Harris Garrard Academy (formerly Business Academy Bexley) is a 4–18 mixed, all-through school and sixth form with academy statusinThamesmead, Erith, Greater London, England. It was established in 2002 and is now part of the Harris Federation.
Harris Garrard Academy | |
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Address | |
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Yarnton Way, Thamesmead , , DA18 4DW
England
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Coordinates | 51°29′45″N 0°08′07″E / 51.4958°N 0.1353°E / 51.4958; 0.1353 |
Information | |
Former name | Business Academy Bexley |
Type | Academy |
Established | 2002 (2002) |
Local authority | Bexley London Borough Council |
Trust | Harris Federation |
Department for Education URN | 145140 Tables |
Ofsted | Reports |
Executive principal | Wayne Barnett[1] |
Gender | Mixed |
Age range | 4–18 |
Enrolment | 1,430 (2023)[2] |
Capacity | 1,780[2] |
Website | www |
Business Academy Bexley was established in 2002 as a city academy, a secondary school under the sponsorship of 3E's Enterprises (later acquired by GEMS Education),[3][4] and property developer David Garrard, chairman of the Minerva group, who donated £2.5 million.[5][6]
The school relocated to dedicated premises in September 2003 and the primary school section opened in 2004. As of 2007 the total enrollment was 1,477.[7]
The school was constructed on a 33-acre (130,000 m2) site at a cost of £31m. Architect Norman Foster designed the building, which was nominated for the 2004 Stirling Prize, and some parts have been compared to "a smart City office".[8]
However the Academy didn't make the progress expected[9] and by 2007 was languishing at the bottom of the School League tables for Bexley. In 2008 GCSE results and value added placed it ahead of a number of other non-selective schools in Bexley.
In 2010 the school had a deficit of £500,000, largely for repairs to the "incredibly expensive to run" seven-year-old building, but also to attract staff. The school had had a high turnover of headteachers and pupil enrolment had fallen to about 1,100 exacerbating the deficit.[10]
On 25 September 2011 The Business Academy Bexley was featured on Channel 4's programme 'Derren Brown: How to be a Psychic Spy'.
The school was placed into special measures during an Ofsted inspection on 11 and 12 May 2016.[11]
Due to the schools poor Ofsted inspection, the Harris Federation took over the school and renamed it the Harris Garrard Academy from January 2017.[12] After joining the Federation the primary school section was granted a Literacy specialism.[13]
The Academy is now rated as Good in all areas by Ofsted, which comments that the school has 'very high expectations of what its pupils will achieve',[14] and is one of the most improving schools in the Bexley local authority for progress.[15]