NEWSLETTERS

End of Term Letter from the Headmaster
5 July 2010

Dear Parents,

After my marathon letter to you recently, I expect that you thought there was nothing else which I could add! That is not the case - there are still lots of great activities going on at WHS even though we are approaching the end of the term. There are a few things which I want to highlight and draw to your attention:-

School Sport
We have had a few more fixtures since I last wrote; the U11 cricketers had a great day at our Tournament and came out as winners after some splendid performances with bat & ball. They also had very successful ‘A’ and ‘B’ fixtures against Richmond House, won by both teams. Congratulations! The Rounders team also had a great time at Richmond House, although they were up against very strong opposition! Swimming - the Prep Department Swimming Gala was very hotly contested, with lots of excellent performances from the children; the final results were:-  1st Swallows; 2nd Robins; 3rd Wrens.

Trips Out
Everyone had great trips out - to Magna in Sheffield, Newby Hall and Cannon Hall Farm on 2nd July. The weather was lovely and everyone had lots of fun. The children of PP1 had already had a delightful activity morning in school, with all sorts of treats from paddling pools to a bouncy castle - they loved every minute of it! Thanks to all the staff for organising these end of year treats.

Form Four have had their final trip of the year to Eden Camp which was very interesting indeed and complemented their history studies. Thanks to Mrs Cundall for organising the trip and to everyone who assisted.

Parents’ Committee
Ball
Congratulations to Mrs Joanne Burke and all the members of the Parents’ Committee who worked so hard to organise the Golden Jubilee Summer Ball on Saturday 26th June; it was a delightful evening, greatly enjoyed by everyone who went, and made a fitting start to our programme of events and activities to celebrate the school’s 50th Birthday.

Giving Machine
The Parents’ Committee have also been working behind the scenes to arrange an easy way to make a contribution to school funds when shopping online - this is called the ‘Giving Machine’. Please speak to Mrs Cara Barrett for details - more will be published soon.

50th Anniversary
We are organising an exciting programme of events for next year to celebrate the school’s 50th birthday. We shall be starting with a Street Party for the children on October 8th, with lots of exciting activities and several pleasing surprises! Other events are being planned to run throughout the year and I shall keep you all up to date with what will be going on.

School Show DvD
Mr Paul Jaggar has once again very kindly put together a DVD of our school show - ‘The Peace Child’ - so please contact him if you would like a copy.

Staffing Arrangements for next year
Lots of planning has been going on at school and I wanted to let you know the arrangements for the English teaching in Forms 1- 4 next year:- in Form One, English will be taken by Mrs Wilson and Mrs Russell; in Forms Two and Three, English will be taken by Mrs Cundall; and in Form Four, Mrs Cundall and I will be sharing the English teaching. This programme makes excellent use of our staff to teach this important subject.

Looking Ahead
Before the summer holidays start, please remember that we have Speech Day on Tuesday 6th July; this is a very important school occasion and I hope that you will be able to join us; you should already have had a letter with all the details. Term ends on Wednesday 7th July at 11.30 am for the Pre-Prep and 12.00 noon for the Prep Department.

Administrative Matters
Sainsbury’s Vouchers
Thank you to everyone who has collected these vouchers on our behalf - we have nearly 3000 of them and have ordered lots of exciting playground equipment for the children. Please do not bring in any more of these, or indeed the Tesco vouchers, as both schemes are now closed.

Next Term
This begins on Wednesday 8th September at normal time. We ask that children return in their SUMMER uniform as the weather is often very warm in September.

Thursday 9th September
Looking a long way ahead, on Thursday 9th September, we have to undertake Child Protection Training for all staff. This means that we shall have to finish the school day at 3 pm and there will be no after-care or Prep available as every member of staff needs to attend. Please, therefore, make alternative arrangements if you would normally book your child in for Prep of After-Care on that day. I am sorry for any inconvenience caused.

Speech Day
Stop press - it may well be possible, now that we have had a period of reasonably dry weather, for parents to park on the field at Speech Day. This should ease the pressure on Carter’s Lane. Look out for ‘Car Park’ signs tomorrow - but please make your way down to school via the road rather than the path.

This will certainly be the last newsletter you receive from me this year. Thank you all for your support of the school over the past year - it has been greatly appreciated. I hope that you will all enjoy a fantastic summer holiday and I look forward to seeing everyone back in September.

With all good wishes,

Yours sincerely,

 

Charles Holloway