In 2012 a group of Salisbury school governors and parents, with the support of the headteachers from the Laverstock secondary schools, proposed the idea for a new sixth form college in Salisbury. The college was to be separate from any other educational establishment in Salisbury and provide a world class level 3 provision.
The need for a new sixth form college came from the fact that up to 750 students were travelling from Salisbury out of the county to study at other schools and colleges. Neil Owen, the founding Chair of Governors said “It is very important that Salisbury has its own sixth form centre. At the moment, if students don’t get into the grammar schools, they don’t know where to go and often end up travelling miles every day.”
And so, with the support of Salisbury MP John Glen who said that “improved provision (in Salisbury) is sorely needed”, an application was submitted to create S6C. The application was supported by the New Schools Network development programme, which supports bids where pupils are at a risk of educational disadvantage due to the lack of provision.
The curriculum was designed to provide a breadth of courses that would be appropriate to the needs of the local community, providing the option to either study an A Level programme, a vocational programme or a mixed programme that allows a blended approach of both.
Timeline for S6C
- October 2012: Idea for new sixth form for Salisbury put forward
- May 2013: S6C gets approval from the Department for Education
- November 2013: Founding Principal Simon Firth appointed to start in January 2014
- February 2014: Tollgate Road chosen as site for new building
- July 2014: Funding approved, and Ofsted give their backing
- September 2014: Salisbury 6th Form College opens to students, using Wiltshire College as a temporary base
- 2015: Planning permission granted for the new building on Tollgate Road
- November 2015: Construction of S6C building on Tollgate Road begins
- May 2016: Building handed over to S6C
- June 2016: Students begin lessons in the new building
- March 2017: First Ofsted report released with a Good rating
- September 2018: S6C joins the Magna Learning Partnership
Our Building
The building was designed, with input from staff and students, specifically to deliver Level 3 courses in A Levels and Vocational Technical Qualifications to students in Salisbury. In August 2016 our Founding students completed their A Level and BTEC/CTEC qualifications with resounding success. Many of these students went on to university and have now graduated.
