Fun day for new Year 7s at school near Lancaster lays foundation for future success

For the 11 to 12-year-olds it was their fourth week of their first term at the Milnthorpe school.

The students travel from 35 feeder schools across the South Lakes and Morecambe Bay area, including from primary schools in Holme, Milnthorpe, Arnside, Storth, Beetham, Halton, Bolton-le-Sands, Hest Bank, Caton, Morecambe, Lancaster and Heysham.

Dallam School’s head of Year 7 Paul Ainsworth said: “We work really hard to support our Year 7s and this team building day gives them dedicated time and space to develop friendships and to get to know their form tutor.

“Making the step up from primary to secondary school can be a massive adjustment for students. We want them to feel a part of the school community, right from the start.

"They also need to get used to a more diverse curriculum, different teaching styles, an increased responsibility to manage their time and to work more independently. Plus, it’s a critical period for finding friends, developing resilience, responsibility, confidence and their personalities.”

The teambuilding day took place at the school’s Heversham site, home of Dallam boarding, which pupils walked to from the Milnthorpe site.

All pupils took part in four team building events that challenged them to work together, communicate and to use their problem solving skills. They were supervised by teaching staff and supported by sixth form students, many of whom started at Dallam as Year 7 pupils.

All the students were given a certificate to recognise their participation in the day.

The event was the first of others that are planned for Year 7, which will culminate in the Year 7 outdoor activities residential around and on Lake Windemere in July 2025.

The deadline for applications for children moving to secondary school next September (2025) is Thursday October 31. Late applications will limit the chance of being offered a preferred school.