It has been quite emotional in school this week as our Year 11 pupils had their last full day in school on Wednesday.  They have now started their ‘study leave’ and will only come into school for their GCSE examinations. 

At lunch time we held a Staff Vs Pupils football game on the all-weather pitch, which was a break from traditional tag-rugby game, as the all-conquering Y11 football team wanted to add the staff team to their list of victories!  They (unsurprisingly) won 3-0, however, it could have been much worse for the staff team had Mr Carter (Science) not made a string of brilliant saves!  The game was played in a great atmosphere, with hundreds of pupils from other years watching and supporting.  We also raised over £300 for the year group charity.  The match was followed by the traditional signing of shirts on the field after which the pupils were led into the school hall for their final Y11 assembly hosted by Mr Reardon and Miss Hall. 

This is always an emotional occasion and it was even more so this year as Mr Reardon made a great speech about the year group and how resilient they had been through the struggles of the pandemic and preparing for their exams this year.  Miss Hall had put together a powerpoint showing the Y7 and Y11 photographs in tandem with each other, let’s just say the pupils were amused by their Y7 photographs!  Maybe not so amused with the next section which was full of baby photographs provided by their parents! (Many thanks to parents for sending these in). 

Form tutors recorded their heartfelt messages and I finished the assembly by telling them how proud we were of them all and shared the prayer that I had said to them in their first assembly on their first day in Y7. (Between You and God – Mother Teresa).  On behalf of all the staff and governors, we wish all Year 11 pupils good luck in the remainder of their exams and every success in their future. 

 

I am always amazed at how quickly each yearly cycle comes around. We celebrated the current Year 10 pupils stepping up to their senior pupils in school role this morning in assembly.  Our current Year 11 prefect team did an outstanding job, led brilliantly by Megan Blaikie (Head Girl) and Robert Morris (Head Boy) and I am sure that the new team taking over will be equally as brilliant. 

Congratulations to Hannah Whitlow (Head Girl), Alexis Aaron & Grace Deardon (Deputy Head Girls) and Benjamin Paul (Head Boy) and Thomas Humphreys & Shaun Urmston (Deputy Head Boys) and to all the senior prefects and prefects who make up the team.  In only 4 weeks’ time we will be having our induction days for the Y6 pupils and the cycle starts again.

Congratulations to our Y7 and Y8 rugby teams who will contest the Wigan Schools’ Finals at Orrell St James’ next Tuesday evening. Also, congratulations to our Y7, Y9 and Y10 football teams who will also contest the Wigan Schools’ Final.  I have been fortunate enough to watch all of these teams in recent weeks and they are outstanding on the pitch and conduct themselves in an outstanding way off the pitch, the very best of luck to them next week [see our News section for photographs and write-ups   SEA News                       ].

Whenever I have the chance, I state that it is an honour and a privilege to be the Headteacher of our school and I also always state that our pupils are the best form of advertisement our school could wish for, I have felt both of these things especially keenly this week.