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Sixth Form

at

Pebble Brook School

 

 

Everything is exactly the same but very different!

Sixth Form at Pebble Brook School is an integrated part of school life and has its’ own building, its’ own uniform and its’ own timetable.

Two statements full of contradictions!

 

Vision, Values and Ethos.

These remain the same as the rest of the school.  The section that reads ‘In reality’ is true for every part of sixth form life and is where we make the extremely important exit plans for our students.

 

In Reality

We want our pupils to maximise their independence and to be ready for their next steps in their lives.  We believe that to achieve this then we should have the following at the forefront of all we do:-

  • Literacy skills
  • Numeracy skills
  • PSHE +E, incl.SRE
  • ICT
  • Citizenship
  • Employability
  • Life skills
  • Social and emotional welfare and development
  • Social interaction skills
  • Social resilience
  • Behaviour for learning and life
  • British values
  • Please see our policies on ‘Curriculum’, ‘Teaching, Learning and Assessment’ and ‘Achievement and Progress’ as well as the specific information on the website.

 

 

 

So what is different?

 

The Building

Sixth Form have their own designated building, converted from the old boarding area in 2020. We expect our sixth form students to show increased independence and life skills so they have shared areas such as the Living Skills Room, Learning Kitchen and Common Room. They also have shared enhanced facilities such as TV and kitchen area.

 

The Uniform

We ask for our students to be ‘smart casual’ in their dress.  They do not have to wear school uniform.

 

Day to Day Perks

Our students can go ‘offsite’ with permission and can also have a flexible day approach where appropriate.

Students can call all the staff members by their first name.

Natural make up is allowed.

Each student has their own locker.

 

Teaching and Learning in Sixth Form

The Timetable

We believe in continuity between Key Stage Four and Sixth Form in meeting the key cognition areas of English, Maths as well as ICT and PSHE. We also believe that Post 16 gives us up to three more years to maximise skills in these subjects.

For these reasons we have three morning lessons Mon- Thu, that cover these subjects.  The timings are exactly the same as the main school and specialist subject teachers are deployed.

Organising the timetable as described above is pretty straightforward.

The uniqueness of Pebble Brook Sixth Form comes into play for the rest of the day across the entire week.

We are committed to supporting our students in Preparation for Adulthood which is reflected in their afternoon timetable and where appropriate, we allow for flexibility to ensure the individual needs of our students are met, e.g.: training outside of school and part time job.

The sessions that we deliver from period 4 onwards are: SIRS, British Values, Citizenship, Works4U, Finance, Cooking, Enterprise, Travel Training, Horticulture, Housekeeping and social communication.

Also, Year 12s have an opportunity to complete a Duke of Edinburgh, Bronze Award.

In addition, we look for opportunities to enrich students’ experience and opportunities in school and we co-operate with neighbouring Henry Floyd Grammar School, NCS and Aylesbury Youth Action and other providers. This can be through blocks of in school sessions, day experiences and residential trips.

Below are example of the timetable for each year group:-

 PICTURE HERE


 

 

 

Group organisation

In 6th Form Year 12- 14s are across five form groups two of which are students with additional communication and self- help needs.

Individualisation

The challenge in the sixth form is to ensure that all timetables are as individualised as possible so that they are consistent in working towards achieving what we are saying ‘in reality’. Our timetables are designed to maximise development in independence and preparation for adulthood.


EHCP targets

EHCP targets are updated annually and are the long term goals for each student.  These long term aims are met through target setting and assessment and are documented for each pupil.  They are linked to the Exit Plan.

 

 

 

Exit Plan

At Pebble Brook our aim is for every student to have a meaningful exit plan. This is achieved in co-operation with the student, their family, the local authority and a team of staff at school as well as other Further Education providers, such training centres, supported internship and college.

 

Personal Development

We recognise that in order to prepare a young person for adulthood, we need to be aware of the students’ personal ability in what we call soft skills. This are for example: time management, punctuality, team work, resilience, before task preparation, following instructions, solving problems and asking for help. All of these are woven into everything we do, including our core subjects of English, Maths, ICT and PSHE+E.

 

Work experience

This may be the last thing mentioned but it is arguably the most important part of life in sixth form.  Not only do employment opportunities come from work experience but so do employability and life skills. We are in regular contact with local employers to try to expand work experience opportunities for our students.

Careers Provider Access Policy – 2022_2023

Moving on to an appropriate setting after the FED is vital to our school. Since we opened our sixth form all our leavers have done exactly that and we are very proud of this fact. The FED builds on the great work of Key Stages 3 and 4. Many of the next steps are driven by our pupils and families but we like to think that we provide much of the help along the way.

The aims of the FED are to:

  • Deliver a broad curriculum through highly structured and motivating individual teaching programmes and through well-planned and differentiated activities that will involve accreditation and non-accredited activities, enhancements and foundation learning to include PSD, vocational learning and skills for life.
  • Have high expectations and positive attitudes.
  • Encourage students to take increasing responsibility for their own learning.
  • Provide team members with positive and constructive feedback on a regular basis (students and staff).
  • Introduce students to a range of sports and leisure activities and a lifestyle which is likely to promote good health.
  • Develop links with the community, including volunteering.

The following will be accredited:

  • Functional Skills English
  • Functional Skills Maths
  • Functional Skills ICT

We will offer a context-based curriculum which encourages the ability to generalise specifically taught skills in different learning situations and apply them to meaningful everyday contexts. Weekly work experience and enterprise challenges based on individuals’ interests and relevance are encouraged and monitored.

Where we can, students are placed at work for one day per week.  Employers supporting us amongst others are:

  • Ercol Princes Risborough
  • Florence Nightingale Hospice Shop
  • Mid-Counties Co-Op
  • Step in Cafe High Wycombe
  • Stoke Mandeville Stadium
  • The Lion Waddesdon
  • Vale Tyres Waddesdon
  • Waitrose
  • Bedgrove Infant School
  • The Healthy Living Centre
  • Tiggywinkles Wildlife Hospital
  • Recomm, High Wycombe
Our first Supported Internships have more or less come to an end. Our Midcounties intern has a Level 2 NVQ in Food Retail and is working at Sainsbury’s and doing very well. All three students at Bedgrove Infant School have successfully qualified to become teaching assistants and will hopefully enter the real world of work when it becomes possible.
Meanwhile, we are always grateful to employers who can help with work experience or Supported Internships or both.

Click here for more information