Education is rarely out of the news and rightly so. Unfortunately, it is often in the news for the wrong reason. Crumbling buildings (we have none luckily), staff shortages (we’re fully staffed) and all sorts of other reasons. Far too infrequently the work of schools and the achievements of our next generation are discussed and celebrated. Its lovely to have the opportunity to share some of our work here.
The start of the academic year is always exciting, and this year has been no different. On 1st September we formally joined the Heart of Mercia Multi-Academy Trust. This is a huge benefit to us as a school and allows us to work with a wider family of outstanding providers. We have welcomed 15 new staff into the John Kyrle High School family and it has been lovely to see them settle in. Crucially, we have also welcomed our new Year 7 cohort as well and welcoming those coming into our fantastic Sixth Form.
We want to make sure that in everything we do we are maximising the engagement and participation of our young people. To do this, we have some clear priorities and they spell out the word TEACH:
- Teaching and Learning. It seems obvious that the quality of what goes on in the classroom of the utmost importance. Often, schools make it hard to make “the main thing the main thing”. We’ve teams of teachers working together and created an environment where our doors are open and we can learn together.
- Engagement. The world is just a bit different post-Covid. Some of the challenges our students face have been exacerbated, particularly relating to Mental Health. We’ll update you more in the weeks to come as we ask for the involvement of our families as we further develop this together.
- Academic Outcomes. Academic qualifications are the keys do doors for so many opportunities. Not only do we need to work hard to make sure these continue to be strong, but also make sure the qualifications we offer are relevant for everyone in 2023.
- Community. It really does take a community to raise a child. We’re proud of Ross-On-Wye and want to continue the work we’ve already undertaken here to make sure we’re at the heart of our wonderful town.
- High Quality Leadership. There are some great staff now in key leadership positions in John Kyrle. Making sure we continue to learn and grow as professionals is pivotal to our future success.
Over the course of the next academic year I’ll continue to give you all updates about the work. I’m also looking forward to our students writing in this column. Their voice is the important one.