Chingford Foundation School is a coeducational state secondary school and sixth form located in
Chingford in the
London Borough of Waltham Forest. It is a specialist
Humanities College and has been an
academy
An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...
since October 2012.
History
Chingford Foundation School (a co-educational all-inclusive school) was opened in 1938 in temporary premises at
Hawkwood House in Yardley Lane, under the control of
Essex County Council
Essex County Council is the county council that governs the non-metropolitan county of Essex in England. The non-metropolitan county is smaller than the ceremonial county; the non-metropolitan county excludes Southend-on-Sea and Thurrock which ...
, as Chingford County High School. The following year, it was evacuated to the west of England and it did not occupy its present buildings in Nevin Drive until 1941. The school was enlarged in 1957.
In 1968, secondary schools in
Waltham Forest, to which Chingford had been transferred in 1965, adopted the
Comprehensive system. It became Chingford Senior High School with a mixed-ability intake of 14- to 18-year-olds. In the 1980s, pupils aged 11 to 14 studied at Chingford junior high school in Wellington Avenue, which later became a primary school, and then moved to Chingford senior high school to take O levels and later, GCSEs. In the late 80s early 90s, the
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 ...
was abolished, and sixth form pupils moved to either
Sir George Monoux College or
Leyton Sixth Form College.
Following another borough-wide reorganisation programme in 1986, and a further name change to Chingford School in 1993, the school became grant maintained, giving the school direct government funding and autonomy from the local authority. This allowed the school to re-establish its
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 ...
facility, for years 12 and 13. A new Sixth Form Centre was opened in 1997.
In 2000, the school became a
foundation school
In England and Wales, a foundation school is a state-funded school in which the school governor, governing body has greater freedom in the running of the school than in Community school (England and Wales), community schools.
Foundation schools ...
, meaning that the school is maintained by the local authority but the governors are responsible for their own admission policy and procedures.
Between July 2006 and July 2007 the school had extensive building works, in which a new sports hall and staff room were built.
Since converting to an academy in 2012, the school is run by the Chingford Academies Trust, which also manages
South Chingford Foundation School. The current CEO of Chingford Foundation Trust is Rob Mammen who replaced Jane Benton in 2023. The current Head of the school is Gary Haines who accepted the post in September 2023.
Inspections
In 2014, the 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's role is to make sure that organisations providing education, training ...
and judged Good.
In 2019, it was judged to Require Improvement.
, the most recent inspection was in 2023, with a judgement of Good.
Notable alumni
*
James Alexandrou, actor, formerly in ''
EastEnders
''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...
''
*
Brian Altman, barrister
*
David Beckham, former professional footballer for
Manchester United
Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...
,
Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional Football club (association football), football club based in Madrid. The club competes in La Liga, th ...
,
Milan
Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...
,
LA Galaxy
The Los Angeles Galaxy are an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. The Gal ...
,
Paris Saint-Germain and
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
.
*
Daniel Clark, professional basketball player
*
Ella Clark, professional basketball player
*
Daniel Fogg, swimmer
*
Brian Galach, professional footballer,
Crawley Town, Poland International
*
Dwight Gayle, professional footballer with
Stoke City
* Sir
Peter Harding, former
Marshal of the Royal Air Force
Marshal of the Royal Air Force (MRAF) is the highest rank in the UK's Royal Air Force (RAF). In peacetime it was granted to RAF officers in the appointment of Chief of the Defence Staff (United Kingdom), Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS), and to ...
,
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...
Chief of the Air Staff, and
Chief of Defence Staff (professional head of the British Armed Forces)
['']Who's Who
A Who's Who (or Who Is Who) is a reference work consisting of biographical entries of notable people in a particular field. The oldest and best-known is the annual publication ''Who's Who (UK), Who's Who'', a reference work on contemporary promin ...
2010'', A & C Black, 2010,
* Sir
Jonathan Ive, designer,
Apple Computer
Apple Inc. is an American multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, in Silicon Valley. It is best known for its consumer electronics, software, and services. Founded in 1976 as Apple Computer Co ...
*
Harry Kane
Harry Edward Kane (born 28 July 1993) is an English professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Striker (association football), striker for Bundesliga club FC Bayern Munich, Bayern Munich and Captain (association football), c ...
, professional footballer for
Bayern Munich and captain of the
English national team.
*
Michael Obafemi, professional footballer,
Swansea City
*
John Parslow, ornithologist
*
Iain Rice, writer on
model railways
*
Faiza Shaheen, economist
*
Steve Rosenberg, journalist, BBC's
Moscow
Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
correspondent
External links
Official websiteOld Chingfordians website
References
{{authority control
Academies in the London Borough of Waltham Forest
Secondary schools in the London Borough of Waltham Forest
Chingford