Headlines By James Saunders 16th July 2021
Well done for making it to the end of term To kick things off I thought I would share an online quote from a fellow Headteacher. “We take some grief and complaints as Headteachers but being blamed for England’s penalty defeat due to our school pitches not being regulation size has to be my favourite ever! #Truestory #football #Regulationsize” It sums up society well at the moment - a mix of passion, patriotism and misguided logic verging on madness. It has been tough in school over the last couple of weeks. We have tried our best to keep things running normally but have had to make some difficult decisions. As I write this we have lost Cohort 10 until the end of term now and are looking forward to Cohort 8 returning on Monday. For Cohort’s 7 and 9 it should be business as usual. It certainly is not the end to term we envisaged. I am, however, pleased that we have been able to take all of the C7 learning groups, a bubble at a time, for a day at Marks Hall. I had the privilege of taking today’s group down there. It certainly is the weather for it. Anyway, we have made it - well done everybody. It has been a very busy term at the end of a very busy year. Think back to where we were this time last year and what we have still managed to accomplish through the challenges of the pandemic. Everyone can look themselves in the mirror and be rightfully proud of themselves. We enter the summer with a new national mantra personal responsibility. Time will show how well society copes with that one.
I am confident that each and every member of our community will be fine through this evolving landscape - you have all demonstrated your values and they are certainly the kinder side of society.
I am going to keep things brief this week but wanted to focus on being human. In my assembly I spoke about the humanity of the England team and how their actions both on and off the pitch have acted as an inspiration for many. They model our core values well. Kindness exists everywhere and costs nothing yet means everything. Gestures of support are more than just virtue signalling they are a genuine care for humanity. I would now like to bring it down from the lofty heights of international football to school. It is not just footballers who have the monopoly on altruism. As we prepare for a summer break like no other at the end of a year like no other I will leave you with the words from a year 5 boy who I recently took on a tour round the school. If your faith in humanity is wavering; If you ever question hope, or if you just want cheering up have a read of this letter. Thank you William. James Saunders Headteacher