Ark Acton Academy, 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, 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., b ...

and

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 ...

located in the Acton area of the

London Borough of Ealing The London Borough of Ealing () is a London boroughs, London borough in London, England. It comprises the districts of Acton, London, Acton, Ealing, Greenford, Hanwell, Northolt, Perivale and Southall. With a population of 367,100 inhabitants, i ...

, England. The school teaches pupils between the ages of 11 and 18. It is sited on ''Gunnersbury Lane'' (A4000) just north of Acton Town Underground station. The school is currently led by Sarah Donachy, who took over from Oliver Knight in September 2024.

History

Grammar school

The school was originally known as Acton County Grammar School, which opened in 1906 for 200 boys (at a different site). It was the first purpose-built county grammar school in

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

. From 1926 to 1956, the school's headmaster was GCT Giles, an Old Etonian and communist activist who was President of the

National Union of Teachers The National Union of Teachers (NUT; ) was a trade union for school teachers in Education in England, England, Education in Wales, Wales, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. It was a member of the Trades Union Congress. In March 2017, NU ...

(NUT) when the

Education Act 1944 The Education Act 1944 ( 7 & 8 Geo. 6. c. 31) made major changes in the provision and governance of secondary schools in England and Wales. It is also known as the Butler Act after the President of the Board of Education, R. A. Butler. Histori ...

was introduced. In 1958, the school began admitting girls, becoming fully co-educational in 1966. The year before, in 1965, the school's administration moved from

Middlesex County Council Middlesex County Council was the principal local government body in the administrative county of Middlesex from 1889 to 1965. The county council was created by the Local Government Act 1888, which also removed the most populous part of the cou ...

to the

. When proposals for going comprehensive appeared in 1966, parents took the LEA to court and lost.

Comprehensive

The school became a comprehensive in 1967, when Ealing borough adopted the three tier system, and was known as Acton County Comprehensive. In 1974 it became Reynolds High School, named after local politician and former pupil Gerry Reynolds who has been a Minister in the 1960s and had been tipped for higher office. The 18-year-old "graduation" year of 1976 produced 4 university students out of an intake of 180 in 1969. School colours were brown and cream, with a badge showing a ring of oak leaves around a portcullis with the school name superimposed. The school roll in 1979 amounted to 1040 pupils and until its final years, consisted of eight forms per year. In the 1970s, the neighbouring Ealing Mead County school off Popes Lane, opened in 1962, was found to have serious structural problems in its building. After only twelve years of use, Ealing Mead had to be closed and demolished. As a result, the pupils of the school were distributed around the other local schools and Reynolds High School absorbed a significant proportion of them. Reynolds High School closed in July 1984 primarily due to falling school roll but re-opened in September the same year as Acton High School following a merger with the Faraday High School, formerly based at Bromyard Avenue. The old brick buildings, dating from 1939, were demolished in 2005, and a new school building built on the same site.

Academy

Previously a community school administered by

Ealing London Borough Council Ealing London Borough Council, which styles itself Ealing Council, is the local authority for the London Borough of Ealing in Greater London, England. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in London. The council has been under Labour majori ...

, in September 2018 Acton High School converted to academy status and was renamed Ark Acton Academy. The school is now sponsored by

Ark Schools Absolute Return for Kids (branded as Ark) is an international children's educational charity based in London, UK. Ark is a registered charity under English law. In its reporting year 2017–18, excluding its few subsidiaries, it saw gross i ...

Sixth form

Originally established in 2012 and re-opened in 2018 under Ark Schools, the sixth form is a part of the school. It is currently led by Patricia Smith and has a cohort of at least 100 students. Due to funding and budget constraints, the sixth form is set to close in September 2026.

Sixth form curriculum

The sixth form offers subjects at

A-level The A-level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational ...

and BTEC. The subjects available include: * English Literature * Mathematics * Further Mathematics * Biology * Physics * Chemistry * Psychology * Sociology * Geography * History * Government and Politics * Economics * BTEC Nationals Applied Science * BTEC Nationals Business Studies

Notable former pupils

Acton County Grammar School

* Sir

Austin Bide Sir Austin Ernest Bide (11 September 1915 – 11 May 2008) was a British chemist and industrialist. Biography Bide was born in Kensington, London, on 11 September 1915, to parents Ernest Arthur Bide and Eliza Young. He was brought up by his mo ...

, chemist and industrialist *

Anthony Valentine Anthony Valentine (17 August 1939 – 2 December 2015) was an English actor best known for his television roles: the ruthless Toby Meres in '' Callan'' (1967–72), the sadistic Major Horst Mohn in '' Colditz'' (1972–74), the suave titular g ...

, actor *

Pete Townshend Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend (; born 19 May 1945) is an English musician. He is the co-founder, guitarist, keyboardist, second lead vocalist, principal songwriter and leader of the Who, one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s an ...

, musician, founder member of

The Who The Who are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup (1964–1978) consisted of lead vocalist Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon. Considered one of th ...

Roger Daltrey Sir Roger Harry Daltrey (born 1 March 1944) is an English singer, musician and actor. He is the co-founder and lead vocalist of the Rock music, rock band the Who, known for his powerful voice and charismatic stage presence. His stage persona ear ...

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

, musician, founder member of

John Entwistle John Alec Entwistle (9 October 194427 June 2002) was an English musician, best known as the bass guitarist for the rock band the Who. Entwistle's music career spanned over four decades. Nicknamed "The Ox" and "Thunderfingers", he was the band ...

, musician, founder member of

* John "Speedy" Keen, musician for

Thunderclap Newman Thunderclap Newman were a British rock band that Pete Townshend of the Who and Kit Lambert formed in 1969 in a bid to showcase the talents of John "Speedy" Keen, Jimmy McCulloch, and Andy "Thunderclap" Newman. Their single, " Something in t ...

, who wrote the 1960s song ''

Something in the Air "Something in the Air" is the debut single by British rock band Thunderclap Newman, written by Speedy Keen who also provided lead vocals. It was a No. 1 single for three weeks in the UK Singles Chart in July 1969. The song has been used for fi ...

'' and a song for

, ''Armenia City in the Sky'' * Colin Phipps,

petroleum geologist A petroleum geologist is an earth scientist who works in the field of petroleum geology, which involves all aspects of oil discovery and production. Petroleum geologists are usually linked to the actual discovery of oil and the identification ...

and Labour MP from 1974 to 1979 for Dudley West * Leonard E. H. Williams CBE DFC, Chief Executive from 1967 to 1981 of the

Nationwide Building Society Nationwide Building Society is a British mutual financial institution and the largest building society in the world. As of 2024, it serves over 16 million members and operates entirely for their benefit, without shareholders. The society was e ...

Ian Gillan Ian Gillan (born 19 August 1945) is an English singer who is best known as the lead singer and lyricist for the rock band Deep Purple. He is known for his powerful and wide-ranging singing voice. Initially influenced by Elvis Presley, Gillan ...

, musician, lead singer of

Deep Purple Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal music, heavy metal and modern hard rock, although their musical style has varied throughout their career. Originally for ...

Reynolds High School

* Warren Neill, professional footballer with QPR and

Portsmouth FC Portsmouth Football Club is a professional association football club based in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England. The team is currently competing in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system in the 2024–25 ...

Acton High School

* Paul Bruce, Professional footballer (1996–2008) *

Gemma Cairney Gemma Cairney (born 19 March 1985) is an English television and radio presenter best known for her work on BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 6 Music. She most recently presented ''The Leisure Society'' on BBC Radio 6 Music where she interviewed cultural ...

BBC Radio 1Xtra BBC Radio 1Xtra is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It broadcasts Black music and urban music, including hip hop and R&B and is a sister station to Radio 1. Launching at 18:00 on 16 August 2002, it had been ...

DJ and fashion stylist *

Jamal Edwards Jamal Brendan Edwards (24 August 1990 – 20 February 2022) was an English music entrepreneur, DJ and founder of the online R&B/Hip-Hop platform SB.TV. Edwards was an ambassador for the Prince's Trust, a youth charity which helps young peopl ...

, entrepreneur/founder of SBTV (1990–2022) * Caroline O'Connor, Olympic rowing coxswain * Emily Winterburn, Writer

Notable staff

* Zacron, born Richard Drew (1943–2012) was an English artist who designed the Led Zeppelin III album cover. Head of Art Teacher during the mid 70s * GCT Giles, Headmaster, president of the NUT, leading communist

References

External links

Ark Acton Academy official website
{{authority control Secondary schools in the London Borough of Ealing Educational institutions established in 1906 1906 establishments in England Academies in the London Borough of Ealing Acton, London Ark schools