Dover Girls' Grammar School Given Specialist Status In Humanities

Dover Girls' Grammar School has been given specialist status in Humanities. Headteacher Judith Carlisle said they were delighted with the news, which was announced today (1 February).

It is one of 72 schools throughout the country which will become specialist schools in September.

It means all the secondary schools in Dover now have such status, Astor in the Visual Arts, St Edmund's in Performing Arts, Archers Court in Maths and Computing and the Boys' Grammar School in Business and Enterprise.

Education Minister Andrew Adonis said having a specialism provided a school with a strong focus that enabled them to raise standards across the whole curriculum and offer students a greater opportunity to realise their potential.

"Specialist schools consistently outperform other schools," he said.

Elizabeth Reid, Chief Executive at the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust, said: "Earning specialist status is not only a significant achievement, it also has a positive impact on students' attainment and the ethos of a school. It is through collaborative working, personalising learning and strong, effective leadership that we will continue to see schools raising standards and the wide variety of networks and steering groups for 3,000 schools affiliated to the SSAT are integral to this."