A sense of pride, a feeling of security, a decrease in problems such as vandalism and graffiti and "nice, clean toilets": these are some of the benefi ts reported by students after a year at Bristol Brunel academy, one of the country's first BSF schools, which opened last September.
Two hundred year 7 and 8 students were surveyed by the National Foundation for Educational Research before and after the transformation and asked about their attitudes to education and learning. Those who said they felt proud of their school increased after the new school opened from 43% to 77%. Students also said they felt more valued, enjoyed going to school more, and found it easier to learn. Those saying they felt safe at school all or most of the time increased from 57% to 87%.
David Carter, executive principal, says the increased sense of pride in the school derives partly from the building being so different from the academy's previous incarnation. "The children feel comfortable here and I think they equate comfort with pride. Things they feel happier about include natural light, wide corridors and open-plan, unisex toilets." He also cites pupil engagement with the new building. The first thing you see when visiting the school is a "wall of wishes", the students' aspirations for the future, mounted in marble slabs. "That gives a clear message of pupil involvement."
While the building has a definite "wow factor", these encouraging changes in attitudes are also down to the staff , says Carter. "On safety, for example, the building design is very intelligent in terms of managing young people. But also the principal, Armando Di-Finizio, and his team have thought about the shape of the day: there are not so many times when all the children have social time at once, and they have brought in highly visible learning mentors, so there are always lots of adults available." (The main building was designed by Wilkinson Eyre Architects, twice winners of the RIBA Stirling Prize, and construction, including ICT installation, by Skanska.)
June Jarrett, principal of Haringey sixthform centre, a new £28m BSF school that opened in September 2007, says her students are "very appreciative" of their new school and particularly like the sense of space — bigger classrooms, wider corridors and light and open feel. "The students have benefited enormously from an all-singing, all-dancing environment," she says.
Jarrett believes there is a general emphasis now on improving environments at home and at work. "Why should it be any different for students? The knock-on eff ect of high-quality facilities and excellent resources can only be more motivated learners."
(The centre was designed by award-winning architects Hazle McCormack Young and constructed by Willmott Dixon. )
Bristol Brunel's Carter says there is already strong evidence for progress on attainment as well as attitudes. "We open our sixth form [this month], and of 205 pupils in year 11, 106 are going on to the sixth form. That is phenomenal given that we have no history of sixth-form practice. When we opened in September last year, we had 93 year 7 pupils: we are currently just short of 180 for next September. The community is starting to come back."
This summer's GCSE results have shown a "massive" improvement, says Carter. Last year 30% of students gained fi ve good GCSEs, but this year it's 62%. "The impact of the new building and environment has been a major part of that." A similar 50% increase was recorded by Oxclose community school.
Weblinks
Bristol Brunel academy: bba.bristol.sch.uk
Haringey sixth-form: haringey6.ac.uk
Hazle McCormack Young: hmy.uk.com
NFER survey: http://tinyurl.com/5ncx9l
Skanska: skanska.co.uk
Wilkinson Eyre: wilkinsoneyre.com
Willmott Dixon: willmottdixon.co.uk
