Chemistry

 The chemistry department has two main goals:

 Firstly we aim to develop thinking skills, problem solving skills and a wide appreciation of how the technological and natural world works.

 Secondly we work to develop future Scientists, Engineers, Medics and others involved in these fields. 

 To achieve these goals the chemistry department makes use of a combination of theoretical and practical work. These are combined in a way to promote independence of  learning and intellectual rigour.

 Key stage three pupils study a combination of all three sciences in years 7 and 8. This builds a foundation for all pupils to study GCSE chemistry in years 9-11. Currently the GCSE syllabus followed is Edexcel. 

The A-level course is very popular and forms one of the larger cohorts within the school. In recent years the department has sent pupils to study at most of the top universities in the UK. These include Oxford, Cambridge, Durham, Nottingham and Warwick for courses as varied as Chemistry, Medicine, Veterinary Science, Dentistry, Engineering, Law and Geology.

At GCSE and A-level the results obtained and the progress made by the pupils compare very favourably with the national average, other selective schools and other departments within the school.

Our success is built upon the work of three specialist chemistry teachers and a very experienced chemistry technician all of whom work hard to achieve the best outcome possible for every single pupil.

 The department is well resourced with two well-equipped chemistry laboratories. Expectations and levels of commitment from staff and pupils are very high. However, the principal reason for our success is the department’s ability to share its enthusiasm for chemistry in such a way that every pupil believes they have the ability to succeed and is motivated to do so.