Sixth form – future ready, set, go! Rhiannon Wilkinson Head, Ashville College The sixth-form years are great
effects of climate change? Will the
opportunities and career advice. Sixth
fun but they are also of crucial
phenomenal pace of technology
form should provide the tools young
importance. They are about getting
improve our lives for the better or
people need to flourish, no matter
pupils exam ready, university ready,
present new moral and societal
where their passions lie.
career ready – in short, ‘future
challenges? Will we be prepared for
ready’ – building strong academic
future pandemics?
foundations and developing the
I have often said high quality English boarding education is the best in the
personal characteristics and
The role of the sixth form should
world, and parents are fortunate to
social skills for future success and
not be to create an ‘exam factory’.
have their pick of so many exceptional
fulfilment, no matter what lies
It is to provide a happy, purposeful
schools. But choosing one from many,
ahead.
environment in which young people
particularly for families who are not
transition from adolescence to
in the UK, can be challenging. So what
We only need to ask ourselves the
adulthood, emerging as confident
should you look for in a boarding sixth
current big questions to understand
young people ready to face the
form?
why gaining good results is not the
world. They can only do this if their
only goal of post-16 education. Will
sixth form offers enough choice of
we have discovered and implemented
courses, academic enrichment routes,
ways to stop or even reverse the
co-curricular activities, leadership
