I hope you and your families are well.

 

Thank you!

As this academic year comes to a close, I would like to reiterate and reemphasise our enormous thanks for everything you have done to support your child this academic year. The support of parents and carers is always essential in the success of students, however this year parents and carers have been required to also become teachers given the unprecedented circumstances we’ve all faced. We are very grateful for everything you have done and the sacrifices that all of you will have made to become a teacher as well as a parent.

I’d also like to offer my personal thanks for the understanding and support that our parents/carers have shown over this difficult period. We’ve been forced to make some difficult decisions that we would never have countenanced under normal circumstances, and your response has been one of understanding and overwhelming support. Difficult decisions and significant changes such as the closure of school, changes in remote learning, cancellation of trips, changes to the school day, revised arrangements for free school meals, to name but some, have been made much easier because our supportive community. We are grateful for the positive feedback we’ve had when we’ve got things right, and for the positive tone of questions and suggestions when we’ve made mistakes.

 

Next Year

My previous message this week focused on our plans for safely reopening school next year. If you missed this message, please refer to our Return to School webpage here: https://www.westfield-chorustrust.org/returntoschool

We are really looking forward to seeing all our students in September. As a reminder, we will welcome back students in Years 7 and 11 by 08.40 on Wednesday 2^nd September. They will be joined by students in Years 8, 9 and 10 by 08.40 on Thursday 3^rd September. Also, please remember that owing to the changes we have had to make to the school day, students in Years 7 to 10 will finish school at 14.30.

 

Timetables

A number of parents/carers and students have been in touch to raise concerns about their timetables for next year which are currently showing in Weduc. The timetables showing in Weduc are not the finalised timetables for next year. Please be assured that students be issued with a full timetable on the first day back in September.

 

School Reception Opening

School reception will be closed for the first three weeks of the summer holidays. It will reopen again from Monday 10^th August, 09.00 – 15.00.

 

Letter to parents from Gregg Fell

We have been asked to share with all parents/carers a letter from Gregg Fell, Sheffield’s Director of Public Health, which you can view here.

 

Good Luck to our Year 11 Leavers

It has been lovely to see many our Year 11 leavers in school today collecting their much-anticipated ‘Leavers Hoodies’. It has been great to speak to some of them and hear about their exciting plans for next year. We look forward to seeing them again on Results Day on Thursday 20^th August, and celebrating their successes and time at Westfield at some point in the not-too-distant future. While we can’t commit to running a prom in 2020 we’re determined that our Year 11s won’t be denied their opportunity for this important rite of passage!

 

Wishing you all a safe and happy summer.

Take care,

Joe Birkbeck
Head of Westfield School