At St Mary Magdalene we pride ourselves on being a very supportive and inclusive school. We are aware that Post 16 study can be intense and therefore have a variety of ways to support you academically, pastorally, spiritually and financially to ensure that you reach your full potential.

Academic Support

Many students comment on the increased workload and independent study required to succeed in sixth form. To help you meet this demand, we will provide you with supervised study sessions, which gives you time to complete your independent work in our dedicated study room. Study support assistants are also available to offer guidance with any of your subject work. You will also receive tailored study skills sessions depending on your programme of study, this will provide you with a range of strategies to help you develop your independent study skills. Drop-in and intervention sessions are also available across all of our academic departments to offer you extra help if you need it.

Learning Support

Our dedicated learning support team have a wealth of knowledge and experience to respond to and support a wide range of individual student’s needs. Individual needs are recognised and if you require bespoke support, we will make adaptations to support your needs.

Pastoral Support

As well as ensuring that you are achieving academically, we do everything we can to ensure that you are supported emotionally too. Tutors are fully committed to offering informed and impartial advice and will support you whether it be for the process of applying to universities or apprenticeships. You will belong to a family group where time is set aside every week so that you can have 1:1 sessions, a number of these family group sessions will focus on student wellbeing. Alongside this our federation chaplain is always on hand to support and guide you through your own personal spiritual journey (A number of family group sessions will also focus on your spiritual development).

Career Support

As a student of SMM6, you will have access to an effective and impartial programme of careers education, information, guidance and advice. We will support you in making choices that will enhance your life chances and guide you in choosing career paths that suit your interests and abilities. Our careers programme will develop the values, skills and behaviours as a young person you will need to flourish in the future. Sessions will take place inside the classroom and within professional contexts in order to develop the character attributes which underpin success in employment.

University Support

We are aware that gaining entry to university requires more than just exceptional academic ability. You will need to stand out from the crowd and demonstrate a genuine interest in the subject you wish to study. Your tutor will give you specialist advice and support on the process of making a successful UCAS application and prepare you not only for entry to your chosen degree course but how to be successful as an undergraduate student. Our lecture programme gives you the opportunity to hear from a variety of speakers and influential people and gauge their perspective on different social issues.

Financial Support

We are committed to ensure that all students in our care, regardless of their socio-economic background achieve the highest possible outcomes and can take full advantage of all the amazing opportunities that we have on offer. The 16-19 Bursary Scheme enables the school to allocate funds directly to students who face financial circumstances that may prevent them from participating in post 16 education. You will be given full details of the criteria and process for applications at the start of the academic year should you need to access it.