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End of Term Letter – December 2022

To download a copy of this letter, click here.  

  • December 15, 2022

Dear Parents and Carers,

I write to you as we approach the end of the Autumn Term 2022. This has been a very positive term for the school. We have had a very successful OFSTED inspection and the school, as ever, has been an exciting and vibrant place of learning with so much on offer to our students. May I say thank you to the vast majority of our parents and carers for your continued support for our work with your children.

Contents
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    Contents
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      Uniform Standards

      The standard of uniform so far this year has been very good and our students look smart. Please keep in mind our policies on uniform, haircuts, jewellery and make up so that this continues and to avoid any issues next term. If your child wears the school dress, please support us in reminding your child that it must be worn at an appropriate length.

      Information about Vaping

      At the start of the month, I wrote to all parents to express our concerns regarding vaping. Please continue to talk to your child about this issue and importantly, don’t assume that your child has not been exposed in some way to vaping. Please remind children of the dangers and the consequences of vaping in and outside of school. Details of the health risks can be found here.

      If we find evidence of students vaping in school, vapes and associated paraphernalia will be confiscated and not returned. These items are forbidden in school.

      Attendance

      We have seen improvements in overall attendance for large numbers of our students so far this academic year and I’d like to thank parents for your continued support; however, improving attendance remains a key area for us to focus on. Given the disruption students have faced in recent years, we need all students to be in school every day whenever possible. I must also remind parents of our policy on holidays in school time. We cannot authorise any holidays in school hours.

      Key Dates for the Spring Term 2023:

      • Thursday 12th January – Year 11 Mock Results Day.
      • Thursday 19th January – Year 11 Parents’ Evening, 4:30 to 7:30 in school.
      • Thursday 2nd February – Year 9 Parents’ Evening and Options Evening, 4:30 to 7:30 in school.
      • Wednesday 15th February and Thursday 16th February – one to one option interviews for Year 9. 3:30 to 7:30 both evenings.
      • Thursday 9th March – Year 8 Parents’ Evening, 4:30 to 7:30 in school.
      • 14th March to 16th March – School Show which this year is Grease.
      • Week commencing 20th March – Work Experience Week for Year 10
      • Tuesday 28th March and Wednesday 29th March – Evening of Dance Performances.
      • Thursday 30th March – Year 10 Parents’ Evening, 4:30 to 7:30 in school.
      • Friday 31st March – End of Spring Term

      Updates on the new school building

      If you follow the school’s social media pages, you will no doubt have seen the progress of the new school which is now gathering pace with much of the structure in place. The next few weeks and months will be critical. If the winter is relatively mild, we hope that the contractors will complete the building ready for us to move into it by September. Should we experience a bad winter, completion of the project will be delayed until the October Half Term. I fully appreciate the uncertainty around this, but I will keep you updated. Certainly, by April, we hope to know definitively when the move will take place. In the meantime, we have been carefully planning the transition. Some of our plans will require parental input and I will contact you about these in due course.

      During the Spring Term, we will also see a significant increase in the number of contractors working on site and this will bring with it more disruption in terms of vehicle access to the school and parking. The contractors will be allocated the visitor parking area so we must therefore insist that parents do not drive down Printshop Lane to drop off or pick up students at the beginning or end of the day.

      All that remains for me to do is wish you and your families a safe and Happy Christmas. Thank you again for your continued support.

      Yours sincerely

      Mr P Davies

      Headteacher

      How Yondr Works

      Frequently Asked Questions

      We want our students to be engaged in their learning. A child at high school should not really have a reason to contact a parent during the day; however, if there is a genuine reason e.g. they have forgotten their packed lunch, a phone call can be made home from the school office. If a parent needs to contact their child in an emergency, they should contact the school office. If you need to contact your child during the school day, contact the main office on 01942 883796.

      In case of a school emergency, we direct our students to safety first, following our school emergency procedures.

       

      Students are in possession of their phone - in their Yondr pouch - for the entire school day. We will advise students to store the pouch safely in their school bag or blazer pockets.

      If a student damages their Pouch or is caught on their phone, we will confiscate the phone and issue a sanction which is likely to be a suspension.

      Note: Damage consists of any signs that the physical integrity of the pouch has been compromised, whether intentional or unintentional, as determined by the school or Yondr staff.

      Damaged pouches will be charged to parents at a cost of £20.

      They will be searched and wanded with a handheld scanner by a member of SLT. If they are found to have their phone on their person they will be expected to place it in their pouch. Refusal will be met with suspension.

      If a student forgets their Pouch, their phone will be confiscated.

      As per our previous mobile phone policy;

      • Confiscated phones will be taken to reception where the phone will be secured in the school safe.
      • Parents will be alerted to the phone confiscation via the school office.

      Parents will have the option to collect the phone at the end of the day. If parents do not collect the phone, the phone will remain in school until the end of the week or until the student has their pouch.

      In Yondr’s experience, this almost never happens. All students funnel past the unlocking stations at the exits, they want their phones back and don’t forget to unlock their pouches. If they do arrive home with a phone in a pouch, they can either come back to school to unlock it, or have a phone free evening!

      The unlocking process is quick and takes under a second per student. 

      As a privilege, Year 11 will be able to unlock their phones as they go off site at lunchtime; however, they will be expected to put their phones back into their pouches when they return to school for period 5.

      Yes. There is an adapted version of the pouch which uses a Velcro fastener instead of a magnetic lock. This means the student still follows the policy, but the adapted pouch gives them easy access to their phone when required. If the student abuses this, they will face a sanction. We are already aware of these students.

      Your Office 365 account username is your school network account username followed by @flhs.wigan.sch.uk 
      The password is the same password that you use in school to access computers.