It has been great to welcome back Year 10 and 12 students to the school site this week. Their approach has been so impressive. They handled the new arrangements with maturity and were totally committed to their learning. None of this is surprising as we know how brilliant our students are but for our staff it has been simply wonderful to have them back even for short periods of time in school.

Parents and carers may be aware that the guidance around other year groups being in school changed at the start of the week with the indication that students in other year groups can be invited in to school for a face-to-face meeting before the end of term. This is new guidance and would need to take place with a limited number of students being on site at any one time. We are exploring a model through which this could take place as we recognise how beneficial this would be for our students and will keep parents and carers updated as we develop this. Our focus would be on students in Years 7, 8 and 9 and we would want the meeting to support their wellbeing as well as to consider how their remote learning is progressing.

Finally, I mentioned in this week’s Headteacher’s Video Message how impressed I had been by footballer Marcus Rashford taking a stand about the availability of Free School meals for eligible children during the summer school holidays. I recorded the message before the Government changed policy on this matter and was not particularly expecting them to do so. Regardless of our views on this issue, it is admirable to see a young person take a stand for something they believe in which is selfless, rooted in their own experience and which benefits others. I don’t know whether we should be looking to footballers for guidance in our society but he has stood out and there is much for our young people to admire in the stance he has taken.