Headteacher's Bulletin
Headteachers Bulletin (GCSE Results) - Thursday 22nd July 2024
Students at Sunbury Manor received their GCSE results this morning, and for the majority of students this was a time of celebration and a time to smile. It was so pleasing to see so many happy students who had worked so hard for their results.
The improvement they made from their January Mocks was remarkable. The changes, challenges and capacity we put in place from February really had impact and we are so pleased to see this materialise in results and smiles. Most important are their efforts, their resilience and their commitment to success. Well done Year 11 and thank you to our parents that were absolutely significant in their child’s outcomes.
Excitingly and bucking the national trend, a number of our students achieved top grades, with 234 grades at grade 7, 8 or 9. One of our top achieving students achieved 9 top grades, including 6 grade 9s; this is truly a success. Another student achieved grade 9s in both English and English literature. Again, this is against national trends, and we were happy to hear that they are feeling “great” about going on to study this at college.
Some of our students described how proud they were of their achievements, particularly where their hard work had led to grades they had thought out of reach. This will be the theme of next year and a common state moving forward; this we promise:
We also recognise and celebrate the achievements of students whose hard work led to significant progress and resulted in grades which seemed out of reach only months ago. We couldn’t be more thrilled as they head off to start a wide variety of courses at college and sixth form; we know they will show the calibre and quality of a Sunbury Manor student.
As a school our favourite successes are those students that are resilient against adversity and make progress beyond what the government metrics say. We have so many of those and we are so very proud of the pace of their progress.
Our new Headteacher, Mr Lee, said “we couldn’t be prouder of Sunbury students today. They have shown resilience in the face of a number of challenges, and I am thrilled at the achievements of our students”.
As a school we are proud of our students. We recognise the challenges we have faced in recent years also. However, the energy, support and leadership in recent months make us confident that this message this time next year will be filled with even more joy, progress and stories of success for our young people.
Headteachers Bulletin - Friday 19th July 2024
As we see our students off for the summer holidays, I have had a chance to reflect this week on some of the changes we have already made to Sunbury Manor School in the short time I have been headteacher. Lessons are more productive; students are happier; and the school is a calm and purposeful place. I am fully aware that there is a lot to do, but with the support of parents, students and staff I have no doubt we will continue on this upwards trajectory.
There are a number of changes happening in school over summer, including some work on classrooms, a new student reception area and other improvements around the school. This is the start of a programme that will bring the school up to date and ensure we have the environment and facilities conducive to a first-class education. I am truly grateful to all parents for accommodating our change in dates at the end of term so we could close early and ensure we could get the school ready for the work over summer and also for the new year. I am looking forward to inviting parents into school, where you will be able to see some of the changes. We have said goodbye to a small number of staff who leave us to go on to new endeavours, and we welcome some new staff starting in September. This includes a new deputy headteacher in charge of safeguarding, and a new assistant headteacher who will be our SENDCo. These are vital roles in the school, and I know that these new colleagues will be instrumental in our improvement journey.
Our final week included our final events for this year, including our fantastic sports day (thankfully the weather held out for us) and our end of year music concert. It was truly lovely seeing such a mix of talent and performances, and this included some students who were incredibly nervous but overcame these nerves and got on stage and were truly amazing. We are so proud of them for putting themselves out there, and I can’t wait to give students more opportunities to be part of concerts, productions and events.
I would like to make you aware that last week I commissioned a safeguarding review of the school, from a local trust, Every Child Every day, who run several good and outstanding schools. This was so that I could be reassured that the work that we have done over the past few weeks is having the impact that we need to see, and I can be confident that we are keeping students safe. The review was extremely positive about the changes we have made.
Finally, I would like to wish everyone, students, parents and staff a great summer, whatever it holds for you. I would like all our students to have a well-earned break, but most importantly to stay safe, and we are looking forward to seeing them back school in September.
Headteachers Bulletin - Friday 12th July 2024
It was an absolute privilege to be part of the Sunbury Manor celebration evenings this week. The hall was packed on both evenings as key stage 4 (including our year 11 leavers) and key stage 3 students received their various awards for academic achievement, contributions to the community and sporting excellence. It was a wonderful reminder that even in challenging times we have so much to be proud of and to celebrate. My heartfelt congratulations to all students who received an award, and my thanks to all staff the involved in putting on these events.
These last few weeks remain very busy as we approach the end of term, and we have had so many different events and trips this week I won’t be able to mention them all. On Thursday our year 7s headed to Henfold Lakes to enjoy some time in the outdoors (and get very muddy!). Students represented the school very well, and it’s great for students to get to spend time in a very different setting and make some memories. Our year 10 students experienced another taster of college life this week on the Strodes trip- high engagement and enthusiasm from all, and a wonderful opportunity to explore ideas for when they leave year 11. We had a DT workshop in school this week run by Spelthorne Council to give year 9 students who have opted for DT as one of their options a head start on their course for next year. Our Key stage three athletes did us proud at the district athletics on Monday, with several champions crowned (too many to mention here!)- a great team feeling with students supporting each other. This week we had an Olympics theme running through lessons, with departments putting an Olympics twist on learning in class. We have had Olympics pizza and biscuits in food, playing some unusual Olympics sports in PE and designing a sustainable Olympic park in geography. Today we also held our final transition event of the term, with Springfield School students coming in to visit. We were pleased to be able to offer this to our new students as they weren’t able to attend the main transition day.
I’d like to take this opportunity to thank and congratulate our year 10 mentors. They are now finishing the last week of paired reading where they support year 7 students with their reading. This is such an important role in school, and will make a huge difference to the year 7 students who took part, who are so positive about the experience, and have been given a real boost in their learning.
As we approach the final week of school, I’d like to add a couple of reminders for all. As per the letter sent home this week, we will be finishing school on Thursday 18th July at 12.20pm. This is a day earlier than originally planned so please do take note of this. This will be a normal morning of school for all, and students are expected to be in full school uniform.
We have seen some incredible improvements in the school over the last few weeks, including improvements in behaviour, punctuality and focus in lessons. This was acknowledged by our school governors, a number of whom were in school this week to meet students and visit lessons. We have much work to do to ensure that all at Sunbury Manor achieve, but I would like to thank all of the students and parents for your commitment to our improvement, and I am excited by our next steps.
Headteachers Bulletin - Friday 5th July 2024
As we are getting closer to the end of term things only seem to get busier at Sunbury Manor as we try to squeeze in as much as we can before we break up. It’s been lovely this week to see students get so excited by things outside their normal lessons that so many of our dedicated staff put on for them to support their learning and enjoyment beyond the normal curriculum.
This week we had our mock election, with all students having the opportunity to vote, and some of our year 10 citizenship students facilitating. Students were genuinely excited, having spent the last week reading manifestos, rating political broadcast videos and debating policies. Sunbury Manor tutor groups voted unanimously for Labour, with a 49% share of the votes! We have also seen many students embracing their competitive streaks over the past week. Our Science department has been running a wildlife photography competition and we have had some amazing pictures submitted so far. There is still time to enter, with a final closing date of Monday 8th of July. With a more sporting focus, on Tuesday we held our house rounders competition, with lots of students taking part, and Mozart finally taking the win! Students have been signing up in droves for some of our IT after school clubs, such as, coding to learn some valuable skills, with full classrooms for all of the clubs. Sticking with sports, we are incredibly proud at Sunbury Manor to have the tradition of sending some of our students each year to be ball boys and ball girls at Wimbledon, and this continues in 2024. Three of our students headed off this week for the start of the championships- we'll be watching out for them on the TV!
I am pleased to have seen standards in uniform and punctuality improve since I started at Sunbury Manor, and students are taking responsibility by keeping their mobile phones off and out of site so they aren’t distracted. This week I will be asking all students to reflect on their focus in lessons and how this impacts their learning. I will be reminding all teachers to challenge students whenever they are not fully attentive. By raising our expectations, avoiding distractions and staying focused we can all ensure that every child reaches their potential.
Finally for this week, I spend a great deal of time thinking about the future of Sunbury Manor, never more so than this week. Tuesday was our transition day with our new year 7 students who will be joining us in September. The young people had a great time exploring their new school, learning some of our routines, and meeting classmates and teachers; it was a truly special event for all! As we continue on our improvement journey as a school, I find myself considering what these new students will say about Sunbury Manor throughout their time here. I have no doubt that they will be proud of their school, provided we all work together.
I will be writing to you next week with arrangements for the end of term and for September- please look out for this.
Headteachers Bulletin - Friday 28th June 2024
It’s been another busy and productive week at Sunbury Manor and I have been incredibly impressed by the
resilience of our students working so well despite the heat over recent days.
As we approach the end of term things only seem to get busier. This week we had our tea party for students who
are coming as the only young person from their primary school. It was so lovely to meet some of our new year 7s,
and help them to make some friends before they join the rest of the cohort for the main transition day next
week. At the other end of the school, our year 10 students headed off to Brooklands College to get a taster of
some of the different courses they may study after they leave us next year- what a wonderful opportunity to try
out some activities they normally wouldn’t get to do in school! I’ve been incredibly impressed seeing students
practising ready for our summer concert on 16th July, and I can’t wait to see their hard work pay off in what I
know will be some incredible performances. I am continually impressed by how adaptable our students are to
their learning. In life skills, year 7 and 8 students have shown incredible maturity in tackling some challenging
topics. In music, year 8 have been singing their hearts out to Eye of the Tiger (and sounding amazing), and in DT
students have been making falafels- trying something new, healthy and good for the environment.
Reading is one of our priorities at Sunbury Manor as we know how vital this is to students’ success in all their
subjects and once they leave school. Students have been helping to select new books for the LRC ready for
September so that we can ensure we have books available that all students will enjoy.
When I wrote to you last week I identified punctuality as a priority for this week and essential in securing the
success of the school, and I have been impressed by the improvement over this week. I have been at the school
entrance every day this week, and we have reduced from a significant number of students being late, to only a
few in the course of a few days. It is so impressive to see students taking responsibility for themselves and their
learning, and making adjustments to get here on time (in spite of the roadworks holding things up!).
Next week our priority is on mobile phones. I am fully supportive of students having a mobile phone with them,
as I know that many parents rely on this to ensure children are safe on the way to and from school. However, I
am also concerned about how distracting phones can be during school. Our policy is that we shouldn’t see or
hear mobile phones from students at any point throughout the school day, and we have in place reasonable
sanctions if we do- the phone is confiscated, and a 15-minute correction is issued. Phones will always be returned
on the same day. I ask for your support by asking you to remind your children of the expectation, and also to
avoid contacting them during the day (if you do need to get in touch urgently, you can do this through main
reception).
Spending time outside during break and lunch times and seeing students really enjoy their free time with friends
reminds me of how happy a place Sunbury Manor is, and while we work hard to ensure that we are supporting
every young person in our community effectively, seeing our students each day I am sure that the vast majority
feel happy in school. I am looking forward to opportunities over the next couple of weeks to get students’ and
parents’ views as we will be sending out surveys- please look out for these opportunities as we move into the last
3 weeks of term.
Headteachers Bulletin - Friday 21st June 2024
I am excited to share with you my very first headteacher’s bulletin as the new headteacher at Sunbury Manor. On Monday I delivered assemblies to all year groups with the theme of responsibility. I talked to students about my responsibility to them as their headteacher: to keep them safe, and to provide them with a high-quality education. I also talked about them taking responsibility for themselves; to ensure they are doing the right thing, even when sometimes this isn’t the easiest choice. I have spent much of my time this week going into lessons and speaking to students around the school. It fills me with joy to see productive lessons and to see students excited about this new chapter at their school.
There are so many amazing things happening at Sunbury Manor each week that it will be hard for me to celebrate them all here, but I will fit in as many as I can. This week we have some incredible champions at the district athletics championship, with winners in the year 9 1500m, javelin, discus, shot putt and year 10 shot putt and 300m. Our year 10 cricketers have also made the final of the district cup, winning by 3 runs! Our year 10 sports leaders have been passing on their experience to younger students by teaching year 7s. Year 10 end of year exams started this week, and students have really stepped up - seeing them preparing with their revision cards and after school sessions fills me with confidence that moving into year 11 they will be ready to take on their GCSEs. Leadership opportunities are very important at Sunbury Manor and this week we announced our house captains and sports captains. They received their badges in their house assemblies, and join our head student team who we appointed earlier in the term.
This week we have had a focus on uniform and making sure students wear their uniform with pride, showing us they are ready to learn. I want to thank parents for supporting us with this by making sure your children have all the required items for their uniform. We have seen a real improvement in just one week.
Next week our focus will be on punctuality. As a reminder students should be on site no later than 8.25, when the doors will close and students arriving after this will be issued with a late correction. It is absolutely essential to our success that students are here on time and are ready to learn. Punctuality to lessons is also key so students don’t miss the start of lessons. We will really be pushing to make sure everyone arrives to lessons quickly during lesson changeover and following break and lunch.
Finally, as we say goodbye to our year 11s at their prom this week, we make room for our new year 7 cohort. Miss Batten and Mrs Virdee have been out visiting the year 6 students in their primary schools and they are so excited to be visiting us at the upcoming induction day and being here full time in September. We can’t wait to welcome them into our family!