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E X C E L L E N C E F O R A L L

2 KIRKBY HIGH SCHOOL

“TH E ‘DR IVE AN D DETE RM I NATION’ OF K I RK BY H IG H S CHO OL’S H EADTEACH E R

B I LL LEYLAN D I S HAVI NG A “P OS IT IVE I M PACT” ON MOVI NG TH E S CHO OL FORWARD.” Ofsted 2013

KIRKBY HIGH SCHOOL 3

Thank you for taking the time to read our prospectus. Kirkby High School is a school for pupils aged 11-16. We are a strong, supportive, mixed comprehensive community with around 950 pupils and 100 staff situated in north Liverpool.

We believe Kirkby as a community deserves a High School of the very highest quality. Together with the support of parents and governors, we are embracing every opportunity to further enhance the experiences we offer.

Through sustained and rapid improvement, our community will continue to grow into a flagship of excellence within the region. This supports our school philosophy: Excellence for All.

That is why we make a pledge to Kirkby parents that Kirkby High School will care for their children, helping them become part of a calm culture built on mutual respect. They will be encouraged to have the very highest of aspirations and given the support to achieve those goals. They will also be encouraged to help others to do the same.

We will ensure they are taught outstanding lessons by dedicated staff who will develop their creative curiosity. Pupils will enjoy a wide range of inspirational experiences, within lessons and during extra-curricular activities.

Our aim is for Kirkby High School to become the very best school possible, helping our students grow into successful, mature, responsible members of society. We will achieve this by nurturing natural talent, empowering the young people in our charge to develop skills and acquire essential knowledge, giving them an outstanding grounding for the competitive world of further education and employment.

This is a caring community. We form strong positive relationships, based on mutual respect and aim to know each child as an individual. As a parent myself, I know how important it is for children to be offered excellent opportunities at school, as well as the support and encouragement to take those opportunities.

I hope you find all the information you need in this prospectus. If you wish to know more, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. Bill Leyland Headteacher

Welcome to Kirkby High School


To meet that goal we deliver:

> High quality teaching within a caring, respectful and safe environment.

> Excellent progress monitoring and guidance plus regular communication with parents or carers.

> A broad curriculum which includes GCSEs and BTec diplomas to allow pupils to explore themselves and their subjects to increase understanding and help each individual succeed.

> Outstanding facilities for sport and academic study within bright, modern buildings.

> State-of-the-art ICT computer suites to teach financial and new media skills plus design technology facilities where skills such as Computer Aided Design and manufacturing are taught.

> Educational workshops in partnership with Barclaycard, which have seen exchange visits taking place between our pupils and schoolchildren from Namibia.

> Residential weekends to improve English and Maths skills, which include sporting and team building events and overseas visits to support our Modern Foreign Languages courses.

> Inspiration through sport, with pupils training alongside Paralympic athletes and being encouraged to become Young Leaders. We also focus on making sport inclusive and educational, with events including Girls in Sport Week, Healthwise and National School Sports Week.

> A wide range of after-school clubs including gymnastics, netball, football, dance and cross country.

What we offerWe aim to provide the best possible experience for our pupils throughout their time at Kirkby High School to ensure at the end of Year 11 they can achieve their full potential.


Our VisionThrough sustained and rapid improvement, our school community will continue to grow into a flagship of excellence within the region.

Our ValuesWe believe Kirkby as a community deserves a High School of the very highest quality, where Kirkby parents can trust their children will:

> Be cared for in, and part of a calm culture built on mutual respect

> Be encouraged to have the very highest aspirations and given the support to achieve those goals

> Be taught outstanding lessons by dedicated staff

> Develop their creative curiosity and independent thinking skills

> Enjoy a wide range of inspirational experiences, within lessons and during extra curricular activities

> Grow into mature, responsible, thoughtful and successful members of society


“ STU DE NTS ADM I RE AN D RE S P E CT TH E WORK THAT YOU AN D YOU R C OLLEAG U E S HAVE

D ON E TO E STAB L I S H A CALM ATMOS P H E RE AROU N D TH E S CHO OL. ” Ofsted 2013

RespectEverything we do at Kirkby High School is based on the fundamental principle of respect. Respect for others, respect for yourself and respect for your community.

From day one the expectation of ‘respect for all’ is at the forefront of all we do. At Kirkby High School we want to help all our pupils succeed and in order to achieve that our behaviour policy applies to the following areas:

> The journey to and from school

> In the classroom

> Between lessons

> During break times

> In the dining room

By stressing the need to maintain good behaviour at all times we create a strong and secure learning environment for the entire school community.

When your child arrives at Kirkby High School they will not be a stranger to the school or its pupils as we:

> Arrange Kirkby High School staff visits to partner primary schools to work with Key Stage 2 pupils.

> Run weekly transition lessons to support years 4-6 in our partner primary schools in Maths, English, Drama, Food Technology, Languages, Dance, History and Sports.

> Invite pupils from partner primary schools to take part in activities at Kirkby High School.

> Host Year 6 pupils who will be attending Kirkby High School in September for a full day in their form group during the summer term.


Moving from primary school Leaving primary school to attend secondary school can be stressful for pupils. That is why Kirkby High School works hard to make sure the transition is smooth.

“TH E WAY TH E STAF F S P EAK TO MY DAUG HTE R I S B R I LL IANT, S H E REALLY D OE S F E E L

THAT H E R OP I N ION I S VALU E D AN D TAK E N ON B OARD, AN D K NOWS THAT ALL TH E STAF F

ARE AP P ROACHAB LE AN D WI LL I NG TO L I STE N TO WHAT S H E HAS TO SAY. ” Parent

We do this in a number of ways:

> Questionnaires – students are surveyed at different times during their school careers for their opinions on a wide range of school matters including behaviour in class, effectiveness of anti-bullying procedures and quality of teaching. Their responses help to inform school self-review and improvement. This is how we arrived at the choice of uniform and the school name.

> School Leaders – as part of our focus on the “whole person”, students are given extensive leadership training and opportunities from year 9. Those who successfully become school leaders have greater responsibilities, contributing to decisions affecting the school.

> Year and school councils – a boy and girl from each form group meet regularly to represent the views of their form and year group in discussions about school matters.

> Headteacher’s forum – two students from each form meet with the headteacher for them to put forward ideas for improvement as well as ask questions about the running of the school. This forum is also used to test out potential developments.

> Assisting with the appointment of staff – a number of our students are trained to interview applicants and provide feedback to the appointment panel to help inform the decision making process.


Hearing our students’ voiceAt Kirkby High School we believe it is important to involve our students in decisions which affect them in school.

“SCHOOL HAS ALWAYS LOOKED

AFTER M E , BUT NOW IT H ELPS M E

WORK HARD AN D GET BETTER

GRADES THAN I THOUGHT I EVER

COULD. TH E TEACH ERS ARE

ENCOURAGI NG AN D MAKE US

BELI EVE I N OURS ELVES .” Student


Wider opportunities

> Representing the school on sports teams in football, netball, cross country and other sports.

> Learning to play a musical instrument.

> Becoming a Young Leader in sport.

> The chance to travel on overseas exchange trips with Modern Foreign Languages to experience new cultures.

> Opportunity to learn about business through our network of local partners.

> Charity work with groups including Action Aid, Sport Relief and Comic Relief.

> Valuable work experience within Performing Arts sector for drama students.


“ I N YOU R RE LAT IVE LY S HORT T I M E AS P R I NCI PAL YOU HAVE I N S P I RE D YOU R

C OLLEAG U E S AN D B ROUG HT TH E M TO A REAL I SAT ION OF WHAT I S P OS S I B LE I N

TE RM S OF H IG H OUTC OM E S FOR STU DE NTS . ” Ofsted 2013

School expectationsStudents feel secure at Kirkby, in part because our expectations for their conduct are clear, based on mutual respect and applied fairly.

We expect students will:

> Be rewarded for consistently following the Kirkby Code.

> Be clear on the set of expectations.

> Follow a set of sanctions according to any transgression of these expectations.

This means a curriculum which stretches each child without inhibiting by:

> Providing opportunities for diverse study.

> Ensuring outcomes are matched to the best chances for further study or employment.

> Nurturing creativity and talent.

For more information contact Mr Stevenson on 0151 4778710.

Options

Currently the students study four optional subjects as well as English, Maths, Science, PE and PD. This system is under review for this year.


Curriculum We aim for all students to be the best they can be.

“STU DE NTS RE C O G N I S E THAT U N DE R YOU R LEADE RS H I P TH E S CHO OL I S I M P ROVI NG AN D

E M E RG I NG AS A P LACE OF LEARN I NG OF WH ICH TH EY ARE I NCREAS I NG LY P ROU D.” Ofsted 2013

Our oversubscription criteria are:

1. Children who are cared for by the Local Authority or who were, in certain circumstances, previously looked after by the Local Authority.

2. Children for whom the Council accepts there are exceptionally strong medical or welfare reasons for admission.

3. Children with a brother or sister already attending the preferred centre for learning and who will still be attending at the time of transfer.

4. Children attending named area partnership primary schools.

5. Remaining places are then allocated by measuring the distance from the child’s home to the centre for learning in a straight line (‘as the crow flies’). Those nearest the centre for learning have priority.


AdmissionsA full statement of our admissions criteria can be found at www.knowsley.gov.uk/pdf/secondary_brochure.pdf


SENIn line with our whole school philosophy of “Excellence for All” students with additional needs are carefully and comprehensively assessed in their primary school.

All students with additional needs in year 6 who have a place at the school are visited at their primary school personally by our SENCO, with their needs assessed and an action plan produced.

For some students with these needs a “platinum” pathway is used, mirroring the primary school experience with one specialist teacher for the vast majority of their lessons. Their needs are continually assessed throughout key stage 3 and decisions are made around their readiness for inclusion in mainstream classes, individually for each subject area.

The level of intervention and assessment in platinum is very high, ensuring we continually review the most appropriate curriculum diet for those children.

Aside from the platinum groups, children are given access to the latest in core skill intervention strategies to ensure readiness for key stage 4.


Results For 2013 Year 11: A*–C 85.2% (up 11.2%) | A*–C (inc EM) 43.3% (up 8.7%) | EBacc 3.45% (static)

“MY DAUG HTE R HAS HAD A G REAT EX P E RI E NCE AT TH E S CHO OL AN D S I NCE TH E RE CE NT CHANG E

I N LEADE RS H I P IT ’S CLEAR THAT EX AM RE S U LTS WI LL C ONTI N U E TO RI S E R AP I DLY.” Parent

KHS best ever results5 A*–C including English and Maths

50

45

40

35

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25

20

15

10

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100

90

80

70

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50

40

30

20

10

02009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2010 2011 2012 2013

Year Year

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Perc

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The Rowan Learning Trust The Rowan Learning Trust was established in May 2012 with the aim of maximising the potential of all children, students and adults that the Trust works with.

“RE CE NTLY MY DAUG HTE R HAS F E LT MORE I NCLU DE D AN D PART OF A C OM M U N IT Y

FO CU S S E D ON G ET T I NG TH E B E ST P OS S I B LE FOR ALL CH I LDRE N . ” Parent

The Trust was established by the Governing Body and Leadership Team of Hawkley Hall High School following successful school to school support over a number of years and across a large number of schools in the North West. That school to school support was based on the belief that teachers should help each other to develop professionally so that the life chances of the children and students in their care can also improve. The school to school support brought tangible benefits to all involved.

Underlining the Trust’s commitment to maximising potential for all are these simple but powerful values:

1. Caring about, and for, children, young people and adults

2. Providing safe and nurturing settings

3. Creating opportunities for continual growth and development

4. Developing exceptional professionals

5. Delivering a culture of mutual respect

6. Fostering a learning community

For Kirkby High School this means that a wealth of expertise, built up over many years of successful school improvement in a number of contexts, is available to further support our community as and when we identify specific needs. To date that expertise has been used to support the teaching of English, Maths and Science, whole school teaching and learning and ICT infrastructure. Over the coming years, all schools in the Trust will benefit from the sharing of best practice and a common commitment to the young people and adults it influences.


GCSE Equivalents

28%

77%

31%

72%34% 35%

74%

43% 85%

Kirkby High School, Bracknell Avenue, Liverpool L32 9PPTelephone: 0151 4778710 Fax: 0151 4778715Email: [email protected] Web: www.kirkbyhighschool.net

Kirkby High School is a member of The Rowan Learning TrustRegistered Office: Hawkley Hall High School, Carr Lane, Wigan, WN3 5NY. Company Number 8010464

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