Friday 13 March 2015

Head Master's Weekly Notes - 13th March

I was looking at the school's website and our social media feeds trying to keep with all that is going on in and around school and I noticed a comment from the Good Schools Guide, particularly the last line, on the front page - Lots of good teaching here and a genuine sense of community".  And it struck me why we are such a close knit community at Sexey's. There have been numerous examples of community spirit here, from Big Yellow Friday, to Macmillan Cancer Support at school but one recent event particularly highlighted this - last weekend's PSA Spring Dinner & Dance. It was resounding success and I thank all the parents, friends of the school, local businesses who supported and attended last Saturday and made it such a wonderful occasion. The parent community is very strong here at Sexey’s and I am forever grateful for their undying commitment, dedication and loyalty. Over the extended exeat this Saturday, the PSA and the school is taking part in another community event - the Bruton Coffee morning in the Community Hall -  if you are around do drop in for a slice of cake and a cup of tea, it would be lovely to see you.

Closer to home, we have had numerous rugby, football, cricket and netball fixtures; this morning, the U14s left on the Football Tour to Staffordshire under the watchful eyes of Messrs Cowley and Balch and looked in good form last night as they spent the evening bonding in Cliff House. We wish them every success and look forward to hearing about their sporting antics over the weekend. I'm grateful to colleagues for providing these valuable opportunities (especially over the exeat) to our students to allow them to flex their sporting muscles in a variety of competitions. It’s wonderful to see so much participation, engagement and support - important life skills such as resilience, teamwork and leadership that are constantly being developed and it is my privilege as a Head to watch our students grow and flourish in these areas, from the safety of the sidelines...

On the academic side, colleagues from Sexey's and schools from all over Somerset are coming together today as a learning community to share best practice and to learn from one another what works best in the classroom - over 1000 teachers in over 40 schools are working closely together for the benefit of the next generation. Community on a bigger scale and good to be part of. Also, it’s not every day that you see the staff get dressed up and perform Dickens’ ‘Oliver Twist’ to a rapturous audience yesterday afternoon - bringing literature to life, as the school did last week for World Book Day. The performances by colleagues (considering the time they had to rehearse) was outstanding, as were the Victorian costumes and 'singing'. The eloquent narrative by Dame Holmes and Mr Manning as the antagonist Fagin, made for a humorous and enjoyable afternoon.  Not to be outdone, the AS drama students gave a powerful performance of Steven Berkoff’s ‘Metamorphosis' this week and it was good to see the community supporting this event.

The untimely passing of Sir Terry Pratchett yesterday, a friend of the school, was indeed sad and his witty and inspirational writings will continue to amuse and excite generations of readers.

So as the exeat beckons, I will be watching the Six Nations with the local community in Bruton with intent - will England win the Calcutta Cup against Scotland at Twickenham and will Ireland be going for the Grand Slam? There's nothing like a good game to bring the local, national and international communities together.

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