Welcome

Welcome from Mrs Thornton

As we ended last term we were just moving into lockdown and all that came with it. I remember writing with some natural apprehension about what was to come.

So much uncertainty in the world at that time, and in many ways there still is. I promised then that UptonHouse@Home would deliver normality in a time of uncertainty. I hope you will agree that we have, with your support, and with the to be applauded resilience of your children, achieved our aim. I am so proud of our Upton community. The children have excelled in their standard of work during this time, their diligence, creativity and adaptability. These are skills they will take with them and develop and use in life. Thank you every Uptonian. The Upton staff have truly given their all during this period. For us, this was personal. To deliver outstanding educational value and support was our core focus. Thank you, Upton team. Parents, thank you for your words of appreciation, your patience and assistance.

Our aim was to enable you to work as much as possible; not an easy task, especially with the younger children, but I hope UptonHouse@Home has supported you and also given you an exciting insight into our daily lessons and approach. You may have popped into a maths lesson with Mr Brown or an English lesson with Miss Solomon, or listened to story time with Mrs Broad or Miss Shaw. Beginning our day every day TOGETHER, without exception, has certainly been a highlight for me. The odd blip such as Windsor’s complete power cut and a rapid relocation needed ten minutes before the start of assembly certainly made our hearts beat faster! I hope sharing time with us and us coming live on screen into your homes has brought us all even closer together as a community. There has never been a more important time to be a community.

As we look towards September, we plan with excitement for everyone to be back in school and our Upton family to be back together physically. There will be rules and guidelines to follow to keep everyone safe; we may still have assemblies online as we may not be able to hold school gatherings and we know there are restrictions to be implemented to adhere with government guidelines. UptonHouse@Home will still be needed in September in various ways. The children are now experts. Our focus, whatever the September climate may be, will be to continue to deliver outstanding education and normality in this time of uncertainty.

Wishing you all a very happy and healthy summer holiday.

Rhian Thornton Headmistress