Headteacher s Newsletter to Parents · Headteacher’s Newsletter to Parents Sandbach High School and Sixth Form College Middlewich Road, Sandbach Cheshire CW11 3NT [email protected]

Headteacher’s Newsletter to Parents

Thursday 9th July 2020

Sandbach High School and Sixth Form College

Middlewich Road, Sandbach Cheshire CW11 3NT

www.sandbachhigh.co.uk

www.sandbachsixthform.co.uk

[email protected] 01270 765031

Thirty Years Fly By…

In 1989, I travelled up from Clacton on Sea where I was working, to be interviewed for the role of Deputy Headteacher. Having

arrived in Sandbach, I parked on Blackacres and started to watch the young people of Sandbach walk by – girls in their black

uniform, boys in their green blazers. Quickly, it dawned on me that Sandbach HSSFC was an all girls’ school. Up until that point,

I had had no idea that I was being interviewed for the role of Deputy Headteacher in a single sex school! It was not what I

wanted. What I did want was the role of Deputy Headteacher, and so, indifferent to the likelihood of success, I walked

through the front door only to fall in love with our school. Fast forward to 31 years later, and our school is a thriving, innova-

tive and hugely successful all girls’ 11 -16 school with a coeducational sixth form.

After my successful interview, speaking to Mr Clarke (the then Headteacher), I asked, why in all the materials that had been

sent out to applicants, was there was no mention of the fact that this was a single sex school? Bear in mind that back then

there was no or at least very little internet or its equivalent. He replied by asking me a question: had he stated that this was an

all girls’ school, would I have applied? The answer was a resounding no. I had always assumed that I would remain in mixed

school settings.

In part, the rest is history as following my initial time as Deputy, I was appointed Headteacher with effect from September

1993 and, in spite of many lucrative offers to move on, I have remained true to and passionate about our school. These last

five years have, however, been challenging for me in my personal life; it is for those reasons that the hard decision was taken

on my part to retire. I am not sure what the future holds but what is definite is that I will be spending more time with my

daughters and son, and with my two grandchildren. The loss of Karen was the most difficult personal and professional experi-

ence I have ever had to “work” through, both as an individual and for my family. Now, it is time to ensure that I am able to

enjoy quality time with my family.

I am passionate about our school so much so that my two daughters, Victoria and Rachel, attended and in 2006, after being

interviewed by the then Deputy Headteacher, Karen joined the teaching staff. Collectively and individually, they were my big-

gest critics of my performance as Headteacher!

What struck me in those early years following my arrival – and especially upon being appointed Headteacher – were the local

discussions focused on the quality of education centred on Sandbach having a grammar school and a secondary modern

school, the latter term being used to describe Sandbach HSSFC. In those days, it is possibly fair to say that we were the Cinder-

ella school but today after a proud, sustained and impressive record of success both in the classroom and beyond, we are no

longer referred to as “the secondary modern” school. Locally, regionally and nationally, our school is recognised as being one

of the most successful and consistently highly achieving schools outside the private sector. And rightly so.

Facilities on arrival back in 1990 were basic but needed to be improved if the school was to rise to help protect the school’s

future and provide the infrastructure that was required to support our excellent teaching and learning. The Mathematics de-

partment, for example, was housed in a series of “mobiles” subsequently demolished and replaced by the Henshall building.

Outdoor sports were held (or not as the case was) on the old, grey, oliset pitch unplayable in the summer because of the dust

and unusable in winter because it was a muddy quagmire and this was replaced with a state of the art synthetic pitch. Subse-

quent extensions have seen the Henshall building extended twice, the purchase, redevelopment and extension of what was

the local health clinic (G8Way2) and the construction of our new College building (following the partial demolition of Gate-

way1).

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Schools are about people – it is the staff and students who make a school or any establishment what it is. For us, here at

SHSSFC, we have many special individuals. Many will so acknowledge, a few might be less forthcoming but students quietly

recognise the excellence of the opportunities open to them here. Former students such as Mrs R Clarke and Mrs C Lawton

Jenkins have progressed through our school only to return as teachers, surely a clear sign of success!

I am and will always be passionate about our school. Thanks to the support of many, I was fortunate to have been appointed

Headteacher and to have remained Headteacher for so many years. I would not be the person I am and our school would not

be the happy and successful school that it is without the input of colleagues, parents/carers and governors.

The context within which schools are led and managed has constantly evolved with more and more responsibility and ac-

countability being delegated to Headteachers, school leaders and Governors. When I started out as a teacher of Economics,

Mathematics and Computing at Orwell High School in Felixstowe back in 1981, who would have thought I would finish up be-

ing responsible for a budget in excess of £7m with all the associated responsibilities including all premises related matters,

Health and Safety concerns, financial oversight and so forth?

My love was and remains teaching and learning including the art of pedagogy, helping to orchestrate what happens in the

classroom and celebrating the excellence of what goes on within the classroom. Equally, nurturing and supporting the devel-

opment of my colleagues is of paramount importance to me. I have vivid memories of a young teacher joining our school who

in their first year struggled in the classroom. The teacher asked for and received guidance and as result, their classroom prac-

tice has evolved to the point now where routinely, that very same teacher is delivering lessons that enthuse and engage all

their students who go on and make exceptional progress. Potentially that teacher could have been lost to our profession but

their career has blossomed such that the individual now leads a “core” department.

On most days, you will find me not attending offsite meetings but here at home. I am out and about in school formally or oth-

erwise, maintaining an awareness of what is going on in classrooms, rarely displeased, constantly witnessing teachers sharing

their passion for their subject with students who are being challenged and enthused in equal measure.

The quality of teaching and learning here in school is consistently of a high standard. Of course, we all have “off” days for a

variety of reasons but I know – from the time I have spent walking the corridors of our school, reviewing in person what is go-

ing in the classroom and beyond, talking to teachers and support colleagues and discussions with students – that the normal

level of classroom practice is exceptional.

Here, teachers’ infectious love of their subject is routinely shared with and embraced by so many pupils and students who

become confident, articulate young people. One of the things I have always sought to encourage amongst all our students, is

the willingness to voice their thoughts. I have to say how proud I was recently, for example, to receive correspondence from

former students on our approach to imperialism and colonisation. I have a sense of fulfilment and pride that so many of our

students become 'woke', passionate young people remembering that the seeds for such awareness were planted here.

You don’t always appreciate what you have until it is not there or you experience something different. As a school inspector who has carried out in the region of 100 school inspections, I have seen some excellent work taking place elsewhere. On those occasions, the ideas and approaches have been brought “home” to share with colleagues here to see whether such initiatives could be adopted to further improve the educational opportunities for our students.

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Headship is lonely and every school leader needs to lead and manage within a framework of strong governance. I have been fortunate to have enjoyed robust friendship, support and challenge from Governors/Trustees. The late Mrs Eileen Henshall, as the then Chair of Governors, had the courage to appoint and subsequently support a young and ambitious Deputy Headteach-er as the successor to Mr Clarke. That I was successful was in no small way thanks to the encouragement and backing of col-leagues including the late Harry Monkhouse and Mrs Catherine Bradshaw. Subsequent Chairs of Governors – Mrs Janet Astins, Brian McGivern and Miss Jeanette Wynn – provided friendship and a

sounding board for when matters came to a head as they occasionally did. Governors including Tom Jones, Bernard Edwards,

Ken Beresford, the late Max Leese, Debbie Broad acted as “critical friends” helping to drive forward our plans and ambitions.

Collectively, Governors supported me and the school but it was not unconditional support and they would challenge and cen-

sure appropriately.

Ultimately though, it is the support of past and present staff, students, parents/carers and the local community that has ena-

bled me to remain as Headteacher for these past 27 years. It may be that I have not always been agreed with but broadly, I

believe that I have earned and enjoyed the respect of most.

Sadly, yet intriguingly, our school has a solid core of detractors that I have never quite understood. Some have said that it is

an example of politics of envy and jealousy coming in to play and this was clearly evidenced following what was a hugely suc-

cessful No Notice Inspection, carried out by OFSTED, in November 2017. Among some elements of the local community there

was a clear desire if not expectation that our school would be found wanting. When the reverse was proven, there was a sheer

gasp of disbelief in certain places. But my belief, faith and confidence in the staff and students of our school was not found

wanting.

I am and have always shown very strong loyalty to our students, staff and school generally. Standing up for what is in the best

interests of our school has put me at odds with a few. Whatever some might say, education is competitive as schools chal-

lenge each other to raise standards for all young people. Could you imagine, Sir Alex Ferguson agreeing to something that

would be to the detriment of Manchester United whilst benefitting Liverpool or Manchester City? I have never wavered from

my commitments. Karen always said I was married to SHSSFC! So yes, I would always, as any Headteacher or leader would,

challenge those who sought to undermine our very special community. Occasionally, my stance has upset some, even gener-

ating a desire on their part to undermine what we have created.

It is my firm belief that the town of Sandbach has benefitted from having such a successful school as ours as part of the com-

munity. Today, many parents move into the area because of the local, regional and national reputation of Sandbach HSSFC,

enabling all of us who live in the area to enjoy the consequent benefits.

Most of the twenty seven years as Headteacher (plus three years as Deputy Headteacher), have been hugely positive and en-

joyable as I have sought to create a community where every child matters and deserves (first time) the best educational op-

portunities that can be created. Perhaps it is up to others to judge whether that goal has been achieved.

There have been sad times, not least the passing of Katie Guy and Lily Sharp, two young people whose lives were tragically cut

short, and Mrs Heather Davies, a much loved and respected colleague.

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And only last month (June 2020), we have lost through tragic circumstances Francesca Bugliarello - a very determined, hard-working and delightful young person who personified what is so special about our school. Frankie was an inspirational and exemplary student who will be missed greatly by all those who were fortunate enough to know her. Ultimately, all of the success that has been enjoyed by our school has only been possible because of the people here in our community. Most of the time, our students have worn their uniform with pride bringing huge credit to themselves, their par-ents/carers, their school and to the local community that has unquestionably benefitted from having such a renowned school on its door step. I will miss the people that I work alongside and the students. It has been said that because in the main school we are an all girls’ school, behaviour and discipline is relatively easy. It is not. It is something that we work very hard on and whilst we might not be St Trinian’s, equally, it is not a convent. It is a school built on mutual respect and tolerance. And, linked to this, I will miss the buzz, excitement and sense of anticipation that I have experienced day in day out for so long, from simply being in school and walking in to classrooms, to experiencing first-hand the learning that is taking place. Ultimately though, none of us know what fate holds for us. And so, whilst I am fit and strong enough, my energies are to be fully invested in my children Vic-toria, Rachel and Michael, and my two grandchildren, Arnie and Autumn. As I have grown older, thanks to the combined efforts of teacher and support colleagues alike, the foresight of governors/

trustees and the support of parents/carers, our school has grown to become a flourishing, happy and innovative educational

establishment that has at its heart, a true commitment to every child who should be nurtured and challenged to achieve her/

his dream.

My retirement is meaningless. What means something is the legacy I hope that I leave behind. What means something is the

impact I hope I have had on the lives of so many young people. What means something is the legacy that in all our students

over the last 30 or so years, is a willingness to embrace life more completely rather than shrink away in grief or disappoint-

ment.

Sandbach has a school that it can be rightly proud of – a school with a local, regional and national reputation for high achieve-

ment.

As we look forward to the arrival of a new Headteacher, I wish our school community continued success.

J M Leigh

Headteacher

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An insight in to some of our successes.

On appointment, if I remember correctly there were 760 students on roll, including 80 sixth formers. Today the school roll is

in excess of 1400 including over 250 sixth formers - testimony to the popularity and success of our school, attracting students

from around 50 primary schools. The catchment area has extended beyond Sandbach and Haslington to include Crewe, Mid-

dlewich, Congleton and places further afield such as Madeley.

In turn the students have enjoyed some outstanding classroom practise delivered by a team of committed and professional teachers. From my own observations I have witnessed lesson after lesson, day after day, teachers routinely delivering excep-tionally inspiring, engaging and informing lessons. Support colleagues serve our students with distinction and often go unnoticed but it is their efforts that helps to ensure our school is so welcoming and meets the needs of all our students. We have proudly been at the forefront of educational initiatives. Some ten years plus ago we were arguably the first school to

employ directly our own Nurse Practitioner, supplementing and complimenting the work of the formal School Nurse (NHS)

and in collaboration we helped to fund for many years our local Police Community Support Officer. When schools were losing

their Careers Advisor we took the positive decision to employ our own and significantly recognising the growing pressures on

the mental health of our young people and the increasing lack of support for them we employ our own School Counsellors,

helping to support the well-being of all. These staffing developments collectively and individually are something to be very

proud of and help to reinforce the view that our school is not just about academic outcomes.

OFSTED – educational success Those familiar with School Inspection Frameworks (OFSTED) will know that those frameworks have changed regularly over the

years, with the bar rising exponentially. Against any framework to be deemed to be “outstanding” is impressive. To maintain

such a designation against evolving criteria and higher demands takes skilful leadership and management. The School’s Lead-

ership Team can therefore be especially proud of our consistent record when judged against the highest standards expected

by OFSTED:

March 2000 “outstanding”

November 2005 “outstanding”

September 2008 “outstanding”

And in November 2017 a no notice inspection ensured that we were able to retain and continue to hold that hard earned des-

ignation of being an “outstanding” school.

More than twenty years of “outstanding” educational provision at Sandbach High School and Sixth Form College.

In addition to the above more formal inspections, our successes brought our school to the attention of a range of organisa-

tions. For example, one of the last good practice reports to be published by OSTED was written by HMI J Palmer who used our

school as the focus for such a report, undertaken by November 2015, “Encouraging girls’ into STEM-related careers”.

In her introduction, HMI Palmer wrote “Sandbach High School and Sixth Form College is an 11–18 years girls’ school, which is

committed to nurturing talent, realising potential and encouraging participation across all aspects of the curriculum. The

school provides opportunities for all to achieve the highest possible standards in academic subjects, sports, music and the

arts, while actively encouraging girls to pursue non-stereotypical careers such as those offered in STEM-related areas. Along-

side this, the school supports the girls in developing their interpersonal skills and places great importance on helping them

appreciate their responsibilities in school and in the wider world.”

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SSAT (The Schools Network) - KS4 and KS5 Educational Outcomes In terms of our educational outcomes, we have not one but FIVE SSAT (The Schools Network) Achievement Awards to cele-brate as result of 2019 outcomes at KS4 and KS5, building on the receipt of similar awards over many years. Sandbach High School and Sixth Form College has been recognised nationally by receiving prestigious awards for their out-standing key stage 4 and 5 results last year (2019). Sandbach High School and Sixth Form College was found to be among the best performing non-selective secondary schools and sixth forms in the country, receiving five awards for being in the top 10% nationally for attainment and for above average stu-dent progress at key stage 4. The school was also recognised for being in the top 20% nationally for student attainment in aca-demic subjects, for being in the top 10% for attainment in applied general subjects and achieving significantly higher than na-tional average progress in applied general subjects at key stage 5. National Performance Tables – top performing school (again) The awards from the SSAT reflect the strong outcomes recorded in the DfE’s School Performance Tables for 2019 with our school, once again, heading the table on a number of counts; notably the progress that our students make at KS4 and KS5. Our P8 score for KS4 shows that our school is again the most successful school in Cheshire East (excluding private schools) and at KS5 we maintain the tradition of being the strongest performer at KS5 locally. This reinforces our longstanding and very proud reputation of being arguably the most successful school in Cheshire East. Emotional Well-being – AcSEED Our work supporting the emotional well-being and metal health of staff, students and some of the more vulnerable members of our community has been accredited by AcSEED and in our recognition as a Dementia Friendly school, for example. As a des-ignated School of Sanctuary in recognition of our work and ongoing commitment to engage with and celebrate the positive contribution of refugees and asylums Educational reinvention It would have been easy for a school such as ours to coast but by constantly reinventing our self we have remained at the van-guard of educational initiatives and educational achievements. AT the heart of that process has been a willingness to listen to our students. From the recent SCIES review of safeguarding in school (December 2017) they reported that in their meeting with students ‘it was clear that their voice is highly valued; we met with a significant number of students; these were representatives of the Big Sisters group, the School Council, the Pupil Voice group, the Rainbow group and the “Friendship” (bullying prevention) Mentors. They all valued the support they are given and appreciated the opportunities to make a difference which they had been given. They knew what they wanted to do and how they wanted to do it to make a difference’. They concluded by saying that the student voice was very strong. Commitment to the Arts Our much underappreciated arts provision saw our students excelling in drama, dance where our dancers achieved the highest accolades for the quality of their performances and music. Our instrumentalists and singers perform at numerous local events such as the Annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony here in Sandbach and at local care homes as well as further afield such as “busking” on behalf of a range of charities. The success of our arts provision both formally and less formally is to be celebrated notably its very inclusive nature and rightly deserves Arts Mark Gold. Some schools have made use of “gaming”, manipulating their curriculum to improve their academic profile. We have never been in need of such creativity as our commitment to a broad and balanced curriculum enabled students to follow their sub-ject preferences and work towards the realisation of their dreams wherever these aspirations might be seated; F1, accountan-cy, the care sector, engineering, the legal profession or personal services, our students have entered virtually every aspect of the world of work benefitting from a range of onsite opportunities such as our own beauty salon and Restaurant rarely seen in a maintained school

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During the heyday of “specialisms” we were one of the few to be accredited with no less than five specialisms recognising our commitment to self-improvement and our community and beyond: A leading edge school, Sports College, Language College, applied learning colleague and a training school that saw us leading a

group of schools nurturing and supporting not just the teachers of tomorrow but also current classroom practitioners seeking

to develop their pedagogy. Currently we continue to be the hub school for local sporting events embracing primary and sec-

ondary schools as the local School Games Organiser (SGO)

Earlier this year (2020) the National Citizen Service (NCS) - a government backed youth citizenship programme - recognised our longstanding commitment to the key principles of social cohesion, social engagement and social mobility by designating our school a Champion School – Gold Award. SSAT Leading Edge Building on our proud record of collaboration, in 2020 SSAT Leading Edge have recognised our commitment to professional

learning and the development of colleagues. Through the SSAT Framework for Exceptional Education we were accredited as a

culture of reflection and we look forward to being granted a second award as transforming in professional learning. The SSAT

Leading Edge have continued to support us when promoting our community's values; shaping futures, learning with passion,

respecting difference, nurturing ambition and creating opportunity. We believe that continuing improvement of teaching

through collaborative practice is the single biggest factor in sustaining improved learning experiences for our pupils across the

whole school.

Collaboration and joint practice development are integral parts of school life that can be observed every day, even during lock-down! We are continually developing and seeking opportunities to innovate outside of our traditional alliances, working with schools locally, nationally and internationally, contributing to national educational publications such as the SSAT innovation Radar. We have a commitment to the development of our teachers, proving high quality opportunities for development and career progression and our continued investment in colleagues is guided by our ethos, vision and values. STEM The School has an unprecedented record of success in various STEM related activities. CAUC were world champions in 2016 and have been in the top three in 2017 and again last year, 2019 and based on performances at the start of this season (halted by COVID) were clear favourites to regain their world title. CAUC, our electric car team, have been extensive winners over many years as a result of the calibre of their designing, building, driving and maintaining their battery driven car. In additional our F1 team has enjoyed great success. Students have enjoyed longstanding and continued STEM success including at the Big Bang North West where we received the Young Engineers School of the Year Award 2017. Past winning projects have included some innovative ideas such as The Great Barrier Reef Education Model by Lucy Gregg, Lois Sourbutts, Alex Dale (who at the time were in Year 9), an Eco-Globe Shopping Mall of the Future by Mille Cullen, Sarah Wil-liams (who were at the time in Year 8) and Natural Skincare Remedies by Imogen Dowell, Jennifer Sunderland (who were at the time in Year 10) And in spite of everything that has been going Mr Massey and some of his students have managed to get their projects into this year’s (2020) finals of Teentech, maintaining a longstanding record. The outcome was even more impressive as we managed to win three categories which is a record for us! Annie Dowler (Year 11) won the Energy and Environment Category for her grow your own fabric GCSE Textiles project. Ms Jones supported Annie with this amazing project. Lucy Coleman (Year 11) won the Safety and Security Category for her Safety Stool GCSE Product Design Project And Maddie Goodman (Year 13) won the Best Innovation category for her mobility aid for arthritis sufferers. This is Maddie's sec-ond national award she's won with her GCSE and A level Product Design projects and I'm delighted the she's going to Lough-borough to study Design Engineering.

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Oracy and Literacy Our pupils are extremely articulate – we have an annual Year 9 Public Speaking Competition run as part of the formal English

curriculum. Topics debated have included Equal Pay for Women in Sport, Banning/Putting Restrictions on Beauty Pageants

and ‘Bacon Rolls not Gender Roles', The Joys and Frustrations of Adoption, Respect and Euthansia, Waste Not!, Conditions in

Prison and Inspirational Female Role Models.

And in Writing for “The Voice” currently edited by Ryan Batty (Year 12) this termly school publication represents a celebration of pupil success, their creative writing and examples of literacy from across the curriculum. Pupil Voice In 2016 the “Big Sister” student group was set up. They have undertaken annual safeguarding questionnaires across the stu-dent body and in response delivered school assemblies on a variety of safeguarding issues and have been invited to present their material at local primary schools throughout 2017 and 2018. In 2017, 2018 and 2019 they delivered at the ‘Act Now’ Cheshire East Safeguarding Conference. They work with the LCSB to share good practice across Cheshire. Fund raising has been a huge aspect of school life on behalf of charities selected by our students, numerous charities have benefitted from those fund raining efforts which are currently focussed on the Clatterbridge Cancer Charity and the Stroke Association – two charities are very precious to us here in school. Whole School Walk in aid of “Taking Steps to Beat Cancer” in June 2015, raising over £2500. In 2015/2016 £13250 was raised for Cancer Research alone. In 2016/17 over £15 000 was raised for supporting the mental health and wellbeing of young peo-ple including the YoungMinds charity; 2017/18 saw £10327 raised for Kidney Research and in 2018/19 nearly £14 000 was raised for the Alzheimer’s Society. Our musicians not least our fantastic Chamber Choir have perform as part of the local music concert series and busking over the Christmas period in aid of local charities Arts and Sports Our sports women have earned for fairness, determination and quality achieving some magnificent across the whole spectrum of sports from athletics to football, netball to hockey. Outreach To some, we are deemed not to be a “community” school yet this belies the work that my colleagues and our students have been doing for years. Our much unheralded charitable and community work has been immense and has included: Our sixth form hosting an annual Christmas lunch and concert for local senior citizens. Our students becoming school ambassadors and representing today’s youth at events held in Sandbach, regionally and as far away as Whitehall, meeting a range of senior Government Ministers and officials. Our group of “Big Sisters” and SLOTHS demonstrating a huge social conscious through their work for the less privilege notably bit not exclusively to the homeless. One of the first schools nationally and the first school in the county to host a British Citizenship Ceremony and I believe the only school to have hosted two such events, highlighting our commitment to British values and inclusivity. And so it is erroneous for some to view our school as inward looking because as can be seen from the examples given above our social conscious and contribution to society extends far and wide.

Headteacher s Newsletter to Parents · Headteacher’s Newsletter to Parents Sandbach High School and Sixth Form College Middlewich Road, Sandbach Cheshire CW11 3NT [email protected]

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