In 1591, Queen Elizabeth School (QES) was granted a royal charter and founded as a free grammar school. QES moved from its original Mill Brow location in 1840 to the newly constructed Springfield House on Biggins Lane, Kirkby Lonsdale. Girls were first admitted in 1905, and by 1930 there were 88 day pupils and 54 boarders, approximately half and half boys and girls. QES became a non-selective comprehensive school in 1978 and continued to take in boarders until the late 1980s.
In 1997 Springfield House, the boys' boarding accommodation, was redeveloped as a dedicated Sixth Form area. On 1 December 2010 QES became the first school in the county to convert to academy status. However, the school continues to coordinate with Cumbria County Council for admissions. QES offers GCSEs and other qualifications as programmes of study for pupils, while students in the sixth form have the option to study from a range of A-levels and additional qualifications.
In 2010, a 15 year old pupil at the school was arrested in the playground after she was found with a 12 inch (30 cm) knife and a "hit list" of teachers and pupils to stab.[4]
In September 2017, a sister school, Queen Elizabeth Studio School, abbreviated to QEStudio, was built, and started accepting students. Despite being just across Biggins Lane from each other, they are, in official terms, together a family of schools with a parent body called Lunesdale Learning Trust.[5][6] QEStudio offers ‘technical’ qualifications, with professional partners. Students decide to join either QES or QEStudio for Year 10, aged 14, for their GCSEs, to the end of Sixth Form, aged 18, for their A-levels, and can "pick and mix technical and academic qualifications to create a personal Learning Package".[7] QEStudio currently has a student population of around 343 students, and its sixth form has 105 students.[8]
Ofsted
In 2022 an Ofsted inspection of Queen Elizabeth School resulted in a report that graded the school as only Good when it has previously been Outstanding for many years. The report stated that to improve, school leaders needed to better identify pupils who do not read as well as they should as this hinders how well some pupils access the full curriculum offered to them. Also, in a small number of subjects, some teachers do not use assessment strategies effectively to address gaps in pupils’ learning. This means that some pupils and students have not secured the knowledge that they need to learn well. The school leaders were urged to ensure that subject teachers are equipped to identify and address pupils’ misconceptions before moving on to new learning. However, the report also mentioned that "“Pupils and students feel safe and happy at school", and "are taught by passionate teachers who have a high level of subject-specific expertise." Also, that "pupils and students behave impeccably in lessons and around school. Lessons are not interrupted. Pupils are curious and want to learn", and that the safeguarding arrangements are effective: "Staff are vigilant ... know how to spot the signs that a pupil may be vulnerable and need support ... staff respond quickly and effectively when they have concerns about a pupil’s welfare."[9]
