CGGS Prospectus-1

CALDAY GR ANGE GR AMMAR SCHOOLP r o s p e c t u s

Founded in 1636, Calday Grange Grammar School is Wirral’s oldest survivinggrammar school. It was established as a free grammar school on the presentsite by local landowner William Glegg.

Glegg’s vision that it should have ‘continuance and endure for evermore’ hascertainly been fulfilled and over the years, his little 12-pupil school has beentransformed into a dynamic establishment of 1,500 students – 1,000 boys inyears 7 to 11 and 500 male and female students in the Sixth Form.

While we maintain our traditional grammar school ethos we also continue toevolve, nurtured by our past and driven by our sense of present and future.We believe that a successful and fulfilling experience at Calday GrangeGrammar School is based on a powerful partnership between school and home.

Should you have any questions then please don’t hesitate to contact the schooland we can put you in touch with the right people to help you.

We look forward to welcoming you and working alongside you.

Mark RodawayHeadteacher

Welcome

...contributing to the school, the localcommunity and beyond. Students have astrong sense of community and take greatpride in our school.

Students actively participate in the development of our school, building theirsense of responsibility, community spirit and developing their leadership andcommunication skills.

Our vibrant House system enables students in all year groups to work with andlearn from each other. A vast range of inter-house competitions and activities,assemblies and charity events take place throughout the year involving allmembers of our school community.

At Calday Grange Grammar School we are proud of our positive culture ofcontributing to the wider community at both local and international levels.We work in partnership with local primary and secondary schools to support,enthuse and develop students’ learning with an extensive variety ofenrichment opportunities. This spirit is also reflected in our trips to countriesaround the globe.

Each year our students take great pride in supporting and raising money forcharities, taking very seriously their sense of responsibility to others in a lessfortunate position.

A sense of community

Our academic curriculum delivers high quality education taught by well-qualified subjectspecialists; flexibility, both in terms of the choice of subjects and in matching subjects andteaching style to the needs of individual pupils; a platform for learning which ensures asmooth transition to the next stage of a pupil’s education.

All pupils in year 7 to year 9 follow the same broad curriculum that is carefully designedto allow the students to make informed choices about their GCSE subjects.

The Curriculum includes Mathematics, English, Sciences (taught separately as Biology,Chemistry and Physics), Geography, History and RE, creative subjects (Art, Drama, Music,ICT and Design & Technology) and two languages (from a choices of Mandarin, French,German, Spanish, Russian and Latin). The School also offers extra-curricular courses inAncient Greek and Italian.

In years 10 and 11 all students study the subjects that constitute the English Baccalaureateincluding English, Mathematics, the separate sciences, one language and one humanitiessubject. They then also have an unrestricted choice of two others from a selection of 13subjects. This allows some students to study 2 Languages and 2 Humanities if they wish.Extra-curricular courses are also offered to this age group in Business Studies, MediaStudies and Geology.

At AS Level we offer a very wide range of subjects and make every effort to accommodatethe choices made by students, the majority of whom select four subjects at AS and take 3of these through to A2. Each year however there is an increasing number of our moreable students continuing all four subjects in year 13.

The school has a considerable record of success in its students gaining entry to Oxbridgeand the Russell Group Universities.

A broad curriculum

... high quality education taught by well qualified subject specialists

“Students’ enthusiasm is often caught bythe teacher’s obvious delight in the subject”

OFSTED

Confucius Classroom is a project established by Hanban(Office of Chinese Language Council International) todevelop a schools-based Confucius Institute to supportthe teaching of Mandarin in a growing number ofschools and to a growing number of young people.

Calday Grange was originally one of only five schoolsacross the country to take part. As part of this excitingand innovative initiative, Calday Grange GrammarSchool supports other primary and secondary schools,organisations and community groups in languageteaching and learning and the study of China and it’sunique culture.

As a ‘Hub School’, we support five ‘Spoke Schools’ inthe North West.

Students, upon joining the school, are assigned a tutor group and willhave most of their lessons within this group, make new friends andbe supported by their personal form tutor.

Within the school community each student is a member of a ‘house’providing opportunities for students of all ages to work together andsupport each other.

Daily contact with a personal tutor ensures that your child is wellcared for on a daily basis and ensures ongoing consistent supportfor academic development and well-being.

Older students often mentor younger students to help with individualsubject study, organisational skills, homework and revision.

A learning support teacher, is also available to support students withindividual needs and if required, specialist staff are available toprovides careers and health advice.

The form tutor and head of year are responsible for the academicand personal progress of your child and our aim of supporting eachstudent to develop academically and personally would not bepossible without a partnership between school and home.

We value constructive communication between school and parents:our home/school learning agreement sets out how we will worktogether for the well-being of your child. We welcome contact fromparents at any time.

Care, supportand guidance

Extra-curricular activities are a key part of everyday life at Calday Grange.Ofsted inspectors have noted that in no other school that they had visited werethere so many activities covering such a wide range of subjects.

Our aim is to provide and encourage a focus outside of the classroom, wherepupils can simply pursue their personal interests and, at the same time, developtheir confidence and interpersonal skills.

It is a dynamic process. Groups and activities change over the years. The currentrange embraces subjects as diverse as Amnesty International, Chess Club,Debating Society, Programming and Robotics and Quiz Club.

Our drama enthusiasts stage three or four productions year – twice the numberyou would find in most other schools. As you might expect, music is a significantfactor too, from classical ensembles to Battle of the Bands clashes.

For the even more energetic, our groups include Duke of Edinburgh Awards,Sporting groups – for example, Hockey, Rugby, Football, Table Tennis andBasketball – Flying, Sailing and Summer Camp, while travellers enjoy ChinaExchange, Russian Links and Ski Trips. Other international destinations haveincluded Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Poland, South Africa and Iceland. We aretruly an international school.

Those with military interests can join a well-supported and equipped CombinedCadet Force (CCF), with 180 pupil members. The CCF recently celebrated it’s60th anniversary, is one of the few state school contingents in Britain, andrecently received an ‘outstanding’ grade for its Biennial Inspection.

Outside the classroom

...so many activities covering a widerange of subjects and interests

“Sixth Form students benefit froma superb range of enrichment activities”

OFSTED

“Sixth Form students make a verypositive contribution to the school”

OFSTED

In the Sixth Form we prepare our students not only for publicexaminations, but also for the transition to learning in highereducation.

Independent learning is an important aspect of life in the Sixth Form.We provide study periods when pupils can use the school’s excellentlibrary, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) resourcesand private study facilities.

In addition to AS levels and A levels students will also study the AQABaccalaureate. The AQA Baccalaureate gives students an edge in thehighly competitive process of moving from school to employmentand higher education.

By combining core A-level subjects with wider learning andenrichment activities it enables them to display the personal skillsneeded to make this transition successfully, such as leadership,commitment and problem solving.

Sixth Formers take on extra responsibilities in clubs, societies, asprefects, and act as role models for younger pupils.

Sixth Form life

We want to encourage academic excellence that is not encumbered by financialconstraints. Admission therefore to the school is free and financial help may beavailable through our hardship fund, The Bennett Trust, details of which areavailable from the school.

If you would like to know more about the school, to arrange a visit or to arrangefor an admission test, you may contact us at:

Calday Grange Grammar SchoolGrammar School LaneWest KirbyWirralCH48 8GG

Telephone: 0151 625 2727Fax: 0151 625 9851Email: [email protected]

You will also find more information about the school, including achievement andattainment tables, published reports of recent school inspections and schoolopen days on our school website at: www.calday.wirral.sch.uk

Getting in touch

www.creativodesign.co.uk