at this point. By December, building work had completed and the site was fully operational, with sixth formers completing the transition on the last day of the December 1972 term. Upon opening, the school could cater for around 900 pupils, with future provision for expanding to 1,500 once funds became available to extend the site. After nearly a year from opening, headmistress Mrs M. S Thomas, speaking to the Formby Times, described the school as having had "a rewarding year" and that "a good co-educational atmosphere has prevailed from the start". She said that despite the transition to a new school potentially having an adverse effect on school performance as some feared, results were "outstandingly good", with a record 79% of students in the fifth year achieving at least four pass grades. The school operated a split-site, using the old Waterloo Park Grammar school for younger students and named "the Annexe". Operation In November 1981, the school was the site of the electoral count for the 1981 Crosby by-election, whereby Social Democratic Party candidate Shirley Williams won the Crosby constituency and therefore became the first member of the party to win an election. In July 1989, the school won a large cash prize in a European Schools and Colleges competition, with group projects submitted by students in their third year of high school education. Split site From the opening of the school on Chesterfield Road up until the construction of The Mall in 1996, the school resided on 2 separate sites, with the old Waterloo Park Grammar site referred to as "the Annexe" and considered a misnomer. Pupils at the Annexe would refer to the main school as 'the other school' as for them, the Annexe was Chesterfield High School for their first 2 years until moving to Chesterfield Road. It was claimed that the Annexe, disliked by many staff as an administrative nightmare with substandard buildings, was important in the school's success. It was felt that pupils here were able to find their feet in a homely environment and mix with others of the same age before being subjected to the rigours of bigger pupils; this was only disproved when the pupils did come on one site, as there was not much difficulty of this sort. However, at the time, parents believed this was the case and for many, it was an attraction for choosing Chesterfield's Annexe as their