Highgate Wood Secondary School


Highgate Wood School is a secondary school located in Crouch End in the North London borough of Haringey. It accommodates pupils aged 11–16, providing secondary education to 1,500 pupils. The school also has a sixth form.
Most pupils come from South Haringey School, Rokesly Primary School, Ashmount School, Campsbourne School, Weston Park Primary School and Coleridge Primary School.

History

Highgate Wood School was founded as a comprehensive school in 1967. It replaced Bishopswood and Priory Vale secondary modern schools. Bishopswood School opened in 1961 and Priory Vale was formed in 1962 from a merger of North Haringey and Crouch End secondary modern schools.
Until 1987 the school was located on two sites – a lower school for pupils in year 7 and year 8, and an upper school for years 9 to 11 and the sixth form. The lower school was situated in the former Crouch End secondary modern school buildings, at the corner of Wolseley Road and Park Road, with the Home Economics and CDT wing facing onto Park Road. Some of the original buildings still stand today, converted into modern flats above shops. The upper school was situated on Montenotte Road, down a small hill. This now houses the whole school – including the sixth form, tennis courts, and sports hall, among other amenities.
Former headteachers of the school are Eurof Walters James McIntyre Smith, and Pauline Ashbee.

Sixth form

The sixth form unit was twinned with that of Hornsey School for Girls in 1987, a union that was dissolved in 2009. The Ofsted inspection of Highgate Wood School in 2005 commented on its 'improving' sixth form results, which has continued with results improving further year on year and large numbers of students going on to their chosen university places, including places within the Russell Group and at Oxbridge.

Achievements

Novelist Romesh Gunesekera was writer-in-residence at Highgate Wood School.
Publications arising from his residency include Crumbs on a Page, and Pages Held With Words. The author Keren David also worked with the school as part of the Patron of Reading scheme.

Notable former pupils