Mercia Collegiate Sixth Form is due to open in September 2023. The process of recruitment for both staff and pupils begins now. We are confident that many of our existing pupils will remain with us for A Level study, but also hope that pupils from across the city will be interested in joining our school at a vital moment in their educational career. 

Over the course of 2022, Mercia School staff will hold a series of Sixth Form events. These will be published in due course and will provide a great opportunity to learn more about the Mercia Collegiate Sixth Form, our staff and our proposed vision. 

Vision and Ethos

Mercia Sixth Form will be academically rigorous in its focus. Pupils will study A Levels in academic subjects, that are facilitating courses, with the aim of reaching the best universities in the world. Our courses will be taught by our extremely well-qualified staff, who have studied at some of the world's finest universities. Although we are in the pursuit of the highest grades, we aim to give pupils an academic encounter that will enable them to also flourish at university. Character development will continue to play a huge part in our offer. After all, we know grades get you an interview, and your personal qualities secure the job.

This offer is unique to the city. We are not competing with local offers and facilities. Indeed, our appeal is to a niche market that is currently not provided for locally. Essentially, we want to attract the truly academic pupil, who is aspirational for top university courses, including at Oxbridge. We do not intend to support a couple of applications per year; we intend to attract and retain pupils who collectively share this aspiration. We would not be attractive to ‘general’ applicants who want to study A Levels. We are attractive to those who want an intense academic challenge and are willing to work for it. 

Our culture is king and pupils joining our Sixth Form will need to work hard and understand the expectations we will share with them. Pupils will be joining a community of scholars, where academic excellence is both the collective and individual goal. There will be lots of reading, copious amounts of writing and a requirement to study in silence. Our pupils will be steadfast in their determination to succeed. Such success at A Level comes only with genuine application. The step-up from GCSE is clear, the workload will reflect this, including extensive independent study - timetabled and supervised. Pupils will read around their subjects, extending their knowledge, and gaining greater depth. The elite culture will be developed alongside high quality networking and connections to offer pupils the wider support required to take up the very top places. We recognise that cultural performance is just as necessary as academic.

Mercia Collegiate Sixth Form is not about social events and Common Rooms. We are about academia and hard work. We will be the home of the most diligent children in our great city. If children want to gain access to great universities and apply for most prestigious careers, this will be the home for them. They will be surrounded by supportive and like-minded pupils and staff so that their intellectual curiosity can be fulfilled. We will essentially teach beyond A Level and set the ethic and approach required, so university is not a step too far. Some drop-out rates at universities are troubling - especially for working class pupils. We intend to fully expose pupils to the culture and approach of university life, so it feels like a natural graduation. Societies, faculties, tutorials... everything will be designed to replicate what is ahead for our pupils.

Our reputation is one that precedes us. We are known for our academic rigour, exceptional high standards and our focus on enriching the lives of our pupils. The Sixth Form will be no exception. The Sixth Formers will be ambassadors for the school and academia. They will volunteer in the community, have networks in their chosen professions and also contribute to wider school life. We are building their character and CV alongside the A Level itself.

Our facilities are second to none, so our pupils will have a calm environment conducive to high attainment. Of course, we will support and offer guidance, like all schools. Ultimately though, our selling point is our relentless focus on success through hard work. Mercia Sixth Form will be like no other in the area, but based on the very best sixth forms in our country.

This is not ‘more of the same’. This is a unique offer that should appeal to all quarters of the city, irrespective of location. We believe pupils will travel for this, and we would welcome that.