Guildford County School P16 Prospectus

SIXTH FORM PROSPECTUS 2015

VISION AND AIMS

Our vision is that all students should aspire to excellence and fulfil their individual potential.

During their time at Guildford County School students will: • gain excellent academic qualifications • widen their skills and attributes • challenge and achieve their personal ambitions • develop as confident individuals and good citizens within the school and wider community • find enjoyment and fulfilment • make long-lasting friendships and fond memories

“ TEACHING IN THE SIXTH FORM IS GOOD. IN THE MOST SUCCESSFUL LESSONS, TEACHERS COMBINE SOUND SUBJECT KNOWLEDGE, AN APPROPRIATE FOCUS ON EXAMINATION REQUIREMENTS AND OPEN-ENDED OPPORTUNITIES FOR STUDENTS TO WORK INDEPENDENTLY.” OFSTED 2013

We expect students to work hard, to become actively involved in the life of the Sixth Form, and to make their own mark during their time here.

WELCOME

TO GUILDFORD COUNTY SIXTH FORM We are delighted that you are considering joining Guildford County Sixth Form in September 2015. We are confident that by choosing our Sixth Form you will have a rewarding, challenging and enjoyable experience.

Our flourishing Sixth Form allows us to offer an extensive range of courses with a wide range of extra-curricular activities, yet we are small enough to ensure that all our students are known and valued as individuals. We are an inclusive Sixth Form and we welcome students of all abilities, from our own year 11 and from other schools. We ask that you meet our entry requirements and that you commit to the ethos of the Sixth Form.

GCS are consistently in the top 10% of schools nationally for achievement in the Sixth Form. Our 2014 A-level results were, once again, outstanding with a 99% pass rate at A2 level. 35% of grades were at A*/A, 59% were at A*– B and 81% were at A*– C. At AS our students achieved a pass rate of 92% with just over a fifth of entries (21%) at grade A and 41% A/B.

Our Sixth Form students are actively involved in the whole life of the school, through leadership roles, the House system and organising major charity and extra-curricular events. These experiences will provide you with a wealth of opportunities, enhance your CV and increase your chances of obtaining a place at University, in further education or employment.

Our Sixth Form block has been newly refurbished and expanded for 2014 and now features an enlarged and improved Common Room, a Private Study room and several Study Pods, as well as Sixth Form classrooms.

We look forward to welcoming you into our Sixth Form and demonstrating how we can provide the best opportunities for you to flourish, enjoy your learning and achieve personal and academic success.

Mrs Helen Nurton Assistant Headteacher and Director of Sixth Form

01

OUR

COURSES We work hard to ensure that students are matched to courses relevant to their ambitions and related to their academic strengths and personal interests.

All applicants are interviewed and we provide advice and guidance on the suitability of your subject choices. We offer 31 A-Level (Level 3) courses and 4 GCSE (Level 2) courses. Full details of all courses offered are available on our website and in our Courses Booklet.

Our provision includes vocational subjects and we work in partnership with other local schools to share resources in minority subjects, so that you may have increased flexibility of subject choice while remaining predominantly at Guildford County.

“ THE SIXTH FORM IS GOOD AND IMPROVING RAPIDLY.�

02

OFSTED 2013

The Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) is available in Year 12 for our traditional A-Level students. This is well-regarded by universities and employers, and encourages independent learning and research skills, as well as giving you up to 70 UCAS points and an A* grade.

STUDENT SUPPORT AND A-Level Pathway Most students follow this route, studying 4 subjects at AS and continuing with 3 of these to A2 in Year 13. With the national changes to A-Levels, we would expect students to begin Year 12 on 4 AS/linear courses in the same way.

To access this pathway, students require 5 A*– C grades at GCSE and any further subject specific requirements as detailed in the Courses Booklet.

Foundation Pathway The Foundation Pathway is designed for those students who do not yet have the minimum 5 A*– C GCSE grades to commence A-Levels. This Pathway has proved popular and many of the students taking this have been successful in acquiring the necessary skills, knowledge and understanding to begin a full A-Level programme.

GCSE English & Maths Any student who enters the Sixth Form without grade C in either GCSE English or Maths will be able to re-take one or both of these subjects with a view to reaching this standard. These GCSE resit classes contain only Sixth Form students.

AS to A2 Progression Grade D at AS Level is normally required to progress to A2 in a particular subject.

This is because the A2 course is usually more demanding, however students may be accepted with Grade E, if the relevant department is in agreement.

ENRICHMENT At GCS we pride ourselves on having a strong pastoral system and our tutors are dedicated, experienced and skilled in providing appropriate support for their tutees.

Tutors are responsible for the academic and pastoral welfare of their tutees, and take a real interest in their progress and development. A supportive and caring approach allows them to form trusting relationships as well as being able to offer advice and guidance, and to challenge under-achievement. Tutors are often the first point of contact for parents, and act as liaison between students and their subject teachers.

Our tutorial programme is focused on developing a wide range of transferable skills and also provides careers information, advice about higher education choices and a specific Oxbridge preparation programme for our most able students.

Enrichment is a vital extra component in our Sixth Form curriculum. All students in Year 12 participate in the enrichment activities offered, which aim to provide students with a sense of pride and achievement outside academic studies; activities can include Classroom Assistant, Duke of Edinburgh Awards – and even a Jamie Oliver Home Cooking Skills Programme.

03

SIXTH FORM

LIFE

Sixth Formers take a lead in many school events at GCS to help bring the whole school community together. Their teamwork, organisational skills, enthusiasm and encouragement help to make these events very successful. Our Sixth Formers show great maturity in undertaking positions of responsibility and in their conduct as role models for younger students.

We recognise that entering the Sixth Form is a step towards independence and we encourage this by affording our students a number of privileges not available to others in the School – some of these are immediate and some are earned as the transition from Year 11 to Year 12 is made. For example, students enjoy the privilege of being allowed off-site at lunchtimes and may take advantage of our town location by visiting local shops and cafes.

Sports fixtures are arranged against other schools and many of our students represent Guildford County during their time in the Sixth Form.

We also offer a range of trips and visits. These include Biology and Geography field trips, art gallery visits, World Challenge trips to Kenya, History trips to the USA and Poland, as well as the ever popular Sixth Form ski trips.

STUDENT

PROFILES Rory Cornelius

Jemma Zazzera

A-Level subjects taken:

A-Level subjects taken:

Maths, Geography, Economics.

Biology, Chemistry, Maths.

Career ambition:

Career ambition:

To study Economics at University, leading to a job in the City.

Wild Animal Vet.

Reason for choosing Guildford County: “The Teachers here are great and I feel like part of a community.”

Destination after Guildford County:

Reason for choosing Guildford County: “Not only did I enjoy learning at Guildford County, but I really grew as a person and learnt so many valuable life skills that helped ease the transition into adulthood and life beyond school.”

Economics at Manchester or Bath.

04

Destination after Guildford County: Veterinary Medicine, University of Bristol.

BEYOND

GUILDFORD COUNTY The progression of our Sixth Form students after their time at Guildford County is important to us. While students research university courses or alternatives themselves, so that the decisions they make are well-informed and their own, we provide an extensive programme of advice, support and guidance on researching universities, completing UCAS or job application forms and on mock interview techniques. Our Oxbridge preparation scheme

is enhanced through our collaborative work with local private schools, where we achieve consistent success.

We also support the decision-making process for those students who wish to consider routes other than higher education, through careers fairs which present apprenticeships and a wide range of employment opportunities.

05

SIXTH FORM ADVANCED SUBSIDIARY (AS) LEVEL RESULTS 2014 A Departments

C

D

E

U

Nos.

A/B %

A–E Nos.

%

Nos.

Art

3

1

1

1

0

0

0

67

2

100

3

Biology

22

5

3

3

2

7

2

36

8

91

20

Chemistry

19

4

3

4

1

3

4

37

7

79

15

Computing

13

2

2

3

0

4

2

31

4

85

11

Drama & Theatre Studies

5

0

1

1

2

1

0

20

1

100

5

Economics

8

1

2

2

3

0

0

38

3

100

8

English Language

37

9

13

12

3

0

0

59

22

100

37

English Literature

29

3

5

12

8

1

0

28

8

100

29

Food Technology

2

0

0

0

2

0

0

0

0

100

2

French

4

3

1

0

0

0

0

100

4

100

4

Geography

16

1

6

5

1

3

0

44

7

100

16

Government & Politics

9

3

1

1

3

1

0

44

4

100

9

Graphics (Product Design)

13

0

1

4

4

1

3

8

1

77

10

History

37

10

13

5

7

2

0

62

23

100

37

Latin

2

2

0

0

0

0

0

100

2

100

2

Mathematics

57

26

8

4

8

5

6

60

34

89

51

Further Mathematics

19

14

0

2

1

1

1

74

14

95

18

Media

17

1

4

9

2

1

0

29

5

100

17

Music

5

2

0

1

2

0

0

40

2

100

5

Music Technology

6

0

2

2

0

1

1

33

2

83

5

Photography

14

1

2

2

5

4

0

21

3

100

14

Physical Education

8

1

2

2

1

2

0

38

3

100

8

Physics

26

7

2

2

6

2

7

35

9

73

19

Psychology

41

2

10

10

9

8

2

29

12

95

39

Religious Studies

14

4

6

1

1

1

1

71

10

93

13

Spanish

8

2

1

2

3

0

0

38

3

100

8

Textiles

06

B

Total (Entries)

1

1

0

0

0

0

0

100

1

100

1

435

105

89

90

74

48

29

45

194

100

406

SIXTH FORM ADVANCED LEVEL (A2) RESULTS 2014 A* Departments

A

B

C

D

E

U

Nos.

A*/A %

A*/B

Nos.

%

A*– E

Nos.

%

Nos.

Biology

11

1

0

2

4

2

1

1

9

1

27

3

91

10

Chemistry

9

1

2

3

0

2

1

0

33

3

67

6

100

9

Computing

4

0

1

2

1

0

0

0

25

1

75

3

100

4

Dance

1

0

0

1

0

0

0

0

0

0

100

1

100

1

Drama & Theatre Studies

4

0

0

1

0

3

0

0

0

0

25

1

100

4

Economics

3

0

3

0

0

0

0

0

100

3

100

3

100

3

English Language

11

0

5

4

2

0

0

0

45

5

82

9

100

11

English Literature

20

4

6

4

5

1

0

0

50

10

70

14

100

20

French

4

0

1

2

0

1

0

0

25

1

75

3

100

4

Geography

13

2

4

2

2

3

0

0

46

6

62

8

100

13

German

2

0

0

1

0

0

1

0

0

0

50

1

100

2

Government & Politics

4

0

1

1

2

0

0

0

25

1

50

2

100

4

Graphics (Product Design)

1

0

1

0

0

0

0

0

100

1

100

1

100

1

History

20

2

6

7

2

3

0

0

40

8

75

15

100

20

Latin

1

1

0

0

0

0

0

0

100

1

100

1

100

1

Mathematics

24

5

9

2

5

3

0

0

58

14

67

16

100

24

Further Mathematics

8

5

2

1

0

0

0

0

88

7

100

8

100

8

Media

7

0

0

0

4

3

0

0

0

0

0

0

100

7

Music

2

1

1

0

0

0

0

0

100

2

100

2

100

2

Music Technology

2

0

0

1

1

0

0

0

0

0

50

1

100

2

Photography

6

0

0

3

2

1

0

0

0

0

50

3

100

6

Physical Education

4

0

0

2

1

1

0

0

0

0

50

2

100

4

Physics

16

2

1

5

4

3

1

0

19

3

50

8

100

16

Psychology

12

0

1

5

3

2

1

0

8

1

50

6

100

12

Religious Studies

6

0

0

1

5

0

0

0

0

0

17

1

100

6

Spanish

4

0

2

0

1

1

0

0

50

2

50

2

100

4

Turkish Total (Entries)

1

0

0

0

1

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

100

1

200

24

46

50

45

29

5

1

35

70

60

100

100

199

07

RECENT

ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE AS Level 2011

2012

2013

2014

%A – B

38.15

52.62

52.31

41.03

%A – E

87.74

95.06

91.81

92.39

2011

2012

2013

2014

%A*– A

22.73

34.85

31.78

35.23

%A*– B

51.14

62.56

58.47

59.07

%A*– E

98.48

99.49

99.58

99.49

A2 Level “ WE HAVE BEEN REALLY IMPRESSED WITH THE SIXTH FORM. THE SCHOOL WORKED REALLY HARD TO ACCOMMODATE OUR DAUGHTER’S OPTIONS AND WE ARE DELIGHTED WITH BOTH THE STANDARD OF TEACHING AND ALL-ROUND SUPPORT OFFERED.”

08

PARENT

Our results demonstrate a track record of individual achievement and academic excellence. These reflect the high standards of learning and teaching across the School and a culture of success, support and enjoyment.

HOW TO

APPLY Application forms can be downloaded from our website or are available on request from Ms Julie Phillips, Sixth Form Administration Assistant.

Entry Requirements: • 5 subjects at GCSE – Grade C or above; • Meeting specific subject criteria, as set out in the Courses Booklet; • A commitment to the ethos of the Sixth Form at GCS.

We hope this prospectus has given you a flavour of our Sixth Form, but we encourage you to visit and we look forward to welcoming you to our information evening on Thursday 27th November.

Further information can be obtained from: Ms Julie Phillips 01483 447369

Key Application Dates: Sixth Form Information Evening: Thursday 27 November 2014, 6pm – 8.30pm Deadline for applications: Friday 5 December 2014 Sixth Form interviews: Monday 19 January – Friday 6 February 2015 Sixth Form offers issued:

By Friday 27 February 2015

jphillips@guildfordcounty.co.uk

09

Farnham Road, Guildford, Surrey GU2 4LU Tel: 01483 504089  Fax: 01483 300849 Email: info@guildfordcounty.co.uk

www.guildfordcounty.co.uk