This week has seen our Year 9 students taking part in an Enterprise event as part of the school’s Careers programme. Supported by a group of volunteers from the world of business, the students were challenged to come up with an idea to use a piece of the school field for a commercial enterprise. The most popular idea was a community swimming pool but there were many other great ideas including an outdoor gym, a café and a city farm that could be used by both the school and the wider community. The students, with the support of their business mentor, had to develop their ideas and then present them formally to the group.

The feedback from the volunteers who took part was fabulous with one mentor emailing me to say “I just wanted to drop you a line to say how impressed I was with the students in my group yesterday. I was so impressed that every single one of them stepped out of their comfort zone to stand up and speak in front of their peers, even the ones who were adamant they would not! They should be proud of themselves.” A huge thank you to the careers team for organising the event, to the many volunteers who contributed their time so generously and to the Year 9 students who took part so enthusiastically.

For our Year 11s next week sees the start of the exam season proper. For the next 4 school weeks the students will be completing an average of 20 exams in what is a very demanding period. Overwhelmingly the students have worked really hard and have put themselves in the best position possible to realise their undoubted potential. I know you will want to join me in wishing them all the best of luck.

A combination of poor weather and industrial action has limited fixtures this term but this week saw the first fixtures including:

• Athletics - a group of our elite athletes travelled to the Blackbridge athletics track to compete in the District Trials. The conditions were horrific, but our students were fantastic. Special mention to Jacob B who came 3rd in the 200m, Jamie H who came third in the 800m, Charlie P who had a PB in the 1500m, Grace A who came 2nd in the 100m and Dylan Bhatti who came 1st in the 100m and the 200m (with a time of 10.63 in the 100m!!!!!!) It was a fantastic effort by all! Dylan and Grace will go forward to represent Gloucester in June.

• Also on the sporting front, we were delighted to see that ex-Severn Vale student Keon Sanniola made his professional debut for Forest Green Rovers last Sunday. We wish him all the best for next season as he embarks on his professional career.

My regular reminder that a recent analysis showed that approximately 10% of those who are entitled to Free School Meals are not currently taking advantage of this scheme. If you think your child may be eligible for Free School Meals you can click on this link to find guidance on the eligibility criteria and the application process. It's a quick process and we are notified of all FSM entitlements by GCC each Monday. I would urge you to take a look if you think you may benefit from financial assistance. 

I do hope you enjoy a good weekend.

Regards,

Richard Johnson 
Headteacher