We are very proud to announce the addition to the Virtual Schools network of The Charter School, Southwark, a mixed state school and sixth form college.
This is no ordinary school. In the words of a recent BBC documentary, "The Charter isn't just any old bog-standard comp, but one hailed by the Prime Minister as a Beacon of Excellence. Tony Blair chose the Charter as the launchpad for his latest literacy drive and his confidence was borne out in the summer's GCSE results".
These results were above average but are remarkable because they came from a school that was built on the site of a failing school. In May 1999 the government approved the scheme to build the school after a lobbying campaign by parents from a community well served by private schools, but with inadequate state secondary provision.
It is a testimony to the quality of the education Charter offers to a wide range of ethnic and economic backgrounds that some parents have selected The Charter in preference to a private education. In the documentary, one parent recalls, "the idea had been to come to Dulwich for some of the private school education but I went to an evening function and met some of the teachers in the February before the school started - and I was so impressed by what I saw that I immediately changed my mind and we sent our daughter to The Charter School". Described by another parent as "the answer to my prayers", the school has moved from strength to strength and is now hugely over-subscribed.
Headteacher Chris Bowler has introduced some successful innovations, including Behaviour Officers who counsel poorly behaved children and minimise class disruption.
He is also very keen to maintain clear and open communication with parents, the local community, the school's Friends organisation and the governing board, which was one of the reasons he chose Virtual Schools for the school's dynamic new website. There are also plans to introduce video newsletters, produced in the school's well-equipped multimedia suite, and you can already hear the BBC documentary by clicking a link on the colourful new website's front page.
Visit the Charter Virtual School
Contact Telephone for The Charter School: 020 7346 6600