The Chalk Hills Academy

The Chalk Hills Academy (formerly Halyard High School, Barnfield West Academy and West Academy) is a Mixed secondary school and sixth form, part of Advantage Schools located in the west of Luton in Bedfordshire, England.

The Chalk Hills Academy
Location
Leagrave High Street Luton, Bedfordshire LU4 0NE England
Information
Type	Academy
Motto	Integrity • Ambition • Excellence
Sister school	The Stockwood Park Academy
Local authority	Luton Borough Council
Trust	Advantage Schools
Department for Education URN	135337 Tables
Ofsted	Reports
Principal	Natasha Jabbar
Secondary years taught	Year 7 through Year 13
Gender	Co-educational
Age	11 to 18
Enrollment	1401 (May 2021)
Colour(s)	Red
Website	thechalkhillsacademy.co.uk

History

Halyard High School converted to academy status on 1 September 2007 and became part of the Barnfield Federation.^[1][2] Many school buildings were renovated as part of Building Schools for the Future programme.^[3]

From 2006 until 2010, Rachel de Souza (now Children's Commissioner for England) was the headteacher at Barnfield West Academy and received recognistion for significantly improving the overall performance of the school since it became an academy, as significantly noted in its ofsted reports.^[4][5] With the academy being issued a "Outstanding" grade from Ofsted in its 2010 inspection.^[6]

In 2012, Barnfield West Academy achieved excellent value for money status from Ofsted as being run by a federation and was shown as good practice example in the governments drive to increase the number of academies.^[7]

In 2015, the school split with the Barnfield Federation and became part of The Shared Learning Trust.^[8] This was due to an investigation into the Barnfield Federation by the Skills Funding Agency & the Education Funding Agency into financial mishandling, claiming for students incorrectly and grade issues.^{[9][10][11][12]} The school was subsequently renamed West Academy for a short time before being renamed The Chalk Hills Academy in December 2015. On 1 September the academy joined Advantage Schools after The Shared Learning Trust merged with Advantage Schools.^[13]

Notable alumni

• Jernade Meade, footballer
• Andrew Tate, media personality and kickboxer^[14]