Head of Languages

Proud to belong – Proud to achieve

“Students’ behaviour in lessons and around the school is exemplary. They are kind and respectful towards each other, their teachers and visitors”

“The atmosphere in school is one of calm purpose and enjoyment of learning” 

OFSTED, January 2018

Woolmer Hill is a successful 11-16 mixed comprehensive school based on a wonderful 25 acre site on the outskirts of Haslemere on the Surrey, West Sussex and Hampshire borders. The school attracts students from a wide area including Thursley, Grayshott, Beacon Hill, Chiddingfold, Grayswood, Hindhead, Liphook and Churt, as well as Haslemere itself. We are a growing, over-subscribed and friendly school with a strong and supportive community spirit and inclusive ethos. We have high expectations of all members of our school community. 

We have an inclusive approach to educating the whole person, based upon an ethos of mutual respect and active involvement in all aspects of school life. We believe that all members of our school community should be challenged to achieve their full potential. We place a great deal of emphasis on developing independent, life-long learners and work closely with our post-16 partners to ensure that our students have the qualities necessary to succeed in post-16 settings and beyond to university and the workplace. Our students are a wonderful group of young people to work with.

It is important to us that the views and contributions of our students are valued and that they are involved in decisions that affect their school. We have an active House Council and student leadership group, who meet regularly to discuss whole-school matters or to lead their own projects. 

We have a House system with four houses, through which we encourage competition in a wider variety of academic, sporting and fun competitions each term. The Houses are led by student House Captains, which affords another great opportunity for student leadership.

We make maximum use of the exceptional resources available to us on the site, including our 25 acre grounds and The Edge sports centre with its large multi-purpose sports’ hall and two flood lit all-weather pitches. The Edge also has fitness suites, a dance studio, an indoor hockey pitch as well as basketball and badminton courts. 

Since April 2017 we have been a member of the Weydon Multi Academy Trust (WMAT), which is providing further opportunities for students, and gives staff many opportunities for collaboration. WMAT consists of Woolmer Hill School, Weydon School, The Ridgeway, Farnham Heath End School and The Abbey, with each school contributing its own strengths to the partnership.

We are also an active member of the Waverley Federation which includes ourselves, Broadwater, Glebelands and Rodborough schools working in partnership with Godalming College. This partnership allows our students to access a range of vocationally related courses at KS4 that the Federation procures from a number of centres including Godalming College and Farnborough College.

The Waverley Federation also supports students in Key Stages 3 and 4 through the STAR project. This is a project that is intended to support students who struggle with the demands of full-time school based programmes and offers a range of courses and experiences aimed at supporting them to integrate back into mainstream education later in their educational careers.

We offer a wide range of subjects taught by specialist teachers with specialist resources. We organize our curriculum in order to maximise opportunities for our students and ensure a broad and balanced three-year KS3 curriculum. We are organised on a faculty basis with English, Mathematics, and Science at the core. 

The vast majority of our Year 11 students, continue with full-time education at Sixth Form level, with many going to Godalming or Alton Colleges. Other students pursue their studies at the colleges in Farnham and Guildford.

The staff are the most important resource in any school and at Woolmer Hill we have an excellent staff team and both teachers and associate staff make a valuable contribution to the life of the school. The quality of teaching is very good and we work hard to make the experience for the students in the classroom the best that it can be. Teachers are supported by curriculum support staff and technicians. The Admin team encompasses a broad range of administrative roles that enable us to function efficiently as an Academy without over-burdening teachers with administrative tasks. All staff are generous in their use of free time to support individual students, events and activities outside the classroom.

Our school is also well supported by the parents who meet as the Friends of Woolmer Hill (FOWH) to raise money for the students and organise social activities. Quiz nights, fairs and raffles are regularly offered for everybody. 

We are a member of the i2i Partnership programme based at Weydon School. This is an innovative partnership that provides CPD and career development opportunities for our teaching staff across the partnership. 

We are a successful school and achieve high standards across the board, and our core subjects of English and Mathematics area strength of the school. Our Ofsted report in January 2018 confirmed that we are a good school, and highlighted many strengths of the school. We acknowledge that there is always more to be done and we constantly work hard to develop and improve both opportunities and outcomes for all of our students. We have high expectations of anyone who joins our team, but are in no doubt that the professional and personal rewards for those who work with our students are many. 

Surrey schools are well known for their standard of academic excellence. Woolmer Hill is no exception.

Visit our website www.woolmerhill.surrey.sch.uk for more information or visit us to see the school in action.

Clare Talbot

Headteacher