Headteacher’s Update – July 17th 2020

I posted my first Headteacher Update on Friday March 27^th. Much has happened between then and now.

We’ve been on quite a journey and we’ve come a long way. It has been a huge learning curve. As we approach the start of the summer holidays the school is in a good place. We are confident about the measures we have put in place to ensure we are Covid secure when we fully reopen in September. We have checked in with all our students and the vast majority of them have taken up the opportunity to come into school for a learning review with their Tutor. We are an even stronger team than we were at the start of lockdown.

Yesterday I wrote to the parents and carers of our new Year 7 intake. It provided me with the opportunity to reflect on some of the changes that we have had to introduce in September but also some of the constants that have ensured we continued to do the very best for our students despite the school closure. This is what I wrote …

Patcham High School is a special place. We pride ourselves on the positive relationships that exist between students and teachers. We work hard to ensure that students achieve, enjoy their time at school and feel good about themselves. We are determined that your children fulfil their potential.

This holds true for all the children that attend Patcham High.

We are very much looking forward to welcoming all our students back in September and we have set ourselves some clear priorities for the year ahead …

1. Supporting the physical, mental and emotional health and well-being of our students
2. Further developing our approaches to remote teaching, learning and assessment
3. Recovering the curriculum and addressing lost learning
4. Closing the achievement gap
5. Enhancing parental engagement to support students learning

In short, we are aiming to learn from our lockdown experience, bridge gaps and get back on track. There are likely to be many challenges ahead but we are prepared, equipped and well versed in what we need to do to keep your children safe and on-top of their learning.

Having just listened to the Prime Ministers latest briefing I am optimistic that things will start to relax a bit as we approach Christmas. We all want to get the school back to what it was at the start of the Year but at the moment things will be a bit different for your children when they return. The protocols that we have put in place are aligned very carefully to the guidance we have received from the government. And they need to be stuck to until we are told otherwise.

This is my final update. I have tried my best to keep you as much informed as I have been. It has certainly been a challenging time but because of your support and commitment to your children’s education, we have continued to thrive as a school community.

Thank you for staying connected throughout the school closure. And please let your children know that we have missed them enormously and can’t want to see them all again in September.

Have a good weekend and please take care!

John McKee