Senior School
The Upper School is housed in the main mansion house and has specialist classrooms, the majority of which are equipped with interactive whiteboards in order to accommodate the full range of learning styles.
In the Upper School, classes are small. Our subject specialist staff employ a range of strategies to ensure effective learning.
Pupils in Key Stage 3 follow a traditional curriculum, based on the National Curriculum requirements and are taught by subject specialist with additional training to ensure a though understanding of the needs of neurodiverse learners and appropriate strategies to support them.
In addition to the subjects in KS2 home cooking is introduced in year 7 for all pupils.
Pupils in year 8 start to work towards Functional Skills exams in English, Maths & ICT. Towards the end of year 8 those who are ready sit Entry Level exams progressing at their own pace.
KS4 provision is offered for those pupils who require continued specialist support. The curriculum offered in this Key Stage is reduced in order to cater for the needs of the pupils and takes into consideration the resources available in the school.
At Key Stage 4, pupils study English, maths, combined science, RE, photography & art at GCSE level although pupils may take Functional Skills qualifications in addition to or instead of GCSEs depending on their ability within individual subjects. Home Cooking is taught to all pupils as part of the Life Skills curriculum and pupils maybe entered for BTEC Level 2 (GCSE 9-4 equivalent),
BTEC Level 1 (GCSE 1-3 equivalent), They also follow a programme of PSHE, PE, and careers, outdoor learning, social skills sessions in which no exams are taken.
We recognise that Holme Court students typically join us years behind their peers in English and Maths, because of their dyslexia and/or dyscalculia. While many students will take GCSE English and Maths in Year11, alongside their other subjects, our pathways in these subjects enable us, where appropriate, to enter students for other qualifications as “stepping stones” towards GCSE, and for them to continue studying until they are ready to successfully take the exam in the Sixth Form.
ICT is an area in which many of our pupils flourish, and it is utilised across the curriculum to aid pupils’ learning.
Careers Guidance and Work Experience are an important part of Year 10, while Year 11 includes mock exams and preparation for external examinations.