FAQs
ADMISSIONS
How do I apply to Ark Soane for September 2022?
THE SCHOOL BUILDING
When is the school building due to be complete?
The first building is completed and we will move in this summer. Work is well underway on our second, larger building which we are due to start occupying from September 2022. Information about our school buildings can be found here.
What facilities will be available for September 2022?
Due to the Coronavirus pandemic the full school building is unlikely to be complete for September 2022.
We expect to partially occupy the new building (the section that is closest to the current building) which will provide us with plentiful classrooms, science laboratories and a new canteen - in addition to our current facilities which include a school hall, library, IT room, drama theatre and multiple classrooms.
We will not have PE facilities on site until later in the 22/23 academic year and will continue to use Gunnersbury Park for physical education until the on-site facilities are complete.
What will the facilities be when the school is complete?
Once completed, Ark Soane will provide students with state of the art science labs and DT workshops, extensive sports facilities including a 4 court sports hall, an activity studio, a fitness gym and MUGA, specialist art, drama and music facilities including a music composing suite and practice rooms, a large performance space including bleacher seating and AV system, a spacious dining hall with dedicated kitchen for preparing all meals and snacks.
CURRICULUM, ENRICHMENT AND PASTORAL CARE
Do you anticipate offering 6th form in due course?
Yes. Soane will grow one year group at a time which will mean the sixth form opening in September 2025.
Are you prepared to take care of students with special needs such as autism or ADHD?
Yes. All Ark schools are inclusive. It is our mission to support all students to achieve their potential and reach university or a career of their choice. We will aim to give the best support possible to all students to meet their needs and ensure that they enjoy school.
Can you provide details of your pastoral care and what support the children can expect?
There is a wide variety of pastoral support at Ark Soane. Our tutor times provide for the delivery of PSHE (Personal, Social, Health and Economic education) and other pastoral activities twice a day, citizenship activities are built into the school year and enrichment opportunities are available for all once a week in addition to after school clubs.
Where bespoke individual support is required, this is available through a variety of channels including individual support from the tutor, working with graduate teaching assistants, monitoring from the Head of Year, individual targeted support from the SENCO, and external counselling as required.
What languages do you teach?
All students will study French on entry. A common second language for the entire school enables us to ensure that teaching is always of the highest quality. It also enables us to provide enrichment opportunities (such as assemblies or family dining) in one language and means that MFL trips are open for all. French provides access to a huge wealth of shared cultural heritage and France is easily accessible for those immersive language experiences.
We provide a range of additional language clubs and societies depending on the languages spoken by our teachers. We currently provide additional opportunities for Spanish, Arabic and Japanese.
We expect all students to study a language through to GCSE and will provide the opportunity for our keenest linguists to take up Spanish as an additional GCSE.
We will support all students to take a GCSE in their native language where this is offered.
Do the children get homework?
Yes, homework is carefully organised and isn’t normally due in the following day. Students should expect to get approximately one hour of homework each day. This is set on Microsoft Teams and is visible to parents through the parental app. A homework club runs for one hour at the end of each day to support students who find it difficult to complete their homework at home.
SCHOOL CULTURE
How will you deal with the fact that you only have two year groups in the school?
Being a small school with only Y7 and Y8 will provide great opportunities for our students. They will be the focus of our attention and will have the opportunity to lead their school from the beginning. They will help to set the culture and the tone of the school and be role models for the cohorts that follow.
How does Ark Soane differ in its objectives to Ark Acton?
Ark Soane and Ark Acton have much in common. All Ark schools have a vision that is underpinned by six core ideas: excellent behaviour, a curriculum that enables student mastery of learning so all students can achieve exceptional results, high quality teaching, development of student character and forming strong habits, raising student aspirations so they seek to achieve to their fullest potential, and developing our teachers to become leaders in education.
Is the culture/teaching at Ark schools significantly different to other schools? Do you find that children from non-Ark primary schools struggle to fit in more?
- are common teaching techniques and routines that run through our primary and secondary schools but this doesn’t disadvantage students who are new to Ark. We have a detailed transition process for all students joining Ark Soane and this includes meetings with every family before a child starts with us in September.
SCHOOL DAY
What does the school day look like?
Details about our school day can be found here.
UNIFORM
Where can we buy the school uniform?
Details about our school uniform can be found here. To minimise the cost to parents our provider in online only. The ordering page is available here.
