The Avonbourne Academies run a very successful grammar stream provision.
A grammar stream is a group of approximately 32 highly academically able students. They are exposed to greater depth teaching from year 7 onwards, as well as having access to a programme of extracurricular opportunities that will put them on the path to the world’s best universities. We have a grammar stream in each of the boy’s and girls’ academies.
The aims of the Grammar Stream are:
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To ensure high prior attaining students make excellent academic progress
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To develop our students’ culture and character to stand out from their peers
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To facilitate our students to enrich the world
We expect all of our grammar stream students to leave with a suite of GCSEs achieved at the very highest grades. However, rather than just leaving with excellent grades, we want them to leave as fully rounded individuals, achieving success across the sports field, the dance studios, the theatres and concert halls, or whichever fields our young men and women have the talents and interests in. We work with students to raise their aspirations to performance at the highest level in their chosen areas, facilitating them to become future leaders and enrich the world.
Students from all backgrounds are in our grammar stream. We maintain the single-sex teaching, whilst promoting the opportunities for boys and girls to mix before school, at break times, at lunch times, after school, and at clubs and trips. This therefore gives us and our young people the ‘best of both’.
Students are selected for the Grammar Stream during their first half term at Avonbourne. They will take the same base level assessments that all Avonbourne students take part in. At each assessment point (mid-year and end of year) there will be opportunities to enter or leave the Grammar Stream. We see this movement as a positive thing for all of our students. For children who begin Year 7 in the Grammar Stream, their situations may change, which mean it is no longer the best option for them. Similarly, children who at age 11 were not ready for the rigour of the Grammar Stream, or perhaps for reasons beyond their control were not in a position to perform well, may, later on, become ready for it – often, in our experience after a period of the high-quality education we offer here reveals their ‘true’ ability as well as raises their aspirations.
The Grammar Stream is working in partnership with the University of Southampton. The video below explains more about the partnership and how Grammar Stream students benefit from this. We enjoy regular trips to the University of Southampton campus and welcome visiting speakers to Avonbourne.