At Shiplake, we all share a passionate belief in a holistic, rounded approach to education.
Teaching and learning occurs not only in the classroom, but across an extensive range of co-curricular pursuits in sport, music, drama and many other domains. These activities help our pupils to discover new skills in leadership, teamwork, communication and to develop the determination, resilience and confidence required to flourish in life at school and beyond. Our co-curricular programme is a crucial part of the College timetable as a means by which pupils can build character, and develop life-skills.
Across the programme there is a focus on inclusivity and participation, allowing all pupils to experience a sense of achievement and progress. There are now a number of new options alongside the more traditional favourites. A balanced timetable combines academic lessons with daily co-curricular sessions dedicated to activities contributing towards each pupil’s overall personal development. This promotes the benefits of a healthy and active lifestyle and helps pupils to maintain an optimal balance between life inside and outside the classroom. We firmly believe this enhances pupils’ academic development, as they attend lessons refreshed, positive and ready to learn.
Our co-curricular programme is continually reviewed, according to the needs of the individuals in our care, and has once again been updated.
All pupils have access to an hour of prep and academic support at the end of every day. This is in addition to any independent study sessions within the timetable. Meanwhile, co-curricular activities are timetabled for two hours and 50 minutes per week across two sessions. Thus, pupils have ample opportunity to obtain help with academic subjects, and are all expected to pursue some of the many enriching activities on offer. The few exceptions to this are the practical subjects that require specialist equipment (such as Music, Design and Technology and Art) which are offered within co-curricular timetabled sessions. Year 12 and 13 pupils are required to participate in both activity afternoons during the autumn and spring terms; however, they can dedicate more time towards revision in the summer term. Day pupils in Years 10 and 11 are able to choose prep for one activity afternoon only.
We invite you to explore the various pages in this co-curricular section to find out more about what is on offer at Shiplake.