Headteacher Update

October 2023

A week ago today saw every student in school involved in our annual Pledge Day and what a tremendous day it was. As we said on @JohnSpenceCHS:  1 day, 5 year groups, 870 students, 96 staff, 12 locations, 16 coaches, 7500 average steps, 35 groups, 7 external providers, 0 cost to students and one huge team effort lead by Mrs Winder. Our Pledge day is the pinnacle of what we see as the critical wider offer that we have for our students that exist outside of our curriculum. It is a truly comprehensive offer and it is wonderful to see how students try new activities, engage with external providers and excel in their achievements. Well done to everyone last Friday the feedback was great and seeing all the pictures be shared across the day showed just what a great and purposeful time was had by all.

Please do follow us on Twitter (or X as it is now known!) and see what great things our students get up to every week both in and out of the classroom: @JohnSpenceCHS

To more mundane matters, please can I ask that your child does not use an e-scooter to or from school. The legalities around them are unclear, but one thing is certain, they are not legal for under 16s to use. Thanks for your support in keeping everyone safe. On that note we have had another incident outside of school this week where a student has been knocked over by a car. We continue to raise the issue of additional crossings with the Council, but please do reinforce with your child the importance of looking both ways and then checking again before crossing the road.

Student absence is at a higher rate this year compared to last year, which is a concern. One day missed a week means 5 hours of lost learning and if this happens once a fortnight for the entire year then nearly 100 hours of learning would be lost, which is clearly why there is such a direct link between student absence and performance. Indeed, in our analysis of the Year 11 results those students with 95%+ attendance performed significantly better than their peers with lower attendance. We will be sharing this information with students in assembly next week.

We are also addressing punctuality next week by adopting a different approach. Students should be in Form Time by 8.40am. From Monday any student who arrives after this time will receive a same-day lunchtime detention. If there are any extenuating circumstances for their lateness that day, please send in a note or make contact with us so they aren’t placed in detention. Thanks for your support with this.

Thank you for your support with both attendance and punctuality. I hope you all enjoy a relaxing weekend.

Jonathan