Sawston Village College is an

academy school An academy school in England is a state-funded school which is directly funded by the Department for Education and independent of local authority control. The terms of the arrangements are set out in individual Academy Funding Agreements. 80% ...

Sawston Sawston is a large village in Cambridgeshire in England, situated on the River Cam about south of Cambridge with a population of 7,271. The village has historical roots dating back to medieval times and has landmarks such as Sawston Hall, a ...

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfor ...

, England. It was the first community college and

Village College The village college is an institution specific to Cambridgeshire, England, including the Peterborough unitary authority area. It caters for the education of 11- to 16-year-olds during the day, and provides educational and leisure facilities to t ...

in the country, and is currently the Sunday Times State 11-16 Secondary School of the Year. It was founded in 1930 and realised the vision of Henry Morris, then Chief Education Officer for

. In 1924, Henry Morris wrote a ''Memorandum on the Provision of Education and Social Facilities for the Countryside, with Special Reference to Cambridgeshire''. Morris wrote that: * the village college would be "the community centre of the neighbourhood"; * "it would not only be the training ground for the art of living, but the place in which life is lived"; * "the village college could lie athwart the daily lives of the community it served; and in it the conditions would be realised under which education would not be an escape from reality, but an enrichment and transformation of it". Morris' vision of a school indivisible from its community still holds true today at Sawston, the first village college. Its circa 1030 pupils aged 11 – 16 share the campus with adults who come to the college for a range of purposes: education, socialising, leisure and sports. The college also has the only youth-led cinema in the country. Its pupils take responsibility for the function of the cinema – front of house, projection and business planning; offering regular screenings to the local community. On 1 June 2011, Sawston Village College gained academy status, effectively ending Cambridgeshire County Council's control and funding of the school. On 6 September 2012, 14:15 BST, one wing of the original college building was devastated by a fire. The Walnut gallery, Main Staff Room, and Sawston Public Library were destroyed, and the Henry Morris Hall was flooded from the hosepipes. The staff evacuated the pupils. Everyone was accounted for, and there were no casualties. The incident is thought to have been an act of arson. Sawston Village College was crowned the UK's State 11-16 Secondary School of the Year by the Sunday Times 32nd edition in 2024.

Notable Alumni

Heather Craney Heather Craney (born 1971) is an English actress, known for portraying Joyce Drake in ''Vera Drake'', Alison Weaver in '' Life of Riley'' and Emily Holroyd in ''Torchwood''. Background Craney was born in Stapleford, Cambridgeshire. Her family ...

– Actress * Peter Steinberg – USA Rugby Head Coach * Ray Freeman – English Footballer *

Steven Mackintosh Steven Mackintosh (born 30 April 1967) is an English actor and narrator. He is perhaps best known for his role as List of Underworld characters#Andreas Tanis, Andreas Tanis in the action horror films ''Underworld: Evolution'' (2006) and ''Unde ...

- Actor * Michael Birch – Founder of Bebo.

Feeder schools

Children from the following schools generally start attending Sawston Village College at age 11: *Bellbird Primary School,

*Icknield Primary School, Sawston *

Babraham Babraham is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the South Cambridgeshire district of Cambridgeshire, England, about south-east of Cambridge on the A1307 road. Babraham is home to the Babraham Institute which undertakes res ...

CofE Primary School *William Westley Primary School, Whittlesford *

Duxford Duxford is a village in Cambridgeshire, England, about south of Cambridge. It is part of the Hundred Parishes area. History The village formed on the banks of the River Cam, a little below its emergence from the hills of north Essex. One of t ...

Primary School * Stapleford Primary School *

Great Great may refer to: Descriptions or measurements * Great, a relative measurement in physical space, see Size * Greatness, being divine, majestic, superior, majestic, or transcendent People * List of people known as "the Great" * Artel Great (bo ...

and Little Shelford Primary School *Fawcett Primary School

Destination Schools

Students continuing in Further Education beyond 16 generally attend one of the following: *

Cambridge Regional College Cambridge Regional College is a mixed further education college in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England. College profile The college offers courses in a wide range of subjects from hair and beauty and mechanics to media studies and science, as ...

; * Hills Road Sixth Form College; * Impington Village College; *

Long Road Sixth Form College Long Road Sixth Form College (LRSFC) is a state co-educational sixth form college in Cambridge, England. It is on Long Road, from which it draws its name, and is next to the Cambridge Bio-Medical Campus which encompasses Addenbrooke's Hospital ...

; *

Netherhall School The Netherhall School and The Oakes College is a Mixed-sex education, mixed secondary school and sixth form located in the Queen Edith ward of Cambridge, England. Its logo is a modified version of the arms of the City of Cambridge. It is one of ...

; * Saffron Walden County High School.

References

{{Reflist Academies in Cambridgeshire Secondary schools in Cambridgeshire Educational institutions established in 1930 1930 establishments in England