At Town End, children are placed in mixed age classes – these are mixtures of Year 3 and 4, and Year 5 and 6. As children move into Upper Key Stage 2, classes are mixed to encourage resilience and develop skills in preparation for their move to secondary school.
When considering new classes, we take into account a range of factors: the friends of the children, who they work best with, feedback from the children and their families as well as our knowledge of the children since they have been with us. We begin our work by speaking directly to children and parents to gather feedback. After this, we then consider factors such as relationships with peers and adults in school, as well as the current make up of classes.
Once classes have been organised, significant work goes on in school. Teachers meet regularly to discuss the pupils who will join them, and meetings are held with current class teachers and the SENCo to ensure that a full picture is created for the new teacher and support staff. Pupil Passports and Learning Plans are amended in conjunction with the current class teacher, and passed on.
In the summer term, we run transition workshops for parents to offer advice and support for children and parents, as well as providing practical advice and signposting external support available.
Children then spend time (known as ‘Transition Week’) with their new teacher and classmates. time is spent getting to know one another, understanding the routines of the class as well as how the classroom is laid out. Pupils are also provided with a Transition Booklet with key information in it about the class, location of resources and adults they will work with.
Where extra support is needed, this is discussed with parents. We have a package of support including additional sessions with new adults in school, anxiety interventions with our Resilience and Wellbeing Lead and intervention groups with pupils who are moving into the same class.
If you feel your child is worried about transition, please do come and speak to your child’s class teacher, or to Mrs Hodson or Mr Weston.
For children moving to new classes in September 2026, the following booklets have been provided to parents to support their child: