Dear Parents/Carers
I hope this letter finds you and your families well; a Friday update for you as always.
It is with deep sadness that I share the tragic news of the sudden and unexpected passing of Sharon Morgan, a beloved and longstanding teacher at Kelmscott for nearly 30 years. Sharon took early retirement a few years ago but remained connected to the school, doing supply work as recently as last year. The mood in school has been sombre all week as we mourn the loss of a brilliant teacher, one of the very best I have had the privilege to work with—an outstanding form tutor, colleague, and friend.
Many of our Year 10 and 11 students and families will remember her particularly well. In recognition of her profound impact on our school community, we have opened a book of condolence to capture the legacy she leaves behind. We feel it is important for her family to understand the deep appreciation we all had for her. If any family members or ex-students would like to contribute, they are most welcome to do so. You can leave a message in person here in school or send an email to info@kelmscott.waltham.sch.uk, which we will transcribe into the book. Please feel free to share this with your networks so we can reach as many former students and families as possible.
New Gate Arrangements
From Monday 3rd March, we will be trialling new gate arrangements as work begins imminently on our new 4G AstroTurf. As a result, we will no longer be able to use the red gates. The arrangements will be as follows:
Year 7 and Year 11 – enter through the front entrance
Years 8, 9, and 10 – enter through the blue gates
As this is a trial, we will monitor how well it works and make adjustments if necessary. More updates will follow if needed.
Despite the challenges of this week, school life has continued at pace.
Year 10 and 11 Modern History students enjoyed a visit to UCL's Bloomsbury campus on Tuesday for a lecture on the Cold War by Professor Iain Stewart. Professor Stewart was impressed with their level of knowledge and questioning. The students also enjoyed a Q&A session with Professor David Sim about life in university and studying history at university.
We were extremely lucky to have the ICEE Ltd in school to work with Year 10 on Thursday. This was the second workshop in a series of three, where students work on practical skills building. In the latest session, students explored the notion of resilience and what it really meant to be resilient in school and their lives. They took inspiration from figures such as Jack Ma and heard from members of the ICEE Ltd Team. In the second part of the session, students learnt about ideation and how to pitch a new product. They received a presentation from Paulo Andres, who is a serial entrepreneur and 2X unicorn investor and winner of the Best European Angel Investment Award and he taught them the art of making a bid to gain investment for a start up project or fund. In their team, students then worked together to come up with a product and a marketing pitch and then presented it to the ICEE Ltd Team and Paulo to convince them to invest, Dragon’s Den style. It was a tough task but the students, as always, rose to the occasion and impressed Paulo. The session culminated with Paulo choosing a winning team and presenting them with a copy of his new book. We are already looking forward to the final session in May.
Year 11 Economics students visited the Bank of England yesterday to deepen their understanding of its role in the economy and the impact of monetary policy. The trip provided valuable insight into how the Bank uses tools like interest rates and inflation control to achieve key economic objectives such as stability, growth and employment. Students had the opportunity to explore real-world applications of their studies and engage in discussions about the challenges of managing the UK economy.
Thirty Year 9 students took part in the Women in Aviation programme at London City Airport today, an initiative designed to support and inspire young female students pursuing careers in STEM and aviation. During the visit students gained valuable insight into various industry roles, the skills required and potential career pathways. They had the unique opportunity to observe airport operations firsthand and explore careers in marketing, operations, customer service, piloting, and air traffic control. As part of the experience, students engaged in hands-on activities, including designing a marketing poster and taking part in decision-making exercises related to aviation careers. The students thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity and have now begun working on their challenge projects, competing against other schools in London. The final project submissions are due in May, with the winning group earning the chance to return to London City Airport for a special presentation.
Sport now and the second half of the football season is underway, and what a start it has been. On Tuesday, the Year 7 team took on Leytonstone in a thrilling match that saw an incredible seven goals shared between the two sides. Kelmscott found themselves trailing on three occasions but displayed outstanding resilience, refusing to give up and battling until the final whistle. The highlight of the game came from Billy Johnston (7C), who unleashed a stunning 20-yard strike that rattled off the bottom of the crossbar and into the net, leveling the score at 3-3. With just five minutes left, Kelmscott edged ahead to make it 4-3 which required all players to do their defensive duties to see out the win. Player of the match goes to recently signed Stellan McAndrew (7K) for his relentless energy, chasing down every through ball and working tirelessly to win back possession from the moment he came on. Well done to the entire team.
Next week we see the much anticipated return of netball with matches for Years 7 and 8. Good luck teams.
Before half-term, you may remember that 250 students attended a special event in the school hall, shrouded in mystery due to an embargo on revealing our celebrity guests. I can now share that the visitors were none other than pop star Ella Eyre and broadcaster Vick Hope.
Ella Eyre is a chart-topping singer-songwriter, best known for hits such as Waiting All Night with Rudimental and Came Here for Love.
Vick Hope is a presenter on BBC Radio 1 and The Voice UK, and a journalist known for her work championing education and literacy.
Both women spoke brilliantly about their careers in the creative industries, inspiring our students to pursue their passions. It was a fantastic opportunity for Kelmscott students to engage with two highly successful figures. You can watch the full interview here.
A reminder that face coverings, including masks, snoods, and similar are not permitted at Kelmscott. There is an unpleasant trend among some youths and adults across the country at the moment, hood up, mask on—which is deliberately designed to conceal identity and can appear sinister. This is not a look that any of our students should wish to portray and we expect all students to comply with our policy.
For students considering a career in business and entrepreneurship, an exciting online careers opportunity is available with Lloyds Banking Group, taking place on Tuesday 4th March, 5pm - 6pm. More information can be found here.
Students keen to explore a career in medicine, I am pleased to share three opportunities for students aged 14-18 to gain valuable medical work experience:
DVSS (Diverse Voices of Stage & Screen) is a new creative hub in Waltham Forest for 11-16-year-olds passionate about theatre and film. This initiative aims to tackle the lack of access to the arts among young people in our community, providing them with a free opportunity to develop their skills and gain real industry experience. Taking place on Saturdays, sessions will culminate in a professionally-made, youth-led film production exploring topics relevant to their lives. The audition workshop is taking place this Saturday at Walthamstow Library. For more information please see here.
A huge well done to the following students who topped the reward points charts this week:
Year 7, Talihya Lottrie in 7S with 47 points
Year 8, Soma Acsady in 8C with 59 points
Year 9, Fernando Marchiori Junior in 9S with 60 points
Year 10, Cristina-Marcia Gyansah in 10E with 41 points
Year 11, Ihtesham Shahzad in 11M with 32 points
Special congratulations to Fernando Marchiori Junior in 9S, who earned the highest points in the entire school.
With every good wish,
Mr Sam Jones
Headteacher
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