From The Principal #177

From time to time, it’s important to reflect on where we are, what we have achieved, and where we are going. Our students have sat mock exams, received feedback, parents’ evenings to discuss progression and preparation for various assessments and public exams. All this against a backdrop of sport, music, drama, art, trips, house activities, university offers, student council interviews, CCAs, and a whole host more. During this busy term, I have reflected on how far we have come, as exactly this time, three years ago, the educational landscape was in a completely different place – we were in lockdown. Thankfully, this memory is very distant, but we must appreciate and value what we have now and cherish the opportunities that are available for us to enjoy. It all looks pretty different now as the school continues to be a happy and vibrant place to live, learn, work and play, and the longer evenings, after a cold winter, certainly help!

The school will come together at the beginning of the new summer term (Monday, 17 April), when we will welcome the new Student Council for 2023/24 and bid farewell to the outgoing Student Council of 2022/23. That will be a special moment as the outgoing Student Council has led by example and has raised the bar even higher for the incoming cohort. They have been truly remarkable, admirably led by the effervescent duo of Giovanna and Ishaan; they have been a delight to work with and leave behind a compelling legacy.

Speaking of legacy, we bid farewell to Imran Lakhi, our Head of Business & Enterprise, who will be moving to the Royal Masonic School for Girls next term, and he will be sorely missed. Imran goes with our best wishes as he joins RMS as their new Head of Business & Economics. Our Head of Admissions, Victoria Davies Jones, will also leave us today to join the Broomwood Group of Schools run by Dukes Education as their new Head of Admissions. We will miss Victoria and wish her all the best in her new adventure.

Many students will be using the holidays in preparation for the summer examinations, public and internal. You should see work being done on this during the holiday at home, but I hope it is also a time for rest after a term of hard work. I wish all our students taking public exams the best of luck next term. Thank you to all parents and guardians for their continuing support of our vibrant learning community. Education is a partnership, and only by working closely and effectively together can we inspire our students to achieve their greatest potential: to live life by our core values of tolerance, respect and kindness and become the global changemakers of the future.

The Easter holidays will be a time of reflection and an opportunity to refresh, recharge and recuperate after a busy term. It’s also a time to look forward. We have come a long way together; let’s keep going.

Irfan Latif
Principal