[1] It became an academy in 2006 under the sponsorship of the Ormiston Trust after Thurrock Council was unable to find the resources to provide a new building.

[3][5] It is currently a part of The Gateway Learning Community (GLC) but has retained its Ormiston sponsorship.

[6][7] Although the school's address falls under Grays in actuality it is located between, and primarily serves, Chadwell St Mary and Tilbury.

[16][17] From 1948 it was unified as the St Chad's County Secondary School but the male and female pupils were segregated and taught in their own "departments" until 1955.

A teacher who spent a week there reported that fights and racism were common in the school and that drugs were being distributed.

[23] It was ranked as special measures and it was failing with only 9% of students getting an A* to a C in their GCSE grades and 29% leaving the school without a single pass.

[26] In the 1970s it was called Torells Comprehensive School and during this time the future celebrities Joe Pasquale and Fatima Whitbread both attended.

The headteacher, Mark Morrall, intended to continue his role upon academisation but was denied the position by the Ormiston Trust and DfES, therefore being forced to step down in the summer.

[43]By 2011 the school was a specialist college in arts, design, and engineering and also provided sixth form education.

The school's sixth form was however ranked with a 3 in all categories and was therefore satisfactory/requires improvement, primarily "because of the above average drop-out rate".

She left in 2014 and in that year's summer term a new senior leadership team was established, with GLC CEO Sadler appointing himself as the school's new executive principal.

Colleges determine slight changes to Gateway students' school uniform, namely the colours on their ties.

[55][56] The school's current building began construction in 2013 and is located on Gateway Academy's site.

[12] The building's opening was attended by GLC CEO Kevin Sadler and Thurrock MP Jackie Doyle-Price.