Cowley International College

--82.14.146.133 (talk) 16:32, 9 April 2014 (UTC)--82.14.146.133 (talk) 16:32, 9 April 2014 (UTC)--82.14.146.133 (talk) 16:32, 9 April 2014 (UTC)--82.14.146.133 (talk) 16:32, 9 April 2014 (UTC)--82.14.146.133 (talk) 16:32, 9 April 2014 (UTC)--82.14.146.133 (talk) 16:32, 9 April 2014 (UTC)--82.14.146.133 (talk) 16:32, 9 April 2014 (UTC)Italic text

Cowley International College
Address
Hard Lane St. Helens , Merseyside , WA10 6LB England
Information
Type	Community comprehensive school
Motto	Non sibi seb omnibus
Local authority	St. Helens
Specialist	Languages
Department for Education URN	104829 Tables
Ofsted	Reports
Chair	John Clegg
Headteacher	Mr Cameron Sheeran
Gender	Mixed
Age	11 to 18
Enrollment	1590
Website	http://www.cowley.st-helens.sch.uk

Cowley International College, formerly Cowley Language College, is an 11-18 secondary school and college situated on Cowley Hill, in Windle, St Helens, Merseyside.

Admissions

It is an oversubscribed school. It is situated north of Windlehurst and Denton's Green in the north-west of the town, between the A570 and A580 (to the north). The Pilkington glassworks are about a half-mile to the east.

History

Grammar school

A former part of the school was on Cowley Hill Lane. There were two grammar schools, the Cowley Girls' Secondary Grammar School (also known as the Cowley Girls' School) with around 650 girls, and Cowley Boys' Secondary Grammar School (also known as Cowley School) with around 550 boys. In 1965, the St Helens Education Committee council introduced proposals for comprehensive education.

The changing rooms at the boys' school, and the gym at the girls' school were used as locations for the film Chariots of Fire (1981).

In 2011, Cowley Language College featured extensively in the low-budget feature film, "Broken Spirits" which was entirely produced on location in St Helens, by media staff and students from the Sixth Form. Written by Film Studies teacher Geoff Harrison and co directed by students Angus Leith and John Quigley, Broken Spirits will receive its world premiere in January 2012 at Cineworld, St. Helens.

Comprehensive

The comprehensive plans took effect in September 1970 with each school becoming a 13-18 single sex comprehensive school - the Cowley Boys' School and Cowley Girls' School which soon became 11-18 schools in 1974 with around 700 at each school. For a short time from 1976-8, these schools were the Cowley High School for Boys and the Cowley High School for Girls. By 1978 it had become the Cowley High School with around 1,400 boys and girls.

In 2001, it gained Language College specialist status and changed its name.

It has now changed its name once again to Cowley International College in the summer of 2010.

New building

The school has recently been subject to a £20 million redevelopment, with a new building for the 11-16 site opened in October 2009 by Ed Balls, Head of Education. The previous site is currently being redeveloped into a state-of-the-art Sixth Form which opened to students in September 2010.

Academic results

It gets GCSE results slightly under the England average. At A-level its gets above-average results, and the third highest in St Helens LEA, after Carmel College (a high-achieving sixth form college) and Rainford High Technology College.

Alumni

• Andrew Wilson, gardening author

Cowley Grammar School (both)

• Prof Theo Barker, Professor of Economic History from 1976-83 at the LSE, and of Economic and Social History from 1964-76 at the University of Kent
• Norman Cook CBE, Editor from 1978-79 of the Liverpool Daily Post & Echo
• Robert Dorning, actor, musician
• Geoff Duke - racing motorcyclist during the 1950s
• David Fillingham CBE, Director from 2001-04 of the NHS Modernisation Agency
• Ray French, BBC rugby league commentator, also taught at the school
• Margaret Chapman, artist and illustrator, from the Northern School.
• George Groves, sound engineer, important in the early use of sound in films - he recorded the sound of The Jazz Singer, and later won three Academy Awards
• Dame Judith Kilpatrick, headteacher
• James Leicester, Director from 1961-71 of the Northern Polytechnic (now part of the University of North London)
• Gerry Pickavance CBE, Director from 1957-69 of the Rutherford High Energy Lab, and expert on particle accelerators
• Norman Rigby, Chairman from 1964-68 of Nabisco Ltd.
• James Roby - St Helens RLFC player.
• Hugh Stott Taylor, FRS, Professor of Chemistry, Princeton University.
• Gary Stretch - a former British Light middleweight boxing title holder, model and actor
• Adam Swift - St Helens RLFC player attended both the school and the college.

External links

• EduBase