[8] The school serves a large, mainly rural area roughly bounded by Malvern to the west, Worcester to the north, and the county of Gloucestershire to the south.

In 1326 a chantry school was established to teach local children music, reading and writing, so that they could become part of the choir of St Mary's church.

[2] Deeds dating from 1523 and 1544[9] are the earliest extant documents, and the Church of England episcopal archives record a Philippus Frye as being a master at the school in 1582.

With 42 students in the sixth form in 1962, an urgent request for further extensions to the school became a subject of debate in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom.

The boarding section was closed down, the dormitories, resident staff quarters, and the clinic were converted to classrooms and teachers' offices, and girls were admitted for the first time in 1972.

Presiding over the event, the Member of Parliament for the constituency, Harriett Baldwin stated "Hanley Castle has been a successful school for hundreds of years and I am delighted to be able to mark its transformation into an academy.

The oldest parts are listed buildings dating from around 1600, include the Grade II western wing, formerly a dormitory and since the 21st century largely converted to use for administration and teachers' facilities,.

Due to pressures resulting from a 50% increase in the number of sixth form students, a £1.4 million fund was agreed by the Department for Education for a new centre which opened in September 2016.

[20] The project was designed by architect Jack Richardson and students to be in harmony with the many other modern buildings on the campus, and includes solar energy panels.

It relieves the 1600s Grade II listed building, formerly the headmaster's residence until the 1970s when it entered use as a Sixth Form Centre and still continues in use as part of the campus complex.

[22] Hanley Castle High School is located in the middle of a rural area surrounded by farms, small villages and hamlets, and is bounded to the east by the River Severn.

The Sixth Form offers courses at AS/A2 / BTEC Levels and include:, Art & Design, Biology, Business StudiesCh, Chemistry, Dance, Design & Technology, Economics, English Lang & Lit, English Language, English Literature, Fashion BTEC, Film Studies, Food, Nutrition and Health, French, German, Spanish, Further Maths, Geography, Government & Politics, History, Home Economics, Information Technology, Maths, Modern Foreign Languages, Music, Music Technology, Philosophy, Product Design, Psychology, Sociology, Sport & Physical Education, and Theatre Studies.

[27] Through the DoE Young People's Learning Agency the school may also receive additional grants that would not be available from the local education authority (LEA).

[16] In her report inspector Rashida Sharif describes Hanley Castle as a "vibrant and dynamic school that has not stood still since its last inspection, held in March 2006."

[40] Students represent the school in a number of sports including hockey, netball, rugby, football, volleyball, tennis, cricket, badminton, athletics, cross-country and swimming, and the facilities include a sports hall and a fully-equipped gymnasium, outdoor tennis courts, and two large fields for cricket, rugby, track, and athletics.

[43] As a traditional boys grammar school, students were allocated to three houses, Hall, Lane, and Rhydd for the purpose of inter-house sports events.

Severn End, the stately home of the Lechmere Baronets, is said to be the inspiration for Brinkley Court, the country seat for Bertie Wooster's Aunt Dahlia.

Former pupils often return to visit the school and sign the Old Boy's (and girls) book which is hosted in the nearby medieval village inn.

Among the alumni from the shorter history of the comprehensive school are David Gayler, a politician who contested for the Liberal Democrat Cotswold seat in 1997 and has been a Member of Gloucestershire County Council since 1993,[48] Paul Titchener who was Mayor of Brackley, Northamptonshire in 2001 and again in 2005,[49] and author David Mitchell whose novels have been awarded many major literary prizes and twice shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize.

[58][59] Peter Pumfrey, (Class of 1946), is emeritus Professor and former Dean of the Faculty of Education at Manchester University, a Fellow of the British Psychological Society, and a Chartered Psychologist.

[63] [64] Jazz trombonist Chris Barber was educated at the grammar school during World War II before returning to London at the age of 15.