The Bishop of Middleton Mark Davies has welcomed the proposed opening of a new Church of England secondary school for Oldham – The Brian Clarke Church of England Academy. 

Bishop Mark stated;

“As Bishop of Middleton, our Diocesan Education Service, the Local Authority, the Oldham Interfaith Network and the Churches Together and Evangelical Alliance, ALL fully support the founding of this unique school.

As expressed in its Vision and Mission, the school is Ambitious for all its young people, to become everything they can be and are meant to be – to be able to live life in all its fullness as is told in John 10¹⁰.

And building Community is central to its vision. It will be a Church of England school that brings together young people of all faiths and none in a multi-cultural, multi-faith and multi-talented school community that is grounded in the school’s central, welcoming Christian ethos. And it respects and learns from one another, faithful to the generosity of spirit set out by Archbishop Cranmer in the Communion Office of the 1549 Prayer Book:

“In all things to follow and keep the rule of charity, and every man to be satisfied with his own conscience not judging other men’s minds and consciences; whereas he hath no warrant of God’s word to the same”.

Cranmer Trust CEO Julie Hollis explains more about our new school. 

Our new school will be an inclusive, co-educational, Church of England secondary school situated in the centre of the town of Oldham, founded to serve students of all faiths and denominations and those of none. We will provide an excellent education to a student population that is aspirational, multi-cultural, multi-faith and multi-talented – a community that is a true microcosm of the borough as a whole.

The Brian Clarke Church of England Academy is part of the Cranmer Education Trust, an education trust based at The Blue Coat School, Oldham.

The purpose of the Cranmer Education Trust is encapsulated in our mission statement: Ambition, Excellence, Community – our mission is to transform the life chances of children and young people through excellent education and outstanding schools and to nurture our pupils to become everything they can be and are meant to be.

This is a mission we are passionate about, and we want more children in our local area to take advantage of our vision.

Our new school is being founded to help meet the need for more secondary school places in the borough and to provide another good school, like The Blue Coat School, to increase parental choice.

By providing an additional 240 places per year, which are open to and easily accessible for young people over a wide area through the public transport network, The Brian Clarke Church of England Academy will provide parents with a new and different choice of a school in a high-achieving trust which has served the town for over 180 years. 

Oldham born world renowned architect and artist is our patron.

We are proud to announce that our new school is named for the Oldham born, world renowned architect and artist Brian Clarke, who retains strong contacts with Oldham and has family here.  He is now an internationally renowned artist and architect who works primarily in stained glass. 

We are proud and excited that Brian has agreed to be the Patron for our school. 

Brian’s fascination with light has inspired us; and his generosity, as a benefactor for our school, will inspire generations to come – as has the generosity of Thomas Henshaw, the founder of The Blue Coat School.

We plan for our building to include a stained-glass window created by Brian to celebrate learning and the multi-cultural character of the school, shining light into learning and out into the community.

You can read more about Brian and see some of his amazing work on his website – http://www.brianclarke.co.uk/work 

Our Crest

The crest for the school has also been designed by Brian Clarke.

The crest is the spinning mill, the iconic symbol of Oldham. We are here because of the mills, which brought together people from across the British Isles and the wider world, to find work and build a future for themselves and their families. The mill symbolises industry, working hard, working together, and is suffused in light.

Our Motto

Luceat Lux Vestra
Let your light shine

(Matthew 5:16)

Our motto celebrates the light we all have within us, and the light we are all drawn to – the light which enables us to grow, thrive, understand and discern.

Our Key Values for All Our School Community

Achievement: through our curriculum, we will strive to ensure that all our students enjoy the richness of an ambitious offer which will lead them to be the “heirs of all that has gone before”, and to be prepared for the different progression routes 16-18 and beyond.

Industry: we all work hard. We are proud of our industrial heritage and the creativity, ambition and drive that made Manchester the centre of the world. We believe there are no limits to what we can achieve; the key is to try and discover; and you will surprise yourself.

Character: we want all our students to become good people – good friends, neighbours and citizens, with clear, ethical values, whom we are proud to know. We will ensure they have every opportunity to develop their talents, leadership, teamwork, and be of service to others and do good in their local, national and international community as they go.

The best way to ensure you receive information about upcoming events and all our latest news and developments is to register your interest and sign up to our email updates here (link to register interest page),

We also have a Facebook page – please like us as at facebook.com/BrianClarkeAcad 

Or you can follow us on Twitter – @BrianClarkeAcad

Navigating the admissions process for any new school can be a daunting process. Because our admissions process is designed specifically to create a student population that is aspirational, multi-cultural, multi-faith and multi-talented,  a community that is a true microcosm of the borough as a whole, it is important to understand how it will work.

We have created a thorough yet simple guide for you to refer to, and we hope you will be able to see how open and visionary our process is. 

Please take a look at our admissions explained page.

And the main dates to take note of are:

• 26^th July 2021 – Admissions Open 
• 10^th December 2021 – Admissions Deadline 
• 23^rd February 2022 – Place Offer Day
• 9^th March 2022 – Place Acceptance Deadline