The Jewish Community Secondary School
Address
Castlewood Road

East Barnet
,
London
,
EN4 9GE

England
Coordinates51°39′23″N 0°10′18″W / 51.6563°N 0.1718°W / 51.6563; -0.1718
Information
TypeVoluntary aided school
Motto‏אלו ואלו דברי אלוקים חיים (Hebrew)
(These and these are the words of the Living God)
Religious affiliation(s)Judaism
Established6 September 2010 (2010-09-06)
Local authorityBarnet
Department for Education URN135747 Tables
OfstedReports
PresidentGerald Ronson
ChairMark Freedman
Head teacherDr Melanie Lee
GenderMixed
Age11 to 18
Enrolment1360
Websitewww.jcoss.org

The Jewish Community Secondary School (JCoSS) is a state-funded Jewish secondary school in New Barnet, London. Established in 2010, it is the first cross-denominational secondary school in the UK.[1] It was established after Dr. Helena Miller, then with the Leo Baeck College (and now with the London School of Jewish Studies) observed that while her son had gone to JFS, a nearby Jewish school, many of his friends had not been able to attend because of oversubscription and halachic requirements. In 2001, she initiated a process of community engagement and consultation which led ultimately to the successful proposal for a new faith school.[2][3] Construction of the school began in April 2009.[4]

JCoSS opened a year at a time, with up to 180 students joining Year 7 each year until the school was fully populated with around 1360 students. Its sixth form opened in 2012. The school, whose headteacher is Dr Melanie Lee,[5][6] has specialist status in science.[7][8] It cost £50 million to build, £36 million of which was funded by the government, and is the most expensive state-funded secondary school to be built in the UK.[2] Gerald Ronson, a business tycoon and philanthropist, helped in the fundraising drive and is the president of the JCoSS Trust.[9] The Pears Special Resource Provision (PSRP) at the school has places for up to 49 children (seven places each year) with autistic spectrum disorders. Norwood, a Jewish charity, is providing some of the services at the PSRP.[10]

Before the school opened, several Orthodox rabbis expressed concern over JCoSS's compatibility with their faith.[11][12] At the construction ceremony, Ed Balls, who at the time was Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, said the school would play an important role in dealing with discrimination and prejudice.[13]

In 2019, JCoSS was named The Sunday Times' London State Secondary School of the Year, in recognition of its record=breaking results in GCSE and A Levels.[14]

Notable former pupils

References

  1. ↑ "Our School" Archived 26 April 2011 at the Wayback Machine. JCoSS. Accessed 3 April 2011.
  2. 1 2 Kessler, Sarah. "A Cross-Denominational Approach to High School in the U.K.". The Forward. 21 January 2009. Accessed 3 April 2011. Archived 2011-05-11 at the Wayback Machine 2 April 2011.
  3. ↑ "JCoSS timeline" Archived 20 March 2011 at the Wayback Machine. JCoSS. Accessed 3 April 2011.
  4. ↑ Lowe, Rebecca. "Ed Balls kicks off JCoSS construction". times-series.co.uk. 22 April 2009. Accessed 11 April 2011.
  5. ↑ Cohen, Jenny (16 June 2022). "HeadTeacher Announcement". JCoSS. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
  6. ↑ "New head of JCoSS is named". www.thejc.com. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
  7. ↑ Bradford, Kevin. "Record crowds turn out for open days at JCoSS school in New Barnet". times-series.co.uk. 15 October 2010. Accessed 3 April 2011. Archived 2012-03-09 at the Wayback Machine 2 April 2011.
  8. ↑ "Science Specialist Status @ JCoSS". JCoSS. 4 March 2011. Accessed 3 April 2011.
  9. ↑ McSmith, Andy. "Millionaire jailed in fraud scandal leads school fundraising mission". The Independent. 4 January 2008. Accessed 3 April 2011.
  10. ↑ "Pears Special Resource Provision". JCoSS. Accessed 17 April 3011.
  11. ↑ Rocker, Simon. "JCoSS worries Orthodox rabbis". The Jewish Chronicle. Accessed 3 April 2011.
  12. ↑ Harvey Belovski writing in The Jewish Chronicle. "JCoSS is non-Orthodox, not 'cross-communal'". The Jewish Chronicle. 25 June 2009. Accessed 3 April 2011.
  13. ↑ Dysch, Marcus. "Balls praises JCoSS ethos". The Jewish Chronicle. 23 April 2009. Accessed 8 August 2011.
  14. ↑ McCall, Alastair. "Best secondary schools in London" – via www.thetimes.co.uk.

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