World Class Award Winners

World Class Schools Quality Mark (WCSQM) this week named Humberston Academy and other primary and secondary schools as the latest to be awarded the status of World Class, as part of the annual WCSQM Awards Ceremony, hosted by Cambridge University at Lady Mitchell Hall. The Awards Ceremony celebrates accrediting schools, as well as individual students from World Class schools UK wide in recognition of their outstanding achievements in 2019. This is an incredible achievement for Humberston Academy, becoming the only World Class School in North East Lincolnshire. 

WCSQM is a charity created for and driven by World Class students. Our assessment process is very much student led and student centric, and this year we were once again amazed by the tenacity, drive and work-readiness exhibited by the students of these applicant schools. They were a credit to their schools and a testament to the truly World Class education provision they offer.
Miranda Perry, Director of WCSQM

Now in its sixth year of accreditation, WCSQM has awarded the mark to a further 17 non-selective state secondary schools and seven primary schools, from around the country. All of the new schools have demonstrated that their students are truly World Class through their successful participation in the rigorous assessment process. 

Humberston Academy’s process involved multiple stages, firstly a self-audit PowerPoint that provided evidence for a challenging framework that world-class students should fulfil was provided. Then students were asked to collate footage for a video titled ‘A Week in the Life of Humberston Academy’ in order to showcase the world-class opportunities we offer. Finally, three of Humberston Academy’s World Class Ambassadors worked with two other schools from across the country at an assessment day at UTC Reading, to design an inclusive and modern classroom; with specific roles such as project manager and finance analyst being assigned to achieve this; it required schools to demonstrate that their students are capable of compiling comprehensive evidence in support of their application. Following on from Humberston’s success during these stages, we received confirmation we had received the accreditation and students led a presentation to Humberston Academy’s staff to showcase our hard work. Below is a link to ‘A Week in the Life of Humberston Academy’ produced by our ambassadors with the support of students, teachers, carers and the local community. 

Head Boy and World Class Ambassador, Joshua Wilkins explained the advantages and experiences he has gained from the process. “The WCS Ambassadors have been privileged enough to collaborate and make links with other world class schools, gain an understanding of adult life as a professional. We have held conference calls and meetings with industry-standard consultants, utilised our unique skills to overcome challenges outside of the classroom that required high levels of teamwork and critical thinking. It has proven to be an amazing learning curve for the ambassadors and I hope students at Humberston Academy can display world-class qualities and aspire to continue excellence for all.” 

Dan Shoubridge, Principal at Humberston Academy also remarked on World Class recognition. “This is an incredible achievement for our school community which we are immensely proud of. The quest for World Class Schools status has been driven by our outstanding students who have showcased Humberston Academy’s true qualities of not only having the ability to succeed in academia but also have a focus on personal development and employability to enable success for the future.” 

The Awards Ceremony saw World Class school leaders, staff, students and their parents from across the country come together to enjoy an afternoon of talks and workshops including an essay writing workshop led by Cambridge University’s Faculty of English lecturer Phil Knox, a talk on Cambridge admissions by Dr Glen Rangwala, Director of Admissions Trinity College Cambridge,  and presentations from World Class alumni students, World Class school leaders and the event sponsor. Our school was also fortunate enough to take our Glee Choir to the ceremony, performing two pieces to an audience of over 500 students, teaching staff and industry-standard professionals.