9th October 2026
HEADLINES
By James Saunders
FRESH EYES REPORT A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that we had our Fresh Eyes review of the school. I promised to share the findings with you once I received them so that is what I am going to dedicate this week’s headlines to. We entered the review with the following targets from last year.
The feedback was as follows: Teaching and Curriculum •
An appropriate level of challenge was evident within most lessons – the bar was kept high.
•
The impact of recent CPD could be seen in terms of teachers incorporating a range of strategies around literacy across the curriculum, Think-Pair-Share, and ‘Say it again, better’.
•
Modelling and scaffolding were evident in lessons, including in nurture groups (excellent example in Maths).
•
Pupils in the KS4 Learner Voice session spoke very positively about their teachers, their lessons and the additional learning/revision opportunities provided outside of timetabled lessons – particularly in Year 11.
•
Academic language was being introduced in a number of the lessons visited (English and Science were great examples).
•
Reading opportunities were used well in many lessons, with pupils reading aloud.
•
Teachers used praise appropriately encourage and validate pupil responses.
To Continue: •
To maintain and celebrate the school’s warm and inclusive culture.
•
To build upon recent improvements in GCSE outcomes.
•
To continue to support the school’s relational approaches to behaviour management.
•
To build upon the great work which is underway to improve attendance levels in school including engaging those families which are hardest to reach.
•
To maintain the focus on Tier 2 and Tier 3 vocabulary that was evident in many of the lessons visited.
•
To build upon the great modelling of responses that was present in the best lessons visited during the review.
The reviewers conducted 38 lessons observation in pairs for 25 minutes each in almost every area of the school. In addition, a programme of discussions took place with the lead in each of the following areas: •
Whole-school Attendance
•
Pupil Premium interventions
•
Reading and Literacy
•
SEND and Inclusion
•
KS3 and KS4 Learner Voice discussions
•
Pupil Pursuit (SEND Focus)
to
Behaviour and Standards •
The school has a strong child-centred ethos and a warm and supportive culture – the children are known well as individuals by the staff at all levels in the school.
•
Pupils are polite and move around school in a calm and responsible manner.
•
Learners are extremely welcoming of - and helpful towards – visitors. They are proud of their school.
•
Behaviour in lessons is strong. Behaviour observed around the site was similarly strong.
•
Learners in the KS4 Learner Voice reported that they had never witnessed a fight in school, although they were aware that these can happen in other schools.
•
•
Learners felt that there was always an adult they could turn to if they were experiencing problems (KS4 Learner Voice) and that matters which they reported would always be dealt with by school staff. Conduct cards were being used positively and the new ticket system in English is popular amongst KS4 students.
Inclusion
launched fully shortly, but early responses from learners have been very positive. •
The Thorpe Park reward trip is received positively by learners.
•
Learners are engaged in their lessons, arrive promptly with very few learners on the corridors during lesson time.
•
Key Stage 4 learners were quick to make the connection between good attendance and doing well in school.
Summary of Findings •
The school is a caring and harmonious community within which pupils have great confidence in their teachers to facilitate and support their learning.
•
The most effective lessons featured good pace, a challenging range of activities matched to learners’ abilities and required individuals to think hard.
•
Learners with SEND are at the heart of the school’s vision and ethos.
•
SEND is clearly central to the vision for education at Honywood School.
•
Learners with SEND are well-supported and fully integrated within the life of the school.
•
Although the school has a hub for ASD learners, these children are almost always integrated into mainstream lessons.
•
Ambitious academic language was introduced to learners with SEND in Drama and Art.
•
Behaviour in the school (both in and out of lessons) is strong.
•
The Key Stage 4 Learner Voice described a school in which ‘everyone is welcome’.
•
Recent CPD is having a positive impact on increasing the skills, confidence and the pedagogical toolkit of teachers.
•
Overall attendance is good (above national average).
•
Pupils are reading more.
•
Appropriately high levels of challenge are a feature of many lessons, This should help to raise the percentage of pupils securing the highest GCSE grades (Grades 7-9).
Reading and Literacy •
Learners reading aloud and with confidence was seen in a number of lessons.
•
In the Key Stage 4 Learner Voice, the view was widely shared that more reading is now taking place in lessons.
•
Learners mentioned Drop Everything and Read (DEAR).
•
Key vocabulary is displayed in many classrooms and there is a general move away from Tier2/Tier 3 vocabulary to a focus on key vocabulary used in context.
•
‘Say it again, better’ being used well in a number of lessons
•
In one Health and Social Care lesson, learners were confidently using a number of complex terms appropriately.
As well as continuing to work towards our whole school development plan we also identified the following areas to look at as a result of the review: •
Ensure that we maintain active rather than passive learning.
•
Consider cognitive load for learners.
•
Maintain cold-calling approaches to ensure that the same learners are not repeatedly called upon to answer questions while others are not required to respond - upping the participation ratio.
•
Maintain pace and challenge and ensure that retrieval practice continues to provide a short sharp start to all lessons.
Attendance •
Overall attendance is above national average.
•
Attendance of learners with SEND is a strength.
•
The new Pupil Attendance app is due to be
Overall we were really pleased with this review. It has demonstrated the hard work everyone has been doing is paying off. And whilst there is always much to do it recognises our wonderful community quite well. Thank you everyone. Next week I am off to Alec Hunter for a day to take part in their review. On a totally different note, many of you will know that I spend much of my free time as a DJ. Most of my weekends seem to involve travelling to various locations to set up for a gig. Well my favourite gig of the year will be taking place next week - the C7 Halloween Disco. I even have some new laser lights for the occasion. In the meantime, I wish you all a lovely weekend. Don’t forget we have a two week half term so there is only one more week to go until the break.
Major world-shifting historical milestones have taken place in October: •
The Dawn of the Space Age: On 4 October 1957, the Soviet Union successfully launched Sputnik 1, the world’s first artificial satellite, officially kicking off the global space race.
•
The Battle of Hastings: On 14 October 1066, King Harold II of England was killed at the Battle of Hastings, clearing the path for William the Conqueror to seize the throne and fundamentally change the course of British history.
•
Battle of Trafalgar: 21 October 1805 - It is one of the most famous naval battles in history and took place off the coast of Cádiz, Spain. Without losing a single ship, a British fleet under Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson, decimated a combined French and Spanish fleet, ending Emperor Napoleon’s ambitions to invade Britain. Nelson was mortally wounded during the battle and died on his ship HMS Victory.
•
The Birth of the UN: On 24 October 1945, the United Nations officially came into existence after a majority of signing nations ratified its charter to prevent future global conflicts.
James Saunders
Honywood 11 Alec Hunter 0 On Wednesday evening, The Honywood C8 football squad was the dominant side in a home clash with local school Alec Hunter. Since the second the ball was kicked Honywood took complete control over the game with Finley Weavers scoring twice early on to propel Honywood into the lead. From that moment on the attack and midfield were on fire with goals coming from Jax Sears (1) James Casey (2) Seb Robinson (1) Artie Donovan (2) and Max Lesiak scoring a hat trick to finish the game resulting in a comfortable 11- 0 victory. Switching to the defence, strong performances from Jenson Morgan, Noah Hancock, Thomas Bates, Isaac Banham, Jude Gee and Callum Lee which lead to goalkeeper Ozzy Bishop keeping a clean sheet with some amazing saves! Great performance from all the boys keep it up and move on to the next one! Report written by Max Lesiak 8SPl
On Wednesday this week, the C8 netball team played against Alec Hunter in the first of our district games. With a few last minute changes the team gelled really well and produced some great passages of play down the court. The team won 6-3 which was a great result for their first game this year! We will be working on our control and timing of the ball to help the fluency of passing before our next game after half term. Player of the match went to Esther, well done! Squad: Sophia, Gracie, Florence, Florence, Heidi, Hannah, Esther, Grace, Jess, Izzy and Chloe.
Dates for the Diary Wed 14 and Thurs 15 Oct
C11 Mock GCSE PE Practicals
Thurs 15 Oct
C7 Halloween Disco - 6pm - 7.30pm
Fri 16 Oct
C8 HPV vaccinations
Fri 16 Oct
Break up for half term
Mon 2 Nov
All learners return to school
Thurs 5 Nov
Flu Vaccinations
Fri 6 Nov
C11 v Staff Remembrance Football Game
Thurs 12 Nov
C9 Parents Evening - 15.30 - 18.30
Thurs 19 Nov
C12 GCSE Certificate Evening - 6pm