Improving Your Sixth Form: 18 Top Tips for Improvement Advice, Guidance and Support

Foreword from John Philip, Alps Senior Education Consultant

I originally wrote the first edition of 99 Ways to Improve Your Sixth Form in the early 2000s while still teaching at Little Heath School. That decade brought two Ofsted Outstanding judgments, a second SSAT specialism, and a journey that connected me with Alps and PiXL, both of which played significant roles in the development of our sixth form. 

The success of that sixth form and the insights gained from working with schools across the UK and beyond led to what’s now a well-travelled piece of work – continually updated to remain relevant. What strikes me most after 20 years of policy shifts and social change is how enduring the fundamentals of a great sixth form really are.

DOWNLOAD THE FULL VERSION OF “99 WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR SIXTH FORM – ENGLAND” HERE

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18 Top Tips for Sixth Form Improvement Advice, Guidance and Support

Strong sixth form provision is built on more than just teaching – it depends on high-quality advice, guidance and support at every stage of a student’s journey.

From the moment students choose their course to the day they leave for their next destination, the decisions they make – and the guidance they receive – can have a lasting impact on their outcomes and future opportunities.

In this instalment of Improving Your Sixth Form: Top Tips for Improvement Advice, Guidance and Support, John shares practical, experience-led strategies to help schools and colleges strengthen the systems, structures and conversations that underpin student success.

Tip 1: Effective Careers Guidance Starts with Strong Leadership

Each school should have a Careers Leader to lead the careers programme and provide perspective and current sixth formers with well-informed guidance that places them on the right pathway towards a bright future. Weakness in information, advice and guidance are common features of less effective sixth forms, particularly when students are directed to courses which are inappropriate for their needs and capabilities.

Tip 2: Match Courses to Aspirations and Ability

Matching post-16 courses with each students’ aspirations and abilities is key. Make sure that all those involved in advising or guiding students about subject choices have a collective understanding about which subjects with similar abilities tend to gain higher grades in or make more progress in, both nationally, and crucially, at your institution.

Tip 3: Taster Sessions Should Inform, Not Recruit

Ensure that any ‘taster’ lessons offered to Year 11 students are appropriately representative of the course and not used inappropriately by subject leaders as ‘recruiting campaigns’ aimed at ensuring their course(s) will either be hugely popular or will put off perceived low achievers.

Tip 4: Treat Students as Adults: Agree Expectations Upfront

Insist all students sign a contract that explicitly sets out what they can expect from the school and college and what the school or college will expect from them. The agreement being signed by the student is indicative of the fact that they are being treated as adults. Use the contract, as necessary, as a management tool with students who fail to meet these standards. Make sure all teachers are familiar with the contract and expect them to meet its demands consistently.

Tip 5: Map Year 12-13 with Clear Deadlines

Ensure all Year 12 students have a clear plan of their two years, showing deadlines for key pieces of work, mock exams and UCAS applications. All departments should contribute (and then adhere to) their deadlines for assessed work.

Tip 6: Use September as a Skills-Focused Induction

Expect all subjects to consider September of year 12 as an induction period in which the key skills that must be gained to succeed on each course will be explained, demonstrated and practiced.

Tip 7: Keep Students on Track: Control Course Changes

After any course changes in September of Year 12, it is important to keep students on courses, most especially those students who might ask to drop from three A Levels to two.

• Ensure that there is a gatekeeper, such as the Head of Sixth Form, who does not allow subject leaders or students to make decisions about dropping courses (or exam entry) without appropriate consultation and permission.
• Heads of Department cannot tell students to stop studying their subject at the end of Year 10 and it should be no different at the end of Year 12.

Tip 8: Remove Barriers: Provide Ready Access to Past Papers

Ensure all students have easy access to past papers and mark schemes – do not rely on students finding the correct papers online on exam board websites. Have files of printed copies available in study areas, have copies to hand at meetings with students and their parents and ensure that there are up-to-date links to them on your website.

Tip 9: Don’t Guess the Standard – Show it with Real Scripts

Buy photo-copied A, B and C grade scripts for each unit from the examination boards. Have these word-processed and anonymised so they can be used with students (and teachers) to help them understand how the unit is assessed and what you need to do to gain each grade.

Tip 10: Share Key Insights from Examiner Reports Annually

Each Autumn, expect subject leaders to produce short (one side of A4 maximum) bullet-point summaries of the most important points made in recent Chief Examiner reports. Ensure that these are issues to all subject teachers and the students.

Tip 11: Invest in Tutor Training for Better Student Guidance

Provide all sixth form tutors or mentors with appropriate training, particularly about having effective learning conversations and supporting students with potential career pathways and university applications.

Tip 12: Equip Tutors with Data to Drive Student Progress

Expect tutors to be aware of the strengths and weaknesses of their students so that they are progress leaders as well as pastoral carers. To enable tutors or mentors to be most effective, you should ensure they have up-to-date information on each student’s progress. Alps Connect can be used for this very effectively.

Tip 13: Make Time for Meaningful Learning Conversations

Ensure that every sixth form tutor or mentor has time to meet regularly with every member of the tutor group(s). These one-to-one / small group learning conversations can be invaluable for supporting students with time management, reinforcing any messages from subject teachers and providing focus time to review targets and discuss longer-term plans. These meetings promote personal and social development, promote academic achievement and build self-esteem and self-confidence.

Tip 14: Document Meetings to Drive Accountability

Expect all one-to-one / small group meetings to be briefly recorded, preferably electronically, so any issues and action points are remembered clearly and followed up.

Tip 15: Use Postcards to Recognise Student Achievement

Encourage mentors / tutors to send postcards home to students who achieve short-term goals or targets.

Tip 16: Use Direct Communication to Support and Monitor Students

Ensure your sixth form manager has students’ mobile numbers as well as home contact numbers.

It can have a significant impact if students know that they and (where necessary) their parents will be contacted if issues arise. Important reminders can be sent out as texts.

Tip 17: Use Study Time to Build Independence and Accountability

Review arrangements for non-contact time. Sixth Form should function as a bridge between school and university. If students must stay in school during non-contact time it is vital that you provide the resources and environment to enable them to study. If you cannot do that, possibly because of space, think about permitting students to study at home – a freedom that can be withdrawn if students are below target grade or behind deadlines.

Tip 18: Use Freedom Contracts to Incentivise Good Study Habits

Some schools introduce ‘freedom contracts’ during Year 12 to those with good independent study habits and grades and allow appropriate students to study at home (for example if they have no lessons after lunch); they keep this under regular review and make sure those without ‘freedom contracts’ know what they need to do to be granted one.

Closing Thoughts from Alps Education

Delivering high-quality sixth form improvement advice, guidance and support isn’t just about structures – it’s about consistency, clarity and care.

These top tips from John highlight practical, proven ways to ensure every student is guided onto the right pathway, supported to stay on track, and equipped to achieve their full potential.

From informed subject choices to meaningful tutor conversations, the most effective sixth forms are those where expectations are clear, communication is strong and support is both proactive and personalised.

At Alps Education, we know that impactful guidance is strengthened by reliable insight.

That’s why tools like Alps Connect empower tutors, teachers and leaders with up-to-date, actionable data – helping them to track progress, identify need and have more effective conversations with students.

By bringing clarity to performance and consistency to support, Alps helps you create a sixth form experience where every student is known, supported and challenged to succeed.

If you’re looking to strengthen your sixth form improvement advice, guidance and support, we’re here to help. Book a demo with our team today and discover how Alps can support your improvement journey.

About the author: John Philip

John started working with Alps in 2008, while he was working at Little Heath Comprehensive School. At Little Heath, John used Alps to achieve top 2% performance in value-added progress. Whilst at Little Heath, John worked with schools regionally and nationally through the SSAT Raising Achievement Partnership Programme. Since leaving Little Heath in 2010, John additionally worked as an associate for many secondary schools through PiXL.