New Mills School & Sixth Form is a

comprehensive school A comprehensive school is a secondary school for pupils aged 11–16 or 11–18, that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude, in contrast to a selective school system where admission is restricted on the basis ...

in the town of

New Mills New Mills is a small town in the Borough of High Peak, Derbyshire, England, south-east of Stockport and from Manchester at the confluence of the River Goyt and River Sett, Sett. It is close to the border with Cheshire and above the Torrs, a ...

, in the north west of Derbyshire.

Admissions

The school teaches pupils from

Year 7 Year 7 is an educational year group in schools in many countries including England, Wales, Australia and New Zealand. It is the seventh full year (or eighth in Australia and England) of compulsory education and is roughly equivalent to grade 6 ...

Year 11 Year 11 is an educational year group in schools in many countries including England and Wales, Northern Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. It is the eleventh or twelfth year of core education. For some Year 11 students it is their final year s ...

. The school was given its title as Business and Enterprise College in 2005 and this status was renewed in 2009. The school's main feeder primary schools are New Mills, Newtown, St George's, Thornsett, Hayfield, Hague Bar and St Mary's.

History

Grammar school

The school was opened in 1912 as the New Mills Grammar School and celebrated its 100th birthday in 2012. It had around 500 boys and girls in the early 1960s, then 600 by 1964 and 700 by 1969, with a sixth form of 200. The school was designed by George H. Widdows, the Chief Architect of

Derbyshire County Council Derbyshire County Council is the upper-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Derbyshire in England. The non-metropolitan county is smaller than the ceremonial county, which additionally includes Derby. The county council is ba ...

, described as "a leading designer of schools in the early C20 and an exponent of advanced ideas on school planning and hygiene", and is a

Grade II listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

Headteachers

* Norman Taylor (d.1962, had a distinguished war career) * Philip Vennis 1962–71 (died 1999; former deputy headteacher, Ounsdale High School 1955–62, Principal of

Itchen College Itchen Sixth Form College (also known as Itchen College) is a mixed sixth form college in Bitterne, Southampton, Hampshire, England. It was established in 1906 and was originally a mixed secondary school, it later became Itchen Grammar School ...

1971–88) * Jesse Elms, resigned early 2014. * John Kuczaj, temporary headteacher for the rest of the 2013–14 school year. * Debbie McGloin, 2014–19, current headteacher of Glossopdale School. * Alison Barker and Caroline Jesson, 2019–21. * Heather Watts, current head.

Subjects

There were 23 subjects at New Mills School, taught by 59 teachers in 8 different buildings and 50 rooms: rooms 5–18,

Music Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm, or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Music is generally agreed to be a cultural universal that is present in all hum ...

1–2,

Language Language is a structured system of communication that consists of grammar and vocabulary. It is the primary means by which humans convey meaning, both in spoken and signed language, signed forms, and may also be conveyed through writing syste ...

1–4,

Maths Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, theories and theorems that are developed and proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many areas of mathematics, which include num ...

1–6,

Sixth Form In the education systems of Barbados, England, Jamaica, Northern Ireland, Trinidad and Tobago, Wales, and some other Commonwealth countries, sixth form represents the final two years of secondary education, ages 16 to 18. Pupils typically prepa ...

1–5,

Drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

1–2,

Art Art is a diverse range of cultural activity centered around ''works'' utilizing creative or imaginative talents, which are expected to evoke a worthwhile experience, generally through an expression of emotional power, conceptual ideas, tec ...

1–3, the Gym, Workshop 1–2, Food 1–2, 8 Science labs and a

construction Construction are processes involved in delivering buildings, infrastructure, industrial facilities, and associated activities through to the end of their life. It typically starts with planning, financing, and design that continues until the a ...

centre. The school lost its sixth form, in spite of considerable local support, in 2017 and in 2019 it now is a 11–16 Comprehensive. The school is home to Take Part in the Art, a local arts scheme.

Notable former pupils

New Mills Grammar School

Thomas Brimelow, Baron Brimelow Thomas Brimelow, Baron Brimelow (25 October 1915 – 2 August 1995, London, United Kingdom) was a British diplomat. He served as Ambassador to Poland (1966–69), Permanent Under-Secretary at the British Foreign Office (1973–75), and Memb ...

CMG OBE, Ambassador to Poland from 1966–69 * Prof Reginald Coates, civil engineer *

Lloyd Cole Lloyd Cole (born 31 January 1961) is an English singer, songwriter and musician. He was lead vocalist of Lloyd Cole and the Commotions from 1984 to 1989 and subsequently worked solo. Early life Cole was born in Buxton, Derbyshire, England. He ...

, musician * Sir Martin Doughty, chairman of

Natural England Natural England is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. It is responsible for ensuring that England's natural environment, including its land, flora and fauna, ...

from 2006, and of the Association of National Park Authorities from 1997–2001, and leader of Derbyshire County Council from 1992–2001 * Sir

Brian Heap Sir Robert Brian Heap (born 27 February 1935) is a British biological scientist. He was educated at New Mills Grammar School in the Peak District, Derbyshire, and the University of Nottingham (where he earned his BSc and PhD). He has an MA and ...

CBE, master of

St Edmund's College, Cambridge St Edmund's College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England. Founded in 1896, it is the second-oldest of the three Cambridge colleges oriented to mature students, which accept ...

from 1996–2004 *

Tony Marchington Anthony Frank Marchington (2 December 1955 – 16 October 2011) was an English biotechnology entrepreneur and businessman, famous as the co-founder of Oxford Molecular, and the former owner of the famous Class A3 4472 ''Flying Scotsman'' loco ...

, entrepreneur *

John Pilkington Hudson John Pilkington Hudson, (24 July 1910 – 6 December 2007) was an English horticultural scientist who did pioneer work on long-distance transportability of what became known as the kiwifruit. He was also a celebrated bomb disposal expert. Backgr ...

CBE GM, Professor of Horticultural Science at the

University of Bristol The University of Bristol is a public university, public research university in Bristol, England. It received its royal charter in 1909, although it can trace its roots to a Merchant Venturers' school founded in 1595 and University College, Br ...

and Director of the

Long Ashton Research Station Long Ashton Research Station (LARS) was an agricultural and horticultural government-funded research centre located in the village of Long Ashton near Bristol, UK. It was created in 1903 to study and improve the West Country cider industry an ...

from 1967–75, and Professor of Horticulture from 1958–67 at the

University of Nottingham The University of Nottingham is a public research university in Nottingham, England. It was founded as University College Nottingham in 1881, and was granted a royal charter in 1948. Nottingham's main campus (University Park Campus, Nottingh ...

* Roy Powell, jazz pianist

New Mills Secondary School

Tess Daly Helen Elizabeth "Tess" Daly (born 29 March 1969) is an English television presenter and former model. Since 2004, she has co-presented the BBC One dancing competition show '' Strictly Come Dancing''. Early life Helen Elizabeth Daly was born o ...

, television presenter

References

External links

School website

History of the grammar school

EduBase
{{authority control New Mills Community schools in Derbyshire Secondary schools in Derbyshire Grade II listed buildings in Derbyshire Grade II listed educational buildings Educational institutions established in 1912 1912 establishments in England