CampusView

History of the School

The history of our school dates back to 1641 when it was established as a charitable foundation by Margaret Barkham the wife of a local churchman, Ezekial, respecting the legacy wish of her late husband to provide an education for children of St Cuthbert’s Parish in Wells.

The Blue School has always been for the children of Wells and its local communities

It is understood that our name was derived some time after foundation as a result of the blue dyed uniforms that were eventually provided for pupils at that time.  Numbers were few to begin with and all male, but thankfully this changed in the 20th Century to gradually become the larger, co-educational provision seen today.

Our students are encouraged to take pride in the school's history, which is celebrated annually by each Year 7 in a Founder's Day Service at St Cuthbert’s Church, the parish and civic church of the City of Wells, our school’s church.  The aim of this simple service is to place our students into a community that goes a long way back and which will continue on after they have left the school.  The service aims to make explicit the value of belonging to our community, treating all with empathy, respect and politeness.

The school has been located in various buildings around Wells over the last 380 years.  But in the 1950s a new “state of the art” purpose built Blue School (Kennion) was erected to the north of the City at the foot of the Mendip Hills.   In the late 1960s, a new Milton School was built adjacent to The Blue School with only the West Mendip Way to provide separation.  Some of our local community still remember their “meetings with the other side” on this path at the end of the school day.

In the early 1970s when the Government raised the school leaving age to 16, it was decided to merge both schools into one secondary, comprehensive provision for Wells to be called The Blue School.  The campus today of 35 acres reflects the 1950’s “Kennion” building (named after Bishop of Bath and Wells George Kennion 1845-1922) and the 1960’s Milton School.  Middle blocks were erected as part of this “bringing together” of the two school buildings and were subsequently named after the long-standing Headteacher of the 1980s, Ken Bailey and the two Hanwell brothers, who taught for many years at the school up to the early 1990s. 

In the 1990’s Wells Road Bypass was built by Somerset County Council, slicing off the southern part of the school’s playing field but providing some money to build Wells Blue Sports Centre on the school's site, opening in 1999.   It was not until the turn of the millenium that work was able to start in earnest on modelling of the use of the buildings on-site into one campus.  This was helped significantly in 2007, when a new Science extension was erected to the Kennion building, expanding much needed specialist facilities.

Reflecting an historic oversight, in 2012, a new four classroom teaching block, was named after The Blue School’s founders - Margaret and Ezekial Barkham.  Taking pride of place in the centre of the campus, the Barkham building contains brickwork found on both Milton and Kennion, physically representing the campus being brought together as one school.

In 2022, the Wells Blue School, our foundation charity, with help from the PTA and other benefactors, supported the installation of a new outdoor social area for our students.  This reflected the lessons learnt from the pandemic, with students encouraged to be outside as much as possible in the fresh air.  The Bailey Terrace provides a superb seating area for students with views across our playing fields to Wells Cathedral, St Cuthbert's Church and Glastonbury Tor beyond.

After over 350 years of educating the children of Wells and surrounding areas, the future appears to be secure, The Blue continuing to thrive as one of the largest, state maintained, all inclusive 11-18 year schools in Somerset.

 

Latest Tweets

@BlueSchoolWells - 24th Jun 2024
Celebrating Pride Month. Today's recommendation is for our KS5 students. Kate in Waiting by Becky Albertalli and for our KS3 students, Glitter Boy by Ian Eagleton. Both Available in the school library with many other books in our LGBTQ display. Available in the school library.— The Blue School () June 24, 2024
@BlueSchoolWells - 18th Jun 2024
Current vacancies here at The Blue School..- School First Aider - Cover Assistant - Teacher of Religion & Philosophy/HumanitiesPlease click the link for more informationhttps://t.co/jBx3R4HeAO— The Blue School () June 18, 2024
@BlueSchoolWells - 18th Jun 2024
Celebrating Pride Month. Today's recommendation is for our KS5 students, Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan. Available in the school library.— The Blue School () June 18, 2024
@BlueSchoolWells - 17th Jun 2024
Celebrating Pride Month . Today's recommendation is for our KS4 students, Nothing Ever Happens Here by Sarah Hagger-Holt. Available in the school library with many other books in our LGBTQ display.— The Blue School () June 17, 2024
@BlueSchoolWells - 12th Jun 2024
Celebrating Pride Month. Today's recommendation is for our KS4 students, Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli. Available in the school library with many other books in our LGBTQ display.— The Blue School () June 12, 2024
@BlueSchoolWells - 11th Jun 2024
Celebrating Pride Month. Today's recommendation is for our KS3 students, The Girl from the Sea by Molly Knox Ostertag. Available in the school library with many other books in our LGBTQ display.— The Blue School () June 11, 2024
@BlueSchoolWells - 10th Jun 2024
Celebrating Pride Month. Today's recommendation is for our KS5 students. The Black Flamingo by Dean Atta and Anishika Khullar. Available in the school library.— The Blue School () June 10, 2024
@BlueSchoolWells - 10th Jun 2024
Would you like to shape the future of our next generation? We currently have positions at the Blue School for: Teacher of Religion & Philosophy/HumanitiesCover Assistant School First Aider Please click the link for more information https://t.co/jBx3R4HMqm— The Blue School () June 10, 2024

@BlueSchoolWells - 4th Jun 2024

@BlueSchoolWells - 4th Jun 2024
Would you like to be in with a chance to win a brand new Mulberry handbag worth nearly £2000?!The PTA is Fundraising for a replacement school minibus. £5 will buy you 10 entries in our Summer online raffle. You can enter here:https://t.co/Yito8VSNvZ— The Blue School () June 4, 2024
@BlueSchoolWells - 4th Jun 2024
Come and join our team here at The Blue School! We are currently looking for:School First AiderTeacher of Maths Cover AssistantTeacher of Religion & PhilosophyPlease click the link for more information regarding these roles. https://t.co/jBx3R4HMqm— The Blue School () June 4, 2024

@BlueSchoolWells - 22nd May 2024

@BlueSchoolWells - 22nd May 2024
We are very proud of our students who took part in the Ten Tors challenge at the beginning of May. They roamed across the rugged terrain of Dartmoor carrying all that they needed to complete their route and stay out overnight safely pic.twitter.com/4xonSs7anQ— The Blue School () May 22, 2024
@BlueSchoolWells - 22nd May 2024
Come and join our team here at The Blue School! We are currently looking for a Teacher of Maths and Cover Assistant. Please click the link for more information regarding these roles. https://t.co/jBx3R4HeAO — The Blue School () May 22, 2024
@BlueSchoolWells - 14th May 2024
Current vacancies at The Blue School;* Team Leader of Art* Cover Assistant* Teacher of MathsPlease click on the link below for more details regarding these positions:https://t.co/jBx3R4HeAO — The Blue School () May 14, 2024
@BlueSchoolWells - 8th May 2024
We are currently advertising for the following roles;* Team Leader of Art* Estates Manager* Cover AssistantPlease visit our website for more information regarding these roles.https://t.co/4sxu5Eek4t— The Blue School () May 8, 2024

@BlueSchoolWells - 23rd Apr 2024

@BlueSchoolWells - 23rd Apr 2024
We are seeking to appoint a teacher of Drama & English to join our successful departments.Applications are welcomed from experienced teachers or those new to the profession.Closing date: Noon on Thurs 2nd May 2024Interviews: Wed 8th May 2024 pic.twitter.com/beUooT1oae— The Blue School () April 23, 2024

@BlueSchoolWells - 22nd Apr 2024

@BlueSchoolWells - 22nd Apr 2024
pic.twitter.com/SD7i403Pkp— The Blue School () April 22, 2024
@BlueSchoolWells - 16th Apr 2024
Y9 Parents/Carers. Meningitis and DTP vaccinations from Monday 22nd April to Wednesday 24th April '24. more info on our website.Please complete the decision form by midday on Friday 19th April '24 https://t.co/o83iVuWLqL (Blue School Code SM137285).— The Blue School () April 16, 2024
@BlueSchoolWells - 16th Apr 2024
Current job vacancies at The Blue School;* Team Leader of Art* Enhanced Learning Provision Teacher (Primary)* Estates Manager* Exam Invigilators - Casual* Cover AssistantFor more information, please click the link..https://t.co/jBx3R4HeAO— The Blue School () April 16, 2024
@BlueSchoolWells - 14th Mar 2024
We are currently looking for a Team Leader of Art.. please click the link for more information..https://t.co/jBx3R4HeAO— The Blue School () March 14, 2024

@BlueSchoolWells - 1st Feb 2024

@BlueSchoolWells - 1st Feb 2024
Would you like to join our staff team? We are currently looking for a Science Technician but also a Cover Supervisor and an Exams Invigilator. Full details on our website here: https://t.co/jBx3R4HeAO pic.twitter.com/a12ouazcOg— The Blue School () February 1, 2024