Friday 21 October 2016

Principal's Blog - October 2016




Dear Parents, Carers and Guardians,

Welcome to my first blog of this academic year and what an exciting start to the new school year it has been!

I have attached a copy of our
2015-2016 Highlights booklet, which is a huge testament to all the superb opportunities that exist at this school and the way things have started here so far this year, it looks like 2016-2017 will be another year to remember. The 2016 Governors’ 100% Attendance Awards and Governor’s Awards Evening, which were held on the 6th & 12th October 2016, respectively, were truly glittering occasions and wonderful showcases for everything we hold dear at Selby High School. As you will have seen from the news feed on the school’s website our students are, once again, doing some great things, so the next Governors’ Awards are set to be amazing and spectacular occasions!

The last few weeks have seen rapid progress in the new PE block build that is being undertaken at the school, the outer shell is almost complete and the roof is now in place. Internal spaces are now configured including not only the walls of the new changing facilities, but also the classroom spaces and offices. This week the underfloor heating pipes have been installed and over the next few weeks the floor screed will be poured. During half-term the door into the Sports Hall will be knocked through and the new viewing galleries will be opened up. Looking around the space it going to be a real assert for the school and a fantastic facility when complete. I have added a number of photographs, to this Blog, so that you can see for yourself the progress being made.

I would like to thank you for your support in getting the new school year off to such a fantastic start. The uniform standards have been truly excellent and students have, therefore, avoided unnecessary punishments, which deflect us from our main purpose of everyone securing top class results and achieving their full potential. Thank you for your support in ensuring your child(ren) are properly turned out for school, together with being ‘keen to treat others just like they would wish to be treated themselves’; a simple phrase, but such an important one for Selby High School. Moreover, students’ behaviour for learning needs to be such that it allows both them and their fellow students to make the maximum progress possible.

We send a large number of emails and letters, including numbered ones, out to parents, carers and guardians, but any communication system will only work well if people regularly check their messages. In this regard I should be grateful if you would check your emails at least twice a week, together with following us on
Twitter@selbyhigh. The hyperlink to the school’s website is:

Top class home/school communications are critical so why not write a note to your child’s Form Tutor or Head of House to let us know what is going well or areas of concern that you may have. In addition, please use the Student Planner to provide a written explanation of any absences, but please also telephone the school on the first day of absence to let us know:

Telephone Number: 01757-244802 for reporting a student absence.

I would also like to take this opportunity to remind you of the importance of home learning, all students now have their homework set on ‘Show My Homework’ which is linked from the school website. All students can log onto ‘Show My Homework’ with their Google password. This website provides the information, resources and deadlines for all homework that has been set.

Consultation Day for Parents’/Carers’/Guardians’ will take place on Tuesday 13th December 2016. Don’t forget to book your appointment between 9.36am and 7.36pm, when the slips are issued. The length of appointments will be twelve minutes.

As you will be aware we hold parents’, carers’ and guardians’ support evenings each academic year and 2016-2017 will be no different. To date we have hosted very successful Year 7 literacy evening with a Year 7 numeracy evening taking centre stage after half-term on Wednesday 2nd November 2016. The annual Year 7 ICT/ CEOP evening, with regard to staying safe on-line, will take place on Tuesday 22nd November 2016.




Paul Eckersley

Principal


Important Dates for Your Diary

Monday 31st October                           
Training Day – School closed to students
Tuesday 1st November                          
School re-opens
Wednesday 2nd November                   
Year 7 Numeracy Evening
Tuesday 8th November – Tuesday 15th November
Book Fair in LRC
Wednesday 9th November                   
Year 11 Trip to see ‘Blood Brothers’
                                                           
Snozone Trip
Tuesday 15th November                       
Year 7 Enterprise Day
                                                           
Year 7 Reading Evening
Wednesday 16th November                 
Year 9 ‘YOLO’
Friday 18th November                          
Non-uniform day for Children in Need
Tuesday 22nd November                       
Year 7 ICT Evening
Thursday 24th November                      
Year 11 More Able Trip to Cambridge
Wednesday 7th December                    
Year 11 GCSE Ensuring Progress Evening
Thursday 8th December                         
Year 7 trip to see ‘The Witches’
Friday 9th December                            
Tracker 1 issued
Tuesday 13th December                        
Consultation Day
Wednesday 14th December                  
Lego Mindstormers competition
Friday 16th December                          
School closes for holidays (3.25pm)


PE block build