We have enjoyed another busy week at school and I am delighted to announce that there have been a number of successes for the school. I particularly enjoyed popping down to watch the Year 8 Boys on the astro pitch taking on West Hatch in the gathering gloom on Wednesday afternoon. I was very impressed with their team work and they knocked the ball around beautifully keeping possession. The opposition were a decent side but our boys were first to pretty much every ball and ground West Hatch down. In the second half it became a procession and a superb hat trick from Tom Spencer and some excellent finishing from Ben Stone helped the score get to a thumping 7 - 0. I would like to thank the parents who came along to offer their support but it was also great to see so many of our students coming to watch and cheer on their school mates. I thought that it was a lovely atmosphere and I look forward to the future success of this team. The fact that Mr Bailey was quoted as saying it was "a pleasure to watch" sums it up. I have been taking the Assemblies this week and in accordance with the wishes of the Government I have been tackling the topic of "Britishness". I have been really impressed with the response from the students as I have thrown out a number of questions on the subject and the points that I have been focusing on is what makes Britain special but also how do people in other countries perceive us. One of the aspects of Britishness that I have been discussing is the importance of Free Speech and I have given some examples of how something that we take for granted is actually something that we should be enormously grateful for. However, I have been able to point out that just because we enjoy Free Speech in this country we still have a responsibility to conduct ourselves in the correct way. I have highlighted how Social Media can be a huge force for good but students must also realise and understand that what they "Tweet" or post on "Instagram" can come back to haunt them if they cause offence. At Roding Valley we take the view that our students need to be educated in the appropriate use of Social Media as it is a key part of many of their lives but at the same time they must be aware of the potential dangers in their postings. All I would ask is that you, as parents, take an interest in your sons' and daughters' use of Social Media and have regular conversations with them to reiterate the potential dangers. Linked to this I would also like to mention the School's stance on the use of Mobile Phones. We do not ban them from the school site (as we appreciate they can be helpful in making travel arrangements for example after school) however, they should be switched off whilst in school. If staff hear or see a mobile phone they will confiscate it and the student will get it back at the end of the school day. Thank you for you continued support with this. I wish you all a very enjoyable weekend. Mr J Luck Headteacher
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