Sixth Form Overview

Every year a group of normally six to eight new Year 13 students are selected to be Head, Deputy Head or Assistant Head students. One of their responsibilities is to listen to feedback from students on topics as wide-ranging as common room facilities, social events, as well as day-to-day student worries. They meet weekly with the Sixth Form Team as well as the Partnership Principal to feedback views to the school.

At the start of each school year, Sixth Form students are reminded of these key expectations:

• To take responsibility for their progress within their courses by attending and participating in all lessons, meeting all course deadlines and completing work to the best of their ability at all times. Additionally, ensuring that their attitude to learning is graded at a 2 or above across all their subjects. Their folders need to be kept up to date and following the Sixth Form guidelines.

• To behave in a manner appropriate to the Sixth Form in all lessons. This includes, following instructions, listening to staff and not disrupting the learning of others.

• To arrive punctually to all lessons, tutor times and assemblies.

• To help maintain a secure site by wearing your identity card and lanyard at all times, and letting us know your car and motorbike/moped registration details if you drive to school.

• To comply with the published Sixth Form dress code.

• To comply with the same standards of punctuality, attendance and behaviour that would operate within the world of employment and to contribute to the ethos of the school and not bring it in to disrepute.

• To attend all lessons, assemblies and tutorial sessions as required (as a guide, satisfactory attendance is considered to be 95% or above with no unauthorised absence).

The Sixth Form teaching team check student folders regularly, and the attached form is completed for all subjects for each student.

A comprehensive parent bulletin is sent out by email to all parents/carers every other Friday. The bulletin includes important dates for the diary, advanced warning of Sixth Form events as well as a round up of the latest career and higher education events that students have been invited to take part in.

The Sixth Form Team are very keen to promote an open, caring and friendly atmosphere so that students who feel that they need pastoral or academic support are confident they will be dealt with promptly and sympathetically. Students are encouraged to come in to the sixth form office throughout the day to have a chat and get worries resolved straight away.

All students are assigned to a Tutor Group of around 15 students. The Tutor Groups are also part of one of the five school Houses. The Form Tutor meets the group twice a week and is key to spotting any issues of concern. The Form Tutor quickly gets to know the students and will liaise with parents and subject teachers as well as the Sixth Form Team.

One of the biggest predictors of success in Sixth Form is high attendance and that is why registers are monitored very closely. Parents (rather than students) are expected to notify the Attendance Team if a student is not well enough to attend school or if they have a medical appointment. If a student is marked as ‘unexplained absent’ on a register by a teacher then an email is sent to a parent at the end of that day with details of who to contact to resolve the issue.

Overall attendance levels are monitored weekly and if the team are concerned about high absence then the student and their parent is contacted.  In addition, the attendance of students who are considered ‘vulnerable’ is checked throughout the day and parents are phoned if lessons are missed without an explanation being given in advance.

We do not strictly define a uniform however we do want you to dress smartly – school and education is a serious activity: you set an example to younger students and the correct appearance sets the right tone for the Sixth Form and school community.

Although you do not wear school uniform, you still have a Sixth Form dress code that requires you to dress appropriately while in school. This includes wearing your identification lanyard at all times, which is essential for our safeguarding arrangements at the school.

You can expect to be challenged if you fall below the standards that we set out. Replacement lanyards are available from the Attendance Office.

Acceptable Dress:

• smart casual wear
• smart jeans and jeans cut trousers are acceptable
• smart t-shirts are acceptable
• smart clean trainers
• leggings, smart jogging bottoms or jeggings.

Not Acceptable:

• caps/hoods worn up
• t-shirts with rude or sexist slogans
• strapless tops, pencil strap tops, halter necks
• no cropped tops showing any midriff.

The way you dress is very important to us and we will enforce a basic standard of smartness. If you are dressed inappropriately, you will be asked to go home and change.

The school has its own Wellbeing Team, (Mrs Rastelli – Head of Wellbeing). Students can approach the team for help with a variety of teenager and family issues including mental health, responsibilities as a young carer as well as safeguarding concerns. Teachers and the Sixth Form Team use this key resource for advice and guidance and parents can contact them as well.

Further information regarding student wellbeing can be found on the website here.

The Sixth Form has its own group to provide support to students who identify as part of the LGBTQ+ community or want to support this. The group meets weekly and is run by the Junior Leadership Team, with help from the Wellbeing Team.

The school has access to its own counsellors who come into the school to see students. The students can refer themselves for counselling by filling in a form outside the well being office or the Sixth Form Team can refer students to the service.

The SEN department are responsible for providing support for students who have Special Education Needs.  External applicants for Sixth Form are encouraged to include details of additional needs on their application form. It is likely that a meeting will be arranged with a member of the SEN Team to discuss needs and to check that the school is able to provide the required level of support to ensure success. This department also arranges for Exam Access Arrangement assessments to be carried out after a referral has been made.

For internal applicants, the records and support will transition from Year 11 to Year 12 but parents/carers should contact Mrs L’Estrange if they would like confirmation.

The school library has dedicated areas for quiet study. The Library staff are very keen to support students with using the resources available and can help with accessing the library catalogue to find useful journals and books to support with wider reading and coursework.

A University application day is held in July of each year for Year 12 students where they use this time getting started with their applications. In the evening there is a parent’s information meeting. From the start of Year 13, weekly UCAS clinics are held to support with drafting personal statements and completing applications forms.

An ‘Early Entry’ and Oxford and Cambridge group provide more specialised support with applications to medical schools and Oxbridge. Further information can be found here.

External careers advisers come into the school to meet students and carry out one to one careers interviews. An apprenticeship application and CV clinic runs weekly from the end of January until exam time in Year 13. A variety of speakers and events are arranged to engage students in planning for their future. Further information regarding careers can be found here.