6th form

Intent

Bank View Sixth Form aims to provide learners with the knowledge, understanding, skills and real life experiences to grow into self-reliant, well rounded and independent young adults.  

By raising confidence, self-esteem and facilitating situational learning, learners will be more able to meet the challenges that await them after leaving Bank View School, whether this be further education, training or paid employment.  

In short Bank View Sixth Form strives to effectively prepare learners for their next step.  

Implementation 

Learners at Bank View Sixth Form follow a personalised curriculum that builds on their personal, social and emotional development, alongside their academic employment skills.  

Learners are taught through classroom and community-based experiences to build students’ self-esteem, independence and to empower students by encouraging learners to explore and acquire new skills in both familiar and new environments-providing opportunities to transfer knowledge. 

Learners enjoy new experiences within enterprise and volunteering, internal or external work placements, community learning, careers advice and guidance and college visits. 

The sixth form staff coordinate with subject specialist leaders in core subjects to ensure prior learning is built upon for knowledge fluency.  

The sixth form staff provide broad opportunities for Learners to develop both academic achievement and personal independence allowing students to move on to the next stage of education, training or employment.  

Externally accredited qualifications: 

• The Duke of Edinburgh Award, to build resilience, self-reliance and a ‘can do’ attitude. Students access The Inclusive hub and Liverpool Council greenspaces. 
• ASDAN Employability Award and Certificate, to build transferable skills including teamwork, working to deadlines, research and self-reflection. 
• WJEC Personal and Social development Award, to gain experiences with the UK military School supporting students to develop confidence, responsibility, respect and become an active citizen in their communities.    
• Functional skills, English, Maths and Digital skills; students increase their functional skills by studying for and completing examinations in English, Maths and Digital Functional Skills, providing students with firm foundations in numeracy and literacy for life and allowing continued progression through school where possible. 
• PSHE, Food Wise and Peer Mentoring short courses; continuing to develop LifeSkills and supporting understanding of RSHE, economic wellbeing, careers and personal safety. 
• Learners take part in life skills and travel training sessions with our in-house travel training team and Liverpool City Council’s SEN team, giving learners the skills to be confident in the community. 
• Learners take part in regular college visits to aid transition to further education and increase confidence in an out of school context.

As well as this the Bank View Sixth Form curriculum also gives a number of leaners the opportunity to gain real life experience in the workplace through our involvement in Liverpool City Council’s successful ‘Intern to Work’ project.  

Through links with The Holiday Inn Express and The Hilton Hotel, our learners have the opportunity to hone skills and build confidence in a real working environment. We are now developing links and exploring development of the programme for the next academic year. 

Teaching and learning is constantly evaluated within sixth form both formally and informally to maintain high standards and to develop new approaches. Sixth form staff have an excellent working relationship and good practice is shared through informal discussion and observation. As well as this, the sixth form staff also take part in the whole school study groups. 

To support learners’ memory retention sixth form schemes of work follow a spiralised curriculum to ensure that key themes are regularly revisited both in and out of classroom environments to support students’ retention of information.   

 Retrieval practices are utilised.  

The sixth form area displays visual images to encourage memory retention. 

Assessment, feedback and progress 

All Learners are rigorously assessed throughout the year using tools such as BKSB for functional skills Maths and English and by teacher assessment through the regular marking of student work, formative and summative assessments.  

The above assessment methods allow sixth form staff to identify Learners who require intervention, informing teacher intervention sheets and curriculum progress reports that are updated termly to improve progress and raise attainment. 

Staff regularly reflect on their practice and make suitable adaptations to planning if necessary to continually improve and update teaching and learning methods. 

The Sixth Form department follows the whole school marking policy.   

All learners are given regular feedback, both written and verbally and have one hour weekly timetabled progress sessions to be given the opportunity to discuss work and correct, add or amend it. 

The lead of sixth form is part of the whole school curriculum team and attends regular CPD through the ‘Liverpool Transforming Teaching programme-ambition institute’ with other curriculum leads within our setting and across the city region. Sixth form staff also regularly liaise with other departments across the school to ensure continuity and build upon student knowledge and schema.  

All staff within sixth form attend regular CPD opportunities.   

Teaching and learning has been enhanced in recent years with the addition of post 16 student teachers, who as well as learning from the established sixth form teaching staff have shared new and exciting teaching ideas of their own.  

Sixth form teachers have attended external regional moderation meetings to share examples of learner work and discuss teaching approaches and/or attended online training. Sixth form staff have also visited similar schools in the area to observe practice and inform planning, as well as attending the curriculum network meetings at Rowan Park.  

Impact 

All students leave Bank View Sixth Form prepared for college, employment and everyday life with the necessary skills, knowledge and experience to succeed in the next stage of their education or career. Learners are prepared for adulthood, they are resilient and confident with a greater experience of college life and employment, they are equipped with self-regulation and life skills.  Several learners have left school with paid employment offers as a direct result of the Bank View Sixth Form curriculum and all students secure positions at colleges or on training courses.