Codsall Community High School

Codsall Community High School

Established	31 May 1940
Type	Comprehensive secondary school
Headteacher	Mrs M.E. Tunnicliffe
Specialism	Mathematics and Computing
Location	Elliotts Lane Codsall Staffordshire WV8 1PQ England
Local authority	Staffordshire County Council
Staff	100
Students	1300
Gender	Co-educational
Ages	13–18
Houses	Java, Vector, Matrix and Oberon
Website	cc-hs.com

Coordinates: 52°37′48″N 2°11′14″W / 52.6299°N 2.1873°W / 52.6299; -2.1873

Codsall Community High School is a school in Codsall, Staffordshire, England. In September 2004 it became the first to achieve specialist school status in Maths and Computing and in 2011 was rated to be OUTSTANDING by Ofsted. It is a comprehensive school for pupils aged 13-18 in a large village in South Staffordshire, near Wolverhampton. A total of 1300 pupils (including more than 300 Sixth-Formers) attend the school.

History

Codsall High School was opened in May 1940, taking 126 pupils aged 11 and over from the village's school by St Nicholas's Church. The school also took pupils from the neighbouring village of Bilbrook. After the war, the school expanded; by 1954, there were 728 children on the roll. An extension was opened in 1957, including the school's present Main Hall. A small swimming pool was constructed in the school's quadrangle in 1964; a roof was added in the 1970s.

The school became an 11-18 Comprehensive in 1969; at the same time, headteacher George Gibbs retired and was replaced by Ron Mitson. A further extension was built in the early 1970s, and the school's catchment area expanded to include the village of Pattingham.

Geoff Bate succeeded as headmaster in September 1972, at the same time that the school's capacity was reduced due to the entry age being increased from 11 to 13 as part of the introduction of three-tier education in the area.

Original plans for a high school in Perton were cancelled, and pupils travelled to Codsall upon completing middle school, leading to a growth in pupil numbers. A community sports centre opened during the mid-1970s, refurbished using National Lottery money from 2003.

Mr Bate retired in 1994, replaced by Mr E. Liddy. A further extension was built around this time. The school's current head is Mrs M.E. Tunnicliffe, appointed in 2005.

Curriculum

Following the recognition of the school as a specialist in mathematics and computing, the school's focus shifted in the 2000s to the delivery of more ICT and computing courses, as well as vocational qualifications. However, Codsall Community High School offers a wide range of courses, and was the last comprehensive school in South Staffordshire still to offer classical subjects, including Classical Civilisation and Latin, however, these were stopped being taught of 2010.

The school received negative local press in 2003 following anti-social behaviour by its pupils. The most widely reported cases were of pupils using the 535 bus service towards Wolverhampton vandalising the bus, assaulting the driver, and letting off fireworks on a bus.^[1]

In 2008, the school achieved record results in GCSE exams, 72% of candidates received the top four grades, A*-C.^[2]

A room for the Sixth Form was opened by Sir Patrick Cormack in September 2008, named in memory of former headmaster Geoff Bate. Rock band The Hoosiers visited the community project in October 2008 to support the students and the hard work that they had undertaken.^[3]

In 2009, Codsall Community High School extended their curriculum provision by becoming the first state school in the country to run a post-16 Football Academy. The scheme offers students, aged 16-18 years, the opportunity to study for nationally recognised qualifications whilst receiving high quality football coaching daily.

Notable former students

• Jim Lea - member of Slade, perfected his electronic violin skills under the tutelage of Ron Williams
• William Regal - WWE Wrestler
• Peter Cashmore - Countdown champion in 1997
• Trevor Addison - also taught by Ron Williams, graduated from the Royal Academy of Music, went on to be first violin with the Royal Ballet Orchestra
• Gareth Morgan - Daily Star Sunday editor
• Christopher Sadler - award winning Animator Director for Aardman Animations who has worked on Wallace and Gromit, Chicken Run, Cracking Contraptions, Creature Comforts and Shaun the Sheep ^[4]
• Roger Edwards - television writer and performer
• Sam Turner - Daily Mail Horse racing desk tipster/ Sky Channel Racing UK tipster
• Frazer Price - television writer, director and producer currently working as Creative Manager for Disney Channel UK
• Peter Baker - Golfer, and member of 1993 Ryder Cup team.
• Professor David Leigh FRS - Scientist and Fellow of the Royal Society, currently Forbes Chair of Organic Chemistry at the University of Edinburgh
• Louise Preston - BBC journalist, mostly working as a newsreader on the BBC Breakfast bulletins
• Nathanial Wedderburn - Stoke City F.C. reserve player
• Leon Clarke - Professional Footballer, brought up through Wolverhampton Wanderers Academy, now playing for Sheffield Wednesday
• Emma Reynolds Labour Member of Parliament for Wolverhampton North East & Shadow Junior Foreign Office Minister

Sources

• The Story of Codsall and Bilbrook Schools, Codsall and Bilbrook History Society, 1993

References

1. ^ "Two pupils punished for firework on bus prank", Birmingham Post, 8 November 2003: p4
2. ^ Pupils shine with record GCSE results, Express and Star, 21 August 2008
3. ^ Pupils Go Crazy for Hoosiers Special Gig, Express and Star, 22 October 2008
4. ^ http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1088172/

External links

• CCHS Football Academy website
• Official website