Dixons Brooklands Academy, also known as DBK, is a mixed-sex secondary school in

Wythenshawe Wythenshawe () is an area of Manchester, England. Historically part of Cheshire, in 1931 Wythenshawe was transferred to the City of Manchester, which had begun building a large housing estate there in the 1920s. With an area of approximately , ...

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

, England.

History

In 1957, two separate schools opened, West Wythenshawe Technical High School for Girls and West Wythenshawe Technical High School for Boys. The schools' facilities included sports fields, tennis courts, science labs and a library. A statue, commissioned by Mitzi Cunliffe, who designed the Bafta, was erected outside the boys' gymnasium. In 1967, the two schools merged to form Brookway High School comprehensive, with mixed classes. In 2003, the school was then awarded sports college status and renamed Brookway High School and Sports College. Following this, a £3 million facility was built on the site, featuring two sports halls, three classrooms and a large gym, for use by both the school and the local community.

Closure and rebuild

In 2009,

Manchester City Council Manchester City Council is the Local government in England, local authority for the City status in the United Kingdom, city of Manchester in Greater Manchester, England. Manchester has had an elected local authority since 1838, which has been re ...

invested almost £200 million to improve the schools in the Manchester area. The original Brookway High School and Sports College/Manchester Health Academy building was demolished and a new £20 million building for Manchester Health Academy was completed in 2010. In July 2008, Barry Burke, the headteacher at Rhyddings Business and Enterprise School in

Oswaldtwistle Oswaldtwistle ( "ozwel twizzel") is a town in the Hyndburn borough of Lancashire, England, southeast of Blackburn, contiguous with Accrington. The town has a rich industrial heritage, being home to James Hargreaves, inventor of the spinning j ...

, was appointed Principal of Manchester Health Academy, taking up his post in January 2009. In August 2013, he retired from his position, being succeeded by Damien Owen. Following poor results and negative

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 ...

inspections, in January 2022 Manchester Health Academy became part of the Dixons Academy Trust and was renamed Dixons Brooklands Academy.

Facilities

The academy consists of two buildings; One consisting of 3 floors, and received an extension of an atrium in 2019, where the majority of lessons take place. The other contains the sports hall, assembly hall, and dance studio, being a single storey. The Academy also features a public library, which is operated by

Manchester Library & Information Service There are 24 public libraries in Manchester, England, including the famous Manchester Central Library, Central Library in St Peter's Square, Manchester, St Peter’s Square. The oldest community library still in use is Levenshulme Library in S ...

. In 2016,

invited the school to expand its student population. A £10 million transformation of the school's estate saw the addition of a new dining room extension, multi-use games area and FA-standard all-weather pitch, together with a new maths and English building. Former

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 ...

footballer

Denis Irwin Joseph Denis Irwin (born 31 October 1965) is an Irish former professional footballer and sports television presenter. Irwin is the joint most successful Irish footballer in history, a record he shares with Ronnie Whelan and fellow Manchester U ...

officially opened the school's new all-weather pitch in November 2017. The new floodlit playing surface complements the school's existing sports facilities.

Notable former pupils

Brookway High School

Billy Duffy William Henry Duffy (born 12 May 1961) is an English rock musician, best known as the guitarist in the band the Cult. Early life Duffy was born and grew up in Manchester, England. He has Irish and Jewish heritage and ancestry. He began playin ...

, guitarist of

The Cult The Cult are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Bradford in 1983. Before settling on their current name in January 1984, the band had performed under the name Death Cult, which was an evolution of the name of lead vocalist Ian Astbury ...

References

{{authority control Academies in Manchester Secondary schools in Manchester 2009 establishments in England Educational institutions established in 2009