Lytham St Annes High Technology College

Lytham St Annes Technology College began life back in 1955 as Ansdell County Secondary Modern School, and was attended by around 400 pupils of both sexes. The school grew steadily in numbers and began to serve the community of Lytham St Annes. It was later renamed Lytham St Annes High School.

In 1980 a sixth form was added to the existing secondary school, which was later granted Technology College status in 1995. The school has continued to grow and develop to this day, notably gaining Arts Mark Status in 2001. Currently, Lytham St Annes School is the largest secondary school in Lancashire, with around 1840 students passing through its doors each morning.

Within the Sixth Form, Psychology is by far the most successful department, with over 160 students studying the subject at both AS and A2 level. The school is delighted to be involved in the PsYonline Project, believing that it can only have a positive effect on both the students studying psychology and the stature of the subject.

www.lythamhigh.lancs.sch.uk

Tom Mather: Head of Psychology

Tom Mather has been teaching for over 30 years having begun his career as an engineer in the Aerospace Industry. Tom entered the teaching profession as a craft teacher before obtaining a B.Ed. (Hons) degree followed by an M.A. in Psychology and Educational Research. He spent over seven years teaching in Special Education, where he was able to add practical experience to his theoretical knowledge.

Tom joined the staff at Lytham St Annes Technology College over 12 years ago, charged with developing a department of Psychology. From those humble beginnings of a class of only 25 students, the department has grown substantially and is one of the most successful in the Sixth Form, in terms of both exam success and the numbers of students taking the subject.

He has no doubt to the value of PsYonline and the website that is being developed:

“PsYonline is probably the most important innovation locally developed in the field of psychology since the subject was introduced at our school. It enables students to access information without the need to endlessly ‘surf the net’.”