Why the Sixth Form at Westcliff High School for Boys?

Westcliff is a selective rather than an open-access Sixth Form. It brings together those who have an aptitude for academic work and a high level of commitment and motivation. We offer to teach in relatively small groups led by experienced and highly qualified staff, with superb facilities for private study in both the Library and the Sixth Form Centre and recreation in the Sixth Form Forum and Café. The Sixth Form Centre also features several rooms specially designed for Sixth Form seminar teaching.

Westcliff offers you the freedom you need to develop as an individual and the advice, guidance and monitoring of academic progress, which can contribute to Sixth Form success. We have an enviable record of assisting students with the transition from GCSE to Advanced Level. This is important because the Sixth Form course is relatively short, and being in an environment with which you are comfortable ought to ease the problem of adjustment to the new demands.

We offer an advisory service, including a good deal of individual counselling on careers and Higher Education and a range of activities and opportunities to broaden your interests. We also offer both responsibility and the opportunity to participate in the corporate life of the School; both ought to contribute to your personal development.

What qualifications are needed?

Entry into the Sixth Form involves meeting a general entry requirement and, in some cases, specific subject requirements.

The minimum entry requirement for the Sixth Form is 52 points and a grade 5 pass in Mathematics and English Language. Points are calculated using a student's eight best GCSE results. For GCSE qualifications, the number of points equals the grade, so a Grade 8 is worth 8 points. For Level 2 qualifications such as Further Mathematics, an A* is worth 8.5 points, an A is worth 7.0 points, and a B is worth 5.5 points, with C, D, and E grades worth 4, 3, and 2 points, respectively. BTEC qualifications do not count towards the grade point calculation.

For calculation, two short course subjects count as one full-course equivalent. Hence, seven full course and two short course results count as eight complete subjects.

The minimum entry requirement has been pitched at 52 points because experience suggests that anything less does not constitute an adequate platform to embark on Advanced Level study. In practice, most students will exceed the entrance requirement by a considerable margin. Students may choose three or four A-Level courses and follow these for two years before sitting A-Level examinations. Westcliff High School for Boys does not enter Lower Sixth students for AS examinations at the end of their Lower Sixth year but uses a rigorous Internal Examination to gauge progress at the end of the year. We advise most students to begin four A Level courses to allow greater flexibility as their interests and futures become clearer.

Students should also note that meeting the minimum entrance requirement and satisfying specific subject requirements will not guarantee entry to the Sixth Form. We have 200 places in the Lower Sixth for September 2025, allocated to those presently in Year 11 at WHSB and those seeking outside entry without favour to either category. Should we have more candidates who have satisfied the minimum entrance threshold than we have places available, places will be awarded to candidates with the strongest GCSE profile considering a student's performance in the subjects they wish to study. Sixth Form places will be confirmed only in light of the GCSE results published in August.

Parents and prospective students are advised that only in exceptional circumstances will there be any question of waiving the general or the specific subject requirements for entry into the Sixth Form.

Further information about our courses is given here: Sixth Form Curriculum.  

Applications to Join the Sixth Form

Applications to the Sixth Form are processed through our online admissions portal hosted by Applicaa. The portal will open to non-WHSB pupils on Monday 2 December 2024, and close on Friday 31 January 2025. All applications received before this deadline will be considered equally. Current WHSB Year 11 pupils will be sent access to the portal via internal email in late January 2025.

WHSB Sixth Form Admissions Portal

Any queries regarding the Sixth Form admissions process should be directed to sfadmissions@whsb.essex.sch.uk.