September 25^th 2026

Dear Parents

Thank you for all your support of your children and of us this week.

As of this morning, teachers had awarded a total of 6268 Excellent Effort points to students this week to celebrate the effort and commitment of our students. We award these for the completion of personal best class- and homework assignments.

We are mightily impressed with the way our Year 11 students have set about their learning since we started back. Already, 102 Year 11 students have attended after school revision club with many attending a large number of the sessions available each week.

We are starting to send simple SMS messages on Friday to parents if a student has not submitted homework, even after a deadline extension. We hope these texts enable a dialogue at home about Homework and between school and parents, where helpful. In Examination Year Groups though, students who do not submit homework assignments will simply perform less well in Public Examinations. Your support is vital here.

However, we recognise some students can actually devote too much time to Homework, particularly when they join secondary school in Year 7, and we rely on parents to keep a careful eye here and let us know if they have concerns. Please see our homework durations aide memoir to teachers, which sets out expectations for homework in each subject.

We want to encourage all our students in Years 7 – 13 to read for pleasure for 20 minutes a day. Students who read daily develop their understanding and achieve so much more highly across their school subjects. This will show you how to set up our Digital Library App SORA

Please encourage your daughter or son to join a club, as these enrichment activities are both really enjoyable and helpful to students’ development. Please see CLUBS listed on our website.

As a reminder, all students must wear the correct PE kit for lessons: a PE shirt with shorts or a skort. In adverse weather, students may also wear a suitable sports jacket. However, thick school coats restrict movement and are therefore not permitted during PE lessons. Uniform is available from the Channel Uniform shop. 

May I draw your attention to the Policies page of our website, where the school’s policies and other statutory information are available for parents. We were quick to adopt the statutory Relationships and Sex Education Policy in 2019 – 20, and we consulted with parents at that time. The policy is largely unchanged since then albeit with updates, but if you do have any observations you would like to make about the policy, please let us know by the office email account.  All Policies

Kent County Council have asked me to inform all parents that Online applications for secondary school places opened Tuesday 1 September 2026 and will close on Monday 2 November 2026. Applications can be made at www.kent.gov.uk/secondaryadmissions. If parents are unable to access the online site, an alternative format can be requested by emailing kent.admissions@kent.gov.uk.

Please see information from Kent Police who are concerned about the illegal use of E-scooters E-scooters – Are you breaking the law?

 

Charles Joseph

Executive Principal