Bay House School

Bay House School is a coeducational secondary school and sixth form located in Gosport, Hampshire, England.

Bay House School
Address
Gomer Lane

Gosport
,
Hampshire
,
PO12 2QP

England
Coordinates50°47′12″N 1°09′53″W
Information
TypeAcademy school
Established1972
Local authorityHampshire
TrustGFM Education
Department for Education URN137791 Tables
OfstedReports
HeadteacherDr Nigel Matthias
GenderCoeducational
Age11 to 18
Enrolment2143
FormerlyGosport County Grammar School

History

Normal School

The Bay House site was originally a co-educational Normal School known as Gosport County Grammar School, which was founded in 1902.

Comprehensive

Bay House School, as it is today known, was established in 1972 through the amalgamation of Gosport Grammar School and Privett Secondary School. Sited adjacent to Stokes Bay, part of its premises occupies Bay House, built in 1838 by Decimus Burton as a seaside villa for Alexander Baring, 1st Baron Ashburton.[1] The gardens of the house stretched all the way down to the sea at Stokes Bay as there was little more than a track in the way, which later became Stokes Bay Road.[2]

John Croker, a friend of Lord Ashburton, was so impressed by the grounds that in 1842 he purchased the land next to Bay House and built his home there- Alverbank House, which later came to become the Alverbank Hotel.[3]

Ashburton House, Gosport

From 'The Illustrated London News', 12 April 1863

The admiralty are about to take a lease of Lord Ashburton's mansion and grounds on the shore of Stokes Bay, which have recently been purchased by the War Department. It is the intention of the Admiralty, when they house and grounds are handed over to them, to fit the mansion up as a college for naval cadets.[4]

In 1870, a naval college was established at Bay House, which became known as Ashburton House. Prince Alfred Ernest, Duke of Edinburgh, who was Queen Victoria's second son, attended the academy. He stayed at Alverbank House while he was studying there.[2]

In 1892, Col. Francis Sloane-Stanley, a close friend of the Prince of Wales- who was later to become King Edward VII- took over the house.

In a major fire in late 1984, the house, a grade II listed building,[5] was badly damaged, but was subsequently restored to its current condition. The house re-opened to pupils in 1987.

In 1943 the house was sold to Gosport Borough Council, and the 17 acres of parkland were donated to the people of the borough.[2]

Following World War II, the house became Gosport County Grammar School. The school was renamed Bay House School in 1972.[2]

The school has developed significantly since this time, including introducing a Sixth Form to the Gosport Area.[6]

Academy

Previously a foundation school administered by Hampshire County Council, in January 2012 Bay House School converted to academy status. The school is now sponsored by GFM Education.

Teachers

The school has roughly 250 teachers. Some of the teachers appeared on the BBC Two quiz show Eggheads. In March 2010, the assistant head teacher, Jim Wood, told an education seminar in Portsmouth that school teachers should act like Dirty Harry.[7] In 2010 former head of year James Braid was jailed for abusing boys throughout his 30-year career.[8]

Academic performance

In 2019, Bay House’s Progress 8 and Attainment 8 measures at GCSE were both average.[9] Absence and persistent absence were less good than the average.[10]

In 2019, the average A level grade achieved by Bay House students was B-, which is above the England average of C+.[11] A level progress was categorised as "well above average".[11] Student retention was good, with 96% of students completing their main course of study, compared to 89% in Hampshire overall and 91% in England.[11]

Ofsted report

From the recent report in 2017, Bay House received a 'GOOD' rating and some key messages from the report were:

  • Bay House 'continues to be good'.
  • Post-16 outcomes continue to be exemplary.
  • Bay House School has 'a very positive ethos and sense of purpose'.
  • The pupils and students conduct themselves well and behaviour continues to be superb.
  • The progress and attainment of pupils in English, mathematics, science and humanities is particularly strong.

Notable former pupils

References
  1. Bay House, A Nobleman's Seaside Residence Archived 29 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine, Bay House School website
  2. "Info Bay House". My Gosport. Archived from the original on 20 August 2004.
  3. "Alverbank Hotel | Hampshire Garden Trust Research". Retrieved 10 December 2019.
  4. "The Illustrated London News". Ashburton House, Gosport. 12 April 1863.
  5. Historic England. "Details from listed building database (1276633)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 10 April 2008.
  6. "Bay House". Bay House. Retrieved 10 December 2019.
  7. Telegraph March 2010 Archived 14 November 2012 at the Wayback Machine. Telegraph.co.uk (10 March 2010). Retrieved on 3 June 2011.
  8. Teacher jailed for abusing boys at Bay House School BBC.co.uk (1 February 2010). Retrieved on 10 April 2012.
  9. "Bay House School". Find and compare schools in England. Gov.UK. Retrieved 28 December 2020.
  10. "Bay House School". Find and compare schools in England. Gov.UK. Retrieved 28 December 2020.
  11. "Bay House School". Find and compare schools in England. Gov.UK. Retrieved 28 December 2020.
  12. "27 famous people who went to school in Hampshire". Hampshire Life. 26 July 2017. Retrieved 28 December 2020.
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