SCHOOL SIXTH FORM PROVIDES A MOTIVATING AND NURTURING ATMOSPHERE WHERE STUDENTS ARE SUPPORTED TO SHAPE THEIR OWN ACADEMIC ROUTE.
Former Stafford Grammar School head boy and girl Priya Mahal and Tom Pickstock share their thoughts on the benefits of their school. As our time at Stafford Grammar School Sixth Form came to an end, we could honestly say that some of our best school memories and experiences were made in our last two years. Not only does the school provide top tier support for the transition from GCSEs to A-levels, they ensured that our educational path was tailored to us.
In Sixth Form, there is a huge emphasis on students shaping their own academic route, with teachers being there to support us in times of both confusion and success. The Sixth Form centre is not an academic factory churning out robots – we were all encouraged to explore wider experiences, with weekly speakers talking to us not only about life after Sixth Form, which is very useful, but about becoming an adult more widely.
We were encouraged to explore all available career pathways including, university, degree apprenticeships and internships. The Sixth Form staff were always available to talk through and facilitate meetings about career opportunities. The wide variety of extracurricular activities we had access to are great to socialise, bulk up our CVs and destress after long days of A-level studying.
The music department has bands and ensembles practicing everyday, which plays a pivotal role in shaping our extracurricular timetables. Sport is also highly valued, with Wednesday afternoons being dedicated to a range of sports that we got to choose from – we especially enjoyed dodgeball, badminton and even sessions in the school gym. Far from a burden on us, these opportunities allowed us to socialise through fixtures with other schools and discover new hobbies.
The atmosphere in the Sixth Form Centre was both motivating and nurturing. Having responsibilities through prefect roles creates a sense of shared community, as well as allowing to develop transferable skills that contribute to an impressive CV and university application. The Sixth Form plus program was the perfect opportunity for us to level up our CVs and UCAS applications. In Lower Sixth, we got the option to choose either; a fourth A-level, a GCSE such as Italian or Astronomy, Extended Project Qualification (EPQ), online courses from the Open University called MOOCs or TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language).
We truly believe that we could not have achieved the offers and next-step opportunities that we have without this program. Pastorally, it is hard to see how we could have asked for any more. With the support of the Head of Sixth Form, our Form Tutors and the Wellbeing Centre’s pastoral leads, we came to school everyday safe in the knowledge that there was always a safe space and a shoulder to lean on whenever we felt in need of help, support and reassurance.
Overall, our time in Stafford Grammar Sixth Form was underpinned by an excellent working environment upheld by both brilliant teachers and students alike. As we moved into the next chapter of our lives, we greatly missed SGS sixth form and will be forever grateful for the opportunities it provided us.
