New Year 7 Parents
Barnhill is a member of the Middlesex Learning Partnership which also includes Belmore Primary Academy and William Byrd Primary Academy.
We have a very strong reputation in the local area, regionally and nationally as a school which does all it can to support students in achieving the highest grades and progressing to the best possible destinations.
Our ethos for the whole school community is based on the school motto “Together, achieving our best”. Choosing a secondary school is a difficult decision to make for both parents and students. Please click on the video link below to take a tour of our school with some of our students to get a flavour of what life is like at Barnhill Community High School, and hear what our students love most about the school.
Our students enjoy coming to school and they make excellent academic progress and reach high standards. Our GCSE and A Level results are testament to this with our sixth formers going on to study at the best universities in the UK.
We recognise that choosing the right school is a difficult decision so please do look at what we offer here at Barnhill Community High School. When we are able to, we look forward to welcoming you in person.
Welcome from the SLT
As Head I am delighted to welcome you all to our caring and successful community. Always remember that school, like life, is what you make of it. So always try your hardest, always be a good person and live up to our school ethos: ‘Together, achieving our best’. You can easily find me in my office G06.
Mr J Jones
HEADTEACHER OF BARNHILL COMMUNITY HIGH SCHOOL
Transition from Year 6-7 is such an exciting time, full of hope and opportunities for you all. We are really looking forward to welcoming you all as you begin your secondary journey with us, navigating your way through and enjoying this phase of your education, moving on to become our future leaders. Not only will you be supported to make progress in your academic learning, but life at Barnhill will expose you to a diverse and stimulating range of learning experiences beyond the classroom, whilst challenging you to be the very best versions of yourselves. This is your time to shine!
Ms T Qureshi
ASSOCIATE HEADTEACHER
Dear Year 7, I am very excited to be welcoming you to Barnhill Community High School. My role is based around Teaching and Learning and I also help support with shaping your curriculum. Secondary school will be a very exciting experience for you, you will learn so much not only in subject areas, but how to develop yourself as a world citizen. The teachers at Barnhill are extremely supportive and will help you as much as possible to settle in seamlessly. I look forward to meeting you in September and hear your views on teaching and learning.
Ms K Winter
DEPUTY HEADTEACHER
My name is Miss Bertin and I am so excited to help you on this next chapter of your lives. I lead and oversee all things Behaviour and inclusion at Barnhill and I will encourage you to take advantage of all the fantastic opportunities that will ensure you can be the best version of yourself. You will find me in the playground at break times, my office is G063.
Miss Bertin
DEPUTY HEADTEACHER
Hello year 7 and welcome to Barnhill Community School. If you are ever lost or confused, then please do ask for help as everyone is very friendly and helpful (except for the numbering system on the rooms!). I look forward to working with you and seeing you progress and develop over the next 5 years into model citizens who make a positive contribution to society. I am in charge of student assessments, data and am the Director of Maths - If you need any help you can find me in S20.
Mr A Mashida
ASSISTANT HEADTEACHER
I am very much looking forward to working with you next year in History and Geography lessons and seeing you develop into future Sixth Form students over the next 5 years. Starting at secondary school can seem very daunting at first but Barnhill has a wonderfully warm and exciting buzz to it and I am sure you will feel at home very soon in September. You can find me in G103 if you need any help.
Mr T Rich
ASSISTANT HEADTEACHER
Welcome from our Students
Secondary school can be quite daunting, it is not easy leaving a place you have been studying and creating memories for 5 years, trust me I know. It was extremely difficult for me. At the beginning of the year I attended another school called Haydon, where I soon settled into that secondary school, but later in the year I changed to Barnhill. I was extremely anxious at first to change schools mid-year, but I slowly made friends, now it is great, and I fit in. You may feel anxious at first and maybe a little apprehensive but trust me! YOU will fit in. Just always remember that you can tell the teachers if you ever feel you are being bullied or anything, there is nothing to worry about! Barnhill is a great school! One of my brother’s friends came to this school and left with straight A*'s, but now the grading system is 1-9, so I guess you could say she left with all grade 9s. All you need to do is focus on studying and try to make as many friends as possible! School is all about education, and you need a good environment for that, so if you ever have ANY complaints that may get in the way of your learning, always tell an adult you trust. Anyway, have fun, study as hard as you can.
Dhruv
YEAR 8
Hi, welcome to Barnhill Community High School year 7s. You are going to love this place as much as I did. I came to this school during the middle of year 7. As I soon as I started my first lesson, I knew it was going to be a great place to study. Furthermore, I already made friends quickly. The work set at Barnhill is good and challenging. Furthermore, there are lots of sports here such as football and rounders. There is also a cage where you can play football if you want to. In addition, most teachers are nice here, so you all you must do is behave well and this will prevent you from getting into trouble. Thank you! I hope you enjoy being in Barnhill.
Anish
YEAR 10
Welcome to Year 7! My name is Safiah and I am going into Year 10, so I can give plenty of information about starting secondary school here at Barnhill. Firstly, since you have not yet seen the school, it would probably be best to give you an overview and tell you a little bit about it. The ground floor contains the subject classrooms for Computing, Science, DT, the Year 9, 10 and 11 bathrooms, the Sports Hall, the Assembly Hall, the Dance Studio, the changing rooms, a Drama room, and the Canteen. There is also the Library and IT support rooms. The first floor includes the Year 7 and 8 bathrooms which are easy to find, as the doors are labelled, as well as the English corridor, the Music corridor, the Languages and Maths corridor, the second Science corridor, the Art corridor, and another Drama room. The second floor includes Geography, History, RE, Sociology, Psychology and Philosophy classrooms. There is also the KS3 support to the right of the main staircase on the second floor. If you do get lost, there is a map in your planner and the older students are always willing to help you. When you first get here, you will be sorted into a form group, also known as a tutor group. This group of students is led by a form tutor, who registers you in a certain classroom every morning. You will also be put into class groups, these are the people you have lessons with. You will have different teachers for different subjects and will have to move classrooms for each lesson, but as I already said, there will be plenty of students willing to help you out so you don’t have to worry about that. Another thing you might be worried about is making friends. I certainly was, however, it is not all that hard once you find common ground and start to build stable relationships. I made my first friends quite quickly. Generally, friendships tend to start in tutor groups, but you will also be able to make friends within your general class groups. There are plenty of different things happening during the year to be excited about. Sports teams, clubs, school trips, the school play, and a bunch of other things. The amount of extracurricular activities is diverse and there is something for everyone there. I have been on loads of trips concerning different subjects from music to science to history and even things not concerning subjects, so the school year certainly will not be all lessons. I know when I came into Year 7, I was terrified. As I was one of only two students coming from my primary, I was constantly worrying whether I would be able to make friends or impress my teachers achieve good grades. When I look back, there was not anything to really worry about. I have a group of friends I can trust dearly, amazing teachers who are willing to help me progress in any way, good grades, which are improving asI learn more, and our Head of Year and other teachers are constantly supportive. The best piece of advice I can give you from my own experience is to head in there and be yourself. Everything else will come naturally. Do not be afraid to ask any questions though. Look forward to seeing you guys next year.
Safiah
YEAR 10
Hello year Sevens! I am Brooke, a Year 13 student at Barnhill. I am aware that some of you may be anxious about this new beginning, this new opportunity. It is very unfortunate that you were unable to come to our school and experience a little bit of year 7 life! Do not worry, you will all be fine!! Everyone who has arrived at Barnhill has experienced nerves on the first day, whether it is a teacher or a student. Remember, everyone in year 7 is just as nervous as you. You will find your feet and fit in perfectly before you know it. There are many opportunities available for you at Barnhill and there are many exciting things to do and many people to meet. You will learn many great things in your time at Barnhill, whether that’s life lessons or the curriculum. The common anxieties that many Years Sevens face are “Will I find my way around the school?” and my answer for you is, no you will not, not a first. But you will. “Will I get bullied?. No you will not, everyone at Barnhill is welcoming and we guarantee that your experience at Barnhill will be a good one. But if, for some reason, you find yourself unhappy, there are many people to talk to and there are many people who can help, do not suffer in silence. This time next year you will be settled in Barnhill and have a ton of new friends. Do not worry too much, there are many great things ahead. Stay Safe!
Brooke
YEAR 13
Year 7 Transition Booklet
Please take an opportunity to look at our prospectus. If you have any questions or queries regarding any of the information about the school, please do not hesitate to contact us at enquiries@barnhill.school.
An Introduction to Subjects in our Curriculum
One of the best things about starting secondary school is being able to study lots of exciting new subjects and go in to more depth in subjects which have already been studied. At Barnhill Community High School, we have a broad range of subjects that students will be able to study.
Your child will be in different classrooms for every subject and sometimes they may have different names from the subjects studies in Primary School. Our Curriculum Leaders are experts in their subject area and will be happy to support you with further information and advice should you need it. Below is a link to our overall guide to the Year 7 curriculum at Barnhill and some presentations to help your child familiarise themselves with the main subjects that they will study.
