Brockenhurst College is a large

tertiary college In England and Wales, a tertiary college is a type of further education (FE) college that offers both academic and vocational courses to both teenagers and adults, combining the main functions of an FE college and a sixth form college. Unlike a si ...

situated in

Brockenhurst Brockenhurst is the largest village by population within the New Forest in Hampshire, England. The nearest city is Southampton some to the north-east, while Bournemouth is also nearby, south-west. Surrounding towns and villages include Beaul ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

. Co-educational since the 1920s, Brockenhurst College accepts students over the age of 16 or year 12 students. The college has over 2,700 full-time students and over 8,000 part-time adult learners from places such as The New Forest,

Bournemouth Bournemouth ( ) is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole unitary authority area, in the ceremonial county of Dorset, England. At the 2021 census, the built-up area had a population of 196,455, making it the largest ...

Poole Poole () is a coastal town and seaport on the south coast of England in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole unitary authority area in Dorset, England. The town is east of Dorchester, Dorset, Dorchester and adjoins Bournemouth to the east ...

East Dorset East Dorset was a local government district in Dorset, England. Its council met in Wimborne Minster between 2016 and 2019. The district (as Wimborne) was formed on 1 April 1974 by merging Wimborne Minster Urban District with Wimborne an ...

, the Waterside area of

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

, South

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...

Eastleigh Eastleigh is a town in Hampshire, England, between Southampton and Winchester. It is the largest town and the administrative seat of the Borough of Eastleigh, with a population of 24,011 at the United Kingdom 2011 census, 2011 census. The town ...

, and the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight (Help:IPA/English, /waɪt/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''WYTE'') is an island off the south coast of England which, together with its surrounding uninhabited islets and Skerry, skerries, is also a ceremonial county. T ...

. Brockenhurst College has been an accredited

Investors in People Investors in People is a standard for people management, offering accreditation to organisations that adhere to the Investors in People Standard. From 1991 to January 2017, Investors in People was owned by the UK government. As of 1 February 20 ...

since 1996, and in 2004 was awarded by the AoC Beacon Award and is also rated 'Good' 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's role is to make sure that organisations providing education, training ...

. The types of courses the college provides are professional, vocational and AS/A Level courses,

Foundation Degree A foundation degree is a combined academic and vocational qualification in higher education in the United Kingdom, equivalent to two-thirds of an honours bachelor's degree. Foundation degrees were introduced by the Department for Education and ...

s and Apprenticeships.

Campus

The College is divided up into A, B, E, M, S and T blocks. In addition to the Main Hall and Foyer, there are also other blocks given full names, such as the Sports Centre, the Hard Brock Café, the Learning Care Centre, and the LRC (Learning Resources Centre). There is also the Highwood Nursery located between the sports centre and the car park. The college has adult learning centres in Brockenhurst,

Lymington Lymington is a port town on the west bank of the Lymington River on the Solent, in the New Forest (district), New Forest district of Hampshire, England. The town faces Yarmouth, Isle of Wight, to which there is a Roll-on/roll-off, car ferry s ...

and

New Milton New Milton is a market town and civil parish in the New Forest District, New Forest district, in southwest Hampshire, England. To the north is in the New Forest and to the south the coast at Barton-on-Sea. The town is equidistant between Lymi ...

along with the

Hengistbury Head Hengistbury Head (), formerly also called Christchurch Head, is a headland jutting into the English Channel between Bournemouth and Mudeford in the English county of Dorset. It is a site of international importance in terms of its archaeolog ...

Outdoor Activity Centre and the Marchwood Marine and Construction Centre. M Block The Main Block is the oldest section of the college which includes the original hall, now called the SEC, used as a secondary room for exams and enrichment programmes. Also within the block, besides the main reception area, are much of the non-teaching staff at Brock as well as the main division offices and the Principal's offices. The offices are also used by Connexions and EMA (

Education Maintenance Allowance Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) (; LCA) is a financial scheme applicable to students aged between sixteen and nineteen and those undertaking unpaid vocational or non-university academic learning in the United Kingdom (except England) and w ...

) attendants located at Student Services. Based also in this block are a team of IT professionals who are in charge of the college network system and maintenance of all college's IT equipment. Many of the lessons held in this block are

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 ...

courses with their own sound rooms and recording studios,

Performing Arts The performing arts are arts such as music, dance, and drama which are performed for an audience. They are different from the visual arts, which involve the use of paint, canvas or various materials to create physical or static art objects. P ...

and

Theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a Stage (theatre), stage. The performe ...

with their own Performing Arts Centre,

Media Media may refer to: Communication * Means of communication, tools and channels used to deliver information or data ** Advertising media, various media, content, buying and placement for advertising ** Interactive media, media that is inter ...

which also have sound rooms and digital editing suites, Philosophy,

Politics Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...

Archeology Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscapes. Archaeolo ...

History History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...

, and

Business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for ...

which has over five computer suits for its study. A and S Block A Block contains the Specialist Art Centre, and S is the Sciences Centre complete with three-story building of

Biology Biology is the scientific study of life and living organisms. It is a broad natural science that encompasses a wide range of fields and unifying principles that explain the structure, function, growth, History of life, origin, evolution, and ...

Chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules a ...

and

Physics Physics is the scientific study of matter, its Elementary particle, fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge whi ...

laboratories A laboratory (; ; colloquially lab) is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which science, scientific or technological research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. Laboratories are found in a variety of settings such as s ...

on the ground, first and second floor respectively. Both Chemistry and Biology have student accessible prep rooms frequented by staff. Alongside Physics, a GCSE in

Astronomy Astronomy is a natural science that studies celestial objects and the phenomena that occur in the cosmos. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and their overall evolution. Objects of interest includ ...

is also offered. On the bottom floor is the staff room used for morning meetings with the Principal and division heads. B Block The Beacon Technology Block, named after the college's Beacon Status, contains recording studios, media suites and a photo development lab. All top floor classrooms in the block are fitted with flat screens attached to PCs, and some classrooms are fitted with Apple Mac computers. On the ground floor of the building are the Training Kitchens and MJ's Restaurant, which is open to the public. Engineering technology facilities and workshops are based in the block, as well as the

Graphic Design Graphic design is a profession, academic discipline and applied art that involves creating visual communications intended to transmit specific messages to social groups, with specific objectives. Graphic design is an interdisciplinary branch of ...

rooms. E Block The Errington Block, which was named after an ex-governor of the college, holds additional classrooms for

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 ...

Sociology Sociology is the scientific study of human society that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. The term sociol ...

Psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Its subject matter includes the behavior of humans and nonhumans, both consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, and mental processes such as thoughts, feel ...

Business Studies Business studies, often simply called business, is a field of study that deals with the principles of business, management, and economics. It combines elements of accountancy, finance, marketing, organizational studies, human resource manageme ...

, Early Childhood, Health & Higher Education, Key Skills and

GCSE The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a range of subjects taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, having been introduced in September 1986 and its first exams taken in 1988. State schools ...

courses. Each room is fitted with digital projectors and computers. Sports Centre The sports centre holds all main functions regarding sports, and also contains a Fitness Suite which is opened to the public and college staff during the day and after college hours. The sports centre is also home to the National Volleyball League's New Forest Volleyball Club The Hard Brock Café The Hard Brock Café is a main social attraction for many college students and also holds the offices of the Students' Union. The café provides hot and cold meals, quick snacks, drinks and ice creams. LRC (Learning Resources Centre) The LRC was originally the college main hall and is now the main study area for students at Brock. The LRC has a small library containing a wide selection of course books and relevant course DVDs and CDs, as well as a wide selection of magazines from the

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British newspaper published weekly in printed magazine format and daily on Electronic publishing, digital platforms. It publishes stories on topics that include economics, business, geopolitics, technology and culture. M ...

. As well as this on the top floor is an ILT Suite. In this building there is also reprographics and private study rooms. STEM Centre / T Block The STEM Centre was constructed from 2015–2016 and replaced most of the portable classrooms which formed H Block. Funding partly came from the M3 Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP). The centre contains computer suites, study and social space, plus the Mathematics department on the first floor.

History

Pupil teachers' centre 1909–1921 Brockenhurst College began its existence in 1909 as a pupil-teachers' centre – a school where girls from age 13 learned to be teachers. The classes were held in the

Wesleyan Church The Wesleyan Church, also known as the Wesleyan Methodist Church or Wesleyan Holiness Church depending on the region, is a United States-based Christian denomination headquartered in Fishers, Indiana, with congregations across North America, th ...

Sunday School ] A Sunday school, sometimes known as a Sabbath school, is an educational institution, usually Christianity, Christian in character and intended for children or neophytes. Sunday school classes usually precede a Sunday church service and are u ...

, with only 18 children attending under the head mistress, Miss Moore. Although classes were first held in the church Sunday school, Brockenhurst never had any religious affiliation or received any funding from ecclesiastical authorities. It was always funded by the Hampshire Education Authority, and the Sunday school room was used simply because it offered suitable accommodation. Between 1913 and 1935 the school moved location twice and changed head mistress to Miss Emma Clara Ward. During this time the school increased further with more problems continuing for teaching space. County school 1921–1939 Taking in both boys and girls, the school was still expanding further with more pupils joining, by now numbering 150. Along with this the education board granted more funding and further building work; this was followed by a new hall, kitchen and a woodwork room. Miss Ward died in October 1935 to be replaced by the former head of Farnborough Grammar School, Mr R H May. County High School 1939–1950 The school by this time had grown even further to a

high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...

enrolling 400 students and as young as eleven. Grammar school 1950–1953 In 1950 the

headmaster A headmaster/headmistress, head teacher, head, school administrator, principal or school director (sometimes another title is used) is the staff member of a school with the greatest responsibility for the management of the school. Role While s ...

decided that the school should be turned into a

grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a Latin school, school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented Se ...

and students would therefore have to pass the 11-plus to join. At this stage the school was still accepting both sexes. The motto in the early 50s was "Manners Makyth Man", borrowed from Winchester College (the school song "Forty Years On" was borrowed from Harrow). The new motto "Inter Silvas Quaerere Verum" (Seek Truth r LearningAmongst the Trees), an adaptation from Horace's Epistles, refers to the school's location in the New Forest. County High School (again) 1953–1960 In 1953 the headmaster changed the name back to High School. The name remained for seven years until the Hampshire Education Authority sanctioned the change to a grammar school. Grammar School 1960–1970 Finally the name of grammar school remained for the following ten years after being reinstated by the Education Authority. College 1970– The school was converted into a

sixth form college A sixth form college (pre-university college in Malaysia) is an educational institution, where students aged 16 to 19 study typically for advanced post-school level qualifications such as GCE Advanced Level, A Levels, Business and Technology Edu ...

in 1969, leaving all the surrounding schools to continue lower school education in the area, and became a

in 1985.

Head masters/mistresses and principals

* Moore 1909–1913 (Head Mistress)History
at archive of avocaberks.ndonet.com * Emma Clara Ward 1913–1935 (Head Mistress) * Green 1935 (Acting Head Master) * R. H. May 1935 – 1949 (Head Master) * Dr L. R. Wood 1949–1970 (Head Master to 1969, then Principal) * A. J. Baker 1970–1989 (Principal) * Mike J. Snell 1989–2006 (Principal) * Di Roberts 2006–2020 (Principal) * Polly Perkins 2021–2022 (Principal) * Dr Kate Webb 2022 May-September (Interim Principal) * Steve Wain 2022-May 2023 (Interim Principal) * Helen Odhams May 2023 onwards (Principal)

Notable former pupils

* Birdy (born 1996), singer, songwriter, and musician * Sir Raymond Carr (1919–2015), historian * John Darwin, historian * Tom Friend (born 1991), cricketer * Dame Heather Hallett (born 1949), judge of the

Court of Appeal An appellate court, commonly called a court of appeal(s), appeal court, court of second instance or second instance court, is any court of law that is empowered to Hearing (law), hear a Legal case, case upon appeal from a trial court or other ...

* Patrick Harverson (born 1962), public relations executive and former journalist * Guy Henry (born 1960), actor * Danny Ings (born 1992), footballer * Sir Derek Plumbly (born 1948), Diplomat Foreign Office, specialist in Middle East, former Ambassador to

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

and

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

* Ian Wooldridge (1932–2007), ''

Daily Mail The ''Daily Mail'' is a British daily Middle-market newspaper, middle-market Tabloid journalism, tabloid conservative newspaper founded in 1896 and published in London. , it has the List of newspapers in the United Kingdom by circulation, h ...

sports journalist Sport is a physical activity or game, often competitive and organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The number of participants in a par ...

* Justin Young (born 1987) of

The Vaccines The Vaccines are an English indie rock band, formed in West London in 2010 by Justin Hayward-Young and Freddie Cowan. The band currently consists of Young (lead vocals, guitars), Árni Árnason (bass, vocals), Timothy Lanham (guitars, keys, ...

* Sam Vokes (born 1989), footballer * Christopher Scott (born 1967), space and atmospheric scientist

Coat of arms

External links

College websiteBrockenhurst College Ofsted report

References

archived in 2004
www.jisc.ac.uk/uploaded_documents/Brockenhurst
*https://web.archive.org/web/20061010213259/http://www.beaconstatus.org/opencms/opencms/www/about/abou02_1.html?activityId=1611&letter=b *http://www.rm.com/FE/CaseStudies/Article.asp?cref=MCASE627035 {{authority control Further education colleges in Hampshire Educational institutions established in 1909 Learning and Skills Beacons International Baccalaureate schools in England 1909 establishments in England