Sixth Form (Year 12 and Year 13)

Life in St Helen’s Sixth Form is such an exciting time, academically and personally. It is the time when students take control of their learning, pursue the subjects they enjoy and feel passionate about, and are given the freedom and independence to manage their own experiences.

In Sixth Form, engaging small-group teaching is led by highly experienced, professional and dedicated teachers who care immensely about every student and know each of their students as an individual. Relationships between students and teachers are relaxed, respectful and collaborative, putting the students’ learning and interests at heart.

Beyond academic study, Sixth Form provides a range of opportunities for students to participate fully in sport, drama, music, art, community and school service and to join a wide range of clubs and societies. Our Sixth Form students also assume their natural roles as leaders of the whole student body.

The Sixth Form Centre is the focus of Sixth Form life, providing a sense of greater independence and autonomy from the rest of the School. It is a hive of activity and a natural meeting point for students to share their challenges, joys and achievements. To provide the best possible space for our Sixth Form students to flourish, it is our vision for the future to build a new Sixth Form Centre with outstanding learning and social spaces.

Miss Heather Doherty
Head of Sixth Form and Higher Education

Read the prospectus

Academic

Academic life in St Helen’s Sixth Form is about individual choice and
learning beyond the ordinary business of a curriculum. Most students
create a programme of four individual elements of study. They choose
three or four A-levels as the core of their academic work, some taught
jointly with Abingdon School. Students can then add a St Katharine’s
Study option to suit their own academic interests.

Beyond

Beyond, the School’s extensive extracurricular programme, is also available to the Junior Department. We encourage students to join in with a range of clubs in order to find something that they love doing. With the majority of Junior activities running during the extended lunch break this allows plenty of time for eating, playing and having fun. There is always a wide array of activities on offer, ranging from drama and art to gymnastics, chemistry club and even Minecraft.

Pastoral and well-being

A sense of community distinguishes St Helen’s Sixth Form – not simply the laughter and fun that
permeates the Sixth Form Centre but a more deeply held set of attitudes and values. There is also a sense of possibility – an energy and vitality that is infectious as students involve themselves in every aspect of school life, combining their studies with myriad opportunities to pursue their chosen interests and passions.

Higher education and careers

School life is full of transitions between key stages of academic and personal development, each step forward allowing students to flourish having made confident, informed and well-supported decisions. Our responsibility is to ensure that students leave school with the knowledge, skills and resilience to thrive in society as successful young adults.

Our higher education preparation events, held every Lent term and focusing on Oxbridge application and medicine/veterinary medicine alternately, are extremely popular and well-attended by our students.

‘a centre of excellence with the interests of each individual pupil at the heart of all that they do’

‘a centre of excellence with the interests of each individual pupil at the heart of all that they do’

‘a centre of excellence with the interests of each individual pupil at the heart of all that they do’

‘a centre of excellence with the interests of each individual pupil at the heart of all that they do’

St Helen's Sixth Form

Academic

Beyond

Pastoral and well-being

Higher education and careers