Two days before the school was to be officially opened in 1953, it was used as a shelter station after the Canvey Island flood tragedy,[3]: 364,595  a gesture that led to the headmaster, Albert Evans, who was also the district emergency meals officer at the time of the emergency,[3]: 391  being awarded the MBE in the new Queen's coronation honours.

[3]: 391  The new name became official in 1957, when it was renamed as King John Secondary modern school.

[5] There were 1100 pupils and it became a comprehensive school and began to offer GCE 'O' levels from 1967[citation needed] with a sixth form established from 1995.

[6] In April 2011 it converted to a secondary academy school specialising in mathematics and computing.

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