Parental Update – W/B 6 March – Strikes, Breaks and Pathways

The following update went out to parents on Friday 10 March:

Strike Action

Amidst snow closures drama, we can understand why you will be less than thrilled about further school shutdowns – be assured we recognise your frustration.

There will be further industrial action in schools on Wednesday 15 March and Thursday 16 March. The indications are that I will have at least the same number of staff striking then, as we did when we had a partial closure on Wednesday 1 March, so we will face more of the same partial closures.

We are proposing the following students will be in/out school:

Wednesday 15 March
In School = Years 7, 11, 12 & 13
Out of School = Year 8, 9 10

Thursday 16 March
In School = Years 10, 11, 12 & 13
Out of School = Years 7, 8 & 9

There is no further strike action planned at this stage, but if extra days do come up later in the year then we will look to make sure that either Year 8 or Year 9 make it in at the expense of another Year group.

There will be work set online via Show My Homework / Satchel One.

The rationale for these Year groups being in school is that we need the Years 11, 12 and 13 students in as many of them have looming final exams or pressing coursework deadlines.

We have got the Years 7s in on the Wednesday as they are our youngest students. However, we have chosen to switch the Year 7s for the Year 10s on Thursday as we have employability workshops / mock interviews booked in with a community provider, and if it does not happen then, it is unlikely to ever happen.

Again we are sorry you are in this position – we will keep you posted on how things develop. You can read more about the strike action here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-63283289

Entry Gates

Our electronic gate system was going well and the students have never been more safe at the end of the day. However, this has been scuppered by a bus trying to tail-gate through and taking out the electronic entry gate to the site.

We suspect the bill will be well into 4-figures – not great in the present financial climate. We are working with the bus company but if their insurance company is like most things at the moment it will take longer than it should.

Nevertheless, this message is about a plea to you all. Please do not come onto the school site at the end of the day. For us this is an ‘all for one’ moment – where we all work as one to keep the children safe, rather than choose to ignore the ‘all’ for the sake of our ‘one’.

Fingers crossed we can ‘all’ think about ‘one’ another.

Year 9 Pathways Evening:

This event is scheduled between 6.30pm -8.00pm on Thursday 16 March and despite this being a strike day we will run this event.

It is important to us that you and your children get all the information you need to make your decisions. You child will already have received an assembly on this topic.

On the parents-only night, there will be a thorough outline of the process, a chance to talk about different courses with subject teachers, and the opportunity to grab 1-to-1 talks with senior staff.

And Finally…

We have another great PTFA event coming up on Friday 12 May – the PTFA Comedy Night. Last year it was a big success and shocked a few parents who did not think a school comedy night would be as good as this.

It is strictly adult-only, includes a great local compere and 3 fantastic comedians, and there is food and a bar too. The tickets go on sale in the next few weeks so keep an eye out and put the date in your diary.

We guarantee you will laugh. You can go out for the night, bring some friends along as well, eat and drink, and tell your kids you are doing it all for them. Perfect.

Matt Allman, Headteacher, added: “Thank you to all the parents who kept calm, were understanding, and let us get on with it regarding the snow yesterday and today. As it turned out, we probably could have stayed open on Thursday as things settled, but at the time with snow belting down, transport problems stacking up, others schools closing, irate calls rolling in, staff getting calls to pick up their own children, and a worsening weather forecast it seemed the right call at the time. The Friday morning, with the forecast saying it would improve, it seemed the right call to remain open and so it has turned out. You win some, you lose some – but rest assured closure will always be our very last resort.”