Newsletter - 4 August 2022

FROM THE HEADMASTER - MR LINDSAY PEARSON

Dear Parents

“Life is difficult!” These are the provocative words with which the renowned psychiatrist William Scott-Peck starts his book, “The road less travelled.” He goes on to say, “Once we truly know that life is difficult — once we truly understand and accept it — then life is no longer difficult. Because once it is accepted, the fact that life is difficult no longer matters.”

As adults we know this, and yet somehow we think it should be different for our children. The tasks of growing up can be challenging for our children, and our task is to support and encourage them, but also to give them the space to develop the resilience needed to cope with the challenges they face. Dealing with disappointment, giving them responsibility and allowing them to accept the consequences of their behavior is critical in assisting them to acquire the skills they need to cope with the difficulties they will face as they grow up.

As you peruse this newsletter you will be aware of the fact that the school has been a busy place since our half term. Our grateful thanks to all who have supported the school and whose cheerful endeavor has added much to the all-round experience of the pupils.

Financial matters
The effective functioning of the school is very dependent on parents meeting their financial commitment to the school. Our grateful thanks and appreciation go to all those who do it timeously, particularly when one considers the difficult economic environment we find ourselves in. A reminder to families to give the requisite terms notice should their children be leaving the school for whatever reason in the future.

Staff matters

We are thrilled and excited about the appointment of Mrs. Caroline Anderson as the new and permanent Head of the school as of 1 January 2023. Caroline is passionate and committed to St Francis College, and is ideally placed to lead the school into the future.
Lyn Webb has announced her retirement at the end of the year having served the school with distinction for many years. She has been an integral part of the leadership structure, and her impact on the lives of countless pupils has been significant. We will certainly miss her.

Opinion Survey
The Chairman of the Governing Body, Andrew Bowren, writes as follows:

“We would like to thank both the teaching team and parents who responded to our recent opinion survey. The purpose of the survey was to enhance our existing information base in our deliberations of the future vision and model of St Francis College.

As you would have gathered from the content of the survey, the focus was on activities and processes which add value to the day to day offering of the school.

By way of some feedback:

Approximately 50% of parents and all teachers responded.
We have clustered common responses / themes together.
This communication will comment on the common themes which emerged. Cognisance is certainly taken of the range of other responses, which will be addressed at the appropriate forums within the school structure.
The common themes for each of the questions posed are:
- What three activities which we are currently doing, we MUST CONTINUE to do because they ADD VALUE?
  - Sport
  - Eco school project and gardening
  - Music
  - Other activities mentioned, but less frequently were
    - School outings
    - Chess
    - Bakers day and Thoughtful Thursday
  - What three activities which we are currently doing, we should consider STOP doing because they ADD NO VALUE?
    - Don’t change anything
    - Bakers sales – should not be so frequent, but should still continue
    - Tennis – the reason being that it is held off site and that traveling is an issue
    - Other activities mentioned, but less frequently were
      - CAPS, rote learning and text book approach
    - What three activities which we are currently NOT doing, we should consider START DOING because they will ADD VALUE?
      - More sport (frequent mention of rugby)
      - Cultural activities and music
      - Other activities mentioned, but less frequently were
        Enquiry based learning, debating and public speaking

What next? Our intention is to use this feedback in our continuous discussions about the future of St Francis College. The staff will also examine the detail of these insights and make the necessary changes where deemed appropriate.

Once again, many thanks for giving of your time to respond to the survey. Your inputs are appreciated.”

Yours sincerely
Lindsay Pearson