As we come to the end of our first half term of this academic year, I write to share with you the positive start that our students have made, and to reflect on the success of our Year 11 students in their summer exams.

There is no greater reward to those of us that work in education than seeing students open their results envelopes and seeing their talent and endeavour rewarded. The summer saw some of our best student performances to date with many students achieving a complete suite of higher grades. These results were the outcome of a lot of hard work and dedication and provide a perfect example to all our students of how far these attributes can take them.

Our new year 7 has settled quickly into life at the Wilnecote School. Once the initial first few days of finding their way around school were accomplished it has been great to welcome them fully into our school and our culture of Proud, Ambitious, Respectful and Kind. Their enthusiasm has been evident every day and their presence will only make our school better for it.

The half term has been extremely busy with our Duke of Edinburgh Silver award students completing their expedition in some of the coldest temperatures we have seen. I was also proud of the students who supported our Open Evening and confidently shared their learning with our prospective students and their families. Our new Junior Leadership team played a crucial part in the success of this evening by acting as tour guides whilst some of our year 7 students represented the school in the introductory media clip shown to prospective parents. The evening saw the conclusion of the Modern Foreign Languages cultural cake competition, with winning cakes resembling the Northern Lights, the Colosseum of Rome and a cake with a multitude of national flags.

Earlier this month, the school supported Young Minds, “Hello Yellow” World Mental Health Day initiative, with all students being offered the opportunity to wear a yellow ribbon to show their support for young people with mental health issues. All schools struggle to meet the complex needs of young people due to the limited access to mental health professionals, so the day provided an opportunity to show solidarity in raising this as a national concern.

Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to wish you and your children a fantastic half-term break.

Yours faithfully

Mr Foskett

Headteacher