Page 11 - Sixth Form prospectus 2020

Study Support

All students who are following the usual programme of 3 advanced level courses plus an EPQ or
core maths will have on their timetables a minimum of five periods of supervised private study
(SPS). Students are expected to register for these periods and spend them in the Sixth Form study
rooms or another approved learning space in the school. If we feel any students require extra
support for their study we shall place them on the study support programme, where they will be
required to register for supervised private study for all non-taught lessons.

The broader Sixth Form curriculum

In addition to the courses outlined in this booklet, the Sixth Form undertake a broader curriculum
encompassing careers information, enrichment, advice and guidance, and in Year 12, games.
Careers education is delivered in school and can include personal career interviews. The support in
Year 12 and Year 13 for the UCAS process, as well as for students who wish to seek apprentice
training or employment, is extremely thorough and the Sixth Form has a consistently high
percentage of offers made and met from universities and apprenticeship places gained.

As a Sixth Form we strive to offer a broad and varied curriculum which extends beyond the
classroom. We promote work experience through a dedicated week in the spring term. Our team
continually seeks out enrichment opportunities in the way of courses, lectures, open days and
work experience opportunities that will broaden and enrich our students’ experiences. These are
posted on a daily basis on our active Twitter feed which can be found on our Sixth Form website.
Our feed attracts followers from across the country!

Sporting activities are made available to the students on Wednesday afternoons and at other
times during the week. These include rugby, hockey, football, running, fitness, cricket, tennis and
athletics: the range of activities varies from year to year. Students are encouraged to compete for
the school in a range of team and individual sports, and to take part in extracurricular outdoor
education activities such as sailing, rowing, canoeing and skiing; we also have strong links with
local sports clubs and encourage participation at these. The sports programme is compulsory in
Year 12 (unless students have a timetabled lesson) and optional in Year 13. There are many clubs
running within school which link with curricular areas or with particular interests, such as the
French Literature and Film group, which meets once a week to discuss French literature and
cinema; there is no requirement to be studying French A level for students wishing to attend. A
similar club, the German Literature and Film group, caters for students with a particular interest in
German literature.

Many of our Sixth Form courses include trips and other out of school activities to support students
in their learning. Some of these take advantage of the opportunities offered in the local area, such
as a biology field visit to Derwentwater which focuses on ecology, and a geography trip to the
West Cumbrian coast. There are also many day and residential visits to cities and other areas of
the country linked to different curricular areas; for example, students of government and politics
spend several days in London and visit the Royal Courts of Justice and Supreme Court, as well as
attending Prime Minister's Question Time in the House of Commons. Centres of expertise are
visited, such as the Life Centre in Newcastle where students learn about DNA technology, and
primate observation at Edinburgh Zoo is a popular part of the psychology course. Various trips
abroad are made: to name a few, art students visit cities such as Venice, Paris, Florence or
Amsterdam; students of RPE travel to Venice, and those studying business spend time in Brussels,
with trips to the European Parliament, the Port of Antwerp and factories making Coca Cola, Stella
Artois and chocolate. During the spring term, Year 12 students of French take part in an exchange