Rochdale Sixth Form College
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Rochdale Sixth Form College is a
Sixth Form College A sixth form college is an educational institution, where students aged 16 to 19 typically study for advanced school-level qualifications, such as A Levels, Business and Technology Education Council (BTEC) and the International Baccalaureate Di ...
opened in September 2010. The Sixth Form College campus is situated next to
Hopwood Hall College Hopwood Hall College is a further education college in the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, Greater Manchester, England. It has two campuses, one in Rochdale and one in Middleton . The college offers a wide range of vocational and technical ...
in
Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, at the foothills of the South Pennines in the dale on the River Roch, northwest of Oldham and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough ...
,
Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county and combined authority area in North West England, with a population of 2.8 million; comprising ten metropolitan boroughs: Manchester, Salford, Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tam ...
, England, forming an educational quarter in the town. Rochdale is the first sixth form college to be opened in the UK since 2004, and the 93rd sixth form college in the country. The college is a member of the Sixth Form College Association (SFCA), founder of the Student Union of Celebration and Co-operation (SUCC), and the Association of Colleges (AoC).


History

From the 1970s to the 1990s, most secondary schools in the
Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale The Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester in North West England. It is named after its largest town, Rochdale, The borough covers other outlying towns and villages with a population of 206,500 at the ...
offered
sixth form In the education systems of England, Northern Ireland, Wales, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and some other Commonwealth countries, sixth form represents the final two years of secondary education, ages 16 to 18. Pupils typically prepare for A-l ...
education such as A-levels to school leavers. In addition,
Hopwood Hall College Hopwood Hall College is a further education college in the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, Greater Manchester, England. It has two campuses, one in Rochdale and one in Middleton . The college offers a wide range of vocational and technical ...
also offered a provision of sixth form courses to students. By the 2000s, sixth form students studying in Rochdale Borough were achieving below the national average in terms of A Level results. As well as this, many local school leavers were opting to study sixth form education at schools or colleges outside of Rochdale borough, particularly at dedicated
sixth form college A sixth form college is an educational institution, where students aged 16 to 19 typically study for advanced school-level qualifications, such as A Levels, Business and Technology Education Council (BTEC) and the International Baccalaureate Di ...
s in nearby areas such as Bury and
Oldham Oldham is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, amid the Pennines and between the rivers Irk and Medlock, southeast of Rochdale and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham ...
. In a local area review of post-16 education in Rochdale in 2004, the
Learning and Skills Council The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) was a non-departmental public body jointly sponsored by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) in England. It closed on 31 Marc ...
proposed the construction of a new sixth form college in Rochdale borough. Rochdale's MP,
Paul Rowen Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity * Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...
, along with local student, Sajid Suleman, launched a campaign in 2006 for a new sixth form college in Rochdale to stop the "brain drain". After funding for the new college became available, the
Department for Children, Schools and Families Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) was a department of the UK government, between 2007 and 2010, responsible for issues affecting people in England up to the age of 19, including child protection and education. DCSF was replac ...
formally approved the construction of the new college in August 2008. The Founding Principal Julian Appleyard OBE was appointed in December 2008. The Chair of the Governing Body is Dame Pamela Coward, former headteacher of Middleton Technology School. The £26 million new sixth form college campus was subsequently constructed next to Hopwood Hall College in
Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, at the foothills of the South Pennines in the dale on the River Roch, northwest of Oldham and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough ...
town. Rochdale Sixth Form College opened in September 2010, and is now the primary provider of sixth form education in the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale. Since the opening of the college, most (but not all) secondary schools in the borough have ceased to offer sixth form courses for students. Hopwood Hall College has also discontinued its provision of A-levels, concentrating instead on offering vocational further education for school leavers, as well as courses for adult learners.


Today

Opened in September 2010, Rochdale Sixth Form College offers a range of A-level courses to students from Rochdale and the wider borough. Facilities at the college campus include a theatre, learning resource and study centre, ICT suites, science laboratories, a theatre and dance/drama studio, a music recording studio and Mac suite, specialist art and design studios, a restaurant, a
coffee house A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment that primarily serves coffee of various types, notably espresso, latte, and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses may serve cold drinks, such as iced coffee and iced tea, as well as other non- ...
, a fitness suite and a multi-faith prayer room. The first set of academic results by the College were in the top 5% of all sixth form institutions in the UK in value added terms. The College received national coverage for this performance. In the same year the College Principal was the key note speaker at a number of sixth form national conferences and continues to feature leading sessions on post 16 leadership at national conferences. The College continues to make the headlines for its academic performance. The A Level results showed a 99% pass rate and value added for AS Level place it in the top 1% of sixth forms in the country. The College featured very prominently in the Department for Education League Tables in February 2013 where it was number two out of 93 sixth form colleges in the UK in terms of value added. The College had its first OFSTED inspection in March 2013 and received the result of being an outstanding college, one of only two sixth form colleges nationally to be awarded the outstanding status under the rigorous new inspection framework. The College goes from strength to strength and now has national acclaim. The College made history in January 2016 being the first placed college for the third consecutive year in the Department for Education Performance tables for A level progress. The College is a designated National Support School and the former Principal Julian Appleyard a National Leader in Education (NLE). The former College Principal Julian Appleyard was appointed an OBE for Services to Education in the 2016 Queens Birthday Honours List.


References

{{authority control Schools in Rochdale Education in the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale Sixth form colleges in Greater Manchester Educational institutions established in 2010 2010 establishments in England