King Henry School

King Henry School (formerly Erith Grammar School and later Erith School) is a large mixed bilateral secondary school and sixth form in Erith in the London Borough of Bexley for students aged 11 to 18. In October 2010, it became an Academy, and from September 2018 it merged with Townley Grammar School in Bexleyheath, forming the Odyssey Trust for Education, a multi-academy trust, and adopting its current name.[2] It is located just off the A220, Bexley Road.

King Henry School
Address
Avenue Road

Erith
,
Greater London
,
DA8 3BN

England
Coordinates51°28′27″N 0°09′58″E
Information
TypeBilateral Academy
MottoTotis Viribus
Established1967
Department for Education URN146378 Tables
OfstedReports
Head teacherRob Leitch[1]
GenderMixed
Age11 to 18
Enrolment1980
Former namesErith School (1967-2018)
Erith Grammar School (1890s-1967)
Websitehttps://www.kinghenry.org.uk/

Admissions

It was designated specialisms in Sports and Mathematics & Computing. Although a comprehensive, for the bilateral intake, many are selected on academic ability. Intake is banded and transfer from one band to another takes place, with each band being successively more academically demanding.

History

The predecessor school to the current school was founded in the 1890s. Erith School was founded in 1967 by the amalgamation of Northumberland Heath Secondary Modern School and Erith Grammar School. Initially, Erith School was a ten-form entry school catering for students of all abilities. In 1972, it became a bilateral school, the only one in the London Borough of Bexley.

Between 1967 and 1997 the school was situated on two sites. The East Building, on Avenue Road, was the old Erith Grammar School, with buildings dating from the 1950s. The West Building, on Brook Street, was built in the 1930s and was the site of the Northumberland Heath Secondary Modern School.

In 1979, a "hands off Erith School" campaign successfully allowed the school to retain its status, following the announcement of plans by Bexley Council to either close the school or divide it. [3][4]

Building work started in the spring of 1994 on a new, refurbished £6.5 million single-site school on the Avenue Road site, and was completed by December 1996. It was opened in January 1997, with a new teaching block, sports hall and all-weather astroturf facilities. The old West Building on Brook Street now houses Northumberland Heath Primary School.

In 2005, the school was awarded Specialist School status, recognising its excellence in PE, Maths and ICT. This was announced in a formal opening by Trevor Brooking. A new sixth form block, the David Friend Building, opened in May 2007. Its Community Sports Centre oversees usage during the evenings and weekends by a variety of teams.

In June 2018, the school was featured in the BBC documentary Grammar Schools: Who Will Get In?.[5]

In September 2018, the school changed its name to King Henry School after joining Townley Grammar School to form a multi-academy trust, the Odyssey Trust for Education.[6]

Notable alumni

See also

References
  1. http://www.kinghenry.org.uk/admissions/welcome/. Retrieved 26 June 2020. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  2. Gantzer, Olivia (19 June 2018). "Two Bexley schools to merge". Bexley Times. Retrieved 10 September 2019.
  3. "Erith School". Hansard. 10 December 1979.
  4. Walter Roy (1983). Teaching Under Attack. Croom Helm. ISBN 0-70-992213-2.
  5. Benn, Melissa (5 June 2018). "Grammar schools: Even the BBC is waking up to the painful, divisive reality I Melissa Benn". the Guardian. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  6. Erith School (19 July 2018). "Changes from September as King Henry School". Erith School. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
  7. "Footballer goes back to school". News Shopper. 29 March 2007. Retrieved 13 November 2016.
  8. "Board: The Right Reverend David Conner, Dean of Windsor". St George's House. Retrieved 27 December 2017.
  9. "Wing Commander G W 'Johnnie' Johnson". The Daily Telegraph. 14 September 2004.
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