King's College, Guildford

Kings College, Guildford was an early pioneer in the International Baccalaureate programme. The school has around 850 pupils as of September 2006. The school was first opened as Park Barn School (after the area it is in), in the late 1950s. At this time it was known as a good school. However, in the 70s, 80s and 90s, the school slipped. In 1991, the school was renamed King's Manor. The results improved for a year, but then slipped again. In 2000, the school was renamed King's College, and an almost entirely new staff were hired. The school was refurbished, the very basic science labs rebuilt, and 200 computers were placed around the school. The school is now receiving more applications than it can physically hold, and 2 new classrooms have had to be built, as well as a £1.3m Arts Centre. This contains two music rooms, a dance studio, and a drama studio. It also has a state-of-the-art recording studio.

The first head of King's College was Mr David Crossley. He left the school, to help other failing schools. He was then succeeded by Mr Vince Hodkinson, who left for family reasons. The current principals are Mrs Sarah Mackintosh and Mr Graeme Hawkett.

After a 6 year period, the school's results have improved dramatically, with over 60% of students getting A*-C GCSE grades in 2005.

Also in the year 2006, over 60% year 13 students left the college with achieving a full diploma.

External link

*www.kingscollegeguildford.com