The school focused on technical skills which were of help to Scunthorpe's steel industry, the main employer at the time and for many years afterwards.

The annual speech night was held in the Savoy Theatre in the early 1950s[3] and the Trinity Methodist church in the late 1950s.

[14] Plans from the new site of the grammar school were ready by August 1960, to start building in April 1961, and to open by 1963.

In April 1961, it was decided to build, instead, a copy of the Frederick Gough School, to be able to open a year earlier, due to vastly less-original design work and bill of materials that would be required.

From 1963, the three grammar schools, in Scunthorpe, would develop their curriculum together, to elevate the standard of education across the town.

But these common high standards would be largely diminished, if not forgotten about, once comprehensive education had taken over, exempting the sixth form college.

[19][20] The sixth form college was established in September 1968 due to a reorganisation of education in Scunthorpe.

In 2010, John Leggott principal Nic Dakin retired from his role to represent the Scunthorpe constituency for the Labour Party.