Wycombe Abbey Primary School Partnership Programme

We work with 10 local primary schools – all within five miles of Wycombe Abbey – where we send groups of pupils for a weekly hour-long visit every week for four consecutive half terms. All of our Sixth Form pupils – c. 190 – are involved in this work and they contribute a cumulative total of c. 2,000 hours to these schools. The pupils are engaged in whatever way the primary school deems the best use of their time. In practice, it varies widely: from listening to reading, to assisting with lunchtime, to helping with structured play, to acting as a teaching assistant, to helping with displays. 

Aims

Our Primary School Partnerships Programme emerged from three reflections: first, that our locality – High Wycombe – is an area of need relative to other areas of Buckinghamshire and within South East England more broadly; second, that our pupils typically come from privileged social backgrounds that do not routinely give them meaningful exposure to service; and third, that while our pupils have always had school-provided opportunities for service, these opportunities were scarce and were optional, so the learning and personal development that comes from service was limited to relatively few pupils. We were naturally led to the conclusion that we needed to do more on this count, both to support and engage our local community, while also addressing the developmental needs of our own pupils.

Background

We contacted all of the primary schools local to Wycombe Abbey and asked them open questions about their institutional priorities and whether we could support these through some partnership work, with our pupils as the central actors.

Resources

Our Sixth Form pupils, primary school staff time, transportation costs.

Impact

‘My primary school placement has formed a key, valuable part of my Sixth Form experience at Wycombe Abbey that I have cherished for the past two years. My placement was the highlight of my week: I felt very welcomed in the classrooms, and it was very fulfilling to watch the confidence and skills of the children improve over time. Not only have I thoroughly enjoyed being a part of the school’s community; but I have also found it a very eye-opening experience, allowing me to gain perspective and be inspired to take part in other volunteering events in my local community.’ - Upper Sixth pupil

‘Please convey my thanks and very best wishes to all the great students we had visiting [school] over these last months. We have thoroughly enjoyed having them on site.’ - Primary school headteacher

‘We very much enjoyed working with the girls, they arrived promptly and got started straight away. The children really enjoyed reading with each of them and I am certain that […] the girls will become an integral part of our Early Years team.’ - Primary school headteacher

Pupil Involvement

Our pupils are all 16-18. The primary school pupils are 4-11.

Frequency

Weekly for four half terms per year.