The Swanage School, an entirely new 11-16 free school founded by the local community, has announced the appointment of its first team of teachers. The school opens in September 2013 in facilities provided by Harrow House, Swanage’s world-class language school, before moving into brand new specialist facilities currently being built in the grounds of Swanage Middle School.
A reorganisation of education in Purbeck left the young people of Swanage facing the prospect of being without the option of local schooling from the age of 11. A dedicated team of campaigners, with strong support from the town and surrounding villages, has worked tirelessly to bring the school to the stage where it will open in September this year.
Tristram Hobson was appointed as Headteacher in June 2012, joining the school from St Edmund’s Girls’ School in Salisbury where he was Deputy Headteacher. Jenny Maraspin, previously Head of Teaching and Learning at the Leaf Academy, Bournemouth was appointed in December.
“We are in the rare and very fortunate position of being able to set up a school from scratch. This is a tremendous opportunity for us to establish a team with dynamism, vision and a truly collaborative approach to work together to create something very special” Mr Hobson has told the new teaching team.
The school follows human scale education principles, where relationships lie at the heart of the school and the school is at the heart of the community. The School Trust is being set up as a community co-operative and many local groups and businesses have signed up to help. Plans for the school are innovative, inclusive and ambitious, incorporating strong local connections within a curriculum with a global outlook. The school will follow the National Curriculum, taught in small classes, with learning pathways tailored to suit individual students.
The new school buildings, on target for completion in early 2014, will provide a contemporary education environment that will also be a focal point for wider community arts, sport and learning.
The new teaching team start full-time in September, having been selected from over 300 applicants from across the UK and overseas. Each long-listed candidate taught an ‘outstanding’ lesson before being short-listed for interview, with observations taking place at Bournemouth’s Leaf Academy.
Full details about The Swanage School and information on how to apply for this September can be found online at https://www.theswanageschool.co.uk or by calling 01929 500599.
