Egglescliffe School
Egglescliffe School & Sixth Form College is a large mixed secondary school with a sixth form. It sits between Egglescliffe and Urlay Nook near Stockton-on-Tees in County Durham, England. The school began in 1962 as a small rural secondary school, became a comprehensive in the 1970s, and now has about 1,500 pupils aged 11 to 18.
The school is part of Spark Education Trust and is under Stockton-on-Tees local authority. The executive headteacher is Lindsay Oyston and the headteacher is Nigel Gittins. It is a coeducational institution.
Houses include Aldrin, Armstrong and Gagarin as the lower houses, and Tereshkova and Lovell as the upper houses. The school colours are navy, black and white.
History and features:
- It has had seven headteachers since opening and celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2012.
- Egglescliffe was a Specialist Arts College from 1999, with a focus on music and drama. A theatre was built for drama and performances, and the school hosts Egglescliffe Youth Theatre, active since 1986.
- The Music Department has a long tradition of performances and awards. A former head of music, Keith Hewson, was recognized for his work, and the department has involved ensembles touring to notable venues.
- In 2012, Matthew Haworth, the then head of music, won Classic FM’s Secondary Music Teacher of the Year.
- The school has also been designated a National Teaching School, reflecting its role in helping other schools improve.
Controversies:
- In 2014, the government found the school breached its anti-bullying policy because incident records were not kept properly.
- In 2018, a music teacher, Gareth Parry, was found guilty of sexual relations with an underage student and received a six-year sentence.
Sports and activities:
- The school offers many sports and facilities, including an artificial turf pitch, with activities such as netball, football, hockey, rugby, tennis, athletics and more.
Notable media and events:
- The school has featured in media about music education and hosted concerts at venues like The Sage Gateshead.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 17:43 (CET).