Dear Parents and Carers

I want to begin by expressing thanks to Miss Richmond and her Duke of Edinburgh team for another expedition last weekend. The latest adventure involved eleven staff giving up their weekend to supervise and to camp with the students under blazing sunshine and tropical storms. Thank you to: Miss Richmond, Miss Miles, Mr Brown, Mrs Huddleston, Ms Lane, Mr Blundell, Mrs Saxby, Mrs Thomas, Miss Johnston, Mr Hood, Mrs Duffy and Mrs Fisher. Meanwhile, the Normandy visit staff and students had a great time and all came back safe and sound.

Miss Richmond’s affection for the outdoors continues this weekend as she and others are taking part in a charity climb of Mount Snowdon to watch the sun rise. Please consider supporting homeless charity, The Passage, by following this link to the fundraising page.

Essay Writers

Each year over two thousand students across the world enter the ‘Minds Underground Essay Competition’. In 2023 there were entries from across Europe, Thailand, Vietnam, the United Arab Emirates, the United States of America and many other nations. Using their own initiative, brothers Luke and Charlie Sampson, two of our sixth formers, entered the competition and sought to push their own research and thinking.

Luke entered the mathematics category by asserting this question: ‘What is a number? … No, but what is it really?’ His brother, Charlie, entered the physics category with ‘Why do we move forwards in time?’ Both have spoken of the challenge and the enjoyment of pushing themselves to think about, and read around, demanding topics. We are delighted to share the wonderful news that Luke was runner-up in his category, and Charlie’s was highly commended as well. By clicking here, you can get a fuller insight into the scope of the award and the global minds at play.

And finally…

You will be aware that I wrote to you yesterday to advise you of an early closure on Thursday 22 June, at 2:15pm. Assuming I receive the final report as expected, I shall send all parents a copy of that report on Thursday afternoon, ahead of some comments in my letter to you next week. I shall keep it short again today, so that I feel less anxious about slightly longer letters to you in the next few weeks. Lots to talk about and think about!

Yours faithfully
Barry Doherty
Headteacher