Dear Parents and Carers I hope this letter finds you well and that you will understand why a portion of my letter must again be devoted to COVID-related issues. However, before that I wanted to praise our year 11s and 13s for their hard work throughout the mock exams that …

Dear Parents and Carers Parent and Student Voice Thank you to all of the families that completed the homework and catering surveys. My colleagues find this kind of snapshot data really helpful to inform conversations and decisions as we move forward. Your son or daughter may have been one of …

Dear Parents and Carers Arrangements for Examinations in 2022 Yesterday, we received further information from the Department for Education and Ofqual regarding next summer’s GCSE, BTEC and A level examinations. Dr Jo Saxton, Chief Regulator at Ofqual, has written a really clear and helpful letter and video for students that …

Dear Parents and Carers Welcome back to the new term. We continue with the year 11 mock examinations and with the year 13 mocks on the horizon, we know this will be an important and busy term for our oldest students – and their teachers! They have begun well and …

Dear Parents and Carers Given some detailed information in recent weeks regarding student voice and parent or carer voice, I intend to keep my letter to you very brief this week. Meet The Tutor Evening – Monday 18 October 2021 I hope you have all got appointments for Monday’s meetings. …

Dear Parents and Carers I wish to start with my thanks to the many hundreds of students who supported our open evening last night. We had approximately 750 visitors throughout the evening and although it was more stage managed and marshalled than normal, it enabled new children and families to …

Dear Parents and Carers I hope you received my generic letter to families yesterday, informing you of further COVID-19 cases amongst our students. Sadly, we are all going to have to get used to this in the coming weeks and months and we seek to reassure families that if your …

Dear Parents and Carers It is hard to believe that we are almost at the end of September! Thank you once again for all of your support and encouragement so far this year. We continue with our great start to the term and this means we can keep to that …

Friday 10 September 2021 Dear Parents and Carers I wish to begin by welcoming all of the brand new parents and carers of students in years 7 and 12. Following those final few days of nervousness before term began, I hope you and they are now feeling more relaxed and …

Dear Parents and Carers Officially, it is a new term and year and we look forward to seeing your children in the coming days. Just a few quick reminders from me today, and some good news to share. Asymptomatic Testing Update  Please remember that all accompanying adults should stay in …

Monday 23 August 2021 Dear Parents and Carers It has been a busy morning here at CNS, as we embark on the first day of our new summer school. Over 120 of our new year 7s are with us this week. We have lots planned to make their work memorable …

Dear Parents and Carers And for the last time this year… just a quick letter today to set out a few reminders from last week: Please follow the links to the online consent for asymptomatic testing in September. There is one for students who will be in years 7 to …

Dear Parents and Carers Apologies for this lengthy letter. There is quite a bit of ground to cover now that our planning for September is much clearer than it was just one week ago. I shall begin with those plans for September and then return to other matters towards the …

Dear Parents and Carers Right now, the year 11s are getting ready for their prom at Heythrop. It will be a night they deserve and my thanks to colleagues for all of the careful planning behind the scenes (!), but also to the students and families who have been so …

Dear Parents and Carers OFSTED Review Families will be very aware of Ofsted’s recent review of peer-to-peer abuse in schools and colleges. There is no escaping the fact that it is an extremely unsettling read but also presents a number of ways that schools and colleges must work even harder …

Dear Parents and Carers Okay, so my 4:1 forecast for the England / Croatia game was somewhat optimistic, but I am going to stick with that forecasted goal margin for the final group game, tomorrow night. Thank goodness for having the most important, least important thing to keep us all …

Friday 11 June 2021 Dear Parents and Carers Welcome back to the new term. It has been great to see all of our year groups out enjoying the playing fields each breaktime and that feeling of normality gradually returning. That said, we ask that you continue with the twice-weekly testing …

Dear Parents and Carers It is here – a few days of well-earned rest for everyone, but still plenty to do and achieve in term 6. As I mentioned last week, the year 9s begin their GCSEs next week, and the year 10s and 12s have their own internal mock …

Dear Parents and Carers I recall that one of the arguments over the years to rethink the summer exam season was the sheer heat or humidity of those weeks. This has been one less demand on our year 11s and year 13s this year! Year 11 and 13s Mr Trainer …

Dear Parents and Carers I hope that this letter finds you and your family well. This week, I provide confirmation on face coverings but also wish to share some thoughts about the future. COVID-19 Update on Face Coverings The Prime Minister’s announcement last Monday evening means that from Monday 17 …

Dear Parents and Carers I hope this letter finds you and your family well. The news around the world on the pandemic remains deeply upsetting, but closer to home we are seeing many signs that our normal lives and schools are resuming once more. Attendance Matters – Now More Than …

Dear Parents and Carers Welcome back to the summer term! Just a short letter from me this week to welcome everyone back to school and what we hope will be an increasingly normal summer term. The internal assessments for years 11 and 13 are now underway, and all other year …

Dear Parents and Carers It was really motivating to listen to the radio on the way to work this morning. I listened to a summary of the soon to be published report by ‘The Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities’. Their report will be important to read and digest in …

Dear Parents and Carers I hope this letter finds you and your families well at the end of what has been a challenging term for everyone. We are so pleased to have our students back in school and to be going into the Easter holidays together. There is a definite sense …

Dear Parents and Carers Year 11 and Year 13 Grades As the days progress, more information and clarification around how final grades will be determined is emerging. Mr Trainer and Mrs Armistead will be writing to all Year 11 and Year 13 students and families in two weeks’ time to …

Dear Parents and Carers It is so good to be back! Things have gone really well this week and we are very pleased to report that we are approaching five days into the nine-day testing programme and the students have been FANTASTIC. By next Thursday, all students will have undertaken …

Dear Parents and Carers There is a strange sense that we have come to the end of a mini-term and beginning another new journey on Monday. In a very positive sense, it feels either like the end or the start of something good and special. Whilst our core purpose always …

Dear Parents and Carers My letter to you this week is largely devoted to outlining the arrangements for the reopening of our school from Monday 8 March 2021. Before I get to that topic a few words on yesterday’s news. Awarding of GCSE, BTEC and A level Grades in 2021 …

Tuesday 23 February 2021 Dear Parents, Carers and Sixth Form Students I trust you all had a restful half term and have been heartened by the speed of the vaccine rollout and the Prime Minister’s roadmap for leaving lockdown. It is abundantly clear how keen we all are to return …

Friday 12 February 2021 Dear Parents, Carers and Students In my final letter to you of this term, I wish to share some news on the work of our Parent & Teacher Association, look ahead to next term and thank you for your support and encouragement over the past six …

Dear Parents, Carers and Students It’s official, spring is on its way: I saw snowdrops growing near a hedge on Sunday morning and there is no further proof needed that winter is behind us! At some point in the next two weeks, we ought to know more about plans for …

Dear Parents, Carers and Students Today’s letter is going to be slightly unusual in as much as I wish to communicate directly to parents, carers and students, and (ironically) devote much of my longer than normal letter to the importance of reading. I have chosen to structure my letter in …

Dear Parents and Carers A shorter than usual letter from me this week following Mr Gent’s letter to families on Wednesday and the launch of the 2 minute parent survey. That survey remains live and will help us shape the direction of future provision. Thank you for the 200+ responses …

4Dear Parents, Carers, Students and Colleagues NHS Test and Trace: COVID-19 testing for students and staff As I hope you are aware, we continue to work hard to keep our school as safe as possible. You may have heard that testing for those without coronavirus symptoms is beginning across the …

Friday 8 January 2021 Dear Parents and Carers We all hope the first few days have gone well and that the transition to remote learning has not been too difficult or problematic. I shall write to you each Friday and this week have a series of clarifications, reminders and a …

Dear Parents, Carers and Students I hope that this letter finds you well and that we might all emerge from this very difficult period as soon as possible. Following the Prime Minister’s announcement last night, I wish to set out how this will affect your children in the weeks ahead. …

Dear Parents and Carers A Phased Start to the Spring Term Please forgive me for writing to you on New Year’s Eve. Following yesterday’s announcement by the Department for Education, I am now in a position to set out how the spring term will commence. Monday 4 January & Tuesday …

Dear Parents and Carers Managing COVID-19 through the CHRISTMAS BREAK The main purpose of my letter to you today is to set out what needs to happen if your son or daughter tests positive for COVID-19 during the Christmas break. This a complex matter and therefore I hope the following …

Dear Parents and Carers As we enter the final week of term, I am so proud of the way that your children and my colleagues have responded to the full resumption of school life since September. For most of us it has been pretty ‘full on’ since the release of …

Dear Parents and Carers RE: COVID-19 UPDATES Well, we continue to live in very interesting times and the past few weeks have, of course, been no different. From US presidential elections to the cancellation of examinations in Wales, there has been plenty to talk about, as well as the good …

Dear Parents and Carers With the national lockdown now underway, we just wanted to contact you to clarify the limited impact this has on your son or daughter at CNS. After School Clubs [continue as normal] We have been advised that all school-based activities that relate to catch-up, examination preparation …

Dear Parents and Carers End of Term Fundraising Our term ends on Wednesday and therefore we shall be running a non-uniform day. The day will be in support of one of the four local charities that we support at CNS. THRIVE has done tremendous work before and during the pandemic …

Monday 12 October 2020 Dear Parents and Carers Meet the Tutors Evenings This Week Starting today with years 7 and 8, phone calls will take place throughout each evening between my colleagues and yourselves this week. Naturally, the focus of each conversation will be different, depending on the individual circumstances …

Monday 28 September 2020  Dear Parents and Carers  Last Week’s Letters from Mrs De Bruyn and Mrs Armistead  I hope you enjoyed last week’s letter from our new assistant headteachers and that it allowed you to  broaden your awareness of the many ways in which we strive to be an …

Monday 14 September 2020 Dear Parents and Carers I trust you received my letter regarding a confirmed case of COVID-19, sent last night. Whilst I do not wish to revisit the content of that letter, it is worth dwelling for a moment on the fact that such letters and responses …

Thursday 10 September 2020  Dear Parents and Carers  Health & Safety Update – Including Revised Face Covering Expectations  Those more familiar with our risk assessment will be aware that we carry out a weekly review of our  reopening procedures. I am writing to you today to set out a few …

Dear Parents and Carers Between us all, we seem to have started the term really well. In broad terms, the zones across the school are working and everyone appears to have got the hang of it pretty quickly. However, we continue to learn a little more each day about what …

Wednesday 2 September 2020 Dear Parents and Carers Today That’s it; we are back up and running! The Year 7s arrived this morning with very little fuss and have enjoyed a full day with their new tutor and several lessons as well. We hope they arrive home with plenty of …

Dear Parents and Carers I hope this final week is going to plan – whether that is catching a few final days together as a family or simply getting everything ready for next week. You may recall that I wrote to you last week andcommitted to setting out more information …

Friday 17 July 2020 Dear Students For most of you, this is your last day of term – but please spare a thought for those GCSE, BTEC and A level students of Geography and PE who will be coming in next week. My hope is that this letter will be …