FAQ

What do I do if I need help with something?

Your Year 8 Buddies, Senior Form Prefects and Form Tutor are all people you can go to if you think you need some help with anything. Our Main Office support staff are also very keen to help you so if you, for example, feel ill or forget your lunch, go to Reception.

How will I organise myself at secondary school?

You will need a sturdy bag, preferably a backpack, that you fill with all the books and equipment for one day. Bring a reading book with you every day and be sure to read at least 20 pages every day. Every evening, complete your Home Learning and re-pack your bag for the next day. Make sure that you eat and sleep well so that you do not get overtired. Hiring a locker will help as you can put your PE kit in there and perhaps some of your heavier textbooks, for example.

How will I make new friends?

On the Taster Days, you will start talking to your classmates and you will do some ‘getting to know you’ activities. Most children are worried about making friends, so we give you a lot of help with this. As timetabled lessons get underway, most teachers will use a seating plan so you will not sit with people you already know; this gives you many different opportunities to make friends with other people in your form. Joining clubs and engaging in House activities are also great ways to meet new people, who might turn out to be your best friends.

How will I find my way around the buildings?

You will start finding your way around on the Taster Days, with a map and some activities, and you will also be given a map in September. Other members of the school community will help you if you need to stop and ask them, and for the first couple of weeks your teachers will be understanding if you are late because you got lost.

What happens on the buses?

You will soon get used to your bus routine. Your bus will pick you up at a fixed time and place every morning and drop you off at the school gates. After school, at 15.30, you will make your way swiftly to the bus park ready to get on your bus. Several of the buses leave at 15.45 sharp, so there is no time to lose, but other buses come later. If your bus is there when you come out of school you can get straight on it. If it is one of the later arrivals you will be called by year group so that loading the buses proceeds in an orderly manner. The bus park is a friendly and orderly place when full of students and we will help you to get onto the correct bus. If you miss your bus for any reason, you can call home and wait inside school until someone arrives to collect you.

How much Home Learning will I receive?

Home Learning in Year 7 is described in detail here. (NEW DOCUMENT) Plan for about 1 hour of Home Learning every night in your daily schedule. Continuing with your reading is really important and it can be hard to fit this in with your Home learning and other activities. Read at least 20 pages of your school reading book every day, choosing books from our Accelerated Reader programme which allows you to take quizzes and earn merits for great understanding of your books.

What extra-curricular activities are there?

There are many, many activities to choose from during lunchtimes, from STEM club (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) to Cooking club to chess, and also all the House activities to get involved in. If you like to be busy you won’t be disappointed!