Sitting alongside Victoria Park and the University of Leicester, Wyggeston and Queen Elizabeth I College – commonly known as WQE – is one of the largest sixth form colleges in the East Midlands. The college occupies the former site of Wyggeston Grammar School for Boys, a location that ties its modern identity directly to Leicester’s grammar school tradition. Paul Wilson, appointed as the eighth principal in March 2018, currently leads the institution.
History and Formation
WQE was founded in 1976 as part of a comprehensive reorganisation of secondary education in Leicester, at a time when much of rural Leicestershire had already gone comprehensive in 1968. The college takes its name from two predecessor schools: Wyggeston Grammar School for Boys and Wyggeston Grammar School for Girls, both of which closed during the 1970s. The former girls’ school site became Wyggeston Collegiate Sixth Form College in 1976, later rebranded as Regent College between 1996 and 2018. That year, Regent College merged with WQE to create a single institution with approximately 3,750 full-time students aged 16 to 18 and 140 teaching staff. The college was awarded Learning and Skills Beacon Status in April 2003.
Courses and Academic Performance
More than 40 subjects are available at A Level, alongside AS, A2, and GCSE courses. The International Baccalaureate Diploma was introduced in September 2006, with 33 students in its first cohort, though the programme concluded in 2012 and is no longer on offer. In 2006, the A Level pass rate reached 98 per cent, with 45 per cent of results at grades A and B. Around 90 per cent of students go on to higher education, with many choosing universities across the Midlands region. Notable former students include novelist Bali Rai, England and Leicester Tigers rugby players Ben Youngs and Dan Cole, and MP Shivani Raja.