Dear Parents and Carers, 

Welcome back, I hope you had a lovely Easter break. 

Spring has certainly sprung and there's been a lovely atmosphere around school this week. I have to say I am incredibly proud of Danebury for adjusting to the new phone lockers so brilliantly. Mrs Collins and I anticipated a little resistance when phones were handed over during line-ups in the morning. However, we've both been so impressed by the pupils' attitudes. I don't want to speak too soon, but we haven't had any issues yet. Pupils appear upbeat and are managing without their phones just fine! Many thanks for your support with this initiative.

Many thanks to all the parents and carers who attended our Year 8 Consultation Evening on Thursday. We had a great turn out. We look forward to welcoming Year 7 Parents and Carers on 22 May 2025.

We are holding a number of Year 5 taster sessions this term (see dates in our blog below). Please spread the word. Last year's sessions were a great success and certainly contributed to our numbers doubling for this September.

As previously communicated to you, we have made the switch to Arbor as Danebury's sole communication platform this term.  The overwhelming majority of our parents are now logging in and viewing the information.  As a reminder, you can find a lot of information about your child's day on the platform, information such as their attendance to lessons, their engagement and behaviour, including whether they've been set detentions, and the assignments set (assignments is the term used on the app for homework).

If you are still having problems logging in, please do get in touch with the school office.  If your child is also having trouble logging into the student app, there are instructions here Danebury School - Arbor Portal - Students & Parents or suggest they contact Mrs Collins or Mrs Freeman, who will help them to reset their password.

On the whole, the uniform has been excellent. Please can I ask that you don't allow your child to wear trainers, unless they have a medical condition and a supporting doctor's note. We want to treat pupils fairly and equitably. Once a few pupils wear trainers more then try to follow suit. We have ordered more spare shoes and will supply them if needed.

We have a number of community events this term. To mark the 80th Anniversary of VE Day, our Community LORIC group are planning a picnic on the field for the whole school on May 8th 2025. The choir will be singing songs from the 1940s, our catering group are baking and our sports leaders will be setting up traditional British games for all to enjoy. I would like to hold a baking competition. If your child enjoys baking, please encourage them to bake at home and bring their cake in on 8th May. Once votes are in, we will divide the cakes up to ensure everyone has a piece. Staff will be baking too. Last time we did this for the Jubilee it was a great success. There are so many talented bakers at Danebury!

We are busy planning our annual StockFest. It will be held earlier this year to ensure Year 11 are fully involved. It will take place on May 23rd, which is the last day of this half-term. It will run from 2pm-4:30pm. We have an extensive musical set again this year. Parents and carers are welcome to join us after 3pm on the field. We'll have a range of stalls run by the children. All money raised will go to charity. Our wonderful PTA will be running the BBQ and refreshment tent. Please do join us if you can. It's a wonderful Community event.

Have a lovely weekend.

Nicky Goodridge, Headteacher