Heston Times - Autumn 2021

1 Upcoming Events 04 January 2022 Staff INSET Day 05 January 2022 Spring Term Begins — staggered 05 January 2022 Public Exams and Yr. 11 & 13 Mocks start 17 January 2022 GCSE French Mock Speaking Assessment Start 03 February 2022 Post 16 Parents’ Evening 10 February 2022 Yr. 9 Parents’ Evening 14—18 February 2022 Half-term break 21 February 2022 Late Start [10:20] 23-24 February 2022 GCSE Food Examinations 24 February 2022 Yr. 11 Parents’ Evening 03 March 2022 Yr. 7 Parents’ Evening 09 March 2022 Yr. 11 and 13 School Photographs 14 March 2022 Yr. 11 Maths Mock Examinations Week 22—23 March 2022 Super Learning Days GCSE Drama Technical Rehearsals [TBC] 24 March 2022 Yr. 8 Parents’ Evening 29—30 March 2022 GCSE Drams Dress Rehearsals [TBC] GCSE Drama Examination [TBC] 31 March 2022 Yr. 10 Parents’ Evening 01 April 2022 Last Day of Term The Heston Times HEADTEACHER MESSAGE I am proud to welcome you to this first edition of The Heston Times – a publication produced by our student body to keep all of our community abreast of the exciting events and developments in the School. My intention is to publish this newsletter every term to give the reader an insight into the learning experience enjoyed by our students. Whilst I am disappointed to be writing against a backdrop of rising infection rates and tightening restrictions, I remain extremely proud of the resilience of our students and staff as they have adapted their behaviour and working practices to ensure the School remains a safe environment. The reintroduction of Music to the curriculum has created a real buzz in the School and I am pleased to report that we have over 50 students taking peripatetic lessons every week. Our first Winter Concert was a huge success, providing students from all year groups a platform to showcase their talent and hard work. I look forward to opening this event to a larger number of parent and carers in the future. This term has seen the launch of a new and extremely ambitious enrichment programme – Yoga, Karate, Debate Club, Street Dance, Basketball, Coding Club, Duke of Edinburgh, Art Attack, Book Club and Cooking Club are just some of the options available to your children. Over half of our students in Years 7 to 9 regularly attend one or more of these activities and I would ask you to encourage your children to ‘try something new’ if they have not yet already signed up. We continue to improve the learning environment for all our students with the opening of our new Learning Resource Centre and Post 16 Centre. In addition, the School secured two large grants, totalling £1.2m, to install a new heating and ventilation system in the Sports Hall and improve fire safety across the site. Both projects are scheduled to be completed in January 2022. On behalf of the Governors and staff, I would like to wish you and your loved ones a restful and safe break over the festive season. Ranjit Berdesha Autumn 2021