Secondary schools - questions you may wish to ask

Is there a Learning Mentor or counsellor in school? It would help my child to have a key person to turn to if she has a problem and ideally she would meet them before she starts in September

Is there a homework club? How often does it take place? Can she do her homework here on a daily basis?

If there is no provision, are there any members of support staff or older children who could run this? Might a sixth former do this as part of their community service for D of E or earn some pocket money?

Is there a buddy system so she has someone to show her around and look out for her initially?

What is the system to disseminate information to different teachers about a particular pupil? Eg do they use communication passports?

Who will be parent/carers point of contact? How can we communicate?

How frequently are parent teacher consultations held? Can we meet more regularly if necessary?

Is there is system of study support for different academic subjects? Who leads on this?

Is there provision or a separate building for Year 7 so they are not swamped in the main bulk of the secondary school?

Is there a breakout zone where pupils can go to calm down or just take themselves away from busy school if they feel things are getting on top of them?

Do the children each have a locker to keep their books in or do they keep everything at home and make sure that they bring the correct resources to school each day?

If a child is apt to get distracted easily in class, is there a supportive mechanism to keep them focussed on the learning?

When is the transition day when children come in the summer term to see the school?

Is there a forum for parents to meet on this day too? Are there parent representatives for each class? Do parents have a class list before the beginning of term so that they can organise some playdates before they start?

What percentage of the Y7 intake come from different primary schools?