Brighton Hove & Sussex Sixth Form College

Brighton Hove & Sussex Sixth Form College

Established	1975
Type	Sixth form college
Religion	Non-denominational
Principal	Christopher Thomson MA
Location	205 Dyke Road Hove East Sussex BN3 6EG England
DfE URN	130669 Tables
Ofsted	Reports
Students	c.1650 students
Gender	Coeducational
Ages	16–18
Website	BHASVIC

Brighton Hove & Sussex Sixth Form College, usually abbreviated to BHASVIC (pronounced "Bazvic"), is a college in Brighton & Hove, England for 16- to 18-year-old students.

Location

The college is situated at the corner of Dyke Road (A2010) and the Old Shoreham Road (A270), a major road junction in the north-west of the city of Brighton & Hove in Seven Dials. It is next door to Dyke Road Park, in the parish of the Church of the Good Shepherd, Brighton.

History

Grammar school

The college has its origins in the Brighton Proprietary Grammar and Commercial School, founded in July 1859 at Lancaster House, Grand Parade. The school continued as the Brighton Hove and Sussex Grammar School. It opened on its present site in 1913.

Sixth form college

The current sixth form college was formed in 1975 following reorganisation of secondary education in East Sussex. There are two sixth form colleges (BHASVIC and Varndean College) in Brighton and Hove. BHASVIC draws nearly 40% of its students from East and West Sussex, the remainder living in Brighton and Hove. The joint admissions policy for BHASVIC, Varndean and City College gives top priority to applications from pupils at 11-16 schools in Brighton and Hove.

Funding and governance

BHASVIC and other Sixth Form Colleges in England were transferred under the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 out of local government control and established as independent FE Corporations. On 1 April 2010, under the Apprentices, Schools, Children and Learning Act 2009, the College was designated as a Sixth Form College. The Secretary of State for Education has proposed further changes to the College regulatory regime in the Education Bill published in January 2011. Over 90% of the College's funds come from the Young People's Learning Agency (YPLA). Corporation Members (governors) are individuals from business, the local community, staff, students, and parents. The Principal of the College is an ex-officio Member of the Corporation.

The current Principal is Christopher Thomson MA. The current Vice-Principal is Anne Fielding Smith and the two Assistant Principals are Sally Bromley (curriculum) and Jutta Knapp (finance). The current chair of governors is Peter Freeman.

School building and environment

Playing fields

BHASVIC is located on a relatively large site by the Dyke Road and Old Shoreham Road Junction in Hove. Most of the site is taken up by the large playing fields which are shared with Cardinal Newman School. The area covered by college buildings is relatively compact with three distinct outside areas. These are the upper and lower car parks and the aforementioned fields. The main building is especially noted for its panelled hall which is decorated with murals. BHASVIC enjoys a large library which was added to the building in 1935 and refurbished in the late 1990s), and 15 acres (61,000 m²) of playing fields.

The college consists mainly of three buildings. The Main Building, which is the oldest part of the college, contains the main hall and OLC. Then there is College House, a separate building which contains many classrooms, the language centre and the media editing suites. The newest permanent building is the Sports Centre, which contains two classrooms, a sports hall and a cafe. BHASVIC has several other smaller buildings such as the canteen and refectory block, some temporary classrooms and a new Student Services Centre, which contains the careers suite, welfare office and tutorial rooms.

The following subjects are located in Main Building: - Politics, Sociology, Philosophy, Geography, Visual Arts, Psychology, Travel and Tourism, Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology and Performing Arts.

Located in College House: - Music, Modern Languages (French, German, Italian and Spanish), English (Language, Lang & Lit, Literature), Media Studies, Business Studies, History and Economics.

Located in Sports Hall: Physical Education and Dance.

There is also a multi-purpose student services centre and several pre-fab buildings behind College House.

In 1914, not long after it opened, the school was requisitioned for use as a military hospital.

Student population

There are approximately 1,800 students in college, most of whom take Advanced level courses. The remaining students are enrolled in variety of one year courses, predominantly Vocational Intermediate level or GCSE programmes. Approximately 60% of students are from Brighton and Hove, and up to 40 students come from outside the United Kingdom.

As of 2008, about 70% of A level students continue on to a degree level course at a university or begin a specialist course (such as an Art Foundation pre-degree course) at a college of further education.

Academic results

754 students sat A level examinations in June 2010, with an outstanding pass rate of 98%. 59.5% of all grades were at A*, A and B grades. 199 A* grades were obtained at A level (10% of A level entries at BHASVIC). 100 students gained at least 3 A grades at A level.

BHASVIC was also awarded beacon status on 1 July 2008. Beacon status is public recognition of the excellence and innovation that exists within the further education system.

OFSTED assessment

OFSTED published a report on its assessment of BHASVIC in December 2007, and found it to be a good college. It found that the success rates for students aged 16 to 18 following long qualifications were "well above" the UK national averages for sixth form colleges. BHASVIC’sOfsted Report 2012. You will see a clean sweep of grade 1s and the College overall has been graded 1 Outstanding. The achievement is significant as only 13 of 203 colleges inspected under the previous Ofsted framework achieved the Outstanding grade for Overall Effectiveness and we understand BHASVIC is the first college in the country to achieve this grade under the new framework which is widely regarded as tougher. BHASVIC's Principal, Chris Thomson said, "We are rightly proud of Ofsted's recognition of our achievements; it is the commitment of our staff and their enduring focus on teaching, learning and the student experience that has led to this truly outstanding success."

The Prime Minister's Global Fellowship

The school has a good record of students attaining places on the prestigious Prime Minister's Global Fellowship programme. The school achieved its first student in the inaugural year of the programme, 2008, and in 2009 had 2 more successful applicants.

Notable alumni

• Phil Hobden, filmmaker
• Jamie Theakston, television presenter

As Brighton Hove and Sussex Grammar School

• Sir Walter Adams CMG OBE, Director from 1967 to 1974 of the London School of Economics (LSE), and Principal from 1955 to 1967 of the University College of Rhodesia and Nyasaland
• Toby Barnard, historian
• Aubrey Beardsley, illustrator
• Howard Blake, OBE, composer
• Sir Charles B. Cochran, theatre producer
• Christopher Dow, economist
• Vice Adm Anthony Dymock CB, UK Military Representative to NATO from 2006-8
• Michael Fabricant, Conservative from 1992-7 for Mid Staffordshire and since 1997 for Lichfield
• Prof David Feldman, Rouse Ball Professor of English Law since 2004 at the University of Cambridge
• Prof John Gillingham, Professor of History from 1995-8 at the LSE
• John Glover, cricketer
• Maj-Gen John Gould CB, the Army's Paymaster-in-Chief from 1972-5
• Prof John Gunn CBE, Professor of Forensic Psychiatry from 1978 to 2002 at the Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London
• Tony Hawks, comedian
• John Hay, Conservative MP from 1950 to 1974 for Henley, and President from 1977 to 1981 of the Council of European Municipalities and Regions
• William Hutchinson, Chief Executive from 1974 to 1982 of the County of Avon
• Sir Ivan Lawrence, Conservative MP from 1974 to 1997 for Burton
• Rear-Adm John Lippiett CB MBE, Chief Executive since 2003 of the Mary Rose Trust
• Sir Roger Lovill CBE, Leader of East Sussex County Council from 1973-7
• Vice-Adm Sir Fabian Malbon, commanded HMS Invincible from 1992-3 and Lieutenant Governor of Guernsey since 2005
• Leonard Martin, Chairman from 1976-8 of UNESCO
• Jim Parks, Sussex and England wicket-keeper and batsman
• Sir John Read, Chief Executive from 1969 to 1979 of EMI
• Stephen Reid, Chief Executive from 2000-3 of energywatch
• Percy Roberts, Chairman and Chief Executive from 1977 to 1980 of Mirror Group Newspapers
• Michael Simkins, actor
• Very Rev Michael Stanley Till
• Alan Weeks, BBC ice-skating commentator
• Roger Wheater OBE, Chairman from 2000-5 of the National Trust for Scotland

Further reading

• Carder, Timothy (1990). The Encyclopaedia of Brighton. Lewes: East Sussex County Council. ISBN 978-0-86147-315-1. 

See also

• City College Brighton & Hove

External links

• bhasvic.ac.uk - college's website
• Origins of BHASVIC on My Brighton and Hove (local history website)
• EduBase