The school was founded by Edward John Quilley in 1963, opened in 1964 as a comprehensive mixed secondary school for 11- to 16-year-olds. The Head was Mrs Hayter.
In March 2016 it was announced that the school would be merging with the Crestwood College for Business and Enterprise as of September 2016.[3] Falling enrollment and low exam results over the past three years were cited as the reasons for the merger.[4] The former Quilley site is now the Cherbourg Campus of the merged schools.[5]