Sheffield High School

Welcome

Giving Back to the Community

“The School’s ethos of service to the local community is strong.”

- Latest ISI Inspection Report

At Sheffield High School, we firmly believe that we offer much, both to our local and more distant communities.

As part of the Girls’ Day School Trust, we are proud to provide an excellent standard of education, not only to those who pay full fees, but also to those who, without financial help from the School and other charities, would not be able to benefit from what we offer.

The ‘question and answer’ text which follows gives an indication of the extent of our public benefit –

  • BURSARIES

Does the school receive any funding from individuals for additional assistance to pupils?
Yes, former pupils, parents and friends donate through the school’s Annual Fund

Does the school receive any funding from charities or other grant-making bodies for additional assistance to pupils?
The School has links with a range of local and national educational trusts and grant-making bodies which provide fee assistance for some of our pupils. Between 15% and 20% of our pupils receive assistance with fees through our bursary and scholarship schemes

Does the School’s Annual Fund include bursary support?
Yes, approximately £11,000 was donated by alumnae for bursaries in 2007-2008

  • FORMAL FUNDED PARTNERSHIPS WITH MAINTAINED SCHOOLS

Is the school involved in an Independent and State Schools Partnership?
We are now involved in our third Independent and State Schools Partnership which promotes the study of Science in the 14–19 age group. This project is jointly funded by ISSP and by Sheffield University and we are the lead school in the partnership.

Our previous ISSP project, working with Sixth Forms throughout South Yorkshire, was to encourage more students to apply to Oxford or Cambridge Universities. This was fully funded by ISSP for two years and is now funded by all the schools taking part at a cost of approximately £500 per year per school

Is the school involved in other structured partnerships?
This year we have entered into a partnership with Silverdale School, a local state comprehensive school. Two of their students study Russian A-level with us. Sheffield City Council has also agreed this year to provide 50% funding for a child in care to attend Sheffield High School

Does the school hold any joint events with maintained schools?
There is an annual Joint Oxbridge conference for pupils and parents as part of our Oxbridge Aim Higher project. Students from maintained schools join in our Oxbridge Interview Workshop. In 2008-2009 our PE department hosted A-level revision sessions for students from local schools

Does the school organise any trips with maintained schools?
Visits to Oxford and Cambridge Universities are organised with other Sixth Forms as part of the Oxbridge Aim Higher Project. In December 2008 we took part in a joint Sixth Form Exchange to Spain with King Edward VII School, a state comprehensive school, in Sheffield

Does the school organise any competitions with joint schools?
Sheffield High School hosts the Sheffield Federation for School Sports netball and trampolining competitions. We also organise an annual Jubilee Netball Coaching Day and Movement Day for pupils from independent and maintained primary schools. In 2008, 130 pupils from nine schools took part. We also organise and host the only U10 and U11 South Yorkshire Netball Tournament

Is the school involved in shadowing programmes for staff with maintained schools?
Yes

Is the school involved in mentoring programmes with staff at maintained schools?
Our Director of Studies has advised a Primary School in Penistone on teaching and learning strategies to help improve Key Stage 2 Maths results. The PE Department has organised ‘Sharing Good Practice’ sessions for teachers of A-level PE. The Economics Department, with the University of Sheffield, hosts regular forums for other local teachers of Economics. The Assistant Head at All Saints Roman Catholic High School recently attended our Staff Training Day on use of Virtual Learning Environments. Staff from the Key Stage 3 Inclusion Services have visited our award-winning Art Department to share ideas on technology and design projects.

Is the school involved in mentoring or ‘buddying’ programmes for pupils at maintained schools?
Yes, we have links with King Edward VII School on training Sixth Formers as Peer Educators for PSHE lessons and with Sheffield University on training students to help with Sex and Relationship Education in PSHE

Do the school’s senior pupils (where applicable) work with any local maintained primary schools?
Yes, through the Year 11 Work Experience Programme and as part of our Wednesday afternoon Enrichment Programme

  • ACCESS TO TEACHING

Does the school offer the Learning and Skills Council access to spare places in classes for shortage or specialist subjects?
Yes, for Russian

Does the school offer access to maintained schools to spare places in classes for shortage or specialist subjects?
Currently in Russian and this is also offered in Latin, Classical Studies and Further Maths

Do school staff go into maintained schools to teach?
Yes. This is done on a voluntary basis by staff. One of our part-time science staff helps at a Primary School in Chesterfield with Key Stage 2 Science lessons and our Russian teacher has been released for one afternoon a week in the summer term to teach Russian to Year 5 pupils in local primary schools

Do you offer maintained school pupils access to careers advice? (Seminars, events, placements etc…)
We regularly have pupils from maintained schools on work experience placements in our Junior Department

Do you offer maintained school pupils access to higher education advice?
Yes. Through the ISSP Oxbridge project

  • TRAINING AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Is the school involved in formal Teacher Training Consortia programmes?
We regularly take students from Sheffield and Hallam Universities on PGCE placements (for example, we took two students in 2007-2008) and CACHE students from Sheffield College (two students in the Senior School and one student in the Junior School in 2008)

Does the school co-operate with maintained schools in relation to training or professional development?
Sheffield Hallam PE PGCE students work with our Year 7 students on a House Challenge competition

  • MASTER CLASSES, OPEN DOORS AND OUTREACH PROGRAMMES

Do you offer after school/Saturday activities to your community (Open Door activities)?
We ran a Mandarin course for parents and the local community one evening a week in 2008

Do you offer master classes?
A vocal master class with Mary King was offered to local schools in 2006-2007

Do you offer access to your before and after school care?
Anyone in the local community can use our Breakfast Club facility

Do you allow charities to use your facilities?
Facilities are available either free of charge, partly discounted or are charged on a full cost basis

  • CHARITABLE FUND RAISING

Has the school raised any monies for other charities?
Over £18,000 is raised annually for a wide range of local and global charities. The School has been given an award in two consecutive years for being the top group fundraiser for the Sheffield Half Marathon (£2,600 raised last year)

Do you have a partnership with an overseas school of a charitable/public benefit nature?
We support a school in Jhum Para, Bangladesh. We sponsor approximately 40 children at the school and also their families. We fund work-based training for adults and we funded the construction of a new classroom and toilets this year. Our Junior pupils also support Kikambala School in Kenya where they help to provide uniforms and lunches for the pupils (over £3,000 was raised in 2008)

Do you operate a fair trade scheme?
All our tea, coffee, sugar and bananas are fair trade

Do the School’s Duke of Edinburgh or Young Enterprise awards involve any specific public benefit?
Yes, through the community service element of the award

  • CONSERVATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROJECTS

Is the school involved in any environmental projects?
We have an Eco-Group which achieved the Silver Eco Schools Award in 2009. In 2008, Year 10 pupils took part in the BP Sustainability Challenge

  • OTHER ACTIVITIES

Do the school’s pupils work in retirement homes/charities or similar organisations?
Approx 75% (134 students) of our Sixth Form students are involved in voluntary work in retirement homes, local hospices, hospitals, nurseries, Riding for the Disabled, charity shops, animal shelters etc. From 2006 we have also had girls volunteering with ASSIST, running conversation classes in English for asylum seekers and refugees.

Our Infant and Junior pupils entertain the residents of Lifestyle House (a local retirement complex) and Broomgrove Nursing Home at Christmas each year and the residents are also invited to attend afternoon music concerts at school. The school’s Chamber Choir and Sixth Form Choir give recitals at Sheffield Cathedral, in local hospitals and at Whirlow Farm, free of charge to the public

Does your school make its archives available to the public?
The school archives are available to anyone who wishes to access them. We regularly supply copies of documents / photographs to former students and to the local history group

Do you donate resources e.g. books, computers etc… to maintained sector schools?
We donate unwanted text books and computers to schools in Kenya

For more information on our charitable and other activities within the community, please see Charitable & Community Activities.