Sir William Borlase's Grammar school (Buckinghamshire) URN: 136781
Updated 14 February 2020
Applies to England
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Fair access and partnership plan summary
The above school has made a commitment to deliver the following fair access and partnership plan by 2020 (and in subsequent years) as part of its successful Selective Schools Expansion Fund bid.
Admissions
The school intends to increase its year 7 published admission number (PAN) by 30 places to 150 for September 2020.
After the admission of looked after and previously looked after children, the 10 children eligible for the pupil premium living closest to the school within the catchment area who have scored at least 110 in the selection test (all other applicants will be required to meet the qualifying score of 121 in the test) will be allocated places (such as over 6.5% of places).
After these places are allocated, next priority will be given to children eligible for free school meals living in the catchment area who have reached the qualifying standard (121) in the selection test.
The catchment area will change to include a larger rural area, including locations of relative disadvantage including Stokenchurch and Lane End.
Outreach
New target schools for outreach work are:
- Beechview Primary
- Foxes Piece Primary
- Lane End Primary
- Holy Trinity Primary
The school will also work with Spinfield Primary.
There are high ability pupil premium children attending these schools.
Outreach work has, in the past, focused on Burford School and Danesfield School and this will continue.
The school will work with the headteachers of the above schools to identify disadvantaged high ability pupils likely to benefit from the outreach programme. Because Beechview is not in Sir William Borlase’s (SWBS) catchment, disadvantaged pupils at that school will be supported to be able to access their nearest grammar schools.
An Assistant Head Teacher and two SWBS teachers will lead the development of primary outreach to build and extend relationships with the schools to encourage grammar school aspiration for pupil premium pupils.
The Head and Assistant Head will agree with the primary Head Teachers the most effective mechanisms for reaching the identified pupils to support them. Newly focused outreach activity will include:
Sixth Form one to one mentors for literacy/ numeracy. This will target pupil premium children in the partner schools.
Teacher led workshops at SWBS in literacy and numeracy to support key stage 2, whilst this is not coaching to pass the test, improving literacy and numeracy skills will benefit targeted children when sitting the test.
A cross curricular project, targeting pupil premium children to build academic and personal confidence, the projects will specifically focus on narrowing the attainment gap for disadvantaged pupils in key stage 2, through improving oracy, reading and writing skills.
The school has delivered key stage 2 science lectures for partner schools which engages the pupils, staff have been given follow up activities to embed learning. This will now be refocussed to target pupil premium children. The science activities include a literacy and numeracy element to support key stage 2 performance and therefore 11+.
A transition programme will be established for high ability pupil premium children who are successful in gaining a place in order to ensure they are grammar school ready.
This will include:
Free places on the 5 day summer school and targeted academic support in the summer term of year 6 to help build their confidence, the summer school will include a range of academic and enrichment activities, creative arts, sports, MFL ensuring these children are confident in MFL for grammar school success.
Parents’ involvement in the transition programme, they will be invited to teaching and learning workshops to help them support their children and build engagement.
11+ testing will continue to be hosted at the school, making access to testing for children from range of backgrounds (even though many of these will be applying for other grammar schools out of area).
All Buckinghamshire primaries will continue to be provided with free test familiarisation materials.
Partnership
Most of the partnership work is a continuation of existing activity, but it is being extended to include local primaries with higher numbers of disadvantaged pupils on roll.
The school provides support for Beechview School. Sir William Borlase’s Grammar school (SWBS) supports school leadership, provides PE and a music curriculum and continuous professional development (CPD) for teachers. SWBS sixth formers support literacy and numeracy.
SWBS has developed a partnership with Great Marlow Secondary School (GMS) The Heads of SWBS and GMS are bringing together the heads of the targeted primaries to agree the delivery of the outreach programme above.
SWBS and GMS are also working in partnership to share best practice on curriculum delivery and quality assurance of teaching and learning.
SWBS will continue to hold an annual student leadership conference. It will help prepare students for university, including preparing for interviews and entry examinations.
As a designated MFL hub SWBS supports MFL improvement in 4 secondary schools: Holmer Green, John Colet, Chiltern Hills and Highcrest Academy, by training teachers to deliver a recognised, evidence based, teaching and learning programme. Training is delivered to teachers from all the schools at SWBS and SWBS teachers visit the supported schools to assess progress and support the teachers. The aim is to improve English Baccalaureate (EBacc) outcomes for disadvantaged pupils, to increase key stage 4 MFL GCSE entry and increase key stage 5 uptake.
SWBS works in partnership with GMS to widen access to an academic and stretching curriculum and qualifications at secondary level that equip students for higher education. GMS students will study Economics and Psychology at SWBS. SWBS students study Product Design and Law at GMS.
As a Teaching School the school supports teachers and leaders across the area to work together in Initial Teacher Training, Professional Development and Support. As part of this work, SWBS provides SSAT early, middle, and senior leader training for schools across the area in teaching and learning, data and reporting, safeguarding etc.
SWBS will further develop its leading role in developing mental health awareness by continuing to train local teachers in mental health awareness and support strategies.
We have professional tutors and specialist leaders in education who regularly go out to work with schools on school improvement programmes. These can be two day projects or more long term depending on identified need.
The oracy project focuses on developing teachers through the sharing of teaching practice/materials. SWBS has worked with several local primary schools to date. Foxes Piece and Lane End have not yet been involved. They will now be targeted.
Side by Side is a Bucks school to school support programme. The SWBS Specialist Leaders in Education work on a range of projects, for example the SWBS Assistant Head for Literacy spends a day a fortnight in a local secondary school whose English Department have been identified as needing guidance. She provides training and resources, monitoring and evaluating the teaching and learning.
More generally, SWBS supports curriculum design and delivery in respect of the curriculum progression model, recent support includes the Head of Science working with her opposite number at Cox Green School, Maidenhead on an action plan to increase uptake of triple science. Both schools benefit from the collaboration.
SWBS also leads the Science Learning Partnership that supports the teaching of Science in primary Schools. Its Head of Science and Head of Biology, along with two primary science teachers, lead meetings, create resources and lead INSET. It has traditionally worked with Danesfield, Burford, Spinfield, Beechview and St Peter’s. It will seek to extend the programme to engage Lane End and Foxes Piece in these programmes.
SWBS is a Leading Edge School and has shared areas of expertise with other schools at conferences.