Downlands Community School Prospectus

CO DOWNLANDSOOL

MMUNITY SCH

LEARNING IS AT THE HEART OF EVERYTHING WE DO

01

Welcome to
Downlands
Community School

02
“The Headteacher’s commitment to place

learning at its heart permeates all aspects

of this caring school.” Ofsted 2017

Thank you for considering Downlands Community
School for the next very important phase of your
child’s education.

I hope that this prospectus gives you a flavour of the ethos of the school
and of the excellent provision we offer at Downlands. We are very proud
of our outstanding school and are fortunate to have such a fantastic
team of teachers and support staff, dedicated to maintaining the highest
standard of education possible for our young people. We are committed
to placing learning at the heart of everything we do — the outstanding
outcomes young people consistently achieve at Downlands are a result
of this commitment.

We have a holistic view of education and students are encouraged to
maximise their participation in a wide range of extra-curricular activities,
trips and clubs. The high expectations we have ensure that students
develop a passion for learning and confidence and belief that they can
succeed in anything they want to do in the future. We are a traditional
school with traditional values - we are proud of our students
achievements, their conduct and their leadership. Our curriculum
prepares them for their next steps whatever their abilities or interests.

Mark Wignall - Headteacher

Downlands Community School www.downlands.w-sussex.sch.uk

03

Supporting, Nurturing
and Challenging
Our Students

04
“Pupils’ behaviour is exemplary. They engage

enthusiastically in lessons and show respect

and care for each other.” Ofsted 2017

As a medium sized fully inclusive school
we offer a personalised education and keep
the individual needs of the students at the
heart of everything we do.

Our outstanding pastoral system provides a blend of support and
challenge required to develop happy, confident and respectful young
people. Each child on joining the school becomes a member of a
Tutor Group within one of the four Houses; there are frequent inter-
House competitions culminating in Sports Day. The Tutor and Head
of Year as well as our Pastoral Support Officers (one PSO dedicated
to each year group) provide a blend of support and care, closely
monitoring the well-being of each student.

All Year 7 Tutor Groups have Year 11 Prefects allocated to guide and
support students in their first year at Downlands. We have a team
of dedicated specialist staff to support students including Learning
Mentors, Behaviour Mentors, Pastoral Support Officers and Teaching
Assistants. Provision for our academically very able students is
also a priority and we are proud of the bespoke gifted and talented
programme we run which nurtures our most able to the pinnacle of
achievement and success.

Downlands Community School www.downlands.w-sussex.sch.uk

05

Outstanding
Teaching
and Learning

06
“The exceptional quality of teaching

and learning is a significant strength

of the school.” Ofsted 2017

At Downlands we work hard to cultivate
a belief that there are no limits to any
students’ progress.

Students are taught that determination, resilience and a
willingness to learn from feedback are the keys to their own
growth. Downlands takes pride in offering an engaging, inspiring
and innovative curriculum for all, equipping our students with the
skills and qualifications they need to build successful futures.

At Downlands our exam results are consistently outstanding for all
abilities of students. Downlands is fully staffed by an exceptionally
talented team of specialist teachers in every subject area.

We are among the top performing schools in West Sussex and
nationally. Pupils have very high aspirations and we are proud
that a significant number succeed in securing places at the top
Russell Group of universities including Oxford and Cambridge.

“Teachers have excellent subject knowledge which they use to stretch
and challenge pupils of all abilities to achieve highly.” Ofsted 2017

Downlands Community School www.downlands.w-sussex.sch.uk

07

Downlands
Community
Working Together

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“We have a nice community here. If one of us gets

it wrong, we help each other to get it right.”

Student comment to Ofsted Inspector 2017

We are situated in an inspiring location at
the foot of the South Downs. Downlands is at
the heart of the local community and the
community is at the heart of all we do.

We believe that education reaches far beyond the taught curriculum
and we promote a strong community ethos, which enables students
to make outstanding academic, social and personal progress.

Students take on significant duties and responsibility in managing
the school environment from becoming Science Ambassadors in
Year 9, Sports Leaders in Year 10 to Prefects and Head Boy and
Head Girl in Year 11.

We have excellent links with our partner school in Chennai, India and
our twinned towns of Wald Michelbach in Germany and Montmirail in
France. The Downlands School Association is very active, organising
events to raise funds for the school and provide entertainment
for the wider community including the annual Hassocks Fayre at
Downlands in June.

Downlands Community School www.downlands.w-sussex.sch.uk

09

Excellent
Extra-Curricular
Provision

10 “Thank you for all the help and kindness you

showed to my son on the trip to Berlin. He had
a fantastic time and told us how lovely, helpful

and informative all the staff were.” Parent 2016

The wide variety of clubs, activities and
trips ensure that students develop skills
and interests beyond the formal curriculum.

Staff give freely of their time offering additional study support
sessions before, during and after school; every department runs
clubs, trips and activities through out the year. The PE department
has a busy calendar of fixtures throughout the year in a wide
variety of sports including football, rugby, stoolball, netball, cricket,
basketball, badminton, rounders and athletics. Every student has
the opportunity to be involved in competitive sport; Downlands has
elite teams who compete both nationally & regionally and have
become County Champions in some sports.

The Creative Arts Faculty stages a whole school production every
year as well as Battle of the Bands, the Spring Concert for
musicians and the annual Creative Arts and Technology Exhibition.
The Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme is a popular choice for pupils
in Years 10 and 11.

Downlands Community School www.downlands.w-sussex.sch.uk

Get in Touch

Downlands Community School
Dale Avenue, Hassocks, BN6 8LP
Telephone: o1273 845892
Email: [email protected]
www.downlands.w-sussex.sch.uk

The school is a 5 minute walk from the
London to Brighton rail line and is therefore
accessible to many pupils as they become
more independent in their journey to school.
Please contact us if you would like to know
more about our school or arrange a visit to
see us in action. We look forward to meeting
you and welcoming you to Downlands.