Bora da
We’ve had four seasons in one week since my last blog and I am grateful that students have been so well behaved when it has not been possible to spend time outside at break or lunch on certain days. We are all hopeful that summer is just around the corner.
With great sadness, I have to inform you of the passing of a former member of our staff, Miss Mair Morgan, previous Subject Leader of Religious Studies. Mair served the school faithfully for 33 years and retired from her teaching role with us in 2018. Colleagues miss her greatly and the sense of fun which she embodied. She will forever remain a member of our family.
One of the most pleasant parts of my role is being able to congratulate students when there has been a marked improvement in their performance, or indeed when they simply continue to give their best at all times. Today I spent time with a number of Year 10 students who have demonstrated tangible progress in their approach to lessons and general learning ethic. Long may these sessions continue!
Once again, we are very appreciative of Ardagh Limited, who have donated tools for each individual student on the City & Guilds Engineering course. This isn’t the first time that they have stepped in to support us. Covid-19 had prevented students from participating in the practical work, which is a big part of the course, as students could not share equipment. We continue to enjoy the close working relationship with Ardagh Limited, whose vision is to make learning real for our young people, who in turn become more engaged in school. With more exciting projects in the pipeline with our joint partnership, it is very much ‘watch this space!’.
Our Castell Alun Friends Association (CAFA) have again devised a lovely method for raising money for the school, and this time they will hold a Cutest/Funniest Pet Photo Competition. The competition will be run via Google Classroom and is open to all students at school. Via Google Classroom Year Group notice boards students are asked to upload their best pet picture and will be required to follow a link at the cost of £1 to enter the competition. In a couple of weeks time a guest panel will judge all entries and award prizes.
Following on from my message last week, please remember that certain extra-curricular sporting activities will be available to Year 7 and 8 students from Monday 10th May. All students know how to sign up using Google Forms. We are really excited about being able to start our extra-curricular programme again over the coming weeks, but it is important that all students sign up in advance please.
Some of you may find it helpful to know that BT have announced the launch of a new broadband tariff – BT Home Essentials – and this will take place in June this year and may assist some families. BT Home Essentials is a separate and improved social tariff compared to BT’s initial version, BT Basic. We are informed that Home Essentials provides an average of 36 Mbps download speed and 700 minutes of calls for £15 a month, around half the price of a standard BT fibre and calls package. Alternatively, eligible customers can also opt for average speeds of 67 Mbps and unlimited calls for £20 per month.
With just three weeks to go now until our school Assessment Point 2, many students in Years 11, 12 and 13 are in the final stages of any assessments still required. These students should be very proud of themselves as we all acknowledge that this is an intense time for our young people, and staff speak very highly of engagement and achievement as we work towards the production of Centre Determined Grades. However, please do remember that we are always here for you should your child feel particularly anxious or have other pressing concerns at the moment.
Thank you very much for your ongoing support. Have a nice weekend.