Knole Academy

Knole Academy
Address
Map
Bradbourne Vale Road

Sevenoaks
,
Kent

England
Coordinates51°17′13″N 0°11′2″E / 51.28694°N 0.18389°E / 51.28694; 0.18389
Information
TypeAcademy
Established2010
Local authorityKent
TrustKnole Academy Trust UID 3664[1]
Department for Education URN136128 Tables
OfstedReports
HeadteacherDavid Collins
GenderMixed
Age11 to 19
Enrolment1162
SponsorsGordon Phillips (Chairman of Glen Care), Sevenoaks School and Kent County Council (KCC).
Websitewww.knoleacademy.org

Knole Academy is a secondary school in Sevenoaks, Kent, England, with a grammar band and Sixth-Form. Knole opened in September 2010 as a result of the amalgamation of the Wildernesse secondary school in Sevenoaks, Kent and Bradbourne School (for girls) As part of Knole Academy Trust (UID 3664), the organization transitioned to Aletheia Academies Trust in 2024.[1][2][3]

Previous schools

The Wildernesse School was a single sex high school for boys aged eleven to nineteen. It had Specialist School status for Mathematics and Computing. Other than the English motto taken from a letter to Sir Philip Sidney from his father, the school had a Latin motto: Non Nobis Solum (English: "Not for ourselves alone"). The school closed in July 2010, becoming part of the Knole Academy at the start of the autumn term in September 2010.[4]

The Bradbourne School was a girls' 11–18, high school with a 6th form that hosted about 860 students. It closed in 2010.[5] Bradbourne School had been renamed in 1974, having previously been Sevenoaks School for Girls, and before that, Hatton School. Its original buildings included the house, Maywood, built in 1874, which had previously been called Hatton House and been the home of Lady Fanny Finch-Hatton. Maywood is now the Sevenoaks Adult Education Centre.[6][7]

  • Former Wildernesse School
    Former Wildernesse School
  • Former Bradbourne School
    Former Bradbourne School

The site

The former Bradbourne site was selected for the new academy. This had to be a sensitive development as the site lies right at the edge of the metropolitan Green Belt. The location of the new building was selected to respect the overall use pattern of the site, and to enable construction whilst the existing buildings remained in use. The site had an existing building footprint of 4,912 m2 (52,870 sq ft) to which would be added – 2,761 m2 (29,720 sq ft) which makes up 8% of the total site area. There is 19,968 m2 (214,930 sq ft) of general recreational space with 22,145 m2 (238,370 sq ft) of sports pitches and viewing areas. There is 30,684 m2 (330,280 sq ft) of landscaping and 13,164 m2 (141,700 sq ft) of parking and service roadways.[8]

To the north of the three-storey new building are two sports halls and the music teaching accommodation. To the south set at an angle that follows the contours of the site are the specialist classrooms, toilets and office space. Art has the top floor, science has the middle floor and construction and technology on the ground floor. General classrooms are in the existing building with a capacity of 1550.[9][8]

The sites of the previous schools were used during the construction of the new Academy buildings which weren't completed until 2015. On merger, not all of the students from Wildernesse moved over immediately; the merger of students was only completed in September 2011. Since then, the site at Knole East (Wildernesse) has been used to site Trinity Free School, Sevenoaks and Weald of Kent Grammar School Annex.[10] Before becoming an academy, Bradbourne School was designated as a specialist Arts College. This specialization has carried over to Knole Academy, which emphasises an arts curriculum alongside other subjects. One of the academy’s sponsors is Sevenoaks School.[9]

Academics

As of 2024, the school's most recent full inspection by Ofsted was in 2017, with an outcome of Good.[11] There was a short inspection in 2022 which confirmed the judgement of Good.[12] The Knole Academy curriculum covers GCSE's, IBCP & IBDP[13][14]

Notable alumni

Uniform policy

Knole Academy made national headlines after updating its uniform policy to allow students to wear fake eyelashes, citing mental health considerations. The change aims to improve attendance, as some students were missing school to have their eyelashes removed or were unwilling to attend without them.[2] Headteacher David Collins said that the new rule permits discreet fake eyelashes to ensure students remain in school.

Teacher criminal convictions

A former teacher arrested for brandishing a hammer and threatening a colleague was barred from returning to the profession for four years after working at Knole Academy [13] and an ex-maths teacher was convicted of downloading child abuse films.[14]

Transport

There has been controversy over the overcrowding of school transport.[16]

Headteacher's salary

In 2019 the government has requested Knole Academy to justify the high salary previously received by its former headteacher, though the school has stated that it no longer offers six-figure salaries to any staff members.[17]

References

  1. ^ a b "Knole Academy Trust - Gov.uk". Get-information-schools.service.gov.uk. Retrieved 14 October 2024.
  2. ^ a b "School changes uniform policy to allow fake eyelashes for 'mental health considerations'". Gbnews.com. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
  3. ^ "Knole Academy - GOV.UK". Get-information-schools.service.gov.uk. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
  4. ^ "Wildernesse School Kent". Archived from the original on 8 August 2007. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
  5. ^ "The Bradbourne School - GOV.UK". Get-information-schools.service.gov.uk. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
  6. ^ Killingray, David; Purves, Elizabeth. "Hatton School & Maywood". Sevenoaks: an historical dictionary (PDF). Sevenoaks Historical Society. p. 78, 113.
  7. ^ "Our centres: Sevenoaks". Kentadulteducation.co.uk. Kent Adult Education. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
  8. ^ a b "Three storey academy building at Knole Academy – SE/12/1163" (PDF). democracy.kent.gov.uk/documents. KCC. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
  9. ^ a b "A tiny Kent town with a big personality". Evening Standard. 25 February 2016. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
  10. ^ "Planning documents s46963 Appendix D3" (PDF). democracy.kent.gov.uk. KCC. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
  11. ^ "Ofsted Report 2107". ofsted.gov.uk. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
  12. ^ Fearon, Ann (2022). "Inspection of a good school: Knole Academy". Ofsted. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  13. ^ a b "Banned: Teacher with hammer who intended 'serious harm' | Tes Magazine". Tes.com. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
  14. ^ a b "Jeremy Allison". Kent Online. 25 October 2012. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
  15. ^ "Knole Alumni". Knoleacademy.org. Retrieved 14 October 2024.
  16. ^ James, John (17 September 2019). "Mum's anger as daughter, 11, forced to stand in aisle of crowded school bus". Kent Live. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
  17. ^ King, Debbie (6 February 2019). "Government demands academy justify high salary of former headteacher". Kent Live. Retrieved 22 July 2024.

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