Headteacher's Welcome Headteacher's Welcome

Our school has a great track record for providing opportunities for young people to develop the skills and attitudes needed to be, and become, great leaders. This was one of the many areas highlighted by our recent Ofsted Inspection as part of our Outstanding provision for Personal Development.

‘Pupils take an active role in the life of the school beyond the classroom. They participate in many of the clubs and activities on offer, perform in assemblies, help to organise events and activities, and mentor younger pupils School leaders listen to pupils and involve them in decision making’

Ofsted Report December 2022

Before you begin reading this edition of Sarah Bonnell News, I want to celebrate two of the opportunities students have had to take on leadership roles this term. The first opportunity was for Key Stage 3 students who were invited to apply to become a Key Stage 3 Ambassador We had over 130 applications from students keen to be leaders for different curriculum subjects in the school. In order to develop their communication skills, students were shortlisted to attend an interview with our Year 11 Prefects who then put into practice their own leadership skills by supporting and encouraging their peers in Key Stage 3 to demonstrate why they should be appointed to these roles. We now have 95 proud KS3 Ambassadors taking on responsibilities linked to subjects and other areas of the school Another opportunity was for Year 10 students who were invited to apply for the role of Prefect. We had over 120 applications from students proud to be members of our school community, keen to represent the school as great role models and determined to work together to improve our school for everyone. 106 Year 10 students were shortlisted and invited to an interview with professional volunteers from our business partners including Pinsent Masons Law, Citi Bank, Bouygues Engineering, the Financial Conduct Authority and more. The young professionals commented on how eloquent, confident and impressive our students were in these interviews and I am delighted to say that we have now appointed 52 Year 10 students to the role of Prefect for 2023-2024 These opportunities give students a chance to shine, to develop as effective communicators and to make a difference to the school. I am very proud of the fact that so many young people want to be involved in this way - it shows how much they care about their school and value being part of our community.

In addition to these leadership opportunities there have been lots of other opportunities for students this term Alongside the lessons teachers plan and deliver everyday, these additional activities further students' learning and broaden their understanding of the wider world. In this issue you will enjoy reading about Science Week, Safer Internet Day, World Book Day, World Hijab Day, Year 9 Residential to Aberdovey in Wales, International Women's Day 2023 and much more. Finally, you are one of 1334 students, 87 teachers, 64 support staff, 12 governors and over 1000 parents/ carers - thank you for being part of our school community I appreciate what you bring to our community and value the positive contribution you make to our school. I wish you all a happy Spring Holiday and look forward to welcoming everyone back for the start of a great Summer Term 2023, on Monday 17 April 2023 at the usual time of 8.25am.