Bradford College

MP Opens Appleton Academy

On Friday 2nd October, Gerry Sutcliffe MP, Minister for Sport, officially opened the Appleton Academy in Wyke.  The Academy is named after Sir Edward Appleton, the Nobel Prize winning scientist who both studied and worked at Bradford College.

As guest of honour, MP Gerry Sutcliffe was delighted to unveil a commemorative plaque to formally mark the opening of the Academy and start of an exciting new future for the young people and communities in Wyke.

MP Mr Sutcliffe is also a former student of the College.  In September 2008 he formally opened the new Bradford College Trinity Green £20m Campus and officially launched the Bradford Disability Sports Academy in January 2009.

Speaking at the formal opening of the Academy, MP Gerry said: “The Appleton Academy creates a tremendous opportunity and a unique educational experience for the people of Bradford.  It is the first of its type in the country, with a 3-16 all-through Academy.”

Stakeholders and guests were welcomed to the event by Principal Dwayne Saxton, who gave a short speech. In part of his address, Principal Saxton said: “I consider the Appleton Academy to be the most exciting educational development in Bradford. The Academy will bring together the best practice from the primary, secondary and further education sectors to provide a wonderful education experience. We are delighted to welcome Gerry to the formal opening and look forward to building an Academy that Wyke will be proud of.”  Mr Saxton then handed over to the Academy sponsor, Bradford College.

Bradford College Principal and Chief Executive, Michele Sutton,OBE said: “The Appleton Academy is a culmination of lots of hard work, not only from Bradford College as sponsors, but also from the local authority, our MP and local councillors. We’ve all been working in collaboration with the staff of the school, who are fantastic, to get to this opening ceremony today. We’ve got a lot more hard work to do, but everyone has been saying that we’re going to have the best Academy in Bradford, in Yorkshire, the region and the world!  We’re all looking forward to this fantastic outlook.”

Kath Oldale, Executive Director of Performance Management at Bradford College, added: “We’re looking forward to working together with pupils and their families, staff and the local community to create an exceptional Academy that will transform education in Wyke. We are building a state-of-the-art campus that will provide a highly motivational and inspirational environment to learn and work in, which will bring about an improvement in the achievements of young people and boost the regeneration of Wyke.”

During the celebratory event, guests were treated to all star performances from Appleton Academy students, whilst architects were on hand to provide special guests with information about the building.  This was followed by a buffet lunch.

Appleton Academy replaced Wyke Manor and High Fernley Primary School as a new 3-16 all-through Academy on 1st September 2009 in existing buildings. A new, exciting and inspirational building will open in late 2011.