About Chenderit School

Chenderit School was opened in 1979 on fields which it is said, were formerly used for archery practice. The name 'Chenderit' is an adaptation of a medieval name for Middleton Cheney.

Chenderit is an 11-18 mixed comprehensive school, located on a pleasant open site on the edge of Middleton Cheney, a village of about 3,000 people, the largest of the villages of south-west Northamptonshire, on the Oxfordshire / Northamptonshire border. Middleton Cheney is just off the A422, approximately three miles from Banbury, Oxfordshire, and two miles from junction 11 of the M40. 

The school accommodation is single-storey, purpose-built and arranged in specialist suites for each subject area, and includes a sports hall, library, dining room, sixth form facilities, extensive playing fields and a growing number of ICT rooms. Staff come to Chenderit from a wide geographical area, including surrounding villages, Banbury, Northampton, Daventry, Rugby and Oxford.

A Visual Arts College

The opening Exhibition at the Michael Heseltine Gallery

The School was designated as a specialist Visual Arts College from September 2002; we view this as recognition of one of Chenderit's many strengths. Specialist school status will bring with it extra funding and attention from a variety of sources, as well as challenging targets. We intend to use specialist status to improve provision for the whole school, and the wider community. As a learning school we believe that it is very important that specialist school status brings benefits to all curriculum areas, both in terms of developing and sharing good practice and in terms of access to improved facilities.

Curriculum

There are currently approximately 1,138 students on roll, of whom about 266 are in the Sixth Form. All students in Years 7-11 follow a broad and balanced curriculum; the sixth form programme offers over 22 courses at Advanced (A), Advanced Subsidiary (AS) and Vocational Qualifications (GNVQ & ACVE), and an entitlement curriculum.  Students are initially taught in mixed-ability tutor groups, with practical and creative subjects taught in smaller classes. Setting by ability is introduced progressively, where appropriate to subject needs. We are fortunate that we enjoy close working links with our partner primary schools, and have a range of innovative and practical programmes for developing and maintaining curriculum and social liaison.

We aim to ensure that all students realise their full potential and make the best use of their individual abilities and talents, and staff use a wide range of teaching and learning strategies to support that aim. Chenderit is a high-performing school: public examination results have been very good, and our students are extremely successful in securing places in further and higher education and employment. As a result we are over-subscribed, and attract large numbers from outside both the school's preference area, and the county of Northamptonshire.

Extra-Curricular Activities

The school offers a wide range of extra-curricular activities. Many students of all levels of ability are involved in musical, dramatic and sporting activities, in which the school has achieved notable successes. There is a great variety of activities, clubs and societies, and visits to Germany, France and beyond.  There is a flourishing Parent/School Association, which organises social, fund-raising and educational functions.

Student Care

Student care is organised on a year-group system in which a group of tutors and the head of learning stay with their students throughout their time at Chenderit. Form tutors play a major role in the academic and personal development of their students, and we enjoy close working relationships with parents. We involve students in developing aspects of school life including formulating the school's aims, joint staff-student working parties, year councils, involvement in the appointment process of senior staff, and observer roles on the governing body. The school promotes a high degree of personal responsibility and values high standards of behaviour, effort and attainment which our enthusiastic and dedicated staff support in all aspects of their work.