Hockerill Anglo-European College

Hockerill Anglo-European College
Address
Dunmow Road Bishop's Stortford , Hertfordshire , CM23 5HX England
Coordinates	51°52′16″N 0°10′16″E
Information
Type	State boarding academy
Established	1980
Department for Education URN	117598 Tables
Ofsted	Reports
Principal	Mr Richard Markham
Gender	Coeducational
Age	11 to 18
Enrollment	812.5
Houses	Canterbury, Rochester, Roding, Thames, Winchester, Durham
Colour(s)	Blue and yellow
Website	http://www.hockerill.herts.sch.uk/

Hockerill Anglo-European College (formerly known as Hockerill Boarding School) is an international boarding school with academy status located in Bishop's Stortford.

In 1850, Hockerill was founded as a teacher training school for women by the first vicar of the parish of All Saints, Hockerill, the Reverend John Menet. The training school was closed in 1978 and, in 1980, was reopened as Hockerill School when Fyfield School (in Essex) and Kennylands School (in Berkshire) merged. In 1995 it achieved Grant Maintained status and in 1998 became known as Hockerill Anglo-European College. The school also gained Music College status. The Music College was officially opened by Lord David Puttnam on 8 October 2006. It became an Academy in 2011.

Hockerill has more than 800 students, with about a third boarding. There are three types of boarding; full, weekly and flexible. Full boarders generally live overseas, weekly boarders generally live elsewhere in the British Isles and flexible boarders may have parents who work long hours. Hockerill also offers the International Baccalaureate (IB) where students complete a rigorous academic programme alongside extra-curricular clubs such as sports teams, CCF, Model United Nations, Interact, debating, or Spectrum. Spectrum is Hockerill’s GSA (Gay Straight Alliance), which discusses a wide range of issues surrounding LGBT+ rights. Spectrum also aims to create a supportive environment and is currently open to everyone in years 10 to 13, regardless of sexual orientation.

The boarding section is divided into six boarding houses. The boarding houses are named after places in England: Thames House (for boys in Years 11-13); Roding House (girls in Years 12-13); Canterbury House (boys in Years 7-8); Durham House (boys in Years 9-10); and Winchester House (girls in Years 7-10) and Rochester House (girls in Year 11.

The academic side of Hockerill is divided into four Equipes, named after four pioneers in their own fields, and are also given a colour: Brunel (pale blue), da Vinci (red), Goethe (green) and Pascal (white). The Equipes compete for the Vine Cup every year and each Equipe has had its share of success, with Pascal in the lead with most wins historically.

Hockerill’s strong performance is recognised in national leagues tables, with the Sunday Times Schools Guide 2018 ranking Hockerill top of all comprehensive and partially selective state schools.

International Connections

Hockerill has many international connections with schools owing to its Language College status. It has partner schools in Belgium, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Rwanda and Spain. It offers an exchange programme which, in some cases, sees Hockerill students visiting families and schools overseas in exchange for their child visiting Hockerill and the student's family.

Hockerill organised a series of concerts in Iaşi in Romania. Students travelled to Romania and played at numerous concerts to raise money. They were also given 7 minutes airtime on Romanian national television. They also toured Bucharest and Iaşi and performed in various locations in these areas. Another music trip took place in Prague, Czech Republic in February 2008 and a third trip to Hungary was undertaken in February 2009.

Other trips are organised to students including geography field trips to the beach and a river, expeditions to Ecuador, and diving trips to Sharm el-Sheikh. Day trips to France (Somme) and Belgium (Ypres) are organised for World War I research.

The International Baccalaureate and MYP

In 1998, Hockerill introduced the International Baccalaureate (IB) as the only form of post-16 study and accepted its first sixth formers. This event was a turning point in Hockerill's history because the IB allowed Hockerill to gain top positions in league tables. Dr. Guthrie strongly believed that the IB excelled the A-Level in every way and that A-Levels were not the right way forward for Hockerill. In 2012, 100% of Hockerill pupils passed the IB Diploma with an average points score of 36.4. The Middle Years Programme (MYP) was introduced in 2005 for years 7-11 and complements the GCSE and IGCSE taught at the college.

External links

• International Baccalaureate Organization website
• Middle Years Programme website
• State Boarding School Association
• Hockerill Old Scholars (Old, not kept up to date)
• British Council Learning World May 2010
• Hockerill Training College - Old Postcard images in A Guide to Old Hertfordshire