Posted Dec 19 - 2024Headteacher's Newsletter
what's happening at Chesham Grammar
Posted on: January 15th 2021
Head's Blog
Dear Parent,
It is hard to believe that the term is only two weeks in! Usually, the weeks fly by, but without the students and staff in school and the routines which punctuate the days and weeks, time seems to pass more slowly. I am sure that the students are missing CGS as much as it is missing them and let's hope that it isn't too long before the school is full of people again.
Thank you to those parents who have already completed the short survey on our remote education provision. It is pleasing to know that things are generally going well so far and it was really lovely to read the comments many of you had made about lessons or subjects your child is particularly enjoying which I will of course pass on to the departments and members of staff concerned. The amount of screen time has already emerged as a concern in the parental survey and this is mirrored in the student and staff ones, as is the need for the students and staff to have time for wellbeing, fresh air and exercise. Mr Patteson and I have been discussing these issues today and are meeting again on Monday so if you have not already completed the survey and would like to give us your feedback, please do so over the weekend. Thank you.
This week, we have been dealing with a couple of issues relating to inappropriate use of social media by students. Class WhatsApp chats have been a particular issue and this is, I am sad to say, a recurring theme. I think it is worth pointing out to parents that as of May 2018, the minimum age for WhatsApp use is 16, something I am not sure is widely known. Mobile phones and social media can be used in many positive ways but can also easily be used to share negative, unkind or even abusive messages and children will often write things about someone which they would never dream of saying to them in person. We do a good deal of work with our students about this and Mr Stoddern's assembly this week was on internet safety. We will be reinforcing the message 'be kind to yourself and to each other' next week. Never has this been more important for us all. Given the students are not with us at present, your support is even more important than usual so please can I ask that you reinforce this message at home? It would also be helpful to talk to your child about their own use of social media. Our usual, simple message is to think before you hit 'send' and if the message isn't one you would be happy for your parent or a teacher to read, then don't send it.
Please do remember to let us know of any good news about your child so that we can share this. Well done to Henry in Year 9 who has passed his Grade 5 vocals exam with merit.
This afternoon, Ofqual and the DfE have published a joint consultation on the summer 2021 exams. This can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/consultation-on-how-gcse-as-and-a-level-grades-should-be-awarded-in-summer-2021 The deadline for responding is 29th January and students and parents are invited to make a response. I will obviously do so on behalf of the school but please do read the documentation and have your say. We have been impressed by the way in which Year 11 and 13 students have continued to focus on their studies and it is important that they continue to do so, so please do reinforce this message at home. The consultation says that students will continue with their education and 'be assessed by their teachers in a period beginning in May into early June'. This means it is quite different to what happened last year. This is not yet in tablets of stone of course and we won't know for certain what is happening for some time but it is clear that the intention is for there to be summer assessments of some kind. We are as you know carrying on as normal and I know that many students and parents have found this a reassuring approach at this point.
I would like to say a huge thank you to those parents in Year 12 who chose to donate their Year 11 prom refund to our 'CGS Outdoors' appeal, the total for which now stands at over £23,000, not far short of the target we set of 25k. If there is anyone else who would like to donate, there are 13 days left to do so! While the students are not in school at the moment, it is certainly the case that the improvements this will enable us to make will be of benefit to future generations of CGS students, long after Covid-19 is (hopefully!) a distant memory. While I mention Covid-19, please can I ask any parent whose child tests positive to continue to notify us via the form on our website. We have to complete a daily return for the DfE at the moment and this is one of the pieces of information we need for this. Please also remember to report your child's 'absence' from lessons in the normal way (either by using the request for leave of absence form on the website for something planned in advance or by contacting the absence line if your child is ill on any given day) so that we can make sure teachers are aware of this.
You may recall that the FOCGS planned a Bag2School collection for December...which had to be postponed to January. This is now planned for April 29th.
We have a run of Parents' Evenings this term with Year 9 this coming week and Year 12 on 28th January. These will run to the normal timing, from 5-7.30pm, so on those days, all timetabled lessons will take place.
Finally, you might like to know that Ivingswood Academy, (a primary school in Chesham in the same Trust as CGS) is asking for donations of devices people no longer use to give to children who do not have access to one at home for remote learning. If you are interested, please get in touch with us and we can facilitate this.
With best wishes for a relaxing weekend,
Annmarie McNaney
Headteacher
