Richard Huish College, Taunton

The college is named after Richard Huish, a Taunton wool merchant in the 17th century who invested in property in London. He died in 1615 and his will included an endowment to establish almshouses in Taunton and support local people's university education. Increased income from the properties in the nineteenth century allowed this to be expanded to create both boys and girls schools in Taunton. The boys' school opened in 1875 in what are now the town's Municipal Buildings but by 1891 had moved to East Street. The girls' school opened in The Crescent in 1876 but the charity was unable to support both schools so the girls' school was funded by Bishop Fox's endowment from 1890.[1] Since 1979, Richard Huish College has been a sixth form college.

Willow building

The college occupies a site of 8 hectares (20 acres), of which 70% is sports fields, in the south of Taunton. Its buildings, which range in age from 1880 to 2015, take their names from some of the trees that cover the campus. The site is alleged to have previously been an Aboretum.

Over the period 2000–2009, a variety of building projects resulted in the Willow Building, the Hawthorn Building, Linden, and in 2009 Rowan House. In 2003, the Learning Centre at the heart of the campus, which is named after the science-fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke, a former pupil of Huish's Grammar School, was extended and completely refurbished.

In 2006 the sports dome was opened, which at the time was a ground breaking project for an inflatable dome for sports. It is due to be replaced during 2016, by a sports hall, including a viewing area, gym, changing facilities and a classroom. During 2015, a new cafe area and social space was built, including the first floor Redwood Suite. The cafe area includes a Costa Coffee. The Redwood Centre was renovated to house the drama and dance studios.

The college offers a large range of A Level and BTEC subjects. There are more than 45 subjects offered at A Level (Level 3). As well as traditional school subjects, many other A Level subjects are offered such as archaeology, classical civilisation, dance, economics, environmental studies, geology, government and politics, law, photography, psychology, sociology and statistics.

An increasing range of BTEC courses (Level 3 vocational courses equivalent to A Levels) are offered. They currently include applied science, business, creative media production, graphic design, health and social care/health sciences, information technology, music production, popular music and sport. A small number of GCSEs are offered for those wanting to progress to the sixth form. The College places a strong emphasis on the breadth of its enrichment activities for students.

The college also delivers apprenticeships and traineeships in the areas of accountancy, medical administration, business and administration, call centre operations, customer service, healthcare, IT user and IT professional, team leading and management, health and social care. At Level 4 and above, the college offers FdA and BA degrees in business and sports development and coaching, and professional courses in Accountancy (AAT, ACCA and CIMA) and Institute of Leadership and Management course (ILM). There are also short courses in computer skills and bespoke training services.

The college's A2-Level exam results are as follows:[2]

• 2003/2004 - 99.3% pass rate
• 2004/2005 - 99.7% pass rate: A-B: 71%
• 2005/2006 - 99.8%+ pass rate: A-B: 75%
• 2006/2007 - 99.2%+ pass rate: A-B: 74%
• 2007/2008 - 99%+ pass rate: A-B: 55%
• 2008/2009 - 99%+ pass rate: A-B: 69%
• 2009/2010 - 99.3% pass rate: A-B: 55.9%
• 2010/2011 - 99.4% pass rate: A-B: 58.8%
• 2011/2012 - 99.1% pass rate: A-B: 56.5%
• 2012/2013 - 99.1% pass rate: A-B: 55.2%
• 2013/2014 - 98.7% pass rate: A-B: 55%
• 2014/2015 - 99% pass rate: A-B: 57%

• Gareth Andrew, cricketer currently playing for Oxfordshire, former player of Worcestershire, Somerset and Hampshire Cricket Clubs[3]
• Andrew Castle, former British number one tennis player and television presenter[4]
• Matt Chorley, journalist and broadcaster.[5]
• Arthur C. Clarke, author and inventor[6]
• Stephen Daldry, film and theatre director. His films include Billy Elliot (2000), The Hours (2002), The Reader (2008) and Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (2011)[7]
• Mike Downey, film producer[8]
• Neil Edwards, former Somerset and Nottinghamshire cricketer[9]
• Carl Gazzard, former County Cricketer for Somerset[10]
• William Gibson, professor of ecclesiastical history at Oxford Brookes University[11]
• Rebecca Huxtable, producer and co-presenter of The Scott Mills Show on BBC Radio 1[12]
• Jack Leach, England international cricketer currently playing for Somerset County Cricket Club[13]
• Hannah McKeand, polar explorer who set the record for the fastest journey to the South Pole in 2006[14]
• Keith Parsons, cricketer[15]
• Michael Parsons, former player of Somerset County Cricket Club[16]
• Adam Pengilly, British skeleton racer[17]
• Andy Robinson, former head coach of the England national rugby union team[4]
• Edward S. Shire, physicist who co-invented the radar proximity fuse, also worked with John Cockroft and Ernest Rutherford[18]
• Sam Spurway, former cricketer[19]
• Paul Williams, Church of England bishop[20]
• Linda Woodhead, professor and academic specialist in religious studies at Lancaster University[21]
• Robert Woodman, cricketer currently playing for Devon County Cricket Club[22]

Huish Sport runs a sports enrichment programme. Each year, over 500 students participate in Huish Sport across 19 different sports.

Richard Huish College currently offers performance sport programmes for Cricket, Football, Rugby and Basketball. There is also the 'Active Huish' scheme which encourages students to take part in sports they previously would not have considered and also provides a more relaxed atmosphere in which to exercise.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Richard Huish College.

• Official website