Nodehill was one of the most successful Isle of Wight Middle Schools for over 40 years, from 1970 to 2011.
The building that housed Nodehill Middle School was first built in 1904 and opened by Lord Alverstone in January of that year. It originally housed the Technical Institute built to provide practical education in many subjects.
Newport Technical Institute also housed the Seely Library – built with the generous support of Lord Seely of Brook. Lord Seely personally donated £5,000 to the project (half-a-million pounds in today’s values) together with his own personal collection of books.
It has been claimed that the Seely Library was the first public lending library in the country. It shared the building with Nodehill Middle School for the first 10 years of its operation before moving to its present site in the Lord Louis Library building in Orchard Street (next to the bus station) in 1981.
Newport County Secondary Grammar School moved into the building in 1907 and remained there for the following half-a century. In 1958, the grammar school moved to a new purpose-built campus in Carisbrooke, subsequently becoming Carisbrooke High School, Carisbrooke Grammar School and the present-day Carisbrooke College. The building then became Priory Girls school.
Today, the building that was home to Nodehill Middle School for 50 years has become the Island VI Form.
When Nodehill opened in September 1970. It became the largest Middle School on the Isle of Wight with 641 pupils.
The Edwardian building that housed Nodehill was well adapted to the needs of the 21st century. Even 15 years ago, the school was equipped with 4 information technology rooms with the then latest hardware. The 22 classrooms had interactive whiteboards. There was a gymnasium, 2 science laboratories, 2 food and textiles technology areas and an art studio.
Nodehill Middle School also boasted of a brass band.
Adequate provision was provided for children with special educational needs. There was a special on site centre for pupils with interaction and communication difficulties, with a speech therapist and 2 learning support assistants.
Nodehill had some inspirational leaders and teachers. The headmaster Ian Morris commanded the respect of his former students, many of whom paid tribute following his death in April 2013. He was well known for his guitar playing, Liverpudlian accent and support of Liverpool FC.
Tributes to Mr Morris from former pupils after he had passed away included:
“He was a marvellous headmaster, and I have him to thank for bringing me out of my shell and becoming something resembling a good member of society. The best tribute to him is all the fond memories of Nodehill people.”
“Serious at times, funny at times and oh so scary at times… especially when us naughty kids were waiting outside your office for a telling off.”
“Out of all my teachers and headteachers, Mr Morris is the one I will remember most! Scary, strict but very fair. Don’t think you appreciate that until you’re an adult.”
Nodehill sports teams tasted considerable success. In 2010, for example, Nodehill Middle School completed a rare double in football and cricket with both year 5 teams winning their respective championships. The victorious Nodehill football team included current Wessex League footballers Callum Chase (Cowes Sports) and Aedan Coode (East Cowes Victoria).
The school also excelled academically. In 2009, 3 Nodehill pupils – Adam Moore, Alfred Hardwood and Peter Broadhead, together with their robot – qualified for the International Robocup final in Austria.
In its final Ofsted inspection in 2009, Nodehill was rated “good” and received a ‘reduced tariff inspection’, reserved for schools able to demonstrate consistent performance over several years. Unusually for an Isle of Wight school, pupils attained results well above average for English, maths and science.
Despite opposition from parents and reportedly the largest protest the Isle of Wight has ever had in the centre of Newport, Nodehill – together with the remainder of Isle of Wight Middle Schools – was abolished in 2011.
Then Conservative Council leader David Pugh said at the time:
“As a product of the Island’s education system, I have a sentimental attachment to our present 3-tier system and have previously spoke out in favour of retaining it.
“However, I now recognise, like many Islanders, that – as much as we have fond memories of this system – it is not working. The safest path for me would have been to doggedly stick to a mantra of no change; instead I am prepared to stake my leadership of the IW Council in doing what is the best long-term interests of Island children.”
At the time of Mr Pugh’s statement, Isle of Wight schools had the 2nd-worst results in the country. Today, we have the very worst.
Did you go to Nodehill? What are your memories of the lessons, teachers, fellow students, sports teams and school trips? Let us know in the comments…
I remember this school as Priory Girls and our amazing headmistress Mrs Dudgeon. I am still friends with those girls I went to school with and I am now over 70 years old. School in a good position to go to local shops!!
Currently, the attainment gap between the advantaged and the disadvantaged is static. It moves up or down depending on the government of the day. It widened under 14 years of Tory rule after the Blair government had been closing it significantly. It’s reckoned that at current rates (2022 figures) it would take over 500 years to close that gap. It’s two-fold; the poverty of the area impacts the money spent per pupil, fewer resources, fewer teaching staff etc and the poverty of families means stress, hunger, insecure housing etc…all of which impact a child’s inability to learn effectively or even want to pass exams. Nodehill was a beacon of light, as were middle school systems in general, it nurtured children at their most crucial age before some idiot decided 2 tier was the way forward, and thus spewing them into the more adult, non nurturing system of high school at the tender age of just 11, almost with a placard round their necks saying pass or fail, turn left or right. It doomed the poorest, least financially and emotionally resourceful to failure. Any other venture, business etc with an almost 50% failure rate would be scrapped, yet we put our kids through this torture for 11 years, without ever doing anything about fixing that attainment gap. When kids just know they are ‘failures’ from primary age then time out of the system aged 16…don’t ask why the young would kick off, ask why they WOULDN’T. David Pugh…this one’s on you.
Conservative or Labour, no different.
They both report to the same Elite bosses.
Remember Rishi was going to target the disabled
prior to the election, when Labour took power
they are continuing with the same agenda.
Reason, same Elite bosses dishing out the
rules.
Really? What are the rules?
Where are lord Seely’s donated personal collection of books now?