Neatherd High School: The Neatherd Sixth Form and the #savingdsfc campaign - Mythbusting: Myth: I’m in Year 12 and on roll at Neatherd, but I didn’t go to Neatherd. I’m being forced to remain at Neatherd. • False! We cannot – and would not – “force” this on any student. All students – including those from Neatherd, Northgate and other schools – will have a free choice as to which Sixth Form they join for Year 13. Myth: Current Year 12 students will have to wear a uniform. • False! Students currently on roll at the Sixth Form will not have to wear a uniform. The “dress code” will remain as it is for them. We intend to ask students in future year groups (current Year 11 and below) to abide by a “modern workplace” dress code. This is what happens in most outstanding Sixth Forms. “Modern workplace” means smart and professional. It does not have to mean a formal suit, tie, etc. Myth: Neatherd is creating an “elitist” Sixth Form that is only for students who want to apply to Russell Group universities. • False! We believe that, sadly, the Sixth Form in its current structure has become a watchword for mediocrity and we are not willing to stand for this any longer. We want an institution that stands for academic excellence. This is in no shape or form the same as “elitism”! • We will honour the current courses being taken by Year 12s and the courses which have been offered to current Year 11s. We will take all necessary steps to ensure these classes run, no matter how many or how few students there may be in them. • In the future, for other groups, we will ask the majority of students to take a “facilitating” subject. These include English Literature, maths, sciences, languages, history and geography. They provide an excellent preparation for future study and will allow all students to access courses at the country’s very best Higher Education institutions. We know that not all students will want to attend these and we will provide them with excellent support, of the highest quality, in applying for university places, apprenticeships, work and FE college places. However, taking a facilitating subject will keep options open for all students and, from a “social justice” point of view, this is central to our ethos of “learning without limits”. • We will not be raising our entry requirements. Myth: This is linked to Neatherd becoming an academy and is all about money and empire-building. • False! Our concerns about the quality of provision under the current structure at DSFC are longstanding. This has not been an easy decision and has been planned over a long period of time. The school does not stand to gain additional finance from this. If anything, we are taking a risk as we know that not all students currently on our roll may wish to stay with us. We are already an 11-18 school as, in the current setup, we jointly run DSFC with Northgate. To a degree, DSFC does not officially “exist”, as it is the joint Year 12 and Year 13 of two 11-18 high schools. Myth: Mr Devonish is responsible for this! • False! This is a decision which has been discussed and approved unanimously by Neatherd’s governors and Senior Leadership Group. This represents 22 school leaders. In addition, the teaching and support staff of Neatherd are fully behind this decision. In no way will Neatherd’s governors or leadership team benefit financially from this decision. This is a decision which is solely about the educational wellbeing of our young adults in Dereham. Myth: There will be no place left for the arts or other practical and creative subjects. • False! Current Y12s and Y11s will continue to do the courses they are taking or have been offered. For future year groups, we will be asking students to take on of the so-called “facilitating” subjects. This still leaves students with a free choice of two or three other A Levels. We believe passionately in the Arts. We have an exceptional Design and Technology department. Students will continue to be encouraged to take these subjects. Myth: I will be forced to be in College every day, all day, from 8.45 to 3.30. • (Partly) false. We recognise that our young adults are at a stage of their education where they benefit from increased freedoms. However, with these freedoms come responsibilities and we are acutely aware that our main responsibilities to students are to do all we can to look after their welfare, get them excellent results and prepare them for the next stage of their lives. For this to happen, we do believe students need to be on site every day and to check in with a tutor every day. Furthermore, we believe that the majority of students’ free time should be devoted to their studies and to enrichment activities. We would therefore require students to nominate – in discussion with their personal tutor – ten official “off-site” periods per fortnight. We feel this is a fair balance and is in line with what many other excellent Sixth Forms do. It will also help students to prepare for the rigour of the world of work. Myth: It’s not viable to have two Sixth Forms in a town the size of Dereham. • False! Neatherd and Northgate are reasonably large secondary schools with large catchment areas – and the “catchment area” for post-16 students is, in practice, larger still. Many similar-sized secondary schools (and, indeed, some smaller ones such as Reepham) have their own strong, viable Sixth Forms and these are highly successful. Myth: The Director of the Sixth Form College resigned because of this. • False. Mrs O’Grady informed Neatherd, as her employer, of her intention to resign on 20th January. The Neatherd leadership team and governors therefore had to re-evaluate whether plans to improve the current set-up were viable under these circumstances. After much discussion and analysis of the implications of running a separate Sixth Form, the leadership team and a number of senior governors agreed we should move in this direction at a Strategic Leadership Day on 27th January. The final decision to set up Neatherd Sixth Form was taken at a meeting of the Full Governing Body of Neatherd on 11th February.