Forest Gate Community School
| Forest Gate Community School | |
|---|---|
| Address | |
 | |
Forest Lane , , E7 9BB | |
| Information | |
| Type | Community secondary school |
| Motto | Fly, Grow, Connect, Strive |
| Local authority | Newham |
| Department for Education URN | 102775 Tables |
| Ofsted | Reports |
| Chair | Jan Tallis |
| Headteacher | Simon Elliott |
| Staff | 496 |
| Gender | Mixed |
| Age | 11 to 16 |
| Enrollment | 1200 |
| Website | http://www.forestgatecst.org |
Forest Gate Community School is a mixed comprehensive secondary school in the London Borough of Newham, rated Outstanding by Ofsted in 2016. The school plans to extend form entry from eight forms of entry to nine – rising to a total of 1,350 pupils – starting with the Year 7 admission in September 2019 to meet demand from local parents. The school was described in an article in the Daily Mail as "one of the most inspirational in Britain".
The school's motto is Fly, Grow, Connect, Strive
History
The school was built by architects Colquhoun and Miller in 1965 to replace Whitehall Place School Senior Mixed School.
It was opened in February 1966 by The Right Honourable Sir F. Elwyn Jones, who was the Labour MP for West Ham South at the time.
It was originally called Forest Gate County High School.
Awards
Forest Gate Community School won the Evening Standard outstanding achievement in challenging circumstances award in 2017. In the same year, it was nominated for the TES secondary school of the year but did not win. The school was accredited with the NACE Challenge Award in November 2016.
GCSEs
Key statistics from GCSE results in 2016:
- On the new "Progress8" measure the school scored 1.1
- 87% of students gained an A*-C grade in English.
- 74% of students obtained 5 GCSEs A*-C including English and Maths.
- 93% of students made expected progress in English (the national average for 2015 was 65%).
- 76% of students gained an A*-C grade in Mathematics.
- 82% of students made expected progress in Mathematics(the national average for 2014 was 65%).
Ofsted
Selected quotes from the February 2016 Ofsted report:
Governors:
"Governors have made very good use of the recent review of their work to keep the school’s work under scrutiny. Governors provide challenge and constantly question the school’s effectiveness when evaluating value for money. As a result, the senior leaders have found that there is no hiding place. "
Leadership:
"The headteacher’s exemplary leadership and management of the school have led it to being fully transformed."
"The vision of high expectation of achievement is understood and clearly communicated to all staff."
Teachers:
"Teachers and support staff provide a stimulating learning environment where pupils say they are ‘pushed until they can handle the work’."
"Expectation of what pupils can achieve is very high. Teachers know their pupils very well and use this information to inform their planning of what to teach next."
Pupils:
"The school’s work to support pupil personal development and welfare is outstanding."
"During the inspection pupils were polite, thoughtful and articulate in sharing their views about the school."
"They are proud of the school and see behaviour as an increasing strength of the school’s work."
Remodelling
The school had a £15m remodelling in 2011, as part of the London Borough of Newham’s Building Schools for the Future Programme.
This included the introduction of a new four court sports hall, an open plan breakout space and a new passenger lift and staircase.
The school also has an on-site gym, which can be used by the public outside of school hours.
Scholarship Programme
Since September 2013, the school have run a scholarship programme helping very bright pupils win places at top independent schools.
In February 2014, Ishak Ayiris and Irfan Badshah became the first students to be accepted on scholarships, winning places at Eton and Winchester College, respectively. in 2017, Kaashif Kamaly became the second student to win a scholarship at Eton. In total, ten students have won scholarships.
Ethos and Values
Forest Gate Community School continues to describe itself as a "community school" in breach of DfE's published definition "community schools, controlled by the local council and not influenced by business or religious groups" [1].
Fly: Forest Gate Community School is a learning community where staff and students have high aspirations for themselves and each other. It seeks to create a place of learning for each and every student in our care and, it states, nothing will stand in the way of this entitlement.
Grow: The school's aim is for students to become well-informed, rounded and confident people. The school states that all students have the right to grow into well-informed, confident individuals who are able to demonstrate independent learning and responsibility in their attitudes towards one another.
Connect: Forest Gate wants students to be aware of their responsibilities to others in the local community and to work cooperatively to make things better. It prides itself on our caring, disciplined and supportive community.
Strive: The school instils in students the need to learn with an enquiring mind and to work hard. It says it encourages teachers to deliver the best teaching they can because "we believe this is the best way to support and improve the life chances of the students in our charge".
Admissions
With effect from 19 August 2016, when a new trust was incorporated to take over Forest Gate Community School it ceased to be a council local authority run comprehensive. The school maintains an open admissions policy.
The London Borough of Newham is the Admissions Body for Forest Gate Community School.[2]