Secondary School of the Year

A SCHOOL that benefits from an outpouring of “can do” attitude, North Huddersfield Trust School has a governing ethos of PRIDE (professionalism, respect, innovation, determination and enrichment). An excellent place to learn for students of all backgrounds, one of the real strengths of the school is its ties to the local community and businesses that form the Trust, which lend fantastic support to the school and provide amazing opportunities for the students. The school was in effect rebuilt from the ground up, and changes big and small were made to improve the effectiveness of the lessons. Children arrive ready to work, lessons start on time and are without disruption and the students’ positive and respectful attitudes can be seen everywhere – they will go out of their way to help and their manners are impeccable! The school also offers more vocational, hands-on subjects, provided thanks to the support of the members of the Trust. The personalised approach has inspired positive transformations in students, such as the daughter of one parent who said: “My daughter is very shy. However, thanks to the dedication and encouragement of her teachers, she has discovered a love of music and has found a way to express herself and blossom in confidence. “They really get to know the children and find that thing that clicks with them, that will inspire them to be something great.” The school has made significant improvements, and counts among its achievements top GCSE performance and a rise in intake that brings the number of students to more than double than in the year of its opening. The ongoing improvements and determination of the staff and students make it one of Huddersfield’s top schools and a very worthy winner of this year’s award.