Headteacher’s Welcome

Thank you for your interest in Christopher Whitehead Language College and Sixth Form.

We are proud to be a vibrant and inclusive 11–18 school where every student is valued and supported to achieve their full potential. At Christopher Whitehead Language College, we believe in nurturing both academic excellence and personal growth, offering a wide range of opportunities for students to thrive inside and outside the classroom.

Our broad and ambitious curriculum reflects our commitment to providing a well-rounded education. While we champion the traditional English Baccalaureate subjects at GCSE, we also offer diverse options such as Classical Civilisations, Business Studies, Construction, and Hairdressing. Our thriving arts provision includes drama, dance, music, art & design, photography, graphical communication, and textiles—ensuring every student can find their passion.

Since opening our sixth form a decade ago, we’ve grown to welcome over 250 students from across Worcester and surrounding areas. With more than 30 Level 3 courses available, our sixth form provides a welcoming and supportive environment where all students feel part of the Christopher Whitehead family.

Our students consistently make strong academic and personal progress, supported by a dedicated independent careers team who provide expert guidance to help them transition successfully to further education, training, or employment either at 16 or 18.

Pastoral care is at the heart of our school. Our comprehensive programme helps students develop essential life skills and navigate the complexities of the modern world. Our school values—Respectful, Inclusive, Creative, Honest, Empathetic, and Resilient—are embedded in everything we do and reflect our belief that “life is RICHER at Christopher Whitehead.”

Beyond the classroom, our staff offer a wide array of extracurricular activities, including sports, performing arts, academic clubs, and the Duke of Edinburgh Award. Students regularly showcase their talents at events such as our School Show and Awards Evening, and participate in engaging House competitions that foster teamwork, creativity, and community spirit. Each House also supports a charity chosen by students, reinforcing the importance of giving back and social responsibility.

We are proud of our students’ kind, inclusive, and respectful behaviour, which has been recognised by Ofsted and through our Inclusion Quality Mark status. These indicators affirm that our students feel safe, happy, and ready to learn.

Our dedicated team of qualified teachers and support staff work tirelessly to ensure every student receives the highest quality education and care. We are fully staffed with passionate professionals who go above and beyond to support learning and wellbeing.

Over the past decade, we have invested significantly in our facilities to enhance the learning environment. Recent upgrades include improvements to our Sixth Form and Learning Support Centre, a new Performing Arts Block, and the opening of The Beacon—our Enhanced Mainstream Autism Base—providing specialist support for students.

We hope this gives you a sense of the pride and excitement we feel in being part of this exceptional school community. Our motto, In pursuit of excellence, is more than just words—it is a guiding principle that shapes every aspect of life at Christopher Whitehead Language College.

Mrs C Clark | Headteacher

Ethos and Values

IN PURSUIT OF EXCELLENCE

Our vision is the pursuit of excellence in everything we do.

We believe this means being ambitious in setting achievable goals that can be met by both staff and students.

Our aim to provide our young people with the right academic qualifications and inter-personal skills they need to succeed on their chosen path. We do this by ensuring students have a voice that is heard and listened to; that students can access a dynamic, challenging and broad curriculum that can be tailored to all ability levels; that extra-curricular opportunities exist and are offered to all and that these activities are delivered in a safe, secure and caring environment.

Our six values were voted for by students and staff; they represent and underpin the ways we want to live and share our lives at Christopher Whitehead Language College and Sixth Form.

RESPECTFUL

Students accept others for who they are even when they don’t necessarily agree with them. We reward this when we see students being respectful especially to their peers: listening, considering, etc. This could be in a group activity in a subject activity, especially when exploring contentious issues; it could be in their behaviour towards a visitor.

INCLUSIVE

Students show inclusivity in not leaving anyone out in group activities; they also demonstrate inclusivity in their ideas and opinions about other groups of people and their differing abilities, sexual orientation, beliefs, age or race, etc. This can be seen in a range of situations in subject classes and Guidance Times.

CREATIVE

Students demonstrate the ability to use their imagination and/or original ideas in one or more of a range of possible activities where they can express themselves.

HONEST

This covers telling the truth when it would be an alternative to lie, e.g. when dealing with a problematic situation; or it could be handing in lost property; or giving honest feedback sensitively even if it is difficult.

EMPATHETIC

Students show the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. This might be in their response to a stimulus in class (Art, English Literature, PHSE, etc.) or when helping another student with advice, guidance or support.

RESILIENT

Students demonstrate the ability to face difficulties head-on without giving up or using unhealthy coping strategies. This could be academically, trying very hard to solve a problem or complete a difficult piece of work or project; it could also be physically, in a practical lesson or extra-curricular (e.g. Duke of Edinburgh)