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Description
The ethos of our school is characterised by a friendly, caring atmosphere of mutual respect. We are genuinely committed to ensuring that each student fulfils his or her potential - academically as well as personally and socially. We place great emphasis on active and independent learning. Standards and expectations are high and our students are happy and well motivated. Students’ attitudes towards school are very good. In addition, we extend and enrich our curriculum with a wide range of out of class activities and an exciting programme of field study visits for each year group.
We are a Co-operative school and work in close collaboration with the other secondary school in Letchworth to provide a broader sixth form curriculum as well as opportunities for lower years to work more collaboratively.
We are delighted in the increased popularity and success of The Highfield School. At GCSE our Value Added and now Progress 8 are significantly above the national average even though our cohorts are below national average in terms of their ability profile. Our A-Level results continue to be strong with all subject areas delivering national average or better value added. In fact, in 2012 (the last year for which national figures are available) we sent a greater proportion of students to University and more specifically to Russell Group universities than any other school in North Hertfordshire.
Highfield is an openly managed school where staff development is an essential feature. Opportunities are provided for contributing to whole school development planning and performance management helps identify individual targets for professional growth. The Highfield staff are an excellent team who work well together to provide excellent opportunities for students to develop to the full. Our focus is on effective learning and teaching and staff work collaboratively to share good practice. Recent significant improvements at KS3, GCSE and A level indicate the impact of our work. We have a commitment to sharing good practice in developing leaders, monitoring support, personalised learning and practitioner research.
The Highfield School having been completely rebuilt, enjoys an attractive location in a pleasant residential area of Letchworth, the world’s first Garden City. The town of Letchworth is conveniently situated for access to the A1(M) and has fast train services to London and Cambridge. The school has recently undergone a complete rebuild and provides accommodation for around 1100 students, including approximately 180 in the Sixth Form. The number of students eligible for free school meals and the proportion of students with SEN are just below the national average. 22% of our roll are from an ethnic minority background.
We are part of the newly formed North Herts Teaching Alliance with the benefits that working across a group of schools brings for our CPD programme.
If you would like further details concerning the school, please do not hesitate to contact us. The full Ofsted report from the inspection in can be found on our web site www.highfield.herts.school.uk along with an outline of our development plan.
Lucy Miles
Headteacher
September 2020