Summer Term newsletter

Headmasters Welcome
Dear Reader,
As we approach the end of this term and school year I have
been reflecting on all of the school’s success. It was once
felt the final term was about winding down as the students
had sat their examinations but at The John Fisher School it
seems as though we have been doing even more and this
is reflected in this termly newsletter.
This year we have continued to focus on ‘Currency’ -
basically getting best results for all students, on ‘Character’
- developing students life attributes as well as finding more effective ways to ‘communicate’ and
‘collaborate’ with stakeholders.
In this edition you will get to read about our ‘School in the Community’ award from the Arsenal FC
as well as our nomination for ‘School of the Year’ in the National Rugby Awards Ceremony which
takes place on August 30th. Our Art Exhibition and Sports Gala Dinner were highlights this term
as well as the charity work we have been involved in for Glenfell Tower and for the Koning School
which is in the little village of Ellendale near Kuruman on the edge of the Kalahari Desert. We have
also had guest speakers in school such as Tee Bello and Paul Hannaford who were truly inspiring. A
number of our students have also enjoyed residential experiences to Belgium, France, Spain and
we also have a tour going out to South Africa during the holidays as well.
This year has also brought its challenges. Unfortunately two of our students were involved in
road traffic accidents, one of our trainee teachers who was employed to work full time with us in
September passed away and a small group of our students were involved in a road traffic incident
recently.
In both moments of great joy and of great challenge strong leadership is always required. To
organise whole school events requires much attention to detail from a leader; the ability to work
meticulously. At times when unexpected incidents occur much resilience is required; having the
ability to persevere after setbacks and during times of uncertainty. Leadership development is
something we want to continue to focus on next year with both our staff and students. Children at
The John Fisher School today are the community citizens of tomorrow – future teachers, politicians,
doctors, lawyers, dentists, nurses… and therefore must be inspired to develop themselves as
leaders rather than just be merely encouraged to join the school council. At the end of my second
year at The John Fisher School I will be certainly be taking moments to reflect on the following
questions over the summer and I ask that others do the same: Do I have belief in the school
vision? Do I have belief in the intrinsic value of every student? Do I believe what we are doing as
a school is transformational for bot staff, students, families and our community? These things do
not happen by chance as ‘instilling belief’ is quite a skill.
I am already looking forward to next year and getting started on some of our key priorities to
include: (i) fostering leadership (ii) continuing with our oracy initiative, debating and ‘speak out’
challenge (iii) introducing the Duke of Edinburgh Award (iv) opening a new inclusion and access
department (v) developing our house system (vi) improving our school environment which parents/
carers can also get involved in. We will continue to face tough decisions around our school
curriculum amidst the school funding crisis next year which will also be a key strategic priority for
the school and its leaders as well. Sometimes strong leadership is about being bold enough to
decide what not to do which many of us find difficult.
Finally, I want to thank all of you who have contributed to The John Fisher School this year. I hope
those receiving examination results achieve what they desired and I wish you all a relaxing summer
break.
Mr P E McCullagh
Headteacher
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