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Coventry Blue Coat Church of England School

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Coordinates: 52°24′01″N 1°29′33″W / 52.4003°N 1.4925°W / 52.4003; -1.4925
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Blue Coat Church of England School
Address
Map
Terry Road

Coventry
,
West Midlands
,
CV1 2BA

England
Coordinates52°24′01″N 1°29′33″W / 52.4003°N 1.4925°W / 52.4003; -1.4925
Information
TypeAcademy
MottoChristian education with care
Religious affiliation(s)Church of England
Established1714; 310 years ago (1714)
Local authorityCoventry City Council
TrustInspire Education Trust
Department for Education URN137272 Tables
OfstedReports
Head teacherLisa Henden
GenderCoeducational
Age11 to 18
Enrolment1,495 as of April 2021[1]
Capacity1,634
International peace linkCross of nails school
Websitehttp://www.bluecoatschool.com/

The Blue Coat Church of England School is a specialist secondary school and sixth form located in Coventry, England. It is an International Cross Of Nails (ICON) school, with links to schools all over the world.[2] The school is funded by the state, with academy status. It is a specialist Music, Maths and Science academy.

History

[edit]
Part of the old site of Blue Coat School

Blue coat schools were mainly founded in the 16th century across England as charity schools, where they were known as "bluecoat schools" because of their distinctive blue uniform.[3] Blue was traditionally the colour of charity and was a common colour for clothing. The uniform included a blue frock coat and yellow stockings with white bands.[4]

The Original Blue Coat school was founded as a school for girls[5] in 1714, close to Holy Trinity Church in the city centre of Coventry,[6] and the ruins of St Mary's Priory and Cathedral.[7] It was re-built on the same location in 1856.[8] The original building as it stands today was designed by James Murray in a Gothic style to resemble a French château, and is currently used by Holy Trinity Church.

Plaque on the site of the original school

The school occupied the site until 1964, when it moved to its current site at Terry Road, Coventry. In 2011 the school secured a 125-year lease to the historic Charterhouse Fields in a bitterly contested six-year process.[9] In the same year, the school was granted academy status.[10] It also opened a football academy for talented female footballers in conjunction with Coventry City Ladies Football.[11]

The school marked its tercentenary in 2015.[12] Julian Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, visited the school in 2016.[13]

Heads

[edit]
  • 1964–1980 – William J Grimes[14]
  • 1980–1986 – Rev R. Lewie[15]
  • 1986–1999 – D. Lewin
  • 1999–2008 – Stephen Timbrell[16]
  • 2009–2015 – Dr Julie Roberts[17]
  • 2015–2016 – Francis Peacock (interim head)[18]
  • 2016 – 2024 – Victoria Shelley[19] [20]
  • 2024- Lisa Henden[21]

Ethos

[edit]

At the start of the school year, each form elects several representatives to serve on the year council. Two or three of these year council representatives are elected to serve on the school council. The year councils discuss issues regarding school life and pass their findings to the school council, who consider them. The school council has a budget to facilitate resolution of these issues as long as they support the Christian ethos of the school.

International Cross of Nails School

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In the latter part of the Second World War, Coventry Cathedral was heavily bombed during the Coventry Blitz. Three large medieval nails recovered from the ruins of the cathedral were subsequently shaped into a cross. This cross was replicated and became a symbol of peace. Many were presented worldwide to schools and organisations.[2]

Awards

[edit]
Current Terry Road site
  • 2009 – Impact and Innovation Award to recognise the staff's efforts in working with other schools[22]
  • 2015 – Educational Outcomes Award from education charity SSAT for coming in the top 10% of England's non-selective schools.[23]
  • 2021 – Lord Mayor's Peace and Reconciliation Award.[24]

Choir

[edit]

The school has an award-winning[25] eight-part (SSAATTBB) choir which in its current format was established in the 1976.[26] It can trace its roots back to the 18th century.[27] It performs choral works ranging from Thomas Tallis through Joseph Haydn to John Tavener. The choir has performed for the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Bishop of Coventry. The choir marked its 60th anniversary at Holy Trinity Church, Coventry in July 2024.[28]

Performing venues

[edit]
Blue Coat School Choir singing at York Minster

The choir has sung at Holy Trinity Church, Coventry many times.[29] It visits cathedrals each year to sing services for the week while the resident choir is away. Venues have included:

Other locations include:

  • 2012: As part of the Coventry Cathedral Golden Jubilee celebrations, a group of senior members performed in front of a congregation of 2000, which included the Princess Royal and the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Awards and competitions

[edit]
  • 1998 – won Royal Society of St George Award for services to youth[41]
  • 2008 – the choir won the BBC Songs of Praise School Choir of the Year competition[42] with their performance of Bright Morning Stars Are Rising and How Great Thou Art[43]

Television and film

[edit]

Radio

[edit]

The choir has appeared on:

Recordings

[edit]
  • Blue Coat Church of England School Choir in Coventry Cathedral
  • Angel Voices Ever Singing
  • Songs of Praise – The School Choir of the Year (2011) pub. EMI

Alumni

[edit]
  • Matthew Sandy (tenor)[49]
  • Helen Daniels (mezzo)[50]
  • Imogen Russell (soprano)[51]

Dramatic productions

[edit]

The school has at least three annual dramatic productions. There is an annual musical open to all students, with productions including We Will Rock You, The Wiz, Les Miserables,[52] The Sound of Music,[53] Oliver[54] and Hairspray. There is a production for students in key stages 4 and 5 such as Sleeping Beauty, Lord of the Flies, The Lady Killers and The Good Person of Schezuan. Also, an annual production for students in key stage 3, including The Comedy of Errors, Ignite and The Canterbury Tales. There are also bespoke community drama projects in partnership with a range of organisations and student directed productions.

In 2017 a production of One Good Soul, with script by an English teacher and score by a sixth form student, made a debut at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.[55]

Uniform

[edit]

The current Blue Coat School uniform for Years 7–11 consists of: School blazer, white shirt, black trousers or regulation skirt, House tie, black, grey or white socks, black shoes. The school changed to clip-on ties in 2013, citing neatness and safety.[56]

House system

[edit]

Under Victoria Shelley, the school has implemented a new house system.[57] The houses are named Cavell, Dorsey, Lewis, Parks and Wilberforce. These were chosen to reflect the schools six values: Care, Hard work, Respect, Integrity, Servanthood and Togetherness, an acronym for CHRIST. Tutorials are based on house systems, and contain students from a variety of years to promote inter-year coherence. It also affects the tie a student wear – each house is designated a colour, and each tie has different coloured stripes.[citation needed]

Much like other schools with house systems, there are heads of each house, and prefects (student support members) under each head.[citation needed]

Previously when joining the school (from primary schools) all students were placed in the lower school which was identified by the colour green. In the following year students were placed into one of three traditional houses named after Bishops of Coventry: Neville Gorton, Mervyn Haigh, and Cuthbert Bardsley. The houses were identified by the colours red, yellow, and blue respectively.[citation needed] The houses were localised individually into the three main buildings of the school, but tuition took place across the site (based on academic streaming). Tutor groups were based on the house system and only contained students in the same year group. However, they contained students from each of the different academic streams. The house system was not used in the sixth form which was divided into a "lower sixth" and "upper sixth". [citation needed]

The academic streaming was initially based on a student's 11+ performance. However, students could move streams based on the school's end of year examinations in the lower school. The streams consisted of classes A and B (equal top stream), C and D (equal second stream), E and F.

Financial crisis 2015

[edit]

It was announced in a letter home to parents on 5 March 2015 that the whole governing body of the school was to stepping down to make way for an interim governing body as the school was facing "serious financial issues".[58] A number of support posts were at risk.[59]

On BBC CWR's radio Breakfast show on 5 March 2015 there were calls from parents for Julie Roberts to stand down. The BBC reported that there was a £1.4 million shortfall in funding.[60] Roberts was put on special leave and May 2015 resigned.[61] F. Peacock became interim headteacher and in 2016 Victoria Shelley became the new headteacher, and Peacock reverted to his role in the History department.

As of the end of 2018, the school remained £668,000 in debt to the Education and Skills Funding Agency.[62]

Notable alumni

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Blue Coat Church of England School and Music College – GOV.UK". get-information-schools.service.gov.uk. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  2. ^ a b "International Cross of Nails Schools". Coventry City of Peace. 1 July 2017. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  3. ^ "Records of Christ's Hospital and Bluecoat Schools" (PDF). London Metropolitan Archives. 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 November 2015. Retrieved 24 November 2015.
  4. ^ "A brief history of the school". Liverpool Blue Coat School. Archived from the original on 7 July 2013. Retrieved 29 May 2013.
  5. ^ "Look: Five inspirational Coventry teachers who helped shape education in the city". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
  6. ^ "Bluecoat School, Coventry". The Civil Engineer and Architect's Journal (Vol. 22 ed.). London, UK: The Civil Engineer and Architect's Journal. 1859. p. 281.
  7. ^ "Blue Coat School". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
  8. ^ Thomas, John (1987). Coventry Cathedral. insert: London, UK. p. 28. ISBN 0044400144.
  9. ^ "Outrage as Coventry's Blue Coat School wins field fight". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
  10. ^ "Coventry's Blue Coat School turns into an academy". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
  11. ^ "Women's football academy to be set up at the Coventry Blue Coat Church of England School". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
  12. ^ "Former Blue Coat pupils help celebrate school's 300th anniversary". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
  13. ^ "Archbishop of Canterbury visits Blue Coat School". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
  14. ^ "Blue Coat School anniversary". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
  15. ^ "Look: Five inspirational Coventry teachers who helped shape education in the city". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
  16. ^ "Coventry Blue Coat School head dies aged 58". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
  17. ^ "Head of Coventry Blue Coat School steps down". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
  18. ^ "Head of Coventry Blue Coat School steps down". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
  19. ^ "New headteacher appointed at troubled Coventry secondary school". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
  20. ^ "Message from our headteacher". youtube.com. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
  21. ^ "BlueCoat Governing Body". bluecoatschool.com. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  22. ^ "Award for Coventry's Blue Coat School". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
  23. ^ "Coventry Blue Coat School wins award for its GCSE results". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
  24. ^ "Coventry's Blue Coat School receives Lord Mayor's Peace and Reconciliation Award". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
  25. ^ Lynch, Lucy (17 March 2008). "Coventry Blue Coat choir are simply the best". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
  26. ^ Lynch, Lucy (17 March 2008). "Coventry Blue Coat choir are simply the best". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
  27. ^ "Cash could help choir hit right note". Coventry Evening Telegraph. Coventry, UK. 7 December 1993. p. 15.
  28. ^ Holly Clement (23 July 2024). "Coventry choir celebrated diamond anniversary". coventryobserver.co.uk. Retrieved 24 July 2024.
  29. ^ "Radio 4". Huddersfield Daily Examiner. Huddersfield, UK. 15 May 1993. p. 24.
  30. ^ "Radio 4". Huddersfield Daily Examiner. Huddersfield, UK. 15 May 1993. p. 24.
  31. ^ "Choir trip to Cathedral". Coventry Evening Telegraph. Coventry, UK. 11 July 1997. p. 13.
  32. ^ "Choir sounds appeal for robes fund". Coventry Evening Telegraph. Coventry, UK. 20 December 1997. p. 4.
  33. ^ Coventry Live. "Choir celebrates 25 year landmark". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
  34. ^ "Family in harmony at St Paul's". Coventry Evening Telegraph. Coventry, UK. 22 August 1981. p. 5.
  35. ^ "Choir will take over at Abbey". Coventry Evening Telegraph. Coventry, UK. 8 April 1989. p. 9.
  36. ^ Coventry Live (14 April 2008). "Coventry City 1 Stoke City 2 – Coventry Telegraph match report". Coventry Evening Telegraph. Coventry, UK.
  37. ^ Coventry Live. "Choir celebrates 25 year landmark". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
  38. ^ Coventry Live. "Choir celebrates 25 year landmark". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
  39. ^ "Music". Birmingham Daily Post. Birmingham, UK. 26 August 1996. p. 13.
  40. ^ Coventry Live. "Choir celebrates 25 year landmark". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
  41. ^ "Award comes out of the blue". Coventry Evening Telegraph. Coventry, UK. 2 October 1998. p. 1.
  42. ^ Songs Of Praise The School Choir Of The Year – All The Winners 2003–2011. London, UK: EMI. 2011.
  43. ^ Lynch, Lucy (17 March 2008). "Coventry Blue Coat choir are simply the best". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
  44. ^ Coventry Live (28 April 2015). "Blue Coat choir appears on Songs of Praise with former pupil turned professional tenor". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
  45. ^ "Coventry Blue Coat School choir". bfi.org.uk. Archived from the original on 13 May 2021. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
  46. ^ "Radio 2". The Independent. London, UK. 26 April 1998. p. 171.
  47. ^ "Keep the Memory Alive". bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 9 June 2023.
  48. ^ "Radio 4". Huddersfield Daily Examiner. Huddersfield, UK. 15 May 1993. p. 24.
  49. ^ Coventry Live (28 April 2015). "Blue Coat choir appears on Songs of Praise with former pupil turned professional tenor". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
  50. ^ Coventry Live. "Helen Daniels, mezzo". www.levedyensemble.com. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
  51. ^ <---not stated--->. "Imogen Russell (Soprano)". www.bach-cantatas.com. Retrieved 9 June 2023.
  52. ^ Coventry Live. "Les Miserables at Coventry's Blue Coat School". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 9 June 2023.
  53. ^ Laura Davenport. "Coventry school brings much loved musical to life". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 9 June 2023.
  54. ^ Laura Davenport. "Blue Coat School's version of Oliver! leaves audience wanting more". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 9 June 2023.
  55. ^ Izzy Sanders. "Coventry Blue Coat School production makes debut at Edinburgh Fringe Festival". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 9 June 2023.
  56. ^ Lucy Lynch. "Coventry secondary schools switching to clip-on ties". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
  57. ^ "House Introduction – Blue Coat School & Music College". Retrieved 24 August 2019.
  58. ^ "Blue Coat Church of England School & Music College". Coventry Blue Coat School. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
  59. ^ "Blue Coat Church of England School & Music College". Coventry Blue Coat School. Archived from the original on 9 March 2015. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
  60. ^ "Coventry's Blue Coat School 'has £1.4m shortfall'". BBC News. BBC. 13 March 2015. Retrieved 25 April 2015.
  61. ^ Lynch, Lucy (25 May 2015). "Head of Coventry Blue Coat School steps down". Coventry Telegraph. Retrieved 22 March 2017.
  62. ^ "Accounts 2017–2018" (PDF). 31 August 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 January 2020.
  63. ^ de Souza, Naomi (28 November 2021). "Coventry man who built sportswear empire from his bedroom". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 6 June 2023.
  64. ^ "Sonia Harris-Short". inventaire.io. Retrieved 20 July 2024.
  65. ^ Patsy Fuller (21 October 2014). "Pianist Jeremy Filsell returns to Coventry roots to raise funds for church organ". coventrytelegraph.net. Retrieved 21 June 2024.
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