Target Grades

These are the minimum grades that we expect your young person to be achieving in their subjects given their prior performance at GCSE.
Remember that these are Minimum Target Grades and the aim is to achieve your TG or better in all assessed pieces of work in all subjects.

The College runs Enrichment opportunities for our students. These range from volunteering and Young Enterprise to Duke of Edinburgh, sporting activities and being a part of the Students’ Union.

Your child had the chance to visit the Fresher’s Fair advertising sign ups for these opportunities on September 18th.
Please ask them if they signed up for anything, as these extra activities mean that your son/ daughter may have something extra to talk about in their applications for University/employment.

For details of our safeguarding policy click here.

We take the Safeguarding of our students very seriously.

Your child should inform Reception or other member of staff of:
• Strangers in college (all students, staff, visitors and adult students will have lD lanyards)
• Any concerns about their or other students’ safety eg – corridors blocked, problems in toilets etc.

They should also:
• Keep to the College IT Policy regarding inappropriate sites
• Keep to the College bullying & harassment policy – including cyber—bullying (Facebook, texting etc.)
• Be careful crossing the Plaza at Channelside and the drive to The Abbey Building at The Sixth Form
• Drive <10mph on college roads

Please encourage students to wear their college lanyard ID at all times in College.

The library issues subject text books. It also has a range of books for reading for pleasure and stocks periodicals required for subjects.  These books should be returned in a timely manner, otherwise students run the risk of being invoiced for non-return of college property.

The college usually runs enrichment opportunities for our students. These range from volunteering and Young Enterprise to the Duke of Edinburgh Award, sporting activities and being a part of the Students’ Union.

Your son/daughter had the chance to visit the Freshers’ Fair advertising sign-ups for these opportunities each September. Please ask them if they signed up for anything, as these extra activities mean that your son/ daughter may have something extra to talk about in their applications for university and employment.

Work Experience is not only valuable and rewarding for students, but a course requirement. Students are expected to source their own Work Experience as a true reflection of the job search; however, we have a dedicated Work Experience Team on hand for advice and guidance. As parents/carers, you will be asked for consent via an online education platform called Unifrog before the placement commences.

Inclusion provides services for students with learning difficulties/disabilities. If your child has an EHCP then contact Natasha Kenny (EHCP Lead) for support and advice. Student support in lessons is co-ordinated by Alice Woodward (Student Support Co-ordinator). If a student needs to be assessed for exam considerations such as extra time or a reader then please contact Ruth Niven (College Exams Assessor). Our inclusion team can provide in class support, one to one support outside of class and advice and guidance for parents and students.

In the summer term before joining college we offer transition work to support young people with SEND to access college to ease the change from school to college. Our Inclusion team work with partner schools to make this happen as we recognise this can be a particularly stressful change for young people and their parents. Please contact the college to discuss any SEND needs with a member of the team.

The college provides a comprehensive careers service through Student Services. There is a comprehensive Careers Library with extra resources.

If you are thinking about career options for your child, click here for Parental Guidance, which has useful careers information and advice from the Careers Writers Association.

At our sixth form Rating Lane campus, specialist staff run dedicated sessions and visits for Honours students who will be studying the Extended Project Qualification or a fourth A Level/other qualification. Honours students will be asked to choose a subject, or two in exceptional circumstances, where they want to do a specialised Honours pathway.

Get useful advice from Careermag for Parents.

GCSE subjects/Level 2 subjects: minimum 3 hours per subject per week out of class.

A level subjects/Level 3 subjects: minimum 5 hours per subject per week out of class.

Students have independent learning sessions on their timetables. More information on these can be gained from the Learning Resources Team. These sessions are registered and held in the Learning Hub. These sessions contribute towards your child’s attendance figures and are not optional.

Your young person has come to college primarily to further their learning. They should make the most of trying to study more independently.

There is a high correlation between hard work, attendance, personal organisation and final results.

Students should make good use of ‘private study time’: Study area; learning hub; library; it rooms; unused classrooms; home.

Homework will be set at least weekly in most subjects and work should be done in preparation for the formal recorded assessments to ensure that your young person reaches at least their target level. Reading round each subject, making extra notes, reviewing notes, making revision aids and extra research are all things that can be done out of formal classes and on top of the formal homework set.

Proportal is the software that gives parents and carers access to all the relevant information about a learner’s progress and performance on all parts of their Study Programme. We hope that access to ProPortal will provide you with a clear overview of your child’s progress to date.
This Parent-Carer Guide to Proportal will explain how you can access the ProPortal system from your personal computer, tablet or mobile phone.
We encourage all parents to look at ProPortal regularly and would welcome further discussion around any concerns you may have in relation to your young person’s progress or performance.