Extended Learning is seen as an essential element in supporting and enabling pupils to progress in their learning. According to the Education Endowment Fund’s teaching and learning toolkit, evidence suggests that on average the impact of homework on learning is consistently positive, leading to an average five months’ additional progress. It also suggests that homework is most effective when set as an integral part of their learning rather than an add-on.

At KS3 and KS4 pupils are set an extended learning activity in each subject each week. At KS5 the expectation is that extended learning will be set every lesson for the pupils to complete in their study periods and at home. There will be a variety of tasks set and may include retrieval practice, skills development, flipped learning tasks such as research and preparation, extended writing, creative/design tasks or tasks set on subject specific online apps. Revision will also be set as extended learning in the time before exam weeks.

The timetable set up below for each year group specify the day each subject is to set an extended learning task. This helps the pupils know and plan their extended learning. Some subjects may set tasks that are to be completed overnight whilst other subjects may set a longer task that be that may be expected to take one or two weeks. All extended learning tasks need to be set through Class Charts.

It is expected that the teacher will acknowledge the completion of the extended learning task by updating the status of the task in Class Charts and that the pupils will receive feedback; not necessarily in detailed written marking. Pupils who do not complete the extended learning task may be given an extension or expected to complete it in a Faculty detention which will be recorded on Class Charts. Pupils who routinely fail to complete extended learning will be followed up and supported by their tutor and Head of Year.

​At KS3, each subject should set an extended learning task that should take up to 30 minutes. At KS4, each subject should set a task that should take an hour to complete. The expectation as at KS5 is that teachers will set a task every lesson of at least an hour.