Windsor Boys' and Windsor Girls' to set up joint sixth form

Two major secondary schools in Windsor are setting up a joint sixth form – with pupils from each able to freely move between the two.

The Windsor Boys’ School and Windsor Girls’ School are embarking on a new era which the trust that runs it, Windsor Learning Partnership, says will greatly expand their horizons.

The trust believes this move will offer ‘greater choice and opportunity for local young people’ both currently at the school and yet to join.

This new Windsor Schools Sixth Form seeks to combine the strengths of two established schools to offer students the ‘best of both worlds’.

Jane Davies, executive headteacher across the Windsor Upper Schools, said:

“A co-educational experience will prepare them for the world of work in a much better, more practical way. It will be enormously beneficial for them.”

Teachers and students will be able to walk fairly easily between sites, which allows for a set-up where certain subjects are taught at one site and others at the other.

This, said Ms Davies, will mean pupils get the best teacher for the subject across both schools – and will also increase the class sizes a bit.

“They’ll still be small groups, but instead of having three students doing physics at the boys’ school and two of the girls’, a class of five will make for a better classroom experience,” said Ms Davies. “They’ll be able to bounce ideas of each other more.”

The sixth form is also planning to ‘diversify’ slightly and offer more BTEC courses, which can cover specialisms such as business, engineering, computing and suchlike.

This will prepare students for a different type of further education, and thus a different pathway through adulthood.

There will also be an enrichment programme helping students develop their talents in music, drama, and sport; opportunities to perform and compete at local and national levels; and broader options for leadership development and volunteer projects.

“The student voice is telling us they want to compete against [or work with] the [other school]. It will bring a more vibrant community together,” said Ms Davies.

Asked if there were any concerns by students or parents about making the sixth forms co-ed, Ms said on the contrary, they welcome the move, which sees old friends from middle school reunited.

“[Pupils] have been separated for good reason so they can progress rapidly. Now the sixth forms are telling us it’s really nice to meet those people again after three years.”

The sixth forms are also aiming to be ‘very outward-facing’ – ie open to more external students coming in.

“That will add another dimension to the community spirit of the sixth form,” said Ms Davies.

Parents and students in Windsor are being invited to discover more about the proposed Windsor Schools Sixth Form at the two schools’ open evenings.

These are on Tuesday, November 11 at Windsor Girls’ School and Thursday, November 13 at The Windsor Boys’ School, both starting at 6pm.

At 6pm there will be presentations from senior leaders, followed by the chance to meet subject teachers and hear directly from current students from each school about their Sixth Form experience.

Presentations will be the same at each event, while the tours that follow will highlight the features unique to each site.