The Morley Academy

The Morley Academy
Motto To Learn, To Serve
Established 1907
Type Academy
Religion Mixed
Principal Leanne Griffiths
Executive Principal Sir John Townsley
Chair of Governors Karen Lawson
Location Fountain Street
Morley
West Yorkshire
LS27 0PD
England
Coordinates: 53°44′35″N 1°36′04″W / 53.74316°N 1.60108°W / 53.74316; -1.60108
DfE number 383/4101
DfE URN 136392 Tables
Ofsted Reports
Students 1,581 as of January 2015
Gender Mixed
Ages 11–16
Houses Einstein, Franklin, Turing and Quant
Colours Red, Green, Yellow and Purple
Website School website

The Morley Academy is a mixed secondary school located in Morley, West Yorkshire, England.[1]

The school forms part of the Gorse Academies Trust which also includes The Farnley Academy, The Ruth Gorse Academy and the Elliott Hudson College.[2]

History

The school was established as Morley Secondary School on 4 July 1907, becoming Morley Grammar School in 1930. The first head teacher was John Robinson Airey (1868–1937) who was a nationally renowned mathematician.[3] It became a mixed comprehensive in 1975 under headmaster J R (Ralph) Carr. The school has had six different headteachers. During the First World War pupils at Morley Grammar school raised £5,000 to pay for school uniforms for struggling families within the school.

On 1 January 2011, Morley High School became The Morley Academy under the government's new academy programme. Sir John Townsley was appointed head teacher after the retirement of Roland Walker. Towards the end of 2012 Sir John Townsley ceased his leadership of the academy and Anne-Marie Garnett was appointed principal. In November 2014, Leanne Griffiths was appointed as Principal.

An Ofsted inspection in 2006 found the school Grade 3 (Satisfactory) for overall effectiveness, and in 2009, Grade 1 (Outstanding).[4] Ofsted re-evaluated the school with the same Grade 1 rating in 2013.[5]

On 25 June 2012 The Morley Academy hosted the Olympic Torch during its tour of the United Kingdom. African drummers from the school's extracurricular club with dancers and children from schools in the surrounding area welcomed the torch and joined in the celebration.

At the start of the 2015 year, head teacher Leanne Griffiths announced by letter that the school would now withdraw all privileges, such as trips, from pupils where "personal or insulting comments" had been made by their parents on social media, or where there had been any "breakdown in rapport" with the school and that the school was working with police to stop this.[6][7]

In the 2015 New Year's Honours List, Sir John Townsley was knighted for his services to education.

The Morley Academy closed its sixth form provision in September 2015 due to the opening of Elliott Hudson College, a dedicated sixth form centre.[2]

Awards and recognition

In July 2001 the Arts Council awarded the Morley High School the Silver Level Artsmark. The school was one of three in Leeds and of only thirteen in Yorkshire to be so recognised.[8] The Morley Academy is a Specialist Technology College.

The school is one of only 200 schools in the country that have been awarded Teaching School Status.[9]

Notable former pupils

Morley Grammar School

References

  1. ↑ "The Morley Academy". Retrieved 26 April 2016.
  2. 1 2 "New Leeds free school head predicts fewer smaller sixth forms". The Yorkshire Post. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
  3. ↑ Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 98 (1938), 243–244 Obituary: John Robinson Airey
  4. ↑ "Morley High School", Ofsted reports 1999–2009. Retrieved 13 November 2013. PDF download required
  5. ↑ "The Morley Academy", Ofsted report 2009. Retrieved 13 November 2013. PDF download required
  6. ↑ "Morley pupils 'punished' over parents' social media posts". BBC News Online. 18 September 2015.
  7. ↑ Elizabeth Archer (18 September 2015). "Social media controversy at Morley Academy". Morley Observer and Advertiser.
  8. ↑ "Round 1 Artsmark Awards". Arts Council (web archive). Retrieved 13 November 2013
  9. ↑ "Morley Academy gains teaching status", Morley Observer and Advertiser, 4 April 2012. Retrieved 13 November 2013
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