Thursday 14 March 2019
The Grammar School and Sixth Form Centre (GS&SFC) has been graded as excellent or very good for all quality indicators in a recent inspection.
The inspection, carried out by Terry Carr Consultancy using the Education Scotland inspection framework, said that students are well prepared for the "complexities of the world outside and beyond that of the classroom and school."
In September 2018, Kieran James was appointed as Acting Headteacher of the GS&SFC. This followed the announcement from the Committee for Education, Sport & Culture that previous Headteacher, Liz Coffey, would lead the new 11-18 secondary school as Executive Headteacher.
Staff at the GS&SFC have been praised for their carefully tailored support in meeting the needs of all students - approximately 95% of students make the at least expected levels of progress in core subjects. The report also acknowledged that A Level results were "higher than predicted values, based upon students' GCSE results". The students were described as respectful towards one another and staff, and the inspectors commended the strong sense of community across the school.
Acting Headteacher, Kieran James, and his leadership team were praised for their "very effective leadership". The report described the approach to improving the school as rigorous, systematic and very effective, identifying this as a strong driver in raising levels of attainment and achievement in both the Grammar School and the Sixth Form Centre.
Mr James, said:
'The inspection team was clear that achieving a grade of 'Excellent' is rare and exceptional. I am delighted that the report highlights not only the outstanding progress our students make in their academic studies, but also in their personal development and wider achievements in areas such as the Duke of Edinburgh Awards programme. It is particularly pleasing that the whole school team has been recognised for their hard work, personalised care and commitment to the young people in our school over what has been a terrific journey of continuous improvement for the school. We are truly grateful for the support and help of our partners in the community, who have been a key part of the school's success.'
Liz Coffey, Executive Headteacher, said:
'The recent inspection report for the Grammar School and Sixth Form Centre is a credit to the hard work of all who have contributed to the success of the school. As former Headteacher, I am immensely proud of these achievements. A selective cohort has meant the Grammar School has had different challenges to their Colleagues in the High Schools and as Executive Headteacher, I am excited about bringing together the expertise found across all schools, and working with staff to build a system which provides excellence for all in the future. I am determined to ensure that our new school model benefits from the successes achieved in all of our schools, and provides the highest quality education for every student.'
Deputy Richard Graham, Vice President of the Committee for Education, Sport & Culture, said:
'This excellent and well-deserved report is welcome confirmation that the staff and students of the Grammar School and Sixth Form Centre have maintained their high standards throughout the current period of transition from a selective to non-selective model for secondary education. The report clearly demonstrates that Guernsey is well-served not only by the teaching and non-teaching staff at Les Varendes but also by their colleagues in the three high schools who have successfully prepared many of their students to take their place as confident members of the Sixth Form Centre.
'On behalf of the Committee I thank and congratulate all concerned on a report which offers huge encouragement for the next stage of our educational journey towards the establishment of one 11-18 school and its two colleges each of which will have its own integral sixth form.'
The Grammar School & Sixth Form Centre is the last secondary school to be inspected using the current Education Scotland framework. Consultation with education professionals is under way on the draft new schools' inspection framework which has been developed by the Committee for Education, Sport & Culture in conjunction with Ofsted who is taking over as the inspectorate of Bailiwick schools from September this year.
The full Inspection Report is available in the 'downloads' section on this page.
