"I am delighted to welcome you to the Sandhurst School Website. It is designed to give you a flavour of our school. However, to fully appreciate the atmosphere, you need to experience it for yourself. Come and visit us. I will happily answer your questions and arrange for you to see the school in action."

A. Fletcher - Headteacher

Finding out more

Please look around our site to find out more about life at Sandhurst School. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Sandhurst School is situated in Berkshire, close to the borders of Hampshire and Surrey. Opened in 1969, we have grown and developed a reputation as a lively, caring and successful school

We are proud to be a truly comprehensive school, serving the needs of a varied community. We are commited to high standards, hard work and good behaviour. We strive to ensure that that our school is a lively, purposeful and cohesive community, meeting the needs of each and every student.

Our high expectations are matched by our commitment to providing the support necessary for each individual to flourish. Staff are dedicated to working in partnership with students and parents; giving of their time in order to encourage and guide as well as listen.

Finding out more

Please look around our site to find out more about life at Sandhurst School. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Fundamental to effective learning is effective teaching. At Sandhurst School we are commited to delivering high quality lessons. Our staff work with great enthusiasm to ensure lessons are interesting and challenging.

Staff receive regular training to ensure that all are aware of new developments and have many opportunities to share best practice.

The school's extensive ICT facilities support a wide variety of styles of teaching and learning. ICT is increasingly used to enhance teaching and learning by all staff with a computer available to every teacher within their classroom. We are moving towards our target of a digital projector in every classroom to enhance this.

We believe that successful learners are active learners. Learners who understand how they learn and are engaged by subjects achieve high levels of success.

Our curriculum is planned to provide for the diverse interests and needs of our students. We work closely with primary schools to give students the best possible start. Our structured induction programme start in the summer of Year 6 & is completed at the start of Year 7. Students quickly become confident members of the Sandhurst School Community.

At Key Stage 3 all students study the full range of National Curriculum subjects. In addition, they experience Drama and have the opportunity to study a second foreign language.

At Key Stage 4 students are able to select subjects which will complement their compulsory core. This includes access to work related learning.

Fundamental to effective learning is excellent teaching. We are committed to delivering high quality lessons. Our professional & dedicated staff work with great enthusiasm to ensure lessons are intersting & challenging.

For information about specific subjects please visit the departments area of the website.

School is about more than just what happens in the classroom. At Sandhurst School we are fully committed to providing a rich and diverse range of activities which expand the horizons of our students.

Extra-curricular activities allow students to pursue their passions and develop new ones. All students are actively encouraged to participate in the clubs, teams, workshops, visits, performances and activities available. A wide variety of sports teams for all ages train and compete regularly, at district, county and national level, making use of our outstanding sports centre and facilities. Musicians, who can receive specialist tuition from peripatetic teachers, perform in concerts and take part in workshops with professionals. Drama productions and dance competitions, as well as the outstanding visual art on display around the school, are testimonies to the creative talents that flourish within our thriving arts community.

Important learning often takes place outside school. Throughout the year, students have the opportunity to take part in educational visits, fieldwork, exchanges and competitions arranged by the school.

We are particularly proud of our students for the tremendous amount that they do for charity. Students actively support a wide range of good causes, raising money and giving of their time to benefit others.

Enrichment days in school also provide valuable experiences for students. Whole day events, such as Sports Day or themed year group activities, bring students together and give them many happy memories.

We believe that students learn best when they are in an environment in which they feel safe and secure. We take great pride in the success of our pastoral system. An important feature of this is the House system. Sandhurst School is divided into four Houses: Bailey, Gemini, Romer and Young. The Heads of House lead teams of tutors to provide students with an outstanding framework of support. Students remain in their tutor group throughout their time at school, providing valuable continuity during a period of great change.

The tutor plays a vital role in supporting and encouraging each individual and is the first point of contact between school and home. Daily tutor periods allow tutors to monitor the progress and well-being of their students and to provide individuals with the mentoring, support and guidance they need. Our comprehensive academic monitoring, based on rigorous assessment, enables the tutor to have a clear picture of each student's progress across the curriculum. An annual Review Day allows tutor, parent and student to meet together to reflect upon successes and set targets for the future.

Sandhurst School has been praised by Ofsted inspectors for its support system:

Within tutor groups, students experience a dynamic programme of Personal, Social, Health and Citizenship education. This structured curriculum focuses on important life-skills and makes a valuable contribution to each individual's personal development. Regular House and Year Group assemblies are often led by students themselves, encouraging them to be active members of the whole school community.

Representatives from each tutor group also meet together in their houses as part of the Student Council where they are encouraged to contribute to school decisions and an Executive Council made up from a selection of these students meets regularly with a member of the Senior Leadership Team to put forward ideas and have further discussions.

There is a spirited atmosphere between houses as they compete against each other in sports tournaments as well as dance and public speaking competitions and of course the big finale to the year - school sports day held in the summer term.

If parents are concerned about their child, the first point of contact should be their child's form tutor who is trained and well-supported by the Head and Deputy Head of House to deal with most issues.
Please contact the school for more information on 01344 775 678 or email admin@sandhurst.bracknell-forest.sch.uk.

Policies

This page provides information for parents on school policies.

Health and Safety

Schools have a general duty under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1998 to ensure, as far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare of people who either work on or visit the site.

Sandhurst School follows the guidelines for health and safety in the workplace provided by Bracknell Forest Borough Council.

Collective Worship

There is a daily assembly in the School Hall.

Section 23 1988 Education Reform Act

Parents wishing to make a complaint under this legislation should contact the Headteacher or the Chair of Governors at the school.

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The following policies are more detailed and can therefore be downloaded:

Statement of Policy on Charging for School Activities [PDF:46KB]
Broadmoor Procedure [PDF:111KB]
Sex Education Policy [PDF:113KB]
Photographing Students [PDF:93KB]
School Uniform[PDF:54KB]

Our department pages provide information on different subject areas at Sandhurst School; the courses offered to our students, extra-curricular opportunities and other useful information.

We hope to have the full complement of subjects detailed on the website soon.

You may be aware that Sandhurst School is currently developing a 'virtual learning environment' which we have named 'Sandhurst Digital Campus'or 'SDC' for short.

Whilst the school website is deisgned to provide information for parents, SDC is designed for students, providing resources, homework & coursework tasks and links to useful information.

Finding out more

To find out more about our departments, please use the links on the left of this page. For students, 'SDC' can be accessed here.

The Healthy Schools Programme is a national initiative sponsored by the National Health Service (NHS) and the Department for Education and Skills (DfES).

Healthy Schools help children and young people to reach their potential by building on a solid foundation of health to do better in learning and in life. The Programme isn't just about physical health, it's about good health and happiness inside and out. And it's not just about pupils either; a Healthy School involves the whole school community - from parents to governors to school staff - in improving their health and their happiness and getting the most out of life.

The National Healthy Schools Programme has four themes, each with a number of criteria that schools need to fulfill in order to achieve National Healthy School Status. These are:

• Healthy Eating
• Physical Activity
• Personal, Social and Health Education (PSHE), including SRE and drugs education
• Emotional Health and Wellbeing, including bullying

Five of our most active students spoke at the Healthy Schools Conference about the impact of Healthy Schools on Sandhurst School and how many of the activities in the school are student driven, with the revitalised and extended Student Council playing a key role in improvements throughout the school.

A particular strength of Sandhurst School is its ethos of encompassing all members of the school and wider community and indeed providing everyone who attends the school as a student, member of staff or visitor, with the "opportunity to succeed".

For more information on our Healthy Schools initiatives, please click on the menu to the left.

For more information on the National Healthy Schools Programme, please visit www.healthyschools.gov.uk

Term Dates - 2007-2008

Please note that the following datys are teacher training days and students will not be expected to attend school on these days: Monday 3rd September, Friday 19th October, Thursday 3rd January, Monday 21st April and Monday 14th July.

*Please also be aware that the Easter bank holiday weekend is from Friday 21st March to Monday 24th March inclusive.

	Starts	Ends
Autumn term	Tuesday 4th September	Wednesday 19th December
Autumn half term	Monday 22nd October	Friday 26th october
Spring term	Thursday 3rd January	Friday 4th April*
Spring half term	Monday 18th February	Friday 22nd February
Summer term	Monday 21st April	Wednesday 23rd July
Summer half term	Monday 26th May	Friday 30th May