Autumn Term 2021 – Welcome back
Welcome. Welcome back:
I hope that you have all enjoyed a good summer and have managed some time together be it at home as a ‘staycation’ or indeed in getting away. With just over a week to go now I thought I would write with news and competitions as well as some reminders for the start of the new academic year. The last two years have been extremely challenging and pupils and staff with the support of the parents are to be commended for the way that we, as a community, have come through this. None more so than our Year 11, the leavers of 2021 who have performed very well in their GCSEs. I hope you had time to look at the results analysis I sent out.
Essentially:
% of grades at Grade 4 and above = 96%
% of GCSE grades at Grade 4 inc. English & Maths = 93.5%
5 of grades at 7+ = 30%
% of pupils with 5 or more Grade 4s = 93.5%
Maths, English Literature, Triple Sciences, History, Geography, Art, Business
Studies, ICT; as subjects all these achieved a 100% pass rate. Nearly one third of all GCSEs sat were passed at 7+ (old A/A*) that is 78/259. We are not a ‘selective’ independent school and these really are very impressive results. Please do feel free to tell your friends!
Art Competition:
Details of this summer’s art competition are attached if you are looking for something to challenge you for the last week of the holidays. I always look forward to seeing what the pupils have been up to and can create.
Summer Art competition (click on link to download details)
Congratulations:
Molly Neale: Year 9. Represented England at the Dance World Cup Finals and her Acro Dance Troupe entered two routines, one scored a Gold Medal and one scored a Bronze. The competition was held in Telford this year for 10 countries that could travel here on the green list and another 30 countries. An amazing achievement. Holly Arnold of Year 11 also gained great ‘publicity’ being interviewed on BBC Hereford and Worcester on the Andrew Easton show for her online art business and entrepreneurial skills.
Send in your pictures of the Bowbrook elephant:
If you can find our elephant and send in your picture you can achieve house points for your House. I have had some but not as many as when we did the Giraffe Trail.
The New Term:
So our attention turns to the new term and a new Year 11 as well as some 25 new pupils in age groups from Nursery through to new starters in year 10. I hope that all pupils will help them to feel welcomed and to help them find their feet. We have several ‘rolling starts’ as it was not possible to fit all the taster days in before the end of the summer term.
New Staff Welcome:
Mr D. Bell: Head of Computer Science, teaching ICT across the key stages and will also be leading the Duke of Edinburgh award scheme.
Mrs K. Partington: Replaces Mr O’Shea teaching Sciences and Physics to GCSE
Mrs M. Ford. Joins the Maths department.
Miss Brookes takes over as Head of Maths to replace Mrs Harfield.
Mrs K. Tait appointed to Year 4 and will be sharing with Miss Wanklyn. Mrs Tait will also be teaching Girls’ games.
Miss J. Cox: Takes up her position teaching Year 5 in parallel to Mrs Adamson as their will be two year 5 classes this term
Mrs I. Rose: Joins our Learning Support team.
Mr Nigel Taylor: will be coming back in his role as mini bus driver for the Evesham bus.
Welcome to all pupils and staff… I hope that your time here will be happy and productive!
Covid restrictions:
Mr Mills has been pouring over the Covid regulations as they currently stand. Twice weekly testing is still required by staff and secondary age pupils (years 7 to 11) until the end of September at least and we do need to do 2 on site tests of all secondary age pupils at the start of term. This will not impact our intended beginning of term as we shall be testing all secondary age pupils on the first day back and on the following Monday in school before the home testing resumes.
Since there is now no requirement to keep students in consistent bubbles we will start the year with pupils returning to moving around the school and using the teacher specialist rooms and assemblies will resume. This will be a very welcome return to a near normal timetable. For some who have been at Bowbrook for a year this will be new and very different school day as they will have spent a year in their teaching bubble’s classrooms. All – new pupils, pupils relatively new and new staff will need time to settle. I am very much looking forward to another step towards a more normal school day.
We will no longer be required to complete any contact tracing so there will be no closing of bubbles in confirmed cases unless the school is specifically advised to do so by the NHS. Instead, close contacts of any cases will be contacted directly by the NHS test and trace team and will give guidance directly.
Pupils and staff who have been double vaccinated are no longer required to selfisolate if they live in the same household as someone with COVID-19, or are a close contact of someone with COVID-19. Instead, they will be contacted by NHS Test and Trace, informed they have been in close contact with a positive case and advised to take a PCR test. Face coverings are no longer advised in school, however, they are still required if your child comes to school either on the Worcester or Evesham bus. Parents on site are still requested to wear masks please.
We continue to ensure Control measures are in place in and around school to reduce possible transmission through encouragement of regular hand washing and ‘catch it, bin it, kill it. We have increased cleaning in place in and around the school site and will be keeping occupied spaces well ventilated but also at a comfortable temperature for students and staff.
Pupils, staff, parents and other adults should follow public health advice on when to self-isolate and what to do. They should not come into school if they have symptoms, have had a positive test result or other reasons requiring them to stay at home due to the risk of them passing on COVID-19 (for example, they are required to quarantine after a holiday).
We shall also be sending home any child presenting with COVID-19 symptoms.
The recognised symptoms remain:
A high temperature
A new, continuous cough
A loss or change to your sense of smell or taste
Drop off and pick up: These remain as they were for the time being as we assess the other changes to the pupils’ movement and seating, etc, in school. Parents who wish to speak to a member of staff may of course arrange an appointment or park up and report to the front office. We are still asking parents on site to wear a mask please.
Prep:
Years 7 – 11 ‘after school’. Will return to normal. 4.20 – 4.50 short prep/session 1.
4.50 – 5.30 is long prep/session 2. These are charged by registers and are pro rata.
Years J3 – J6: Can be collected at 3.30 or at 4.00 ‘In school prep’ is not chargeable
and starts at 3.30. Pupils then come out at 4.00 in line with the middles and seniors.
Prep pupils will be from 8.10am again with Parents on site if they wish! Pupils will be
expected to complete at least one piece of homework during this time)
After 4.20 prep pupils go into short prep as outlined above.
Fixtures: Will return to normal however, face coverings will be needed to be worn
during travel
School uniform:
The information attached is provided for staff, parents and pupils for clarity and to
ensure it is ‘enforced’ consistently.
Apologies if all of the attached is ‘known’ to you and has never been an issue but it
was felt that a reinforcement of uniform standards, hair, makeup, skirts, jewellery,
hoodies, etc. was needed as during lockdown standards had slipped as well as
some aspects of our uniform being hard to come by from shops/suppliers.
We would like to start the new year with that being addressed and standards being
re-imposed. Please see ‘common issues’ associated with presentation and uniform
attached. Thank you for your anticipated support in this.
The New Academic Year:
With a healthy number of new pupils and some exciting new staff appointments, I am
very much looking forward to welcoming you all back to a relatively ‘normal’ start to
the academic year.
The introduction of D of E at KS 3 and 4, the resumption of more sports fixtures,
clubs and activities…and the fact that this year is a production year with ‘Oliver’
eagerly anticipated…An excellent set of GCSE grades behind us and even a new
school website launched and also the introduction of a parent portal to a school’s
data management system due to come online next term.
Lots happening, lots to be excited about.
Apologies for the number of emails you will receive over the first few weeks of term
with ‘essential’ information on…and of course the Bowbrook News every week. I
hope that parents feel well informed about all aspects of school life and about our
community as a whole.
Please do remember you can always email you child’s class teacher or form teacher
as the first point of contact and they will be happy to help. Their details will come out
next week…In the meantime enjoy what is left of the summer and I look forward to
welcoming pupils, parents and staff back next week.
A new start for us all