Because we roll our curriculum forward early in June, for the majority of our pupils it will be ‘business as usual’ as they are already familiar with their timetables and our school standards. We expect all of our pupils to be well prepared and fully equipped for learning. We continue to be impressed by our pupils’ attitudes and resilience and this year’s examination results show what can be achieved when our pupils embrace the challenges ahead and make a commitment to their studies both in class and independently.

Mrs Hannis, our Year 7 Year Leader, and our team of Year 7 tutors are keen to catch up with our new Year 7 pupils who enjoyed their first experiences at Deer Park over their two Induction Days in July. They will provide the care, guidance and support pupils and parents may need to help them through the transition to secondary school.

In addition to welcoming our new Year 7 pupils, four new teachers join us: Mrs George and Mrs Lynch in Science, Mr Lawless in Languages and Mrs Stockwell in English. Mrs Mackew moves across from our Pastoral team to return to teaching. She will be working across a number of faculties to teach Child Development, Business Studies and Horticulture, and we are pleased that Mrs Ellison, who has previously supported our pupils in a variety of ways, has taken up the post of Year 9 Year Leader.

We are grateful to our site and maintenance team for ensuring the school is ready for the new term. This summer they have been looking after the school grounds and refurbishing our Design and Technology area to create a smart new suite. This has brought our Textiles classroom into the heart of the school and this term we plan to bring our Food Preparation and Nutrition classroom across as well. This project has been made possible owing to a successful bid for funding to The Savoy Education Trust and we are excited to create modern kitchen facilities for all of our pupils to use by January 2020. Miss Dearing, who joined us in September 2018 as our new food preparation and nutrition teacher, has made a strong impression on the school and this is reflected in our pupils’ excellent GCSE results in this subject and in their engagement, and success, in local competitions.

We are very keen to begin the new academic year and challenge our pupils to achieve even more. In addition to their preparation for lessons, members of staff have planned a range of engaging events. These include a comprehensive and inclusive rehearsal schedule for our whole school production of the musical ‘Grease’ in February 2020.

We invite prospective pupils and their parents to visit the school on our Open Mornings on Monday 16 and Tuesday 17 September 2019 and our Open Evening on Wednesday 25 September 2019.  On this occasion, our pupils and staff will encourage prospective pupils to participate in a range of practical activities and share their excitement and commitment to enriching learning at Deer Park. Read more...