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Have a watch to see what we're about here at NSC.

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Tutor presentation to students and families - June 2024

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Tutor presentation to students and families - June 2024

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Open Evening Presentation - October 2023

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Open Evening Presentation - October 2023

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Year 6 Open Evening Presentation - October 2023

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The Process starts with our Open Evening in October.

Application forms must be with the LA by 31st October.

1st March - you will find out about your Secondary School place.

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Once we know you have a place with us, we write to you, welcoming you to the NSC family and asking you to complete some forms for us.

In the Summer term we visit our catchment primary schools, and invite all students from outside catchment in for a visit.

In June, we invite you in to meet your child's form tutor and the other children in their form group.

At the end of July OR at the start of September, we run a transition programme for your child to spend a day with us.

If your child has a SEND we invite them to extra transition sessions with us after school.

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This is what some of our students think.

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Why did our first ever year group choose Northstowe?

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Why did our first ever year group choose Northstowe?

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Northstowe SC - A virtual tour of our new building

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Unlike at primary school, you will taught in different classrooms and move from one classroom to the next for lessons and could be taught by five different teachers per day.

Each teacher has their own classroom and you must go to them for your lesson. It normally takes a few weeks to remember teachers’ names and which subjects are taught where but this is normal when you start secondary school.

At NSC we address staff as ‘Sir’ or ‘Madam’.

You will need to bring the correct books and equipment every day, arrive promptly, unpack what you need for the lesson, settle down quickly and be ready to work.

You will need to bring a school bag, packed lunch if you are having it and the equipment from the list above.

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What do I do once I have found out my child has a place at NSC?

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What do I do once I have found out my child has a place at NSC?

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Firstly, let us know via admissions@northstowe.education and let the LA know (there will be a link in your email).

We will write to you very soon after we find out if your child has a place with us (on the 1st March).  It is important that your contact details are correct with the LA, as these are the ones we will use.

Once you receive a link to a Microsoft Form, please complete this as soon as you can, it allows us to start getting all your important information into our systems. It also helps us when we are visiting your child in their primary school.

Don't worry if things go a bit quiet after that! We will be dealing directly with your child's primary school to arrange a good time to come and visit them at their school.

We will write to you with details about the Meet the Tutor evening and also to tell you more about the planned transition around May time.

If your child has a SEND, our SENCO will be in touch with you.

We will see you early July!

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Homework is an important part of learning. At NSC we use Microsoft Teams and MCAS, where students and parents have a log in which will allow both to see what homework is due and when this is completed.  Take pride in your homework and complete it to the best of your ability. Do not try to do it whilst doing other things. Make sure it is handed in on time.

MCAS

For more information on the MCAS (My Child at School) platform, please click here: https://www.northstowesc.org/bromcom/

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I would like to introduce you to our parental information and communication system; Bromcom and MCAS (My Child at School). We are keen to maintain good and immediate communication between families …

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Our Sixth Form opened in September 2024. Initially with spaces for 100 students in each year, this will grow to 200 per year.

The Sixth Form will be open to NSC students and children from other local schools.

As part of this, we will be building a dedicated Sixth Form block and half of our general use classrooms. In time, we will extend our general use classrooms, extend the Sports Hall and build another MUGA (Multi-use games area).

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You will find here our survey results and our responses.

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This is what visitors and parents have said about our school.

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The first impression you make is how you look in the College uniform. Always try to be smart in your appearance and wear only the approved items of uniform and not the latest fashion alternative. More information about uniform can be found on our Uniform page.

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A word of advice:
Name absolutely everything, even shoes. This makes it so much easier to get things back to you!

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You may wear a watch to make sure you are not arriving late to lessons. The College also allows two pairs of plain stud earrings (2 in each ear maximum), 1 discreet necklace. No other piercings, bracelets or rings are allowed. These will be confiscated if a teacher sees you wearing them and a letter sent home.

Makeup is discouraged at College. If you wear makeup, it must be discreet. If makeup is obvious, including nail varnish, you will be sent to the House office and asked to remove it. Acrylic or shellac nails are not permitted. Please see the uniform policy for more information.

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The ‘No Jewellery’ rule avoids items being lost, damaged or stolen. It also avoids potential health and safety issues in practical subjects.

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Mobile phones are not allowed at the College. If you have a mobile phone and it is seen or heard by a member of staff it will be confiscated. On the first occasion, the phone can be collected from Reception at the end of the day. On a second occasion, a letter will be issued and you must produce the tear off slip from this letter to get your phone back. Parents/carers will be asked to make an appointment to collect your phone if it is confiscated again.

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The College is particularly strict with confiscating mobile phones. Not only do they affect lessons if they go off in class, can cause bullying via social media, but could also lead to distress if damaged or lost. The College accepts no responsibility for a phone which is lost, stolen or damaged on site. If you need to contact your son/daughter during the school day, please contact the House office. This avoids any distress and allows us to support you and your child if necessary.

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All lunch should be eaten in the school hall or canteen. Food and drink must not be consumed in corridors. Only water is allowed in the outside spaces.

You can also bring in a packed lunch. This is eaten in the canteen.

The College canteen uses a cashless system. We use a system called MCAS. Your parents/carers will be issued with a letter, usually via email that allows them to open an account online, where they put money for you to spend on food. You can also pay for school trips too using this same account. This means that you never have to carry cash or worry about forgetting dinner money.

We advise all students to carry a water bottle as water is available at water coolers throughout the school.

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We have a cashless system to pay for school meals. This is automatically set with a daily spending limit of £4.50. This can be changed if you wish, just contact the finance office: finance@northstowe.education

Students in receipt of Free School Meals get an allocation of £2.60 per day. This allows them to purchase a school dinner and dessert at lunch time. There is however, no limit on when or what they spend their allocation on, so if they buy a snack at break, this will limit their allowance at lunchtime.

We advise all students to carry a water bottle as water is available at water coolers throughout the school.

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You must be in school 10 minutes before the day starts, to allow you plenty of time get to your lesson and not be late.

Students can sit in the canteen or in the library in the mornings whilst waiting for Registration to start. You are welcome to come into school from 8.15am.

Although the school day finishes at 3.10pm, there are clubs after school on most nights that you might want to join. This includes Homework Club (PREP Club), where you will be able to get help with anything you are struggling with or use a computer. If you have made a mistake during the day, we expect you to see your teacher at the end of the day to fix it. It will take no more than 10 minutes.

More information about clubs can be found on our page Clubs.

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Which entrance do I use when I come to school?

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Which entrance do I use when I come to school?

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All students will use the main student entrance, which is to the rear of the school. There is a side gate by the sports hall for those who are walking, and a further entrance by our sports pitches for those cycling, where there are bike racks available for you to use. Don’t worry, staff will be on hand to direct you as well.

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Most students transferring from primary school will worry about friendship groups. Where children are coming from schools with more that one student transferring to NSC, we ask if there is anyone they do not want to be with. Where students are coming on their own from a primary school, and in this year many are, we meet with the child and find out a little bit about them to enable us to put them with a student/s that we think they will get along with.

In lessons, students will be mixed and there are lots of opportunities to make friends, which is one of the best things about secondary school, you will begin to find other people with similar interests, ideas or sense of humour!

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From our experience the major worries that your child may have starting Year 7 relate mainly to social concerns. We have plenty of support in place at the College and it is vital that you or your child speak to his / her tutor if you are worried about anything.

Any concerns that need immediate attention can be flagged by contacting your child’s tutor; teacher or Student Support Assistant (SSA). E-mail is preferable and all tutors will try to respond as soon as they can. All tutors have a teaching role so cannot guarantee being able to come to the phone straight away.

The College is also lucky enough to have very supportive students in the older years who work will work with Year 7’s and liaise with tutors where there may be worries. These students will be introduced to the new intake at the start of term.

At first it is difficult for parents/carers to know how to get the balance right between giving you too much or not enough support in the first few weeks of secondary school. The most important thing in the first few weeks is to put aside at least ten minutes each night to discuss how the day has gone and make sure that homework is completed for each subject.

You know your children better than anyone and if after the first few days you are concerned about your child’s behaviour or if they are having difficulties sorting out issues it is best to contact your child’s tutor.

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We will give you a map to help in those first days.

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Maybe! However, it will not take long for you to get used to the buildings and classrooms. There will be lots of people around to guide you.

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What happens if I don't understand the work?

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What happens if I don't understand the work?

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Just ask. No-one will be cross with you for asking if you are unsure. We would much rather you ask than struggle or miss out on learning something.

Alternatively, you could ask the person sat next to you or check your book – have you done something like this before?

If you are still unsure – put your hand up and ask.

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Please find below a link to a Mathematics booklet that students can complete over the Summer to help them prepare for Maths lessons at NSC: https://www.northstowesc.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Sparx-Maths-Y6-Y7-Transition-Booklet-.pdf

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We offer individual peripatetic lessons on a weekly basis, where a visiting specialist tutor comes in to teach our students. We are pleased to be able to offer a wide range of instrumental lessons as well as dance and drama lessons for our students.  The current provision is detailed below, but can change in response to the demand for lessons.

Music: Piano, Voice, Guitar, Drums, Flute, Clarinet, Saxophone, Trumpet.

Dance: Ballet, Tap, Contemporary and choreography in all styles.

Drama: Verse and prose, Public speaking skills, Performance pieces.