Transition from Primary to Secondary School
Welcome to PACA!
PACA Prospectus
Secondary school admissions guide 2025 to 2026 (brighton-hove.gov.uk)
Parent and Carer Handbook
Before your child starts at PACA it is important to read through the parent and carer handbook available here. It contains information about how we manage the school and key information when you arrive. I hope you find this useful.
Messages of support and tips from some of PACA staff
A welcome message from Head of Transition Ms N Wilson
I would like to introduce myself as Ms Wilson the Head of Transition at Portslade Aldridge Community Academy.
I understand that many young people may feel a mixture of excitement, fear, and nerves as they get ready to start secondary school. I am very aware of how big this transition is, but do not worry, our school community will do everything we can to help your child, and you, settle into a new routine here at PACA. My role during the transition process is to ensure that students, parents/carers are happy, settled, and safe whilst encouraging students to become more independent, make new friends and try new things. Students at PACA are valued and well looked after. We have the highest aspirations for every one of our students and are here to support, challenge and nurture your child to reach their full potential. I am sure that your child will have a wonderful transition experience, and I am looking forward to sharing their successful journey through secondary education.
Any questions you have please do email me or the transition team on the following email addresses:
Ms Wilson: n.wilson@paca.uk.com
Transition Team: T@paca.uk.com
Head of Y7 Mr Wilson: j.wilson@pac.uk.com
A welcome message from Mr Wilson Head of Year 7
Welcome to all our new Year 7 students! I am Mr. Wilson, and it is my great pleasure to extend a warm welcome as you embark on this exciting journey at PACA. This is a place where your potential is unlocked and where you will find support at every turn as you navigate new subjects, make new friends, and explore your passions.
As Head of Year I am here to help you thrive both academically and personally. We are thrilled to have you join our community and look forward to seeing all the wonderful things you will achieve throughout this journey. Welcome aboard!
Message from Ms Wales (English) and Harper the Literacy Dog
Welcome to PACA! I’m Ms. Wales, and I’ll be leading the English department for your first year here. We love all things reading and writing, and make time every week to read aloud with you. We can’t wait to share our favourite books with you and hear about yours!
My top tip for joining PACA is to make sure your pencil case can hold a few pens, green pens and pencils. There’s nothing worse than your pen running out midway through a lesson when you’re in the middle of writing something incredibly creative! I would also recommend getting involved in the Summer challenges we’ll set on your Transition Days – they’re a great way to earn some Praise points as soon as you join us!
Message from Ms V Kaplan (Maths)
The maths team are not mean; we are above average.
My role is to teach you that math is where it counts.
My top tip: Secondary school life is like a math equation. In order to gain the most, you have to know how to convert the negatives into positives.
Message from Miss Bower (Science)
Message from Ms Barnett (Computer Science)
Welcome new year 7s to PACA! My name is Ms. Barnett and I am the Head of Computer Science and the computing team consists of myself and Mr. McNair. We can't wait for you to join to show you all our exciting lessons on our very own website- pacacomputing.uk.
My top tip for joining PACA is to get involved by joining a club; I made so many lifelong friendships from my secondary school clubs and it made me really enjoy school.
Message from Mr Riley (History)
In the history department we study over one thousand years of History from Y7-Y11, covering some of the most important things that have happened in England and other countries around the world. Our lessons involve reading, writing, answering on whiteboards, online quizzes, re-enacting battles on the field, building models of WWI trenches and pretending to be Tudor surgeons with real organs.
My top tip: Having a lunch card (or replacing your lost one) is the best way to skip the queue and get the best food. Sausage and chips on a Friday, especially.
Message from Ms Jorge (Modern Foreign Languages)
Hola/bonjour! We are a team of 5 teachers here at PACA and we offer French and Spanish. We love speaking different languages, just as much as we love teaching them! We are really looking forward to welcoming you and cannot wait to see you start your language learning journey with us. Adios/au revoir!
My top tip for joining PACA: check out the library for a world of literary fun!!!
Message from Mr Chantler (PE and Dance)
Hello, I'm Mr Chantler and I teach PE & Dance. I run lots of afterschool clubs for lots of different sports and will be found in the PE office at break & lunches to chat about any sport you like.
My top tip: You may be busy at times revising and completing homework so it is great to find something to reduce any stress and anxiety you have. Sport, music, dance and art are all great ways to relax.
Message from Mr Aldridge (RE)
I'm Mr Aldridge, and I teach RE. I run the Philosophy club here at PACA, and teach Media at KS4. The role of our RE department is to teach you to argue, to question, and help you explore your own beliefs in a wide and diverse world.
My top tip for joining PACA would be to make lots of friendly connections in your tutor group, including getting to know your tutor (because they will always be there for you)! Each tutor group is like a little team, and you'll be working and supporting each other for the next 5 years
Message from Ms Wheelhouse (Librarian)
There is always something going on in the school Library for you to ge involved with, including volunteering, clubs, competitions, book sales, events and trips. The Library is open at break and lunch times if you want somewhere to read or work. You may also bump into Harper the Lireracy Dog, who spends a lot of time working with me in the Library!
My top Library tip is that the Library gets new books added to the collection all the time, so come and have a chat with me and I can hep you find something brilliant to read!
Optional transition work can be found here: Transition Work
This is aimed at helping the students reflect on the journey they have taken so far and how those experiences might give them the confidence to approach the new challenges of secondary school.
Our handbook is also available at the top of this page and is essentially the instruction manual for a PACA parent! You will find information on homework, the school day, contacting us, curriculum and much more.
Tours
We have been able to offer those students with additional needs the opportunity to visit the Academy and would like to extend that offer to those who may be feeling anxious about starting secondary school by way of a tour. Please contact transition@paca.uk.com
MEET THE TUTOR EVENING - THURSDAY 19TH SEPTEMBER
We look forward to inviting you into school for our Meet the Tutor Evening, date 19th September. The evening will consist of an opportunity to meet your child’s tutor to catch up on how they have been getting on in the first few weeks as well as an address from Mr Poston. We will send out details on how to book this event nearer the time.
ADULT EDUCATION
As a community school we are proud that we also host Aldridge Adult learning. AAL gives everyone in our community the opportunity to advance their career, achieve their dreams and love their hobby! More information on this is available at: https://aldridgeadultlearning.com/
UNIFORM AND EQUIPMENT
In the Parent and Carer Handbook there is guidance on uniform and equipment.
Most uniform can be bought from Monk House
Life at PACA
This is an exciting time to be joining PACA. We are absolutely passionate about making PACA the best it has ever been. For us this means helping all our students develop their character ready for the 21st century, it means helping everyone at PACA contribute to making it a kind, positive and enjoyable place to live and grow, and it means building a school that is excited about learning every single day. We’re a growing school with a great track record of results.
We are looking forward to you joining our community to get the most out of the years ahead.
“everyone at PACA is known to each other” - Ofsted 2021
We thought the transition was managed wonderfully and they really benefited from already knowing the campus and some of the staff and other pupils before they began last September. From our perspective it went very smoothly and they both had a very positive start to their time at PACA, which seems to have continued over the year. - PACA parent
I just wanted to express my thanks and appreciation for the parents evening this week. Every teacher knew who my child was, had a specific reference either to the targets she is working towards, or a recent piece of work completed or test result. And they were able to shed some light on how choices for GCSE will work and what the content of some of those GCSEs would involve.
I’m fortunate to have a child who engages well with her education - but rather than hear the usual - that she is hard working and nice - (which is nice to hear) I received meaningful feedback which included how she is being perceived and how she could improve things - this was really valuable and surpassed my expectations.
I’d like to say a well done to all involved and the evening was really reassuring on the level of teaching which PACA is providing for us. -PACA parent
This school has helped me improve my skills in every lesson. - PACA student
