I know I've written before, how much I love writing 'my bit' for our monthly newsletters, but my 30 minutes sitting down to reflect on the last four weeks, in preparation for writing, feels as if only a week has passed, not four. It's asharp reminder

I know I've written before, how much I love writing 'my bit' for our monthly newsletters, but my 30 minutes sitting down to reflect on the last four weeks, in preparation for writing, feels as if only a week has passed, not four. It's asharp reminderdays in school may be long, but the weeks are short.

I hope the families who were able to spend the mid-term break at home, enjoyed your time together, and you all, whether your daughter / son stayed on campus or not, had the opportunity to talk and discuss 'how is school going? '. Year 2 parents, especially, please keep asking your daughters / sons how they are getting on with their university applications (eg have they completed their Personal Statements?). Of course, if any questions or concerns were raised in your discussions, please contact your daughter's / son's Pathway Manager: I hope you all already know, but communication between us is one of the key elements to students' success.

Thank you too, genuinely, to the parents who have already contacted me following conversations with your children: I love hearing from you and very much appreciate and enjoy this connection.

October has been another great month in school: our students are now settled in to their after school activities (knitting and running being among the most popular), we have had four fantastic weekend activities, a superb range of academic enrichment trips (including attending a lecture from the head lawyer on the UN Human Rights & Torture Committee: what an experience!), Halloween fun and so much more. So, what have been my highlights over the last four weeks? I think, the T-Rex's (some of our Year 2s dressed up for Halloween) walking down Pullens Lane at 8:00am was a sight to behold, and certainly one I won't forget in a while, is towards the top of my list. But, at the very top, has to be our students' successes within the UK Senior Mathematics Challenge: 5 Gold certificates, 4 Silver certificates and 8 Bronze certificates. This is an enormous achievement, specifically, for a small school. I couldn't be more proud of this amazing group, with one achieving 107 out of 125. Very well done to you all. Interestingly, my two 'highlights' represent a skilled balance of few young people (and adults, too) struggling to get right : good clean fun with the T-Rex costumes, whilst achieving academic excellence in the UK Senior Mathematics Challenge.