A STRIKING new £1.2m sixth form centre to help boost the achievements and aspirations of young people has opened in Thorne.
Students moved into the new extension to Trinity Academy this week and are already benefiting from large, dedicated study areas and classrooms that are exclusive to the sixth form.
As well as being equipped with cutting edge technology, the building is clad externally in tiles that subtley change colour in different lights.
Acting principal David Page said: "We are delighted with our new sixth form centre. It blends well with the existing building but at the same time makes a statement about the investment we are putting into our young people, providing them a superb facility to support their studies and help them achieve to the highest possible level."
The two-storey building was constructed in just 24 weeks and has capacity for 400 students.
The open plan ground floor comprises a study area with personal computers with internet access and a relaxed, social space. A garden is being developed with picnic tables allowing sixth formers to sit outside in good weather.
There are three classrooms with state-of-the-art touch screen projectors on the first floor where a variety of A level subjects can be taught. A further large open plan area allows for silent study with individual PCs and there is space for group sessions and a UCAS library.
The sixth form leadership team and pastoral staff have offices in the centre where they implement a comprehensive performance tracking system for each student to ensure they are meeting targets and provide personal care and support.
Access to the sixth form, which is joined to the main academy building, is by biometric fingerprint scanning allowing only staff and sixth formers to enter.
"We wanted the sixth form to feel this is their domain, befitting their more senior role in the academy and giving them the space and quiet they need and can learn the habits of independent studying that they will need at university," said Mr Page.
Head girl Abbie Tomlinson said: "It's fantastic, everyone loves it. It's so spacious with enough PCs for everyone, and it gives us a lot of freedom. While we had dedicated study rooms before, they were nowhere near as big as this."
"It's good to be slightly separate from the rest of school as well as it means it's really quiet when you need to get on with work," added Abbie, who is taking A levels in physics, chemistry and biology with a view to reading medicine at university.
Year 11 children from the academy will be taken on a tour of the facilities soon so they can see the level of resources to which they will have access if they opt to stay at Trinity for sixth form next year.
In this year's A levels, overall results at Trinity Academy saw the percentage of A*-B grades hit 37 per cent - the highest in the academy's history - with A*-C grades reaching 66 per cent, both showing an increase of six per cent on last year.
The results put teaching and learning in seven of the A level subjects offered at the academy in the top five per cent of schools nationally.
• Trinity Academy is holding a sixth form open evening on Wednesday, October 8 from 6pm-8pm and two open mornings on Saturday October 18 and Saturday, November 9 from 9am-11am for current Year 11 students in the area who are looking for a sixth form place in September 2015. For more information, tel: 01405 813000.