Harris Academy Orpington (formerly The Priory School) is a non-selective

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 ...

with academy status in

Orpington Orpington is a town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is 13.4 miles (21.6 km) south east of Charing Cross. On the south-eastern edge of the Greater London Built-up Area, it is south of St Mary Cray, sou ...

in the

London Borough of Bromley The London Borough of Bromley () is a London Borough, borough in London, England. It is the largest and southeasternmost borough in London, and borders the county of Kent, of which it formed part until 1965. The borough's population in the 2021 ...

which joined the

Harris Federation Harris Federation is a multi-academy trust of 52 primary and secondary academies in and around London. They are sponsored by Philip Harris (Lord Harris of Peckham). Description With 52 academies in London and Essex, the Harris Federation educat ...

in September 2016.

History

In 2006 its predecessor The Priory School gained specialist

sports college Sports Colleges are senior secondary schools which promote sports alongside secondary education. United Kingdom Sports Colleges were introduced in 1997 as part of the Specialist Schools Programme in the United Kingdom. The programme enabled sec ...

status, focusing efforts on sports and the community; it was the only school in the borough to have this status. The school converted to academy status in May 2012. An

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 ...

report carried out in March 2016 rated The Priory School as ‘inadequate’, in September 2016 and re-named Harris Academy Orpington. In 2019 numerous Harris Academies were accused of 'gaming' the system through the practice of entering entire cohorts for the ESOL qualification, which is aimed at students who have English as an additional language (EAL), Harris Orpington entered their Year 11 cohort. This was shown to be common practice across the Federation. However, a spokesperson for Harris said the schools were 'categorically not gaming the system'. 'Gaming would only occur if a school systemically entered for ESOL to fill an open bucket space which would not otherwise be filled, for students who didn't need this course because they were not EAL'. The spokesperson added that ESOL literacy skills were a 'useful preparation for English exams', giving students real-exam experience before GCSEs.

Academics

;Academics Virtually all maintained schools and academies follow the

National Curriculum A national curriculum is a common programme of study in schools that is designed to ensure nationwide uniformity of content and standards in education. It is usually legislated by the national government, possibly in consultation with state or othe ...

, and are inspected by Ofsted on how well they succeed in delivering a 'broad and balanced curriculum'. Schools endeavour to get all students to achieve the

English Baccalaureate The English Baccalaureate (EBacc) is a school performance indicator in England linked to the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) results. It measures students' attainment by calculating an average score from specified subject grades. ...

(EBACC) qualification- this must include core subjects a modern foreign language, and either History or Geography. Students explore as many subjects as possible at

Key Stage 3 Key Stage 3 (commonly abbreviated as KS3) is the legal term for the three years of schooling in maintained schools in England and Wales normally known as Year 7, Year 8 and Year 9, when pupils are aged between 11 and 14. In Northern Ireland the ...

before specialising at Key Stages 4 and 5. To achieve this, students study French or Spanish and humanities subjects such as Art, Drama, Photography or Criminology in Key Stage 3. Students are guided in their year 9 option choice of

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 ...

s and

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 ...

allowing for

Russell Group university The Russell Group is a self-selected association of twenty-four public research universities in the United Kingdom. The group is headquartered in Cambridge and was established in 1994 to represent its members' interests, principally to governmen ...

ambitions, another universities or for entering into employment or training. A co-curricular enrichment programme is provided. As of 2020 there is an obligation to teach British values; this is done through tutor programme (which explore current events in the world), enrichment activities, charity events and external speakers. ;Key Stage 3 Curriculum The Key Stage 3 curriculum runs from Years 7-9. The current curriculum gives appropriate time to Mathematics, English and Science. Literacy and numeracy skills are developed in every subject and across the curriculum. All students in Year 7, 8 and 9 study a language which they continue to study until GCSE. Students may pick up a second, additional language in Year 10. ;Key Stage 4 Curriculum The Key Stage 4 curriculum is followed by Years 10 and 11. All students will study Mathematics, English, Science, PE and Religious Education and to obtain a EBacc they are advised to study a humanities subject and a modern foreign language. They choose two further options from an extensive list.

Harris Federation

Harris Academy Orpington is part of the Harris Federation, a not-for-profit charity that runs 52 primary and secondary academies in London and Essex, including

Harris Academy Beckenham Harris Academy Beckenham (formerly Kelsey Park Sports College) is a secondary school and sixth form located in Beckenham in the London Borough of Bromley. The academy is run by the Harris Federation. It was awarded 'Outstanding' in its 2023 Ofst ...

, and

Harris Academy Bromley Harris Girls' Academy Bromley, originally Cator Park School for Girls, is a secondary school in Beckenham in the London Borough of Bromley, England, for girls between the ages of 11 and 18, with boys joining in Sixth Form. In 2011, the school j ...

. Three quarters of Harris secondary academies inspected have been rated ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted, with the remaining quarter judged to be ‘good’ - an unmatched track record. Education charity The Sutton Trust has produced successive reports concluding that the Harris Federation is among the top academy trusts for improving the prospects of disadvantaged students.The Academy Effect, The Sutton Trust
/ref> Harris Academy has places in year 7 for 180 students each year. Admissions are made via the Bromley Secondary Schools Admissions form.

External links

Harris Academy OrpingtonHarris Federation

References

{{authority control Academies in the London Borough of Bromley Secondary schools in the London Borough of Bromley

Educational institutions established in 1990 1990 establishments in England Educational institutions established in 2016 2016 establishments in England