King Charles I School is a

coeducational Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to ...

secondary school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

and

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

located in the town of

Kidderminster Kidderminster is a large market and historic minster town and civil parish in Worcestershire, England, south-west of Birmingham and north of Worcester. Located north of the River Stour and east of the River Severn, in the 2011 census, it ha ...

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see H ...

, England.

Present day and Ofsted

King Charles I School is a specialist science college, and renewed their specialist status in September 2009. In September 2011, King Charles I School was inspected by

OFSTED The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) is a non-ministerial department of His Majesty's government, reporting to Parliament. Ofsted is responsible for inspecting a range of educational institutions, incl ...

inspectors during a 2-day section 5 inspection. The inspection deemed the school to be "Good, grade 2" (1 being outstanding, 2 good, 3 satisfactory & 4 inadequate), stating "King Charles 1 is a good school that puts students at the heart of everything it does". However, the inspectors lowered the previous grade of the Sixth Form from "Good" in the 2008 report, to "Satisfactory", stating "standards have fluctuated since the school was last inspected but students make satisfactory progress".

History

Grammar school

The school was founded around 1566 by Thomas Blount, Esq., Lord of the Manor of Kidderminster. It was in the chantry of the Parish Church of St. Mary and All Saints from 1566 until 1848, when it moved to the site known as Woodfield, on the Bewdley Road. It was granted its royal charter in 1636 by King Charles I and was the only school in England to bear his name. The original premises, Woodfield House built in 1785, and the Hall built about 1848, are now listed buildings. .

Comprehensive

When administered by Hereford and Worcester County Council in 1977 the Queen Elizabeth I Grammar School, Hartlebury (all Boys Grammar School) merged with the two Kidderminster grammar schools, King Charles I Grammar School for Boys and the Kidderminster High School for Girls, the latter was founded in 1868, and moved in 1912 to Hillgrove House, which is now also a Grade II listed building. This marked the end of the Grammar School system in Kidderminster as the change was completed to comprehensive education. The transition to comprehensive took place gradually, until the early 1980s, becoming a ten-form entry a 13–18 comprehensive school from a six-form entry grammar school.

Mergers

It has been subject to several mergers and in line with district school reorganization, following an amalgamation of middle schools and high schools it reopened in 2007 to operate from two campuses, with a total capacity of around 1350 students aged 11 to 18. Under its new structure, the school retains its specialist status as a

Science College Science Colleges were introduced in 2002 as part of the now defunct Specialist Schools Programme in the United Kingdom. The system enabled secondary schools to specialise in certain fields, in this case, science and mathematics Mathemati ...

that was awarded in 2003 and has facilities that cater for students with special needs. Following a November 2011

Ofsted The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) is a non-ministerial department of His Majesty's government, reporting to Parliament. Ofsted is responsible for inspecting a range of educational institutions, incl ...

inspection, the school was awarded a Grade 2 (Good) rating.

Buildings

The school was enlarged with the Brooks Building neighbouring the Sixth Form Rose Garden, and which functions as a science laboratory and theatre. The school has two campuses with the lower school for Year 7-8's operating from the premises of the former Comberton Middle School site in Kidderminster. On both campuses the school caters for linguistically challenged and autistic students in a Communication Centre, which has a facility on both sites.Ofsted report 2009
retrieved 25 July 2009.

Academy

The school converted to academy status in August 2012.

Sixth form

The School offers a

for any students wishing to continue their post-16 studies. Students have the option of participating in activities such as a recognised

first aid First aid is the first and immediate assistance given to any person with either a minor or serious illness or injury, with care provided to preserve life, prevent the condition from worsening, or to promote recovery. It includes initial i ...

course, formal

debate Debate is a process that involves formal discourse on a particular topic, often including a moderator and audience. In a debate, arguments are put forward for often opposing viewpoints. Debates have historically occurred in public meetings, a ...

, and talks from lecturers on various issues such as driving skills and ethical issues in farming.

Curriculum

The school offers a wide range of extra-curricular provision, especially in sport. In July 1979 the school held the Guinness world record for the longest continuous cricket match.

Notable alumni

* Tom Watson, Labour MP from 2001-2019 for

West Bromwich East West Bromwich East is a constituency that is represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament by Nicola Richards of the Conservative Party, who was first elected at the 2019 United Kingdom general election. Members of Parliament ...

King Charles I Grammar School

* Mo Anthoine, mountaineer *

Alan Bowkett Alan John Bowkett (born 6 January 1951 in London) is a British businessman, former Chairman of British company Redrow. He was Chairman of Norwich City football club, from 2009, until he resigned in 2015. Bowkett is also a Non-Executive Chairman ...

, businessman * Steven Davies, English cricketer, formerly of

, now playing for

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant ur ...

* Paul Frampton, physicist * Lt-Col

Brian Turner Tom Lawrence Brian Turner Tom Lawrence (9 November 1873 – 7 June 1949) was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces ...

, winner of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previousl ...

during the

Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sou ...

Walter Nash Sir Walter Nash (12 February 1882 – 4 June 1968) was a New Zealand politician who served as the 27th prime minister of New Zealand in the Second Labour Government from 1957 to 1960. He is noted for his long period of political service, hav ...

, former Prime Minister of

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...

Clifford T. Ward Clifford Thomas Ward (10 February 1944 – 18 December 2001) was an English singer-songwriter, best known for his career as a solo artist. Ward's 1973 album '' Home Thoughts'' remains his best known recording and he had hit singles with "G ...

, singer-songwriter * Charles Wood, playwright and scriptwriter

Kidderminster High School for Girls

Stephanie Bidmead Stephanie Bidmead (29 January 1929 – 22 September 1974) was a British stage and television actress. Early life She was born in Kidderminster. She attended Kidderminster High School for Girls, a girls' grammar school, now part of King Charles ...

, actress, notably in ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the ...

'' * Mal Lewis Jones, author * Monica Jones, partner of poet

Philip Larkin Philip Arthur Larkin (9 August 1922 – 2 December 1985) was an English poet, novelist, and librarian. His first book of poetry, ''The North Ship'', was published in 1945, followed by two novels, ''Jill'' (1946) and ''A Girl in Winter'' (1947 ...

* Debra Shipley, Labour MP from 1997–2005 for

Stourbridge Stourbridge is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley in the West Midlands, England, situated on the River Stour. Historically in Worcestershire, it was the centre of British glass making during the Industrial Revolution. The ...

References

External links

King Charles I High School

The Old Carolians Association

Old Elizabethans Association
{{authority control Educational institutions established in the 1630s 1636 establishments in England Secondary schools in Worcestershire Defunct grammar schools in England Academies in Worcestershire Buildings and structures in Kidderminster Schools with a royal charter People educated at King Charles I School