OXTEDSCHOOL BRINGING OUT THE BEST
The school’s emphasis on equality of opportunity is demonstrated well by the care it takes to make sure that students make good progress. Parent
WELCOME
Welcome to Oxted School, part of the Howard Partnership Trust.
Established in 1929with 22students,the School todayhasnearly 2000students; making it one of the country’s largest secondary schools.Oxted is firmly rooted in the local community andcombinesthe traditions andvaluesof its heritage with the verybestfacilities andlatest developments in Quality First Teaching. Our size allows us to provide avery broad curriculum and an extensive range of opportunities for our students. However, weworkvery hard to makealarge school‘feel’smallandensureour students haveaclearsenseof belonging. Consequently,webelieve that students get the bestof both worlds:all the diversity andopportunity that alarge school brings with the personalisedcare, guidance and support asmallschool offers.
Maurice Devenney Principal
Asacomprehensiveschool committed to providing opportunities for all, weset ambitious andchallenging targets for all students andwork together with them andtheir parents to meet or exceedthem. Our staffemployarange of teaching stylesto challenge students, encourage independence anddevelop the broader skillsetthey will needin life.However, ayoungperson’stime in the classroom providesonly apart of whatthey learn atschool andweare committedto ensuring that students benefitfrom ahuge variety of exciting, enrichment experiences.
In September2015,Oxted School formalised its partnership with The Howard Partnership Trust (THPT), aSurrey basedMulti-Academy Trust (MAT), and joined THPT. Thisinnovation in high quality partnership work hasenabled usto accelerate our school improvement journey andrealise our aims for the youngpeople weserve.
HIGHASPIRATIONS
Thefirst thing students aretold whentheyarrive atOxted School isto Aim High,webelieve that high aspirations areone of the key components of success.
Asacomprehensive school, weknowthat the challenges wesetour students needto bepersonalised.Wedo this bysetting demanding academictargets for all students andthen working collaborativelywith them and their families to ensure these targets are either met or exceeded.Wework hard to ensure students are guided towards the opportunities which will enablethem to achieveto the bestof their ability.
From the momentstudents enter Oxted School,they are encouragedto think independently, engage in teamwork and askquestions when facedwith a problem. AnOxted studentdoesnot ‘give up’ whenfacedwith achallenge but instead embraces it. Creativity, ingenuity andresilienceare keysto successin the modern world andweexpect all our studentsto achieve– not because we tell them whatto think, but because weteach them howto think.
SeizeOpportunity
Teachers take an interest in your views and encourage participation and questions.
Modern resources encourage us to work independently but teachers offer support as well. Student
BringingouttheBest
I’m so pleased with Oxted School’s commitment and great support. I wish my school had been like that! Parent
SUPPORTANDCOMMUNITY
Our strong School community is underpinnedbyour fiveHouses: Detillens, Foyles, Grants, Stocketts andTenchleys.
All students are allocated to aHouse. The house systemprovidesour students with asenseof identity andcommunity;inter-House competitions are aregular feature of life at Oxted School. Their well-being, behaviour, attendance and progressare overseenbyayear team dedicatedto that year group who move with them asthey go up through the school.
Weplace great importance on students’ academic progress which is carefully monitored byclassteachers, form tutors and year progress leaders.In partnership with parents, these teams will ensure that each studenthasthe best opportunities to succeed.This pastoral structure underpins our intervention programme, ensuring students are constantly challenged andsupported sothat they can makeprogress acrossall their subjects.
The greatestpositiveinfluenceon our studentcommunity is the rest of our studentbody.That is why weencourage mixed-ageactivities acrossthe School.
Wehave astrong andwell-established peer-mentoring programme ledby senior students,andmanyof our Sixth Formers take on the role in supporting in subject areas to engage younger students andassistthem in their learning.
Students at Oxted are always encouraged to expresstheir views. Our School Council discussesandshapesthe future of the Schoolandstudents areregularly askedfor their input on our School ImprovementPriorities. Weknowthat successisnot downto one individual,that it is ateam effort.
ABESPOKECURRICULUM
A real strength of the school is the extensive careers programme. Pupils receive detailed guidance on their possible future options. Ofsted2018 The curriculum is a strength of the school. Pupils enjoy a varied diet of subjects at key stage 3 and have excellent opportunities to explore their passions in key stage 4. Ofsted2018
Theworld is changing constantly, andyoungpeople today needacurriculum that will preparethem effectively for life beyondOxted.
All staffat the School are committed to providing adynamiccurriculum based on the skillsandknowledge our students will needwhen they leavethe School asyoung adults.Whether they choose to go on to higher education or directly into training or employment,wehave arange of curriculum pathways that will prepare students for Sixth Form andbeyond.
All students followour broad andengaging curriculum when they join the school. When they maketheir option choices during Year 8,they are guidedonto learning pathways that have beencarefullydesignedto respondto students’ needs andabilities, ensuring that eachindividual hasthe bestchance of success.
Many of our youngpeople will followaGCSEor English Baccalaureate pathway whilst somechoose to supplementthis with anumber of BTECor vocational qualifications. Whatever choices they make,weare dedicatedto ensuring that students choose subjects they both enjoy and will succeedin.
HighAspirations
INCLUSIONTEAM
The Inclusion Teamprovide in-class support and individual education programmes for students with learning difficulties.
The team work alongsidesubject specialists helping to differentiate the curriculum sothat those students with special educational needs are able to achievetheir potential.
The Centre for Students with Visual Impairment is resourced to supportup to 16studentsin the mainstream school. It iswell equipped andstaffedto meet the needsof studentswho are blind or haveavisualimpairment, of all abilities between the agesof 11and19.
Pupils are keen to contribute in class and happy to share their ideas in discussions. They are confident about giving their opinions without prompting and work happily in groups.
Ofsted2018
OpportS u e n izeity
A significant strength of the school is the range of opportunities that pupils have to learn beyond the classroom. There is a wide range of after school clubs, including sports, music, drama and the arts. Pupils are encouraged to take part and as a result many pupils achieve great success at both the regional and national level. Ofsted2018
FANTASTICLIFEEXPERIENCES
Whilst academic successis vital, webelieve successis aboutmore, soweencouragestudents to seizeopportunities beyondthe classroom.
Our students take part in regular Inter-House competitions in PE,Science, Music,Maths andother subjects.Weaim for everystudentto go on our Year8 camp, asit developsmanyof the team-building andleadership skillsrequired both in School andlife beyond.The majority of our students alsoundertake the Dukeof Edinburgh Award and manygo on to complete international voluntary expeditions, with recent destinations including Borneo, India, Uganda and Costa Rica.Other opportunities include dayvisits,fieldtrips andcollaborative workshops with our feederschools.Residential trip opportunities include our ski trip, language exchanges,foodand culture expeditions and visits to places of historical interest.
Weoffer an extensiverange of enrichment activities. Our Drama department produces an annual School showor musical, which invariably involves acast of over 100.Our Music department boasts astrong choir, orchestra andband, as well asmanysmaller,specialist groups.
ThePEdepartment runs awide range of sports clubsat lunch time andafter school andwetake our thriving sports teams to neighbouring schools for competitive fixtures. Many of our students competeat county leveland some evenatnational level.
There is something for everyoneat Oxted School. Knowing that our most successfulstudents are those who engage fully with school life,weencourage all students to take advantage of the fantastic opportunities on offer.
FACILITIES
Thefacilities on offeratOxted School aresecondto none.Asthe School hasgrown,wehavebeenableto create dedicated facilities which arewell suited to the learning of eachsubject.
Our buildings housing Science,Art, Maths, DesignTechnology and Drama have beenpurpose-built. In addition, there are specialist hubs: the Music department hasarecording studio andpractice rooms,big enough to rehearse large ensembles,while Dance studentshave the useof alarge andairy dance studio complete with sprung floor. Extensive ICT facilities include twelve dedicated teaching rooms equipped with amix of PCSandMACs,featuring the latest video editing, computer programming plus subject specific specialist software. For sport andPE,wehave extensivefields,an all weather pitch, nine hard tennis courts, ahigh quality sports hall andaswimming pool, all onsite.
SAFEGUARDING
AtOxted School wearecommitted to safeguarding andpromoting the welfare of children.
All adults who workwith pupilsareDBSchecked. WefollowSurrey Local Authority’s safeguardingprocedures andwhere necessarywork in partnership with other agencies that support children andfamilies, to ensure weaddress the needsof our pupilswith sensitivity, careandconfidentiality.
Teachers at Oxted are always looking out for students and how they can help them in their work.
Student
THE HOWARD PARTNERSHIP TRUST
TheHowardPartnership Trust(THPT) grewout of along-standing federation, the first in Surrey, originally formedin 2007atthe requestof the DfE andSurreyLA.
The successof this federation between Howard of Effingham, anOfsted Outstanding school and Thomas Knyvett College resulted in the formation of THPT, when the partnership’s first primary school, Kenyngton Manor joined in 2013.The Trust nowcomprisesadiverserange of primary andsecondary schools acrossSurrey.
All our schools uphold ashared visionin which there is acommitment to ‘bringing out the best’in youngpeople of all abilities and aptitudes,so increasing their life-chances. Thoseworking in partnership with THPT are justly proud of the strength of collaboration andinclusion present in eachof our schools.Webelieve that byembedding aculture built around our ethos of partnership, inclusion, excellenceand energy,our vision can succeed.The inclusiveethos of the MAT is enhanced byanumber of Special Centres attached to mainstream settings.
Schoolswithin THPT remain local schools andretain their own unique features to servetheir local communities. However, they are all underpinned with the sameguiding principles:namely to ensure that afirstrate education is provided through consistently high quality teaching which facilitates excellent learning within an inclusive,caring, vibrant environment. THPT schools provide a student-centred, broad curriculum with apersonalisedapproach where the individual student lies atthe heart of everything wedo.
There are strong links with other schools in the trust that support assessment and help teachers seek out the best practice…Staff are very positive about the support that they receive and welcome the opportunities to meet and share best practice with their colleagues.
Ofsted2018
Photography by Daniel Jarvis