Dear ALS Community,
This morning, our whole school community, from Reception to Year 13, came together for our Remembrance Ceremony. I am very grateful to the whole school for the way that the service was conducted and for the exceptional standard of behaviour during the reflections and the two minute silence. It is always an absolute privilege to share these moments with the full age range of young people in our school. Thank you to all who attended.
This week, we’ve focused on our Sixth Form Open Evening which was a wonderful event. If you’d be interested in seeing the types of subjects we have on offer for pupils in the Sixth Form, please find a digital copy of our prospectus here. We’ve already had a record number of external applicants and I am very excited to see the growth of our Sixth Form provision. As a result of this level of interest, we will be adding in an additional Sixth Form Taster session on Wednesday 23rd November for Year 11 (both internal and external). More details will follow shortly to inform pupils about what the event will entail.
I’ve had lots of opportunities to share our school’s sporting success this term (our netball team’s unbeaten run; securing top spots in national swimming competitions; hockey, netball and football victories) and so I am very excited to be able to share the success of our Robotics Team led by Mr Sweetman. Last weekend, ALS pupils entered their first ever Robotics Competition and only went on to win it! Harrison and Henry, Y8, clinched the Tournament Champions title with some excellent work and have now qualified for the National Finals in March (as well as an invitation to a world-wide tournament in Iowa). Freddie and Tom, Y7, won the programming skills section and are currently ranked #1 in the whole of the UK with a significant gap ahead of the team behind them. In effect, we have the top ranked Robotics Team in the UK. To quote Mr Sweetman’s boast; “your move, Mr Gear”.
Next week, our mantra comes from Veritas: Live the school values; don’t just talk about them. This is arguably the underpinning mantra for our whole school culture and ethos. We can talk about being hardworking, honest and kind as much as we want. We can write about it in prospectuses and newsletters but if we do not live those values, then the words do not matter. At ALS, it is about more than pupils being able to explain the house system and the values; it is about living those values each day and making the best choices they can to be hardworking, honest and kind. As the adults in the school community, we should also seek to the live the school values and role model the behaviours we wish to see in the children, too. Of course, we’re fortunate to have an exceptional group of young people in school who really do live the school values and I am grateful to them for the excellent choices they make each day to be the best they can be.
As you’ll know, each week I write out to the school community to share the news of the school week. Once I’ve written the draft, this is sent along to a few colleagues who proof read for typos and add in any details I may have missed. Last week, a line or two from the proof checking process snuck in (I won’t say which ones!) but if you read the email and had a chuckle over my seemingly out of character boast over our sports results then do imagine my panic when I read it myself!
It is anti-bullying week next week and we will be donning ‘odd socks’ for the event. Next week, please pop two contrasting coloured socks on to show that we are standing together to promote an anti-bullying culture. The brighter and more clashing the colours the better! Later on in the term, on Thursday 1st December we have our Reception Christmas Performance & the Year 1 & 2 Christmas Performance, followed by our ALS Carol Service on Tuesday 13th December at Holy Trinity Church. If you have yet to book your tickets for the Carol Service please do so here. Let’s also not forget the much loved ALPA Christmas Fayre which returns this year on the 9th December and will take place in the School Hall.
Have a great weekend.
Best wishes,
David Preston | Headteacher |
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