Second Years (Years 5 & 6)

At the start of the Lower Second Year (Year 5), pupils are mixed into new forms that stay together until the end of the Upper Second Year (Year 6).

Second Years no longer have most of their lessons in their form room with their form tutor. Instead they travel to different parts of the School to be taught by subject specialists. Pupils learn to take greater responsibility for their work, to be better organised and to explore new opportunities. They complete their Key Stage 2 education with the added dimensions of Engineering, Classical Civilisation and Latin.

Form tutors and senior pastoral staff play an important role in developing a pupils’ resilience and self-confidence, guiding them on how they should respond to mistakes and disappointments. Interaction between year groups is fostered through our buddy system in which pupils are asked to mentor First Years. They retain their own older ‘buddies’ in the Third Year (Years 7 and 8), together making up a ‘buddy family’ within one of the four houses.