The Sixth Form at Kirkham Grammar School provides a challenging yet enjoyable academic education, which is designed to give the best possible preparation for entry to universities and employment. This is coupled with the encouragement of a breadth of interests and the development of personal qualities, in line with the school's traditional holistic approach to education. Currently there are over 170 pupils on roll, many of whom have joined our Sixth Form from other schools at home and abroad.
A wide range of subjects is offered. Academic results are impressive and more than 90% of our pupils progress to higher education. Over many years links have been established with universities, and the school prides itself on the amount of individual care and attention every pupil is given in preparation for entry to higher education. Many Sixth Form pupils achieve places at Oxbridge and other top-ranking universities, benefiting from the professional expertise of an experienced graduate staff.
The Sixth Form Centre, opened in 1995 and significantly refurbished in 2019 and 2021, contains a large study and resource area, where Sixth Form pupils are able to work independently in private study periods. There is a study room, and a large common room where pupils can relax and socialise. There is a coffee bar for the exclusive use of pupils, which serves snacks and drinks from 8.00 am onwards, allowing pupils more flexibility in their eating arrangements. Sixth Form pupils also make extensive use of the Technology Centre and the School Library.
We know that many share our view that it is particularly important, at a time when so much Sixth Form education takes place in large collegiate institutions, that we preserve the warmth, friendship and individual attention which a relatively small Sixth Form can provide. This family ethos has become one of the hallmarks of Kirkham Grammar School: we foster it through small tutor and teaching groups. We are aware that many consider it equally important to have the opportunity to take on leadership roles and responsibilities, and we provide many such opportunities for our Sixth Form pupils to assist staff as Prefects in the running of the school, as House Prefects in control of a flourishing House System and as Officers in a thriving Combined Cadet Force. The promotion of leadership qualities is an important part of the education we seek to provide for our pupils.
Our Sixth Form pupils also enjoy an enviable breadth of co-curricular activities. Renowned as a strong sporting school, with some superb facilities such as our floodlit all-weather pitch, extensive playing fields and sports hall, Kirkham Grammar School also offers much more through the excellence of its Music, Art and Drama Departments and its many clubs and societies.
Sixth Form scholarships and bursaries provide help with fees for a number of our pupils, and we are able to offer a number of boarding places in a small, homely Boarding House. Further information is available from the Registrar.
The main characteristic of the Sixth Form is the close, friendly yet respectful relationships which are formed among and between staff and pupils. This is apparent in the sadness which our pupils feel when leaving the school each summer, and in the way in which they attend our Young Old Kirkhamians' reunions, many years after leaving school. Many remark, quite truthfully, that they never find another community which means so much to them.