I hope this email finds you and your families well, a final Friday update for you, as we break up for a much needed break.
Despite the best efforts of the Omicron variant, we have managed, on balance, to have a productive, festive and enjoyable last week of term. The Christmas lunch on Wednesday, was a real success, with nearly half of our 900 students, taking advantage of the Christmas fayre. I must say a big thank you to the staff who helped organise and supervise this. Alongside the tasty meal, students and staff, enjoyed Christmas music, crackers and more. Father Christmas (who bore a striking resemblance to myself, coincidentally, so I’m told) graced us with his presence, which added to the festive cheer.
Year 9 students will be bringing home their reports today. These detail your child’s current level and
progress being made, as well as an update on their ‘learning attributes’. Please read the explanatory notes carefully, but do get in contact if you require any clarification here.
Can I remind you about our arrangements for the start of next term, as detailed in my letter on
Monday. There will be a slightly staggered start to accommodate the testing programme. In
essence, Years 12, 11, 10, 9 will come in for their test only, on Tuesday 4th before returning for lessons on Wednesday 5th as planned. Years 7 and 8 will come in for their test only on Wednesday
5th, before returning for lessons on Thursday 6th January.
Clearly things are moving quite quickly with the Omicron variant, and we don’t know for sure what
the situation will be in January. If there is any change to the above, I will communicate this
on Monday 3rd January so please keep an eye on the MyEd app. If there is no change, I won’t
make an update, therefore please assume the details above are correct.
There have been twenty positive cases of Covid-19 this week here in school, another increase on the week before. I know for some of you who have tested positive, your holiday plans will have been disrupted. For what it is worth, I am very sorry about this, and hope your symptoms aren’t too bad, that you recover quickly and that you manage a break of some sorts.
For those eligible, I would encourage you to take advantage of the booster programme, I would also encourage all of us to test regularly during the holidays, and take advantage of our testing here in school at the start of the term, as we bid to protect our community from the spread of the virus and our students’ education being disrupted any further.
You may have seen in the media this week, The Children’s Commissioner Dame Rachel De Sousa
speaking about better education, for young people, on the dangers of online sexual harassment.
She has shared some important advice for families on the link below that I think you will find helpful. Her findings suggest that conversations with parents, about this topic area, should begin when students are primary aged, so the advice is relevant for all of our families. We are also working hard in school to embed advice on this topic into our curriculum. Hopefully, by working together, we can best support our young people.
a guide for parents and carers on online sexual harassment and how they can support children to
stay safe online.
Congratulations to Danaya Vatova in 7M who amassed the most rewards points last week with
twenty-seven, keep up the good work.
Many thanks for your ongoing support, we couldn’t do it without you. Wishing you all a restful and
safe holiday. Here’s to a happy, healthy and successful 2022.
Yours sincerely
Mr Sam Jones
Headteacher
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