There has been a school on our site since 1956. Churchill Secondary Modern School opened on Friday, 20 September 1957. In 1969, the school became a comprehensive. In 1996, it became Churchill Community School, before adopting foundation status in 2007 as Churchill Community Foundation School and Sixth Form Centre. The school became an academy on 1 August 2011 as Churchill Academy & Sixth Form, the name it retains to this day.

And it’s not only the name that has changed. The buildings have evolved, with old ones being demolished and new ones built to replace them; other buildings have been gutted and rebuilt from the inside out. We have embraced new technology, new developments in teaching and learning, and new approaches for our students.

The people in the school constantly change. Every year we bid farewell to one group of students, and welcome in the new. They grow through the school, joining us a children in Year 7 and leaving us as young adults from Year 13. It’s a constant cycle of growth and renewal which is one of the real joys of teaching. And, of course, the staff also change. I am the ninth Headteacher of the school on this site, with the longest-serving being Desmond Foster who was Head here from 1964 to 1983!

What doesn’t change is the commitment of the people who work here to the education of the young people who attend. Their dedication to do the very best they can for the students who are with us today is something that marks out the staff at Churchill from 1957 to 2024. So, although the buildings, the name, the people and the world around us might change, our school stays true to its purpose: to inspire and enable young people to make a positive difference, and to set no limits on what we can achieve.