A reflection on a joyful & purposeful start to the year
Dear Parents and Carers
As the first term of the new academic year draws to a close, I wanted to take this opportunity to reflect on what has been an incredibly busy and joyful start to the school year. The energy and enthusiasm across the school has been wonderful to see, and I am immensely proud of the way our students have settled back into school life. This is also a reflection of the important part you play in allowing our community to flourish as it has in recent weeks.
The term began with the fantastic GCSE results from the summer, which we celebrated in August. We were particularly thrilled with the exceptional performance in GCSE RE by our current Year 11 students, who sat the exam early in Year 10. A superb 30% of these students achieved the highest grades of 9-7. Overall, our August GCSE results were outstanding, and I’m especially pleased to report that we saw no gender gap, bucking the national trend. A quarter of all grades awarded, 25%, were the top grades of 9-7. Furthermore, over 70% of all subjects achieved results above the national average. These phenomenal outcomes have placed us amongst the top 30 schools in the South West, encompassing both state and independent sectors. This is a tremendous credit to the hard work of our students, you as families, and the dedication of our staff.
Our current Year 11s also faced a significant challenge this term with their mock exams; they really stepped up, demonstrating maturity and focus. We also saw successful Dance coursework days taking place this term.
Promoting a safe, inclusive, and supportive environment remains our top priority. Our Achievement Coordinators have been running insightful assemblies covering topics such as anti-bullying, the role of bystanders, and celebrating individual year groups successes.
Mr Francis, our Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL), has been leading assemblies on our Whisper system and the importance of reporting incidents/concerns in school. He emphasised how we can all look out for and support one another. Crucially, he also provided clear information on how students can access wellbeing support, including counselling and group therapies. You can read more about these here Wellbeing – Fairfield High School.
We had wonderful celebrations for Black History Month, also led by Mr Francis, who focused on Black Icons, including the 7 Saints of St Paul’s. It was powerful to see students join Mr Francis in assemblies to share their own perspectives on celebrating Black History Month.
This inclusive spirit will culminate in our hugely successful Culture Day, which rounds up the term. Students and staff will represent their heritage through clothing and colours and shared food from different cultures. It will no doubt be a beautiful display of the rich diversity within our school community. If any families would like to donate time, food or money towards our Summer Culture Day, please get in touch with Mrs Doherty at [email protected].
I am delighted that our Student Council elections were so hotly contested this term. The elected members have already started their weekly meetings with me to discuss how we can work together to continue moving our school community forward.
Our prefects have also been incredibly busy, starting the demanding work of organising the Year 11 Prom, end of year celebrations, and setting up a new mentoring programme for younger students. A reminder to parents/carers of Year 11 students: if you haven’t yet received the essential letters regarding GCSE exams, Prom, the Leavers Assembly, and the End of Year 11 timetable, please contact our School Reception so they can forward the information to you.
Finally, we have had a fantastic response to our transition events, welcoming almost 1,000 Year 5 and 6 families into the building during our Open Mornings and Evening. All events were sold out, and the wonderful feedback we received about our current students demonstrated what a tremendous credit they are to our community.
We look forward to welcoming many of you back into the building—either virtually or in person—next term for several key events, including:
- Year 9 Options Evening (Tuesday 4th November)
- Year 9 Parent/Carer Evening (Wednesday 19th November)
- Progress Review Meetings for Years 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11 (Thursday 18th and Friday 19th December)
As a reminder, all families are welcome to join our assemblies during tutor time, which take place in person and are advertised in our weekly briefings.
Wishing you all a peaceful and restful break.
Edel Cronin, Principal