Bullers Wood School

Bullers Wood School
1891 image of Bullers Wood School
Address
Map
St Nicolas Lane, Logs Hill

Bickley, Chislehurst
,
Greater London
,
BR7 5LJ

England
Coordinates51°24′36″N 0°02′46″E / 51.410°N 0.046°E / 51.410; 0.046
Information
TypeAcademy
MottoQuod Potes Tenta
Establishedc. 1940
Department for Education URN136709 Tables
OfstedReports
HeadteacherSimon Hardwick
GenderGirls
Age11 to 18
Enrolment1462
Websitehttp://www.bwsgirls.org/

Bullers Wood School is a comprehensive girls' school with a mixed Sixth Form academy school located on St Nicolas Lane in Chislehurst, part of the London Borough of Bromley. It is a member of the Bullers Wood Multi Academy Trust, along with Bullers Wood School for Boys.

Admissions

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The school accepts girls only until the Sixth Form, when boys are admitted. As of 2021, enrollment included 1514 girls and 59 boys.[1] The school's motto is Quod Potes Tenta, which is translated, "Strive To Your Utmost". It is situated just north of Chislehurst Road (B264), halfway (east-west) between Bromley and Chislehurst.

History

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Bullers Wood facilities are a combination of several refurbished historical houses and modern additions. Named after an ancient forest, the original Bullers Wood house was built in the 1860s and was owned by the Sanderson family from the 1870s. Scotsman John Sanderson, who had made his money sheep farming in Australia, employed local architect Ernest Newton (1856–1922) to extend the house in 1889.[2][3]

County council control

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From 1929 to 1939, the site hosted Sir Sydney Nicholson's Royal School of Church Music,[4] with the school's chapel being the present library. At the beginning of the second World War, the site was bought by Kent County Council and used by the Auxiliary Fire Service.[2]

Technical and grammar school

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During the Second World War it was transformed into a secondary school. A V-1 flying bomb hit the Bromley Day Commercial School for Girls on Wharton Street in Bromley, so it moved to the Bullers Wood site. It became Bromley Girls' Technical High School for ages 14–17, and after buildings were added, it became Bromley Technical High School for Girls for ages 11–18. It was known as Bromley Technical School for Girls by 1958, before becoming Bromley Technical High School for Girls.[2]

In 1968, it became a grammar school as Bullers Wood School under Kent Education Committee.[2]

Comprehensive

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In April 1974 it came under Bromley borough control. It became a grant-maintained school in 1991.[5][6] In 1990 it had around 1000 girls. In 1991, after raising money from parents, it bought the £65,000 La Serronnerie study centre in deepest Normandy, which was used for week-long visits via Dieppe. The head teacher at the time was Barbara Vanderstock. The house had room for 14 girls at a time.

Academy

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On 1 May 2011, Bullers Wood School gained academy status, marking the end of its control by Bromley borough.[7]

In 2015, Bullers Wood made plans to open a boys' school to accommodate 900 pupils in Bromley.[8] Bullers Wood Boys School had been approved in 2018 by the Bromley council, but the council reversed its decision after reconsidering the impact it would have on traffic.[9] Bullers Wood School for Boys did open in September 2018,[10] with plans to complete a main school building at Chislehurst Road in 2021.[11]

Achievements

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In 2011 Ofsted described the school as "outstanding", and noted that it held Healthy Schools, Artsmark Gold and Consultant School accreditation.[12]

Facilities and involvement in the community

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The school's grounds cover 22 acres.[5] A sports field with a pavilion is approximately a quarter mile from the school grounds, and a netball court is next to the school pond, as well as a gym, a sports hall, an assembly hall.

Sixth form

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The school has a mixed sixth form open to both Bullers' girls and external students. The sixth-form centre is based in Inglewood. Here students have access to a kitchen with cooking appliances and computer rooms. Common rooms are available for both Year 12 and 13 students and a media suite can be found in the attic.

Notable former pupils

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References

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  1. ^ "Bullers Wood School - Times Series". www.times-series.co.uk. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d "History of the School". Bullers Wood GIrls. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  3. ^ Society, The Chislehurst (15 November 2013). Chislehurst Through Time. Amberley Publishing Limited. ISBN 978-1-4456-1846-3.
  4. ^ "History of the RSCM". RSCM. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  5. ^ a b "Mansion set in 22 acres". The Independent. 28 June 1992. p. 146. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  6. ^ Davies, Brent; Anderson, Lesley (11 May 2018). Opting for Self-management: The Early Experience of Grant-maintained Schools. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-351-04128-7.
  7. ^ Norris, Frank (14 February 2012). "Academy conversion and predecessor schools". Ofsted. Archived from the original on 17 May 2021. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  8. ^ "Cameron: We'll create 25 free London schools". Evening Standard. 9 March 2015. pp. A2. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  9. ^ "2,000 fight to get school approved before secondary places deadline". Evening Standard. 14 February 2018. pp. A29. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  10. ^ "Campaigners get early Christmas present as inspector 'says yes' to new Bullers Wood School". News Shopper. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
  11. ^ "Bullers Wood School for Boys Update - May 2020". Bullers Wood Girls. 12 May 2020. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  12. ^ "Bullers Wood School Inspection report". 27 May 2011. Archived from the original on 17 May 2021. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
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