and 13, made up mainly of ex-pupils of Bridgewater High School, although pupils from other secondary schools are welcome. The entry requirements are 5 GCSEs grades A*-C. The head of 6th Form is currently Mr Theo Lambrianides.
Uniform
The uniform is a white shirt, grey trousers or skirt, navy blazer with school badge attached and correct tie, differing per year group. Optionally, a navy blue cardigan or sweatshirt can also be worn. The compulsory P.E kit is a blue polo shirt and blue shorts for gymnastics, cross country and football, and royal blue rugby shorts and a blue and red long sleeved top for rugby. Girls may wear gymnastics shorts or skirts for netball.
Timetable
Unlike most schools which have a "lunch hour", Bridgewater High School gives pupils only 35 minutes for lunch. However, this results in a school day which ends before many other local secondary schools. Lessons are one hour long and followed by a 5-minute "movement period" to allow pupils sufficient time to reach their next classroom. These movement periods also occur after each break.
Banding system
The pupils are split into two bands, Stockton and Appleton. In years 7, 8 and 9 pupils typically have lessons with other members of their band. In the GCSE years (10 & 11), two additional bands are introduced (independently of the original two), L and K. Pupils are split between the two bands for compulsory lessons (P.E, Citizenship and ICT), but GCSE lessons are independent of this. In these two years, the original Stockton and Appleton are observed only for assemblies and pastoral periods. Pupils of Appleton and Stockton are indicated by the pattern of stripes on their ties. Stockton has one repeated stripe, whilst Appleton has two stripes close together, then repeated along the tie. The stripes are different colours depending what year the pupil is in. The ties are moved down each year, so that a year seven pupil will be wearing the same colour tie for the following years. This allows staff to easily identify what year a pupil is in.
Links and exchanges
The school recently became linked with Soweto High School which is situated in Johannesburg, South Africa and an exchange between pupils and teachers now takes place. The school also takes part in pupil exchanges to Marthas Vineyard, France and Germany.