Bedford High School

History

Bedford High School was established in 1976 when the town's grammar schools were abolished by the 1976 Education Act. It was formed by merging Leigh Boys' Grammar School and neighbouring Manchester Road Secondary Modern School. The former grammar school buildings now form the upper school and the secondary modern buildings form the lower school. In 2003 the school gained specialist Business and Enterprise College status and opened a construction training facility in conjunction with the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB).

Performance

In 2008, 37% of pupils achieved five GCSE passes at grade A* to C including Mathematics and English, while 75% achieved five A* to C grades overall. These results were a significant improvement over 2007, when 29% of pupils achieved five GCSE passes at grade A* to C including Mathematics and English,

The school's Ofsted inspection in September 2004 stated that GCSE results were above that of similar schools.

The same Ofsted report rated the school as satisfactory with effective leadership and praised the school's relationship with the local community. It also highlighted issues with year 9 performance, the provision of modern languages and personal development, and the attitudes and behaviour of a number of boys in the school.

Notable former pupils

Leigh Grammar School

Alan R. Battersby, organic chemist and academic

George Henry Bolsover CBE, academic and director of the School of Slavonic and East European Studies

Peter Maxwell Davies CBE, conductor and composer; Master of the Queen's Music from 2004

David Evans CBE, microbiologist

John Lennard-Jones KBE, mathematician and professor of theoretical physics

Basil Lythgoe, organic chemist and academic

David Phillips, Chief Constable, 1993–2003, Kent Police

Bedford High School

Lisa Hession, murdered while a pupil at the school in 1984. Her sexually motivated murder, which occurred behind Rugby Road in Leigh, has not been solved