Norton School

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Norton School
Norton-school-letchworth.jpg
Address
Norton School
Norton Road

, ,
SG6 1AF

Coordinates 51°59′21″N0°13′09″W / 51.98922°N 0.21921°W / 51.98922; -0.21921 Coordinates: 51°59′21″N0°13′09″W / 51.98922°N 0.21921°W / 51.98922; -0.21921
Information
Type Comprehensive
Established1905
Closed2002
Local authority Hertfordshire
Department for Education URN 117513 Tables
Ofsted Reports
Gender Coeducational
Age11to 18

Norton School was a secondary school in Letchworth, Hertfordshire that was founded in 1905 and which closed in 2002 following a period of being in special measures. It has since been partially demolished and redeveloped as a collection of housing and apartments by Miller Homes. [1]

Contents

History

Originally named Norton Road School, the school was designed by Raymond Unwin. It was built in a quadrangle with a courtyard for open-air teaching and to allow plentiful light and movement of air. These principles were later to become standard in school design but were very innovative at the time. [2]

Over the decades since its foundation, Norton School saw great expansion as pupil numbers grew, with various teaching blocks being added to accommodate these increasing numbers.

In the 1957 the school hand bell disappeared, never to be seen again until 2003, when the school site was being redeveloped for housing; a hand bell was discovered hidden under a man hole cover. The nand bell was taken and hid on the last day of school in June 1957 by Colin Thompson a pupil of Norton Rd with 2 other accomplices. I know! i am Colin Thompson.I did try and retrieve it before the school demolition, but all was covered by a number of carpets, In the day it was wooden flooring.I attended the school fron 1953 to 1957.

In its last year the school's thirty-two staff comprised thirteen staff on temporary contracts and nine from overseas - eight from South Africa and one from Jamaica. Fifteen of the staff joined the school in September 2001. [3] In its final year Norton School was taken over by The Knights Templar School in neighbouring Baldock, and was renamed 'The Knights Templar School in Letchworth'. At this time the Norton School uniform of a sweat shirt was replaced with the Knights Templar uniform of jacket (with school badge) and school tie.

Following closure, pupils primarily transferred to The Knights Templar School, while others transferred to the nearby Highfield School and Fearnhill School.

Former Headmasters

Notable former pupils and staff

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References

  1. "miller @ letchworth" . Retrieved 13 April 2008.
  2. Norton Road School on the First Garden City Heritage Museum website
  3. 'School could close for lack of good teachers' The Guardian 22 March 2002