From The Headteacher
September 2008
Dear Parents,
Welcome to a new school year!
TPS has had a fabulous summer: our GCSE Results were the best ever with 78% of the students gaining 5+ A*- C: this places us in the higher echelons of schools nationally and is a 14 point improvement on the 2007 figures, reflecting the hard work by the students along with the excellent teaching and support gained from families.
There has been some superb refurbishment work over the summer, including “doing up” the English and ICT classrooms and, most importantly, completely re-fitting the main pupil toilets!
Several important trips and courses took place, including our annual Summer School for Gifted & Talented Y5 Performing Arts students as well as our first Summer School - “Gearing Up” - for Year 6 students who might have found transition to secondary school the most daunting.
We begin the new term with our new House System, which replaces the Year Group system of pastoral care. If you want to discuss your child’s well-being or progress, please contact his/her Form Teacher in the first instance or the relevant Head of House thereafter. All these details are in pupil planners or on the school website.
To create the right balance in Houses we did re-jig some of the Form Tutor groups for September and I am sure that some children will be a little apprehensive at this change. I would ask that, at this stage, you all give it a chance – I am sure it will settle down quickly and we are extremely reluctant to make individual changes to children’s Form group or House at this early stage. If, after a sensible period of time, you believe that it is not working out for your child, please contact the Head of House, but, ideally, you need to give it half a term to see how it pans out. This is the advice I will be giving to any individual parents who contact me early on.
As usual, we will have a close look at students’ appearance in their early days for strange piercings, non-standard uniform, wacky hairstyles etc and will come down hard on “offenders”. Details of what is acceptable are in pupil planners and on the website if you want to double check. From Monday 8 September, for example, we will not accept students into school who are wearing trainers – they will be sent home immediately to find their shoes.
We have a larger than usual number of new staff this term, reflecting the school’s further growth in size.
We welcome Karen Harfield (School Business Manager); Catherine Old, Andy Perry and Stuart Woods (Assistant Headteachers); Rebecca Dibble and Karen Green (Science); Georginna Loyley (Geography); Peter Swabey (Head of MFL); Alistair Whitehouse (PE); Jenny Matthews (Music); Ruth Colenso (Head of Mathematics); Joanna Goodship (Mathematics); Daniel Weavis, Katy Morgan, Ellen Keefe (English); Dianne Woodhouse (Food Technology); Maria Link and Elizabeth Skilton (Teaching Assistants).
To be “green” and in the light of modern technology, and because it simply looks much better, our regular paper newsletter – TOPICS - will now only be published electronically – it’s always available on the school website and you get to see the photographs in glorious technicolor!
Don’t forget the TPS Appeal Trust Quiz takes place on Friday 19 September. Form a team and contact the Studio on 234641 to book a table (maximum 8 per table, £6.00 a head including food) – it’s a fun night. See if you can get a team together to beat the Headteacher and the even more formidable parents’ teams that have shown my senior staff up every year so far!
There are lots more important dates this term:
19 September TPS Appeal Trust Quiz Night
27 September GCSE Art and Design & Technology Exhibition
1 October Year 6 Open Evening 6.00 – 8.00pm
2 October INSET Day
20 – 22 October Year 7 Autumn Spectacular
27 – 31 October Half Term
5 November Year 7 Parents Consultation
18 – 21 November “Fame” School Production
27 November GCSE Prize Giving Evening*
28 November Prize Giving Morning for Years 8 to 11*
2 December INSET Day
12 December Year 7 performance at The Royal Albert Hall
15 December Carol Service at St Peter’s Church 7.00pm
19 December Last day of Autumn Term
* Please note that these are correct dates – the last issue of TOPICS newsletter was incorrect.
Can I also remind parents not to drive on to the school site before or after school due to Health & Safety concerns.
Yours sincerely
N C Poole
Headteacher
