Dear Parents and Carers A short but very busy term now comes to an end. For our year 11s and 13s, the next nine days are hugely important and they will need to be working hard and getting ready for the very busy weeks straight after half term. Mr Trainer …

Dear Parents and Carers So far so good, as far as the examinations are concerned. No major surprises reported and it is so helpful for our students to have a solid first week under their belts to steady the nerves for the next month and more. As I prepare this …

Dear Parents and Carers Year 11s and 13s: Here we go… On Monday, the first big GCSE examination takes place – which means that today is the last normal school day for our year 11s. We are ending the day with some time for them to reminisce in their tutor …

Dear Parents and Carers Welcome back to a slightly shortened week! Standards – including homework Ms Hancock and I began the week with our termly assembly to all students on our high expectations. We talked about the key themes around attendance, punctuality, appearance and mobile phones. We used this opportunity …

Dear Parents and Carers Welcome back to the new term and great to see attendance inching back up to where it needs to be going forward. COVID-related absence is currently very low indeed and comes at a helpful time for our oldest students – with GCSE and A levels examinations …

Dear Parents and Carers You may be glad to discover a very short end of term letter from me that wishes you and your family a restful and enjoyable break. I am very mindful of our year 11 and 13 students and know they will have to balance the need …

Dear Parents and Carers Just one week left of what has been a long term since Christmas. Term ends next Friday at the normal time of 3:15pm. Trips for 2022-3 I am so pleased to be able to mention and help promote Mrs Thomas’ three-day trip to the German Christmas …

Dear Parents and Carers I ought to start by praising the generosity of students again last week as they raised over £600 for Comic Relief. We continue to emphasise the importance of compassion but also the positive impact that giving has on our own wellbeing. What’s it like to be …

Dear Parents and Carers Our Day for Ukraine We have had a terrific response from across our community to provide humanitarian aid. Mrs Drinkwater led her textiles students to create hundreds of lapel ribbons and this has generated £2633 (so far). We do not know how much you have also …

Dear Parents and Carers We hope the first week back has gone smoothly. We are pleased to report falling cases of COVID-19 and hope that this progress continues in the weeks ahead. You will notice that our letterhead has been updated and reflects our school goal that we must be …

Dear Parents and Carers Welcome to my final letter of the term, as we all head into a well-earned rest… Book Week at CNS Wouldn’t it be great if every student at CNS read for at least 4 or 5 hours each week? If your son or daughter is in …

Dear Parents and Carers There was a genuine feeling of breezy normality when we hosted a major tournament on our MUGA on Wednesday 2 February. 120 year 6 students (from eight local primary schools) were supported by 30 of our sports leaders for the afternoon – and it was great …

Dear Parents and Carers I hope it has been a great week for you and that there are some nice things planned for the weekend. Holocaust Memorial Day Each morning we have used tutorial time to explore material that relates to Holocaust Memorial Day (yesterday). I began the week with …

Dear Parents and Carers, What a beautiful week – and long may these sunny days and blue skies reign! We are now fully back into the swing of things with one parent and teacher consultation (PTC) (Year 11), and a university visit already completed – with the Year 13 PTC, …

Dear Parents and Carers Inspiration Awards On the last day of term (see below), we shall be presenting a wide range of students with awards to celebrate and publically recognise all forms of success. One small part of those celebrations will be the presentation of inspiration awards. Last year, this …

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 …