Ark Evelyn Grace Academy

Last updated

Ark Evelyn Grace Academy
Parentpay 2.JPG
Address
Ark Evelyn Grace Academy
Shakespeare Road

London
,
SE24 0QN

England
Information
Type Academy
MottoEmpowering our students to be the voice of their future
Established2008 [1]
Local authority Lambeth
Department for Education URN 135389 Tables
Ofsted Reports
Chair of GovernorsNilesh Goswami
PrincipalUna Sookun
GenderMixed
Age11to 16
Colour(s)   Green, black
Website evelyngraceacademy.org

Ark Evelyn Grace Academy is a non-selective, coeducational secondary school in Brixton, in the London borough of Lambeth.

Contents

The Academy is a member of Ark, a multi-academy trust with schools across England.

The Academy opened in September 2008 in temporary accommodation admitting its first 180 pupils in year 7. In September 2010 the academy moved to a new purpose-built school building as it admitted its third year 7 year group. The building, designed by architect Zaha Hadid, [2] was awarded the 2011 Stirling Prize. [3]

Building

The school, which won the Stirling Prize in 2011, was designed by renowned architect Zaha Hadid, who described her post-modernist style as parametricism.

Ark Evelyn Grace Academy Evelyn Grace Academy, Shakespeare Road.jpg
Ark Evelyn Grace Academy

The main building, which is a sweeping Z shape, has three floors of classroom placed on top of solid concrete podium. The building accommodates two "houses", which they call schools, separated by a range of shared facilities. The rest of the site is taken up by a gym, an art block, a series of all-weather pitches, and a 100 meter running track. Pupils do not have access to these areas outside lessons. The 60m2 classrooms are joined by twisting corridors. Though these floors feature glazed exteriors, the light reaching the classroom is limited and lights are needed throughout the day. The exterior wall finish are notable by their absence; classroom walls are either rendered white or remain as unfinished concrete. Windows are centrally controlled and some rooms do not have any. [4]

The reverse of the B£5 Brixton Pound note was inspired by Ark Evelyn Grace Academy and features the Brixton Rec logo; the front features NBA basketball player Luol Deng. [5]

Educational philosophy

The school's philosophy draws upon that of the U.S. charter school movement—specifically, its belief in the "small school model...which has an emphasis on academic rigour, discipline and strong relationships with caring adults". In addition to academics, EGA students are expected to meet the school's behavioural standards as well. [6] The planned intake by London standards is tiny; each of the two houses, "Evelyn" and "Grace", could accommodate 270 pupils (one form entry). By 2017 it was educating 848 pupils and Ofsted had given it a "good" rating. [7]

In 2010, the school's first principal Peter Walker said: “We have to establish the ’small school’ model first, so the teachers get to know all their students and form personal relationships. Some people think we are too strict here, but you must understand that self-discipline is one of our core values”. [4] Ofsted, however, disagreed, and in 2011 they criticised the school saying that children were too tightly governed and were given implausible targets. Walker refused to accept the judgement, suspecting racist motives, or "at least a lack of professionalism". [7]

Between 2012 and 2014 changes were made by the incoming principal Devon Hanson, who moved from Jamaica to Peckham at ten years old, who took a more community approach. After school he patrols the local streets encouraging youngsters to move away from potential areas of trouble. He observed that the local students would work hard but at the first sign of rejection or failure they would stop trying; he saw they needed to be taught "resilience". [8]

Funding

Ark Evelyn Grace Academy is an academy established under the Learning and Skills Act 2000. Academies are funded by the Department for Education and maintained by the government but they are independent and self-governing charitable trusts. Their construction also tend to be sponsored by businesses or benefactors; Ark Evelyn Grace Academy is supported by ARK (Absolute Return for Kids), an educational nonprofit founded by three hedge fund financiers, Arpad "Arki" Busson, Paul Marshall, and Ian Wace. [4] Another hedge-fund manager, David Gorton, contributed £2 million of his own money towards the £38 million cost of building the school; he said he chose Zaha Hadid as its architect because he wanted a "stunning visual statement". [6] [9]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zaha Hadid</span> Iraqi architect (1950–2016)

Dame Zaha Mohammad Hadid was an Iraqi-British architect, artist and designer, recognized as a major figure in architecture of the late-20th and early-21st centuries. Born in Baghdad, Iraq, Hadid studied mathematics as an undergraduate and then enrolled at the Architectural Association School of Architecture in 1972. In search of an alternative system to traditional architectural drawing, and influenced by Suprematism and the Russian avant-garde, Hadid adopted painting as a design tool and abstraction as an investigative principle to "reinvestigate the aborted and untested experiments of Modernism [...] to unveil new fields of building".

The Priory Pembroke Academy is a school for pupils aged 11–16 on Croft Lane in the village Cherry Willingham, located just outside the city of Lincoln, England.

Trinity School is a co-educational secondary school with academy status in Newbury, Berkshire, England. The school opened in September 1999 when two existing schools and one new school combined - hence the name Trinity. Trinity School caters for pupils between the ages of 11 and 19 and currently has approximately 1025 students on roll, including 108 in the Sixth Form.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thornden School</span> Academy in Chandlers Ford, Hampshire, England

Thornden School is a secondary school with academy status in Chandlers Ford, Hampshire. It is an 11-16, mixed specialist Arts College with Science as the second specialism. There are 1400 pupils on roll and 11 tutor groups of around 30 pupils in each tutor group, to form year groups of around 300 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Thomas More Catholic School, Blaydon</span> Academy in Blaydon-on-Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England

St Thomas More Catholic School is a Roman Catholic secondary school with academy status in Blaydon, Tyne and Wear, England, providing teaching to 11- to 19-year-olds. It is a well-regarded and over-subscribed school, performing well both regionally and nationally. In its most recent OFSTED inspection (2023) it was credited with having cultivated a "climate of high ambition" and was rated as "good" in all major areas assessed. The school converted to academy status on 1 February 2012.

The Torah Temimah Primary School, located in the former Dollis Hill Synagogue, is a one form entry Voluntary Aided maintained primary school in the London Borough of Brent. It is a strictly Orthodox Jewish single-sex primary school for up to 204 boys aged 3–11. The school includes a Nursery.

Absolute Return for Kids (ARK), is an international children's educational charity based in London, UK.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heydar Aliyev Center</span> Building complex in Baku, Azerbaijan

The Heydar Aliyev Center is a 57,500 m2 (619,000 sq ft) building complex in Baku, Azerbaijan, designed by Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid and noted for its distinctive architecture and flowing, curved style that eschews sharp angles. The main contractor, Dia Holdings, is owned by actors that are linked to Azerbaijan's ruling Aliyev family's network of offshore companies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">BMW Central Building</span>

The BMW Central Building Located in Leipzig, Germany was the winning design submitted for competition by Pritzker Prize winning architect, Zaha Hadid. The central building is the nerve center for BMW's new $1.55 billion complex built to manufacture the BMW 3 Series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ark King Solomon Academy</span> Academy in London, England

King Solomon Academy is a non-selective, non-denominational, mixed all-through school within the national academy programme, located in Lisson Grove, in the City of Westminster. It occupies the site of the former Rutherford School.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MAXXI</span> Museum in Rome, Italy

MAXXI is a national museum of contemporary art and architecture in the Flaminio neighborhood of Rome, Italy. The museum is managed by a foundation created by the Italian ministry of cultural heritage. The building was designed by Zaha Hadid, and won the Stirling Prize of the Royal Institute of British Architects in 2010.

The year 2010 in architecture involved some significant architectural events and new buildings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum</span> Art museum in East Lansing, Michigan, United States

The Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum is a nonprofit, contemporary art museum designed by Zaha Hadid located on the campus of Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It opened on November 10, 2012.

Zaha Hadid Architects is a British architecture and design firm founded by Zaha Hadid (1950–2016), with its main office situated in Clerkenwell, London. After the death of "starchitect" Hadid, Patrik Schumacher became head of the firm, at the time with a staff of 400 with 36 projects across 21 countries.

AKT II is a London based firm of structural, civil and transportation engineering consultants. It was founded as Adams Kara Taylor in 1996 by Hanif Kara, Albert Williamson-Taylor and Robin Adams. Now numbering over 350 employees, it is one of the largest structural engineers in London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jockey Club Innovation Tower</span>

Jockey Club Innovation Tower is a building of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University located on Chatham Road South in Hung Hom district, Kowloon. It was designed by Pritzker-prize-winning architect Zaha Hadid. This building is her first permanent work in Hong Kong. Originally expected to be completed by the end of 2011, it was not finished until 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ark Kings Academy</span> Academy in Birmingham, West Midlands, England

Ark Kings Academy is a co-educational all-through school and sixth form located over two sites in the Kings Norton area of Birmingham, West Midlands, England.

The year 2015 in architecture involved some significant architectural events and new buildings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Galaxy SOHO</span> Building in Beijing, China

Galaxy SOHO is an urban complex building located in Beijing, China. Built between 2009 and 2012, it is the first of three buildings designed by Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid located in Beijing, along with Wangjing SOHO and Leeza SOHO.

Harris Invictus Academy Croydon is an 11–18 mixed, free secondary school and sixth form in Croydon, Greater London, England. It was established in September 2014 and is part of the Harris Federation.

References

  1. ↑ "About Evelyn Grace Academy". Archived from the original on 30 June 2009. Retrieved 12 July 2009.
  2. ↑ "Evelyn Grace Academy: Buildings & facilities" Archived 2010-08-01 at the Wayback Machine
  3. ↑ "Evelyn Grace Academy wins Stirling Prize", BBC, 2011-10-01
  4. 1 2 3 Wainwrigt, Oliver (22 October 2010). "Evelyn Grace Academy, Brixton, by Zaha Hadid Architects". Building Design. Retrieved 14 April 2017.
  5. ↑ "Show Me the Money". Brixton Pound. Archived from the original on 15 June 2020. Retrieved 9 February 2018.
  6. 1 2 Scott, Caroline (16 May 2011). "Inner-city academy that's a blueprint for the future". The Telegraph. Retrieved 9 February 2018.
  7. 1 2 "Ark Evelyn Grace Academy". Ofsted. Retrieved 9 February 2018.
  8. ↑ Welham, Holly (21 June 2015). "How taking to the streets of Brixton turned my school around". The Guardian.
  9. ↑ "Ark Schools, registered charity no. 1095322". Charity Commission for England and Wales.

51°27′38″N0°06′15″W / 51.46068°N 0.10429°W / 51.46068; -0.10429

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.