Year 11 Transition, Assessment Arrangements and Centre Determined Grades

Monday 10th May 2021

Year 11 Transition, Assessment Arrangements and Centre Determined Grades

Dear Parent/Carer,

Now that your child is moving towards their final few weeks at Pontarddulais we can now confirm key dates and provision.

Transition

We have been working closely with Gower College and Coleg Sir Gar during the last week to provide support for your child regarding the next step of their education. After such a disrupted year of education we would like to help your child find this process useful, clear and exciting. We are pleased to inform you that colleagues from both colleges are able to come to school to meet with pupils to explain both the provision and the enrolment process.

The plan for the Year 11 transition week is below. Rather than pupils follow their normal timetable they are invited in as explained below. The purpose of attending school between Tuesday 8th June and Friday 11th June is for completing any outstanding assessments (required for Centre Determined Grades), educational transition reasons and an opportunity to say goodbye to fellow pupils and staff. We shall endeavour to organise any assessments so that they do not clash with the transition arrangements. Gower College are providing transition support on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday while Coleg Sir Gar are providing for a smaller number of pupils on the Friday. Pupils that have applied for Coleg Sir Gar are welcome to attend both their form’s designated day plus Friday 11th June.

Please be aware that the enrolment week for Gower College is the week beginning 28th June. Pupils will be contacted by Gower College for their specific date for enrolment. The format of the morning session will include: 

  • What happens next?
  • Transport and funding
  • Student support
  • Wellbeing & enrichment
  • Support on using Open Class (online resource)
  • Question and answer session

Coleg Sir Gar enrolment will take place between the 30th June and 13th July. All Coleg Sir Gar applicants who have already been interviewed will receive an invitation by email by 18th June to attend an enrolment day. Any applicants still to be interviewed will also be contacted by email to attend a pre-enrolment interview at the college.

The afternoon of the transition day will be ‘form time’ where pupils will have an opportunity to say goodbye to their fellow class mates and form tutor. A group of pupils are currently working with Mr. Bushnell (Year 11 Progress Manager) to produce a ‘Year Book’. The intention is for each pupil to be issued with a copy during form time as a way of marking the end of their time at Pontarddulais Comprehensive School. This will be the pupils’ final day in school unless they will be attending for any additional assessments or attending the Coleg Sir Gar transition event on Friday 11th June.

Assessments

All assessments are planned to be completed by Friday 28th May. Please check, with your child, all specific subject arrangements, timetables and preparation resources that can all be accessed here: https://pontcomp.co.uk/year-11-summer-assessments-2021/. In the eventuality of pupils missing any assessments (for unavoidable reasons, prior to the 28th May) we shall use the dates from Tuesday 8th June to Friday 11th June as a contingency to allow pupils to complete any missing assessments.

Centre Determined Grades

Provisional Centre Determined Grades (CDGs) will be issued on Friday 18th June. Pupils will collect the results from the ‘Pod’ at the front of the school (outside the Humanities block). Staff will be on the school drive to assist pupils. They must take this hard copy of their grades with them on enrolment to college, as explained above. In the event of your child unable to pick up their provisional CDGs, on 18th June, please contact Nicola Oulton (Examinations Officer – oultonn@hwbcymru.net) who can make alternative arrangements. An electronic copy of your child’s provisional CDGs will also be available to view and download on INSIGHT from Friday 18th June.

If you feel that a CDG needs reviewing then, at the time of writing this letter, we believe there will be an opportunity up to the 25th June to do so. Schools are waiting on the finalised protocol regarding the appeals process. When we know more we shall share it with you.

GCSE Results Day

GCSE results day is scheduled for Thursday 12th August. All pupils will be invited into school to collect their final GCSE/vocational results. Further details regarding results day will be communicated later in the summer term.

Please contact the school if further clarification is needed regarding any of the points above.

Yours faithfully,

Mr. G. Rees

Headteacher