DEPUTY PRINCIPAL'S REPORT

When the little things turn into big things...

It is very noticeable at the moment that some of our students are choosing to wear the wrong uniform to school. In Pastoral Care the staff issue Uniform Infringements and speak to the students about why they are out of uniform. A regular excuse is that they forgot what day it was. All our students have MacBooks and so can freely access their timetables at any time. We also hope that we are educating and encouraging our young people to be organised and attentive to the requirements of their day. Another excuse we hear is that they couldn’t find their item of clothing. Again, this is an opportunity to be prepared for what is ahead rather than assume that someone else will fix it for us. From time to time we have students who are wearing their full PE uniform because they have lost their shoes or their shoes are broken or too small. In this situation, students should wear their normal uniform with another pair of shoes and bring a note.

There are always days when things don’t run to plan and we do appreciate when parents write notes to explain this. At the same time we expect students to be attending school in the correct uniform for the correct day. The nature of Secondary School means that our students are growing in independence and maturity, becoming more responsible for themselves. Uniform matters, not only because it is one of our school expectations, but also because learning to meet small expectations prepares us for a more responsible life, wherever our path takes us. It takes discipline and it means being prepared, but both of these are worthy habits for young people to undertake.

Over the last few weeks we have seen a rise in the number of people in our community who are affected by COVID-19. This may bring feelings of concern, alarm and for some, anxiety. It is important to remember that we are doing everything we can at school to keep our students and staff safe. Wearing masks and sanitising surfaces are little things that take care of a bigger picture. Please ensure that your child is coming to school with a mask and even consider spare masks that can be kept in their locker or school bag. Another little thing we can do that has a big impact is be mindful of the way we speak about the members of our community who have contracted COVID. It is easy to speak of these people as ‘cases’, distant from us and faceless, however when we do this, we dehumanise them and we set them apart. Our school promotes values of respect, dignity and compassion; we are people who strive to demonstrate empathy and love of our neighbour.  This compels us to speak of and consider all those people affected by COVID not as ‘cases’ but as members of our community whom we hold  in our prayers and treat with dignity and respect.