Sutton High Sixth Form – June & July 2026 Highlights

UCAS Discovery Fair and UCAS Information Evening

On Thursday 4 June Year 12 attend the annual UCAS Discovery Fair. Despite navigating tube strikes and the dodgy weather forecast, spirits were high as we headed to the University of East London. Having spent recent Enrichment lessons and form times focusing on Post-18 applications and preparing for the UCAS Fair, all the students seemed to know exactly which stalls they wanted to visit once they arrived and headed off to explore.

Over 100 universities, colleges and apprenticeship providers were exhibiting at the fair and Year 12 were able to talk to representatives and current students about choosing a course, UCAS applications and the realities of university life.

Alongside lots of information gathering comes the competitive aspect of attending the UCAS Fair – who can collect the most free bags, pens, badges and other paraphernalia! Extra points this year went to the students who came away with hats and sunglasses!

After leaving the fair Year 12 had some free time in London to get themselves a late lunch, before travelling back to school ahead of the UCAS Information Evening where they were joined by their parents.

Mrs Lenaghan started the evening by introducing the range of Post-18 options that we support students with, including applications both through UCAS and directly with institutions alongside apprenticeships.

Milly, who joined us from Sheffield University, spoke about admissions, applications and student finance. This will be followed up during an Enrichment lesson in Year 13, when we have Sheffield University back in to lead a session on all aspects of student finance. With Sheffield being a Russell Group University, she was also able to give a great insight into how their research-focussed approach differs to that of some other institutions.

We then finished the evening, and our UCAS-focussed day, with a talk from Jane Marshall from Optimising Futures. Jane is an educational consultant with over 18 years’ experience working for top UK universities, including LSE and Imperial College, advising students on successful applications. Jane’s talk was insightful, inspiring and entertaining and Year 12 left the evening in a brilliant position to start writing an excellent personal statement!

Jane followed up her talk a couple of weeks later, when she came back in to lead a personal statement workshop, which Izzy in Year 12 has written about:

On Thursday the 18^th of June we were fortunate enough to be offered a personal statement session with Jane. In this session we were taught multiple of valuable skills needed for writing a good personal statement. In this workshop we were required to bring in an object ranging from political membership cards and even a brick as to represent our interests and what we might want to do post-18. We initially started the session by introducing our objects to a group of four as to begin practicing articulating our points as to make sure our points are clear and concise. We then moved on to perfect our presentation skills by presenting it to a group as a whole which allowed us to practice being confident in what we were saying and our individual interpretations of our objects. Overall we all enjoyed the workshop and very much benefited from the different skills we were taught.

EPQ Marketplace Evening

One of the electives available as part of our Sixth Form offering is the Level 3 Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) and on Tuesday 16 June we held our first ever Marketplace Presentation evening, having previously had student presentations take place during the school day. The decision to change to this format was so that we could celebrate the dedication and diligence undertaken by these students, alongside fulfilling the presentation requirement of the qualification.

The Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) is an independent research qualification, on a student’s own selected topic, which 24 Year 12s have undertaken alongside their A Level subjects. In terms of UCAS points it is worth half an A level. Moreover, many university courses lower a student’s grade offer, required to gain a place on a degree course, on condition that they obtain an A in the EPQ. The taught element of the EPQ teaches our students a multitude of essential and useful academic skills in preparation for year 13 study and University education. Skills include; how to undertake effective research, honing a research question, referencing, organisation and time management, high quality essay writing and structuring etc. The Marketplace Presentation Event is the culmination of all of the students’ hard work. It allows these students to present and evaluate the successes and failures of their project to both their EPQ supervisor and a wider audience.

During the course of the evening students, staff, parents and school governors had the opportunity to visit stands set up by the students, hear about their EPQs and ask questions. Walking around the event is was absolutely wonderful to hear the students speaking so confidently and eloquently about both their projects but also the process they had been through to reach their final outcome.  Some of this year’s work will be on display during the Sixth Form Open Evening on Wednesday 16 September, book your place here.

Year 12 Politics Trip to Parliament

On Tuesday, our Politics class took a trip to Parliament and the Supreme Court. At Parliament, we explored the historic buildings where the nation’s biggest decisions are debated and made, gaining a much better sense of how the institutions we study actually operate. We also had the opportunity to meet a newly elected Conservative local councillor, who spoke to us about her experiences in politics, the realities of local government and the challenges of representing a community. One of the highlights of the visit was sitting in the House of Commons and spotting the famous microphones hanging from the ceiling, which we usually only see on television during Prime Minister’s Questions and debates.

Our visit to the Supreme Court gave us a closer look at the UK’s judicial system and the vital role judges play in interpreting the law and holding power to account. On our way to Parliament, we unexpectedly came across a very dramatic Clean Up Westminster protest, which served as a timely reminder that political participation extends beyond election day. Seeing democracy in action (both inside Westminster’s institutions and out on the streets) helped bring many of the topics we have studied this year to life. Overall, the trip was both insightful and enjoyable and it gave us a much deeper understanding of how the UK’s political system works in practice.

Claudia W, Year 12.

Induction days

On Monday 6 and Tuesday 7 July we held our Sixth Form Induction days, where incoming Year 11s joined the current Year 12s for two days of getting to know their new form groups.

Monday was spent in Suffolk House taking part in a rotation of teambuilding activities in form groups. There was something for everyone, with sessions including: seeing how far they could launch a bottle rocket; giant outdoor Dobble; logic puzzles and creating a birthday banner for their new form rooms in September (in our brand new building)! Each activity was scored and a rank order of forms was announced at the end of the day, with all to play for on day two of induction!

See a sneak peak of the new Sixth Form building

On Tuesday we headed into London for our annual scavenger hunt, starting in London Bridge. Each form travelled around with their tutors trying to find as many of the things on their list as possible – with photographic evidence required! Some groups focused their efforts on finding as many low-tariff items as they could (a flower in every colour of the rainbow and various London wildlife) whereas others decided on the approach of finding a few high-tariff locations (a piece of Banksy art or a blue plaque celebrating one of London’s pioneering women). Great fun was had by all and the tall buildings kept most of London mercifully shady, which was very welcome! Scores will be calculated before September and winning form group, across the two induction days, announced in the new school year.

Women of the Future Ambassador Visit

On Friday 3 July our new Student Leadership Team were invited to attend the Women of the Future Annual Ambassador’s Reception at Salesforce Tower. This annual event connects successful women from the Women of the Future Awards and Programmes with sixth form students, offering insightful talks from industry leaders and a networking environment, where ambassadors are able to impart career advice and help nurture the potential of ambitious students. The event is also part of Salesforce’s efforts to expose students to real-world industry environments and emerging career pathways, aiming to equip students with practical knowledge on AI, ethical technology use, and employability skills.

Feedback from the Student Leadership Team is that the event was interesting and inspiring, and they have come away with lots of great advice to support them with their future studies and careers – which is fantastic to hear!

Year 13 Celebration Event

To mark the end of their time at Sutton High, which for some students has just been for the two years Sixth Form and others has been 15 years since joining us in Nursery, we held our Sixth Form Leavers Celebration on Wednesday 8 July. Fully planned and organised by the Year 13s  themselves, the event is a truly special afternoon and a uniquely Sutton High event.

The event started with a delicious lunch of roasted salmon, new potatoes and salad followed by eton mess, chocolate brownies and the ever-popular cupcakes with Y13s faces on them(!), provided by our amazing catering team from Chartwells. The dining room was abuzz with Year 13, parents and staff all sitting together to share memories of their time at Sutton High. Next, the Student Leadership Team ran a Kahoot quiz with brilliant questions including: What is the total amount of money spent by year 13’s in Georgia’s?; How many missed homework’s have there been officially for our year in sixth form? and; who from Year 13 was nominated for Backpacker of the Week the most times?

After the quiz we moved into the Lees Hall for the main celebration and reflection of their memories of Sutton High through the years. Over the next hour we had the pleasure of watching the leavers music video that they created and listened to memories, farewells and words of encouragement from the Sixth Form Tutors, Miss Hatchwell, Mrs Dawson and Mrs Harvey. This was interspersed with performances by Year 11 and Sixth Form band Cornerz, Year 13 band District Line and a dance performed by Kaniha. Finally we moved outside into the blues skies and sunshine for the traditional (biodegradable) balloon release, marking the final point of our Year 13’s time with us. Head Girl Jemima sent everyone away with some final words, which we hope they will remember for years to come: “Finally, if I could leave everyone with one piece of support it would be that no matter how far we go, Sutton will always be here to welcome us back with open arms and of course with Courage, Truth and Joy!”