Sixth Form Open Evening – 24 October 2024
Applications to join our Sixth Form September 2025 is now open. Click the link below
Apply here
Our Sixth Form Open Evening for 2025 entry will take place on Thursday 24 October 2024 between 5pm and 8pm.
Prospective students are invited to attend our Sixth Form Open Evening for September 2025 admissions. The evening will consist of talks from the Headteacher, the Head of Sixth Form, and provide an opportunity to visit departments to find out more about about out A level courses and see our fantastic facilities.
At Heckmondwike, academic achievement is at the forefront, and our results speak for themselves. Year after year, our students achieve fantastic A-Level results that exceed the national averages. This year, an amazing 85% of students scored A-Level grades of C or higher, and 80% of those grades were A*, A, or B. Eleven of our students picked up three A* grades, and five of our students bagged an incredible four A* grades!
But what’s even more impressive than the statistics is the environment that helps make this possible. The teachers here are committed to helping students reach their full potential, and our ethos of ‘work hard, play hard’ runs through everything we do. Whether you’re aiming for top grades or just trying to be the best version of yourself, you’ll find all the support you need.
One of the things that really sets Heckmondwike Grammar School Sixth Form apart is the sheer number of students who go on to study at some of the UK’s most prestigious universities, including Oxford and Cambridge. The school has a track record of sending more than double the percentage of students to Oxbridge than the national average. This shows how well-prepared students are when they leave. However, we don’t just focus on academic excellence. We help students develop the confidence needed to pursue their dreams, and we strive to equip them with the knowledge and skills they need to make those dreams a reality.
The Jo Cox Sixth Form Centre: A Space to Learn and Grow
When you walk into the Jo Cox Building, you immediately get a sense of what makes Heckmondwike so special. This modern, purpose-built facility is at the heart of Sixth Form life. Whether you’re looking for a quiet study space or a place to hang out with friends, it’s all there. The design of the building encourages both focused learning and community, so you feel part of something bigger while having the space to work on your individual goals.
One of the best things about Heckmondwike’s Sixth Form is the flexibility it offers. Most students opt to take three A-Levels, with a number studying four, and the school provides a wide variety of subjects, so there’s something for everyone. Whether you’re passionate about the sciences, humanities, or arts, you can tailor your studies to suit your future plans.
Please visit the Sixth Form area of our website for more information.
Applications to join Heckmondwike Grammar School Sixth Form should be made through the Kirklees ‘Get Into’ system by visiting https://www.get-into.co.uk/heckmondwike-grammar-sixth-form
Yusuf Shah, a student at Heckmondwike Grammar School has achieved the highest accolade in achieving the highest score in the whole of the UK in the Junior Mathematical Olympiad.
He received a gold medal for his achievements and a letter from the United Kingdom Mathematical Trust. They wrote; “This is an exceptional achievement for both you and your school and we are pleased that your problem solving ability, hard work and dedication have been recognised in this way. We hope that your impressive personal performance will encourage you and your classmates to continue to participate in UKMT competitions, and we hope that this will help you all to become stronger young mathematicians.”
In May, Yusuf also competed in the The British Federation of Mathematical Games: Logic and Mathematical Games Final 2024 at Coventry University and managed to secure a place and some funding to represent the UK in the International Championship of Mathematical and Logical Games in August in Paris. It was an intense and exciting 2 days of competition. Yusuf did very well in the competition, getting 14 out of 16 problems correct, with the highest score and fastest time on day 2 of the competition in his age category. A highlight of the event was meeting the Fields Medal Winner Professor Hugo Duminil-Copin.
Everybody there was very welcoming and supportive of Yusuf and he even gave an interview to the French media!
Former Heckmondwike Grammar School student, Mike Hollin has published his first children’s novel, ‘Smart Fiona’.
Mike attended HGS between 1995 and 2002 before going on to Huddersfield University to study Business Studies. He then went on to study law as the College of Law in Chester, and has worked in the legal sector ever since. Mike has always adored books, reading and writing but had never set out to write a children’s novel. His inspiration came following a career break in 2011, when he moved to South Korea and taught English to children in a primary school.
Smart Fiona is about a 10 year old girl who gets sucked into her smartphone and discovers a brand new world. The Apps on the phone are being controlled by the ruthless Queen Darkness. With the help of her two companions, Sunita and Sharlene, Fiona must defeat Queen Darkness if she is to return to the real world. However, her charger is lost, and her phone’s battery is dwindling down to zero. If the battery dies, Fiona will never be able to return to the real world. Will Fiona be smart enough when it counts the most?’
Smart Fiona is aimed at 8-12 year olds and is available to buy online at Amazon, Whsmith, Waterstones, Blackwells, Browns and Hive.
We are aware that some parents have not yet received their letters providing the details required for the Entrance Exam on Monday 16 September. All letters were posted first class last week, so we can only assume this is due to issues with the Royal Mail postal service.
We will now send further details to ALL parents of children sitting the test via email this morning (Thursday 12 September).
Please accept our apologies for this delay.
Congratulations to all our students on achieving outstanding A level results again this year.
As always the profile of our grades shows a very strong bias towards the upper range of grades. 85% of the A Level results were at grade C or better and 80% of these grades were either A*, A or B. There were 309 A* and A grades altogether, including 54 students that achieved 3 or more grade A* or A passes. Extra special mentions go to Christopher Drake, Ryan Heung, Rohan Patel, Harvey Swift and Beth Waterfield who achieved 4 A*grades. Further congratulations go to Amaan Aslam, Amy Cross, Cerys Harrison, Elliot Hoyland, Matthew McCollam, Sam Sepehri, Syed Zulfiqar Shah and Adwait Upasani, who achieved an incredible A* grade in their 3 A Level Subjects.
These superb results reflect the hard work and dedication of our students and staff, and will enable the students to take their next steps with confidence. The outcomes in terms of students being placed at universities and high calibre apprenticeships of their choice are exceptionally good this year.
My congratulations and well done to you all.
Peter Roberts – Headteacher
The HGS Physics department is celebrating the success of students in national competitions in the past month.
The Eurekas is an annual physics competition for students aged 11-16 in the United Kingdom and Ireland and has been conceived by the Institute of Physics to broaden and diversify the range of people doing physics after age 16. This year the challenge was to create a project to answer the question “Can Physics help us solve mysteries?”.
Both of our winners concentrated on methods to solve the mysteries of astrophysics and cosmology. Finn McDougall, Year 10, created an orbit simulation program that rivals much of the software used by the Physics department in lessons, and this won the 15-Year-Old Age Category prize. Eeshan Upasani looked at the physical aspects of astronomy and designed a DIY telescope, which won him the 14-Year-Old Age Category. Both students won a cash prize of £1000, as well as £250 each for the school.
Several Year 7 students entered the nationwide Wonderverse Energytown Competition. Students were asked to create a plan to generate power for future cities. Zoha Khan’s plan using hydrogen fuel, nuclear power and a flywheel storage system, won her the runner prize, earning her a tablet computer and a £1000 sustainability grant for the school.
These awards are a testament to the creativity, hard work, and dedication of our students. Flynn, Eeshan, and Zoha have demonstrated exceptional talent and a commitment to making a difference in the world through science and innovation. We are incredibly proud of their success and excited to see how they will continue to inspire and lead in the future.
These accomplishments highlight the Physics department’s commitment to fostering an environment of academic excellence, innovation and creativity. The department will continue to support and encourage students in their pursuit of scientific exploration and discovery.
“This was an excellent submission for the Quality in Careers Standard and all criteria have been fully met with many examples of exemplary practice. The “whole school” approach to CEAIG being integral to everything else the school delivers is fantastic and the commitment of the Head Teacher, Deputy Head and all staff ensures that the careers team have the support, budget, and time to run an exemplary careers programme.
The commitment to review and evalaution has ensured that the school has not “stood still” since the last assessment and the drive for continuous improvement has led to some excellent and in-novative developments. In particular, the Pathways programme is exemplary practice and I am very interested to hear how this has been rolled out to the whole school. Students at Heckmondwike Grammar talked very favourably about the careers programme. The CEAIG at Heckmondwike equips students to make informed, aspirational, and positive decisions about their future, and this was confirmed by students on the day. All the students interviewed were confident that they were making the right decisions and extremely positive about their futures and believed that the careers support they had received was invaluable. The enthusiasm, commitment and knowledge of the Careers Leader and whole careers team is a real bonus for the school and this combined with the support from senior level ensures that the CEAIG programme at Heckmondwike Grammar School is well thought out and delivers the best possible outcomes for all students. The careers programme at Heckmondwike Grammar School has many strengths and there is a robust plan to embed good practice in all aspects of CEIAG. Congratulations on achieving the Quality in Careers Standard which fully incorporates the Gatsby Benchmarks. This is an excellent achievement and recognises the quality and breadth of your careers provision.”
We look forward to welcoming prospective students and their parents to our open evenings on Wednesday 19 and Thursday 20 June 2024.
The evenings are aimed at children currently in Year 5, and will provide the opportunity to explore our excellent facilities and discover what life is like at Heckmondwike Grammar School.
There will be also be rolling talks about the admissions process and Headteacher addresses throughout both evenings.
We look forward to seeing you!
You can now register to sit the entrance exam for September 2025 entry REGISTER NOW!
The RSC chemistry Olympiad exam was undertaken by our chemists again this year, this exam is for the more able chemistry students in year 13, however this year it was opened up to promising year 12 students who wanted to enter too. This is a very demanding Chemistry exam which takes curriculum content a step further and looks at real world examples and scientific problems. Due to time constraints this year the students haven’t had as much time to prepare so the results are a testament to their ability!
25 students: 5 x year 13 student and 20 x year 12 A-level chemistry students attended the Royal Society of Chemistry Olympiad exam that took place on Thursday 25th January 2024 within school led by Mrs Noble.
All of the students will be awarded a certificate with a significant number achieving silver and gold awards. The exam this year was out of 82 and to achieve a bronze this year the candidates required a score of 10 for bronze, 18 for silver and 30 for gold.
Overall there were 6 gold certificates, 11 silver certificates, 5 bronze certificates and 3 participation certificates. These are amazing results particularly for our year 12 students who haven’t yet been taught a lot of the course content required for the Olympiad exam. A special mention also has to go to Ayan Gupta one of our very talented year 12 students who doesn’t actually study A Level Chemistry and was able to achieve a gold certificate and a particularly high score.