Sir John Deanes Leisure Centre

General information

Sir John Deane’s Sixth Form College opened in September 1978 for 16-19 year old students but has actually been around as a local educational institution for over 450 years. It initially served the town of Northwich and surrounding rural areas but, for many years, it has welcomed students from across the region. Students from our five partner 11-16 High Schools at Hartford, Leftwich, Middlewich, Rudheath and Weaverham account for about half of the annual intake, with the remainder coming from a wide range of 11-18 schools within and beyond Cheshire, from both the maintained and independent sectors. Each year, the College is over-subscribed and, regrettably, some late applicants cannot be accommodated.

We celebrated our 450th anniversary in October 2007. Formerly Sir John Deane’s Grammar School, founded in 1557, our College has enjoyed a fine reputation for high quality education and strong academic standards across many generations of local people. We have also been fortunate in the ‘inheritance’ of our campus setting, which was a 350th anniversary gift from a famous local industrialist, Sir John Brunner. Nevertheless, because the College is committed to further improvement even from such a strong base, we have just completed an extensive £28,000,000 new building project, intended to ensure that future generations of students here continue to be as well served by our buildings and equipment as their predecessors have been.

By the time the next cohort of students joins us in September 2011 this project will be complete, which will mean that every aspect of teaching and learning in the College will be accommodated in new, purpose-built facilities.

The College continues its successful tradition of serving the local community by providing a broad range of courses, excellent teaching and a high level of personal support for each student. We offer a large number of Advanced Level courses, preparing students for Higher Education and a wide range of careers. Students’ programmes are further enriched through sporting and recreational options, General Studies, work experience, charity and community work, the creative and performing arts and much more.

Typically, around 90% of our Upper Sixth students proceed to Higher Education, but a significant number of students use their Advanced qualifications to gain direct employment including management training with industrial, commercial and retail employers. Some students continue their education at other colleges, following vocational courses or Art Foundation courses prior to Higher Education placement.

The Adult and Continuing Education Department at Sir John Deane’s College was established in 1999 to service the lifelong learning needs of the local community. Today, we offer approximately 70 different lifestyle, leisure and computing classes and attract over 2,500 adults per year to our term-time evening and Saturday provision.

Newcomers to adult education can be sure of a warm welcome from our dedicated Information and Advice team. By creating a friendly and relaxed atmosphere, we endeavour to make you feel at ease whether you wish to discuss your learning needs, seek advice or simply request information, contact via adulted@sjd.ac.uk or 01606 810020