Dear Danebury School Community,
I hope you’ve had a positive week.
What a busy start we've had to Spring 2! As we settle into this half term, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on the wonderful things happening across our school.
First, I must extend my congratulations to Year 11 on their impeccable attitude and behaviour during their recent mock examinations. It was truly impressive to see such a mature and focused approach to their studies. With only 35 school days remaining until their GCSEs begin, they are now on the home stretch. The dedication and commitment they are showing during this crucial revision period is exactly what we want to see, and I have every confidence they will make the most of this final push towards their summer examinations.
As Year 11 continue to focus on their revision, we are now turning our attention to appointing our new Student Leadership Team for next year. I have been delighted to meet with all the Year 10 pupils who expressed an interest in applying for a position, whether as a Student Leader or Head Student. The response has been overwhelming, with over 35 pupils attending the meeting to find out more. The calibre of candidates is exceptionally strong, and we have a very exciting election ahead of us. The application form has now been shared with all of Year 10, and I very much look forward to reading through the submissions.
Meanwhile, Year 9 have been learning about the range of GCSE courses we have on offer. This is an important time as they begin to think about their future pathways through the school and beyond. Our annual options evening will be held on 12th March 2026, and I would encourage all pupils, parents and carers to attend.
I must also extend my thanks to the Year 9 parents and carers who attended our consultation evening last Thursday. We had a wonderful turnout, and it was lovely to see so many of you engaging with your child's learning and progress. Thank you too for taking the time to complete the parent and carer survey – your feedback has been extremely positive and really does mean a great deal to us. One piece of feedback that came up from a few parents was regarding homework. I fully recognise that Arbor isn't quite as straightforward as Class Charts for setting and recording homework completion, and we are actively working with Arbor to iron out these issues. Additionally, I have reminded all staff to follow our homework timetable carefully when setting work, and we appreciate your patience as we continue to refine this system.
This week, I set the 'Challenge 25' during our Monday morning Warm Welcome. As this is the shortest half term of the year with only 25 school days, I challenged everyone in our school community to go that extra mile in their learning, attendance and support for others over these 25 days. Mrs Collins has also reinforced the importance of attendance and has launched a set of rewards that pupils will receive for each full week they attend this half term. The response has been fantastic, and we could already see the positive impact of these incentives as the week progressed, with attendance improving across all year groups.
I would also like to congratulate our Netball teams on their excellent victories against Testbourne this week. The standard of play was outstanding, and special thanks must go to Mrs Elgar for being such an inspirational coach and for the time and dedication she gives to our pupils.
To mark World Book Day on Tuesday, we are encouraging pupils to come dressed as a character from a book. As this is optional, those not dressing up need to come in their normal uniform. Mrs Dunn and Miss Barton have also put on a wide range of other activities to promote reading across the week, many thanks to them both for their inspiration.
Finally, this week marks National Careers Week, and we have a wide range of activities planned to inspire all our pupils about post-16 routes and the world of work. I would like to extend my sincere thanks to those parents and carers who have offered their time to support these activities – your involvement is invaluable in helping our pupils explore their futures.
Nicky Goodridge
Head Teacher
