About our School: School History

A Brief History

In the year 1817 a meeting was held in the Bayle Gate, Bridlington, to discuss the provision of a National School. With the help of various subscribers and benefactors and the Diocesan Society at York a school room was opened in 1818 in the Bayle Gate and 159 boys were admitted during the first year.

By 1826 new schools had been built for boys and girls and the building still survives in North Back Lane as a carpet warehouse. In 1857 a new Infants' School was erected on Church Green and these three schools continued to serve the educational needs of the community until the buildings of Burlington Council Schools were opened in 1910. These buildings were designed by Mr. Earnshaw and erected by Mr. Sawdon and were opened by Lord Wenlock the Chairman of the East Riding County Council. The site and the buildings then cost approximately 10,000 pounds. 

In outward appearance the schools have changed little since 1910 but I expect the first headteacher, Mr Harry Palmer, would be quick to notice the disappearance of the covered playsheds - one converted into an attractive dining hall, the other into a much enjoyed swimming pool.

Mr. Palmer would be surprised to see the breadth and scope of the National Curriculum and astonished at the budget we now have to administer.

We continue to move forward and the school site has seen many recent changes and developments. Alongside our new car-park we have a thriving pre-school in their own mobile classroom. On our back field we have a new purpose built infant school which opened in late December 1995. The old infant school is now the junior school annexe which has meant we can spread out using the extra classrooms. The grounds have been landscaped and are now well established.

In October 2004, Margaret R. Chapman, MBE, Chairman of East Riding of Yorkshire Council opened our new extension linking both our two buildings together. The new building includes a new reception area, offices and medical room, classroom and staff room. We worked hard to ensure the new design matched the original. We are all pleased with the building which represents another major milestone in Burlington's history.

The school has always had a family atmosphere and many parents and grandparents of our present pupils attended Burlington School. We are pleased to continue many of the traditional activities for which the school is well known such as the Harvest Festival, Sports Days, Easter Bonnets, Summer and Christmas Concerts and a residential visit for our older pupils during their final term.

We remain a successful school with a proud history. Our Ofsted report of 2002 was excellent. We were named in the HMI report along side the most successful schools of the country. Our recent inspection in June 2007 was also very positive describing us as a good school with outstanding features. We hold a number of national awards of which we are proud. We are an Investor in People, a Health Promoting School, and hold three School Achievement Awards.

I believe that previous staff, parents and pupils would be pleased with our progress.

With thanks to Charles Brear, Deputy Head at Burlington 1975/1984 for some of the above history.