Dear Parents and Carers

The new term has begun well and we look forward to the drier playing fields at break and lunchtime for our students to get back outside and enjoy some fresh air. We are approaching the serious end of the business for year 11s and years 13s, with year 10s and 12s already in the thick of their courses and important, outcome-shaping, months lying ahead. Our year 9s have selected their GCSE and BTEC options and Mr Trainer looks forward to sharing that outcome with year 9 families in a few weeks’ time.

Key Stage 3 Solo Performance Evenings

Just before we broke up for half term, the music team once again hosted another memorable evening of music. The talent on show was obvious and drew the compliments of the audience and colleagues. The skill and confidence to play in public reflected so well on the perseverance and application of the students, but also Mr Brown and Miss Johnston. This was the second performance in two weeks, following the Key Stage 4 solo performance evening the week before.

I have been asked to give a special mention to Archie Bagnall, Theo Gater, Harvey McCallum and Ben Price for volunteering and doing an incredible job with the sound and lighting. The range of talent was exceptional; from Thomas’s moving performance of Beethoven, to the vocal talents of Vivi Walkden.

Mobile Phones

I am certain that you have seen or read a great deal regarding new Government advice to schools around mobile phones. Their advice appears common sense to us and the value of a ‘neither seen nor heard during school hours’ approach is one we have of course adopted for many years.

We all remain deeply concerned by the impact of mobile phones and social media on children’s mental health, and its impact on anxiety levels in particular. Despite already being in-line with Government advice and guidance, this is something we shall review later this year and include parents, carers and students in that consultation. It is one thing to say phones must not be seen and heard at CNS, it is quite another to be confident that every single student understands why this rule is in place and then embraces the expectation.

I wonder if there is a sense that we are becoming much more aware, as a nation, of how much impact these devices have had on changing the nature of childhood. In time, perhaps this may lead to there being a greater collective appetite to fundamentally re-evaluate something that has just gradually evolved and become normal, without us really stopping to weigh up the benefits and the costs.

When we consult with you later this year, we want to know what you think as parents and carers – what do we want to do together about this challenge?

Attendance Matters

In the week leading up to half term, the good news was that attendance in all year groups rose. Less positively, our overall absence rate for that week remained below 90%.

Now that we have passed the half-way point of the year, we can look back at attendance so far and share the data below.

As uncomfortable as it can be to read, attendance below 94% begins to have a marked impact on GCSE outcomes and life chances.

For some students, the causes of absence are more complex, but the vast majority of those 374 children whose attendance is below 94% must seek to redouble their determination to avoid further absences that may turn out to have long-lasting consequences. As parents and carers, please check your child’s attendance for the year so far and reach out to us if you wish to gain some advice and guidance to get it back on track.

Sixth Form Interviews

We are in the process of interviewing internal and external applicants to our outstanding sixth form. The process is partly designed to help our students practise applications more generally; refining letter-writing and interview techniques. For those of us who have conducted the interviews, several themes keep on jumping out. Firstly, their desire to stay on stems from their affection for their teachers and the helpful way that teaching and learning takes place. Secondly, because of the support they know will continue to get. Thirdly, and perhaps most interestingly, that awareness of how ready they are to use their self-discipline to flourish during the more independent years of A level study. Most applicants have really rich lives beyond the classroom and have been able to speak with pride and confidence about their hobbies and interests, their part-time jobs, and some emerging ideas of who they want to be when they leave sixth form. It is a real privilege to interview our own students.

Have a lovely weekend.

Yours faithfully
Barry Doherty
Headteacher