Partners in Education
I hope the beautiful weather has put a spring in your step!
At the heart of our happiness and success as a school community is the joint endeavour between home and school to give our children the best possible preparation for life. This is underpinned by shared values and an understanding that we place the child at the heart of all our conversations and intentions.
I have always enormously valued that partnership, and we are very grateful to you for the trust you invest in us. No school can ever be perfect for everyone, but we are keen to listen to suggestions, questions and concerns and to keep all aspects of our pupils’ education under constant review as the world around us continues to change and to evolve.
Pupil voice and our advocacy groups (e.g. School Council, Change Group, Anti-bullying Group, EMBRACE, FemSoc, Spectrum) are all important as we invite pupils to contribute to our decision-making and planning. We listen to pupils’ views on their learning through work scrutiny and departmental reviews, and I meet regularly with Senior Prefects, who have themselves recently canvassed pupils’ opinions on their use of AI. Alongside this, we ask staff to contribute to school improvement via working groups and various committees, and we periodically gauge parental views on various aspects of school life. The last full school surveys (pupils, parents, staff) came as part of our inspection in January 2024.
Dr Graham Purves is very excited about joining the Trust as Principal and as Headmaster of LGS, and I am meeting regularly with him online as he prepares to assume the reins and as we plan for a smooth transition in September. Although still running his own school, he has visited for some key events and will no doubt be very well prepared. I do not intend to organise my annual parent forum next term, as Dr Purves will no doubt be keen to meet with parents early on during his tenure and to gauge your views on the school.
I am very grateful to those parents who have previously supported the Friends (our parents’ association) and for their efforts to organise social events, with Dr Gaikwad most recently occupying the chair. As parents have become ever busier, this has not always been easy, and you may have noticed that there is currently no Friends committee. I know that Dr Purves has ideas to refresh this aspect of partnership.
In the meantime, I remain very much ‘in the chair’ as headmaster, happily determined to give of my best for our wonderful school community and, mixing my metaphors, to remain actively at the helm until I hand over the command!
Best wishes,
John Watson
Headmaster and Principal