Dear Parents and Carers,
As we come to the end of what has been a fast-paced and energetic half term, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on the strength of our community spirit here at Danebury School. It's in times like these that I'm reminded of just how special our school community truly is.
Our annual Stock Fest provided a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the achievements of our magical class of 2026 and to bring everyone together. It was a truly memorable occasion and a fitting way to mark the end of the half term. I must extend huge thanks to our wonderful PTA, who worked tirelessly to help organise the event. They are such a generous group of people who give their time so willingly, and the school simply couldn't run these special occasions without them. I would also like to thank Mrs Brush for organising our musicians, who performed so brilliantly throughout the afternoon and added such a special atmosphere to the celebrations.
Friday was undoubtedly a bittersweet day for us all. Whilst it was heartwarming to reflect on Year 11's last five years at Danebury/Test Valley School, we will miss them all very much indeed. They are a fabulous group of young people, and their spirit will be hugely missed throughout the school. On behalf of the staff, I would like to thank our Year 11s for the lovely gifts and cards they presented to us, complete with the kindest of words. These mean the world to us and will be treasured. It was particularly special to have parents and carers join us for both the leavers assembly and Stock Fest – it was an emotional time for everyone involved, but one that celebrated the wonderful journey these pupils have had with us.
It's hard to believe that Year 11 are already halfway through their GCSEs. As we look ahead, we are keen to ensure that Year 10 and Year 9 are well prepared for their own GCSE journey. To support this, we will be holding mock exams for both year groups in June, once the GCSEs have finished. These mock exams will take place in the gym with invigilators present, allowing our pupils to become familiar with the formal process of taking summative assessments. This experience will be invaluable as they progress towards their own final exams. In addition, Year 7 & 8 will have summative assessments in their classrooms for all subjects.
I would also like to celebrate the efforts of our Sports Leaders, who recently helped at Wallop Primary Sports Day. A good day was had by all, and it's wonderful to see our young people giving their time to support the wider community in this way.
As we move into the summer months, I would appreciate it if parents could remind their children to bring a refillable water bottle to school each day to ensure they stay properly hydrated. When temperatures are particularly high, hats and suncream are also advisable.
On the whole, uniform standards have been good this term. However, we still have a small number of pupils who are wearing trainers. Trainers are only permitted if accompanied by a doctor's note. If your child wears a skirt to school it must be the length you bought it at. I can’t think of any reason to cut skirts shorter. I have spoken directly with those wearing skirts that don't meet our uniform policy, and they will need to wear grey school trousers going forward if they continue to ignore the rules.
We are currently recruiting minibus drivers for September. We will need two drivers for the morning and afternoon runs through the villages towards Andover and Salisbury. If you know anyone who might be interested, please do get in touch with freemanm@danebury.hispmat.org.
We are looking ahead to the last half term of the academic year, lots of learning still to be done in curriculum time, as well as a wide range of opportunities for learning beyond the classroom. We will be holding ‘drop-down’ cultural days for KS3. All year groups have trips to enjoy, the Japan Trip and Boulogne Trip are going ahead, and we will round the term off with Activities Day.
Have a lovely weekend and half term. We look forward to welcoming pupils back on June 1st.
Nicky Goodridge
Head Teacher
