Ex-pupil Charlotte cuts ribbon on new Sixth Form block at Queen’s Croft High School in Lichfield

A FORMER pupil of a Staffordshire special school was the special guest as its brand-new Sixth Form block was unveiled to students, staff and governors.

Charlotte Aspley, an ex-student at Queen’s Croft High School, in Lichfield – and a Tesco community champion who works locally for the supermarket giant – officially opened the new block, which as well as creating four distinct areas for post-16 pupils that match the curriculum, features resources such as a pool table and comfy chairs to give young people a breakout area to relax in.

Sam Wood and Letitia Carter, new co-headteachers at the school, which caters for pupils aged between 11-19 with moderate learning difficulties, thanked the governors for their support in making the project a reality.

Sam said: “The opening of the Sixth Form block is a huge milestone for Queen’s Croft. It means that we can now connect our GREAT (Goals, Readiness, Education, Achievement and Talent) curriculum to a fresh, modern and inspiring learning environment for the students.

“They will greatly benefit from a discrete and purposeful learning environment solely for them, which will really prepare our students for life, work and the wider world beyond Queen’s Croft.

“The project would not have happened without the full support of the local governing body who have championed our vision and supported the Senior Leadership Team from the start.”

Queen’s Croft has more than 200 pupils on roll and covers Lichfield, Rugeley, Tamworth, Cannock, Stafford, Walsall and Birmingham and although it has always had a Sixth Form provision, this has been integrated within the main school building.

However, work was undertaken over the summer holidays – after requests from pupils – to make the Sixth Form provision become a separate entity.

Letitia added: “The money was spent on creating four distinct areas that match the curriculum we offer here at Queen’s Croft. These include hospitality and catering, land-Based studies, retail and admin and sports leadership.

“Students can now learn in an environment that is meaningful and purposeful to the curriculum pathway that they choose. For example, if a student chooses sports leadership, they now have a gym that is part of the classroom.

“If they choose hospitality and catering, they learn in a fully-equipped kitchen and café environment.”

Katy Hope, chair of governors, said: “We have always had a vision to create a GREAT learning environment for our Post-16 pupils. It is only recently our vision has become a reality through the combined belief, ethos, commitment and enthusiasm of senior leaders, staff, students, governors, trust board and contractors.

“We look forward to seeing the results and remaining aspirational for this and future generations of Post-16 students living happy, healthy independent lives.”