The move from primary to secondary school is an exciting milestone in every child’s journey, marking the beginning of a significant new chapter. Many children see it as an important step in growing up, recognising that new opportunities, challenges, and experiences lie ahead. Alongside this excitement, it’s natural for them to feel some uncertainty as they prepare for change.
Most children will adapt well to secondary school, though it’s normal for them to experience ups and downs along the way. Their feelings may shift between confidence and happiness to moments of nervousness or worry as they settle into unfamiliar routines and surroundings.
Throughout this process, our school values of Respect, Excellence, Ambition, and Pride can help guide and support them.
Whether your child is joining a secondary school alongside familiar friends or stepping into an environment where they don’t yet know anyone, it’s helpful to talk openly about friendship and social confidence.
Encourage them to show Respect by being kind, open-minded, and considerate when meeting new people. Discuss simple ways to start conversations and remind them that everyone in their year group is navigating this transition together.
Taking Pride in who they are and showing Ambition in trying new things can help them build positive connections.
Joining extracurricular clubs and activities at their new school is an excellent way to meet peers with similar interests, while also striving for Excellence beyond the classroom. You might also consider arranging opportunities during the summer holidays for your child to meet with others, helping them feel more confident and prepared for September.
To help make the move to secondary school as smooth as possible, we have put together a transition programme that supports new students and their families. This programme ‘Early Risers’ reflects our school values of Respect, Excellence, Ambition and Pride, and is designed to help children get to know the academy, meet new people and feel more confident before starting in September.
Early Risers is a two-day transition programme taking place on Wednesday 8th July and Thursday 9th July 2026.
During May we will be posting out three important forms: Student Data Collection, Parental Consent and Parent-Student-Academy Agreement. It is vital that parents complete all three forms and return them to us before your child joins us for the Early Risers transition programme in July.
In addition to our Early Risers programme, we will be holding the following events –
If you have any questions about transition, don't hesitate to contact our transition team by email: transition@sheffieldsprings.org or call the academy on 0114 239 2631.
Do they have a passion for learning and show perseverance when tackling the most challenging scenarios? Do they want to explore the world of STEM through learning, meeting careers-insiders and getting hands on experiences in the workplace?
Click here to find out more about our successful STEM programme...
With content hosted on BBC Bitesize, Starting Secondary School is packed with videos, interactive games, tips and advice which will help your child during their last weeks in primary school and through their critical first weeks at secondary school.
It also has practical tips for you as a parent on how to prepare your child for secondary school, as well as resources to help start discussion around transition, produced in partnership with YoungMinds.
If you have any questions regarding the information on the blue buttons above, please e-mail:
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