Twickenham Academy opened its new sixth form this week; the first school-based post-16 provision in Richmond that is based in a school, or in our case an academy. Hampton Academy are following suit opening in September 2013. Ipswich Academy are in their second year of provision.

So why open sixth forms and  what does  21st century provision look like?

We have a stage not age model in our academies and as such it is illogical for us to then put a barrier there at 16.  If we accept that students arrive into year 7 with a wide range of abilities, then it must be also true that some will have moved beyond GCSE standards at 16 or earlier.

In both areas there is a lot of post-16 provision already, so apart from the obvious bonus of blending the provision across the year 11/12 boundary, what might be distinctive about the offer?

Conceptually our academies have adopted a number of core values.

1. Everyone is different

2. We need challenging goals and clear requirements

3. Education is for life

4. Life is what you make it.

We believe that we can provide a distinctive offer around these values that leads to young people  achieving more than they thought possible; not just in terms of examination outcomes but in their readiness for work or university. In our  model this means helping them take responsiblity for their progress, developing problem solving skills and resilience, and having clear goals and appropriate strategies to reach them.

So all  our students will set a clear career goal and will receive support to gain experience in this area. In the first year this will mean a weekly  internship in their chosen career area. For many this will shift to a research or extended project in year 2.

Being an international network of schools, and sponsored by some of the biggest companies in the world, we will exploit those links to give students  the chance to become international citizens. So for instance already our  Dance students from Ipswich perform their first piece of work in Gamleby in Sweden and then work with Swedish students to share their dance skills. Students here already spend three days a week working and dancing at one of the UK’s premier dance centres – Dance East. Plans are underway for our Performing Arts students  to travel to Manhattan at Easter to work and perform in our New York school . Further projects this year is to run an international business week in the Spring, and develop a social enterprise to work with schools in East Africa.

It is easy to forget one of the most important elements of our programme. To achieve more than you think possible requires  attention to detail and a clear idea of what you can do each day and each week to achieve those goals. We will maintain a small sixth form (150-180) and small teaching and learning groups. We support the learning with an on-line portal and each student has a personal coach who meets them every week for a one-to-one session.

But above, all we believe that there should be a post-16 option for everyone. We have to be realistic about what students can achieve in two years and certain they are ready to make that shift to advanced study.But for those that are not there there has to be  a chance to take a foundation year to develop a rounded set of qualifications and skills before embarking on the more academic advanced route. For others, now will be the time to turn to a more vocational route. Complementary to our sixth forms will be an apprentice route through our own training provision – Inspire Training.

The two Richmond academies will offer a broad range of subjects but will also build a unique offer around their specialism. The new buildings will offer phenomenal learning spaces. Hampton have already taken charge of their new dance and media facilities  to complement their outstanding drama and music resources. Twickenham at one of London’s gateways and amid a cluster of IT and technology companies will have fantastic facilities for digital media. Already the academy places a pivotal role within sport in the west of London.

We have more opportunities on the way that will inspire our students to continue with positive learning post 16. So watch this space. This will be a very different and exciting option for post 16 students in West London and Suffolk.