First 100% new build BSF school reports "best ever" GCSE results

21 August 2008

The percentage of students achieving top GCSE grades has almost doubled at the first new build Building Schools for the Future (BSF) school.

Bristol Brunel Academy - one of 13 BSF schools now open, and the first to be delivered by a Local Educational Partnership - is today celebrating the fact that 34% of students were awarded five or more GCSEs at grades A* to C including English and Maths, up from 19% last year.

David Carter, Executive Principal of Bristol Brunel Academy, said: "The staff, governors and students at Bristol Brunel Academy are excited and delighted with the GCSE results of 2008 that mark the end of our first year as a new academy. 62% of the students gained five higher grades with 34% gaining them with English and Maths. This is a huge improvement on the results in 2007 in the predecessor school, when 30% gained five higher grades and only 19% including English and Maths. The new leadership team, the new building, the improved ethos and the willingness of the whole community to support the new school have helped to make this a magnificent achievement."

Armando Di-Finizio, Principal of Bristol Brunel Academy, added: "Throughout the year we have never let students forget how they felt on their first day in the new school, and how awe inspired they were by the building and facilities. We talk to them about how special the school is, and what a gift it has been for the local community. A new start in a new school has allowed us to work on changing the ethos with the students, raising their confidence and self belief.

"The whole school team have been 100% committed to making Bristol Brunel Academy a success, and the personalised learning agenda - working on an individual basis with every student – has made a real difference."

Tim Byles, Chief Executive of Partnerships for Schools, the government agency delivering the BSF programme, said: "I am delighted by the news from Bristol Brunel Academy and congratulate students and teachers there, as well as at other BSF schools around the country, on their achievements.

"Whenever I visit new or refurbished BSF schools, teachers, students and their parents tell me what a difference the new environment is making, and independent research is starting to confirm this as well. Young people feel safer, they feel proud about their school and want to go there every day, and most importantly they feel inspired to learn.

"And when students want to spend time at school, to enjoy new facilities such as state-of-the-art ICT and new ways of learning, then we hope that the outcome will be greater exam success, and brighter futures, for millions of young people.

"We must not ignore the hugely important role of teachers and head teachers in making BSF schools a success, after all it is their professionalism and innovation which is bringing these buildings to life.

"Today's results are just the tip of the iceberg, and with more than 20 BSF schools opening next month we look forward to tracking in future years the role BSF plays in helping all young people to reach their full potential."

Notes to Editors:

1. Bristol Brunel Academy is the first BSF school to be delivered by a Local Educational Partnership.  It opened in September 2007, replacing Speedwell Technology College.  The school opens a Sixth Form for the first time this month, with 100 students staying on at the school.
2. At the time of writing (9.45 am) we are waiting to hear exam results from other mainstream BSF schools which have been operational for at least one academic year.
3. Research conducted by the National Foundation for Education Research, The effects of the school environment on young people’s attitudes towards education and learning, found that students felt safer and enjoyed to school more in their new BSF school. The proportions of students:
   - who said that they felt safe at school most or all of the time increased from 57% to 87%
   - who said that they felt proud of their school increased from 43% to 77%
   - who said that they enjoyed going to school increased from 50% to 61%
   - who perceived that vandalism was at least ‘a bit of a problem’ in their school decreased from 84% of respondents to 33%
   - who perceived that bullying was a big problem decreased from 39% of students in the ‘before’ survey, to 16% in the ‘after’ survey
   - who expected to stay on in the sixth form or to go to college increased from 64% to 77%.
   
4. There are now 13 BSF schools schools open nationwide: Bristol Metropolitan College, Bristol (April 08); Ifield School, Kent (March 08); Michael Tippett  School, Lambeth (Feb 08); Sandon High School, Stoke (Feb 08); Birches Head, Stoke (Oct 07); Elmgreen School, Lambeth (Sept 07); Bristol Brunel Academy (Sept 07); Sixth Form, Haringey (Sept 07); Oxclose Community School, Sunderland (June 07); Chaucer Business and Enterprise College, Sheffield (Oct 06); Bamburgh School, STaG  (Oct 06); All Saints College, Newcastle (Sept 06); and Forest Oak and Merstone Schools (May 06).
5. Over 20 new and refurbished BSF schools are due to open for the new academic year in September 2008. A total of 35 BSF schools are expected to open in the financial year 2008/09, increasing to around 115 in 2009/10, and over 150 in 2010/11.
6. Building Schools for the Future (BSF) is the largest single schools capital investment programme for over 50 years. BSF will provide world-class teaching and learning environments for all pupils, teachers and communities in England.
7. Partnerships for Schools (PfS) is the delivery agency for Building Schools for the Future. PfS was established in April 2004 as a Non-Departmental Public Body (NDPB), and is operated and funded under a joint venture between DCSF (formerly DfES) and Partnerships UK.