PARENTS of Ridgewood School pupils and its feeder primaries have been asked to give their views on a proposal to extend the school to include students up to the age of 19.
The plan is part of Doncaster Council's borough-wide Building Schools for the Future programme.
R
idgewood's Headteacher Mr Chris Hoyle is keen to see a sixth form created which, he says, will have an impact throughout the rest of the school.
Mr Hoyle told the Newsletter: "The regular presence on site in both the working and responsibility roles that Post-16 students will occupy will reinforce our messages about progression and higher ambitions.
"The lessons about necessary growth of personal responsibility and service within a community will be clearly and visibly reinforced.
"The potential for harnessing the talent, commitment and enthusiasm of students beyond Year 11 is immense and is a key element in our belief that Post 16 provision at Ridgewood is necessary, desirable, and
beneficial.
"The anomaly of being an 11-16 school in a predominantly 11-18/19 framework has been a longstanding feature for Ridgewood. The benefits will be felt throughout the age range of the school, not least in the sense of being able to support innovation and developing achievement throughout the age range and giving a greater sense of continuity and uninterrupted progression."
Some Ridgewood students already study at AS and A2 level in the school's specialist subject areas.
Consultation leaflets have been distributed to pupils at the relevant schools, and members of the public can also find out further details and express their views by visiting
www.doncaster.gov.uk/bsfconsultation or contacting the BSF Team on (01302) 736033.
A consultation meeting will be held at Ridgewood School on January 15 at 4pm. The deadline for responses to the consultation is January 23 and Doncaster Council is due to make a final decision by April 2009.
