End of Term Message from the Principal, Dr. Nick Walmsley

 

Dear Parents and Carers,

 

I write as our third half term draws to a close and we reach the mid-point of this academic year. I find it hard to believe that so much time has passed already since our re-opening back in September. It is difficult to process all that has happened so far as our school community continues to find its way through the challenges of this year and in particular the latest lockdown.

 

These have been the most difficult of times, demanding both physically and emotionally. Personally, I have found the last six weeks the most challenging since COVID first hit back in March last year. But once again my overriding feeling is one of immense pride in what we have all achieved together. I know that as families you have all been stretched to provide the support and guidance necessary for successful home learning. It will not, I’m sure, have been easy and I am so grateful for all your efforts to encourage your children to remain engaged and motivated. Thank you also for the many kind and generous messages of support which have come into school. It means a lot to staff to know that all their hard work is appreciated and that you are working with us to keep our young people learning as best we can.

 

I would also like to take the opportunity to thank my staff who have worked tirelessly to adapt their practice and ways of working to deliver the best possible learning experience and support for our pupils. They have also remained constant as we required their presence in school to look after our children of key workers and vulnerable pupils. As a staff, we have learned new skills on a weekly and even daily basis to allow us to keep doing our jobs to the best of our ability in ways which we would never have thought possible. My colleagues’ resilience and consistent high-quality delivery are a testament to their dedication both to the school and to their profession.

 

We recognise that we can still improve our offer and in particular we continue to work hard to ensure that each family has the technology they need to access online learning. We have a further forty laptops being prepared by our IT manager for delivery over the coming days and we will continue to do all we can to keep the supply coming. If you have been waiting for a device, thank you for your patience, we are doing all we can.

 

So, we await an announcement on 22nd February which will hopefully give us some idea of how we will bring our young people back to school after 8th March. As soon as I can, I will be in touch with you again to let you know our plans. As ever, our first concern will be the safety of all members of our community in school, but I am confident that we can have everything in place that we need as soon as the government give us the go-ahead.

 

Finally, can I wish you all a restful half term and we look forward to welcoming everyone back as soon as possible after the break.

 

Yours sincerely,

 

Dr. Nick Walmsley