Queens Park Community School

Queens Park Community School (commonly abbreviated to QPCS) is a secondary school and sixth form with academy status, located in Queen's Park, north west London, in the borough of Brent, England.[1]

Queens Park Community School
Address
Aylestone Avenue

Brent
,
London
,
NW6 7BQ

England
Coordinates51.5404°N 0.2184°W / 51.5404; -0.2184
Information
TypeAcademy
MottoQuality, Progress, Creativity and Success
Established1989
Department for Education URN138609 Tables
OfstedReports
HeadteacherMs Judith Enright
GenderCoeducational
Age11 to 19
Enrolment1286
Websitehttp://www.qpcs.brent.sch.uk

Admissions

There are, as of December 2020, 1286 pupils aged between 11 and 19 on roll who come from a range of backgrounds. QPCS is situated south of the A4003, in Brondesbury Park, about a mile west of Kilburn. The closest bus stations are Okehampton Road and Hanover Road, whilst the closest train station is Queen's Park (which serves for Bakerloo),

History

Merger

Opened in 1989, Queens Park Community School is the result of an amalgamation of three schools during the 1980s. The three schools that were merged were South Kilburn High School (formally Percy Road School), Aylestone Community School and Brondesbury and Kilburn High (commonly abbreviated to B&K). The latter was formed from the merger in 1973 of Kilburn Senior High School for Boys (KSH), and Brondesbury and Kilburn High School for Girls (BKHS). Both were successors to state grammar schools which were abolished by the local authority in 1967, the boys' grammar school being Kilburn Grammar School. The new Community school's logo, an image of three trees, represents this union of the three local secondary schools at the time. The headteacher chosen to head the new school was Ms Mary Norton. Ms Norton headed the school from its formation through to her retirement from education in 2002.

Present-day QPCS
Front view of QPCS

The school is located in a relatively middle class area of Brent, but many less affluent communities lie within its catchment area. Initially many parents held back from sending their children to the school but once the school began to achieve results heading towards the national averages, the school became heavily oversubscribed.

The school benefited from a brand new block funded through the millennium National Lottery fund at an estimated cost of £34.3 million. The building of this block involved demolishing one of the existing buildings. The new building was officially opened by Ken Livingstone with a plaque commemorating his visit. The school has been granted specialist school status in Business and Enterprise.

QPCS secured additional funding through the government's Excellence in Cities programme, which provided resources for schools, to provide extended activities and work for gifted and talented pupils.

In March 2012, QPCS applied for Artsmark status – it received the Gold award.

Queens Park Community School converted to academy status in September 2012.

QPCS City Learning Centre

The QPCS City Learning Centre (CLC) was one of 105 CLCs built by the DfES throughout the country. It was completed in 2003.

In 2015, funding for CLCs ceased and the CLC building has become part of the school’s teaching accommodation.

Uniform

Before the school opened, there was a consultation with parents about whether a uniform should be introduced or not. The vote was overwhelmingly in favour of a school uniform. The Queens Park Community School uniform was featured in the local press for its unconventional uniform, consisting of a black tracksuit bottom, with a red or black T-shirt featuring the school three trees logo, a red or black polo shirt with the three trees logo in small on the top left hand side, and a black tracksuit jumper. The design of the uniform was intended to be comfortable, attractive, practical, economical and one that students would enjoy wearing. In the academic year of 2012/13, the school decided to change the uniform, but only the tracksuit bottoms with a more formal tailored trousers.

Tutor group naming

QPCS uses a lettering system to divide the eight tutor groups in years 7–11. The letters are taken from the full name of the school. For example, year 9 would be the following: 9Q 9N 9P 9K 9C 9Y 9S 9L.

The QPCS sixth form (referred to as years 12 and 13) has fewer tutor groups than the rest of the school, due to having fewer students. Nevertheless, the same naming scheme is used.

Teachers' awards

QPCS teaching staff that have received recognition in the National Teaching Awards:

  • Sue Wales winner of the Lifetime Achievement Teaching Award, for London and the Southeast of England in 2001
  • Alison Hook came second for teacher of the Year Award, for London in 2003.
  • Luna Rupchand won Teacher Support of the Year, at the ACE Project Diamond Ball Awards in November 2012.

February 2012 - A global link is being developed between QPCS and Kayamandi High School, Stellenbosch in South Africa. This is part of the British Council Global Schools project. The project is a natural extension of QPCS's partnership with the Lexi Cinema who raise funds for the Lynedoch Community in Stellenbosch. The aim is to explore different ways that the two schools can potentially share valuable learning opportunities for the mutual benefit of the two communities.

Side view of school

QPCS in the media

This morning with Richard and Judy

QPCS was featured on This Morning with Richard and Judy for its uniform which was seen as an 'original' idea for a uniform.

Robert Symons

QPCS was featured in the media in 2004 as the school at which Robert Symons, who left his high paid job to give back to his community, taught as a newly qualified teacher. Robert Symons was murdered in his home in October 2004 defending his family from Yousef Bouhaddaou when Yousef attempted to rob his house.[2]

Classroom Chaos

QPCS was also one of the six schools featured on the controversial 2005 Channel 5 programme Classroom Chaos in which a retired teacher under the pseudonym 'Sylvia Thomas' returned undercover as a supply teacher after 30 years. Her stated objective was to show the 'chaos' which teachers must deal with in the modern classroom. With the use of hidden cameras, she filmed chairs being thrown, pupils fighting in class and swearing at teachers and other such behaviour.

Stormbreaker

QPCS was briefly featured in a montage in the 2006 film Stormbreaker (film), the film adaptation of the Anthony Horowitz book of the same name.

Notable former pupils

Brondesbury and Kilburn High School

References
  1. "Queens Park Community School Webpage". Brent Schools. Archived from the original on 11 September 2012. Retrieved 27 October 2012.
  2. The Guardian, Burglar who stabbed teacher to death had been released early from prison, 15 March 2006
  3. Kosky, Ben. "Kilburn's European Championship winner targets further success with Arsenal and England". Kilburn Times. Retrieved 14 January 2019.
  4. "Ozzy Kakay returns to his roots". QPR. Retrieved 14 January 2019.
  5. @QPCS (2 July 2018). "#OneOfOurOwn" (Tweet). Retrieved 24 August 2019 – via Twitter.
  6. Kilburn Times https://www.kilburntimes.co.uk/sport/arsenal-and-watford-stars-return-to-brent-for-district-schools-3718868. Retrieved 6 February 2021. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  7. Wilson, Derek. "Hurst [née Berney; other married name Baines], Margery (1913–1989)". ODNB. OUP. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
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