Headlines

By James Saunders

FAREWELL C11

It has been an emotional day today as we have said our final goodbye to C11. They now begin study leave and will only be in school for their final exams. This week’s headlines are dedicated to each and every one of them as they prepare to embark on their next life journey.

My farewell message to our wonderful C11 cohort.

As I reflect on our past five years together, it’s hard to believe how quickly time has passed. It seems like only yesterday that I first introduced myself to you at the start of Cohort 7, and now here we are saying goodbye. Over the last few years we have all experienced challenges that we never could have imagined - who would have thought you would start your GCSE’s under a lockdown. But through it all, you have shown resilience, determination, and a commitment to being a Honywood learner.

I joined the school at the same time as you, and it has been a privilege to be your Headteacher. Over the years, we have made many changes to the school, and I hope that you can look back on your time here and understand that they were all designed to help you achieve your best. Over this period I have been so impressed with your maturity, your enthusiasm, and your commitment to learning. You have gone through an education like no other cohort, and you have nailed it. Well done!

We have all learned a valuable lesson over the last few years – time is precious, and we must not take it for granted. Living through a pandemic forced us to focus on the little things and realise what is truly important in life. As you leave the school and enter the world, you do so with a resilience forged in your own sweat, tears, and determination. Few will be able to compete on your level when you are at the top of your game.

Preparing to be a lifelong learner is what school is all about. I hope that you leave with an understanding of who you are, your strengths, weaknesses, successes, failures, achievements, and mistakes. By owning all of these, you will achieve a greater understanding of who you are. It is in understanding who you are as an individual and taking ownership of the choices you make that you will be a successful lifelong learner.

At Honywood, our aim has always been to equip you with happiness and success. Neither can be achieved if you are not honest with yourself and if you don’t take responsibility for your life. Your life is yours, not the school’s, not your teacher’s, not your parent’s. The summer will be significant for you in that you will receive the outcome of your formal qualifications. Some of you will be happy, some of you will be sad. However, you should be proud of what you achieve, as the achievement is yours and yours alone.

Is there a secret to success and happiness? If there is, I have yet to find it. The one thing I do know is that if you make it your mission to find these things, if you purposely and deliberately seek them out, you will find them. I once spoke to you about the value of time, and every instance in time is unique, it can never be repeated, and you can never get it back. Wasted time is full of regret. Time will become more valuable than money, and it will be your most precious commodity. Please go forth and embrace every opportunity that time affords you, do your very best, and be proud of who you are.

As you move on to the next chapter of your life, I wish each and every one of you the best of luck and a happy and successful life. Remember the Disney film UP and how Carl had his lifelong dream of moving his house to Paradise Falls, he spent his entire life savings in achieving his dream, only to realise at the end of

26th May 2023

the journey that his real adventure was the journey itself, not the destination. Enjoy your adventure and remember to make the most of every moment - life is what passes us by whilst we are striving for the big things. Good luck and farewell.

Mr Saunders

Thank you to the following learners for participating in the wellbeing workshops as part of the Cohort Leader interviewing process:

Jemima Stowers, Phoebe Hazell-Young, George Warwick, Maggie Smith, Ola Arowosegbe, Lacey Fitzpatrick, Katherine De-Bruyn, Tom Smith, Willow Gooden, Nathan Succamore and Laila Arkell

Thank you to Emma Julien and Max Schroder for taking an interview candidate on a tour of our school.

Vasile Rusu, Soha Malek, Karis Newman, Johnathan Hardington, Aaron Shrimpton, Daisy Taylor, Tama Ujfalusi, Ola Arowosegbe, Joseph Byers, Mia Ramsay, Cerys Godfrey, Lizzy Buscombe, Laila Arkell and Daniel Taylor who all received the outcome of their Brilliant Club assignments. Everyone achieved at least a 2:1 and there were quite a few firsts in the mix too. Well done everyone!

C7 Girls Football Tournament

The team: Isabel Harvey (capt), Evie Vaughan, Lily Kerry, Remi Scott, Layla Woods and Jessica Arkell

On Wednesday 24th May our C7 girls football team travelled to Hedingham School to play in their first tournament. The team played three games. The first game ended 0-0 with some good saves from Jessica and solid defending from Evie Vaughan and Lily Kerry. Honywood came closest to winning the game when Remi Scott saw her shot at goal hit the post. The second game ended 3 - 0 to Honywood with goals from Remi and a penalty along with an excellent strike from Izzy Harvey. Our final game finished with a 2-1 loss for Honywood with the winning goal being scored in the last seconds of the game. The girls deserved at least a draw, after some excellent runs from Layla Woods and a 20 yard strike by Isabel to make the score 1-1 after the opposition scored the opening goal from a penalty. This was an excellent performance by the team and should encourage the girls to do well next season.