from Nursery to Sixth Form
Every week the Bulletin newsletter is sent home from the School Office highlighting important forthcoming dates and events, along with comments from Mr Wilding about the week gone by. Read below recent messages from the Head's desk.
Well, after a full second week of ‘full-on’ school, it is pretty obvious that the world of education, pastoral care and welfare is back to its usual full-on, flat out stage. As with our Year 8 evening last week, it was indeed wonderful to welcome Year 9 parents and boys back into school on Wednesday evening, to meet in person, converse and settle into the real landscape of our buildings and facilities.
It was with great relief and genuine pleasure that we welcomed Year 8 parents onto the school site on Tuesday evening; their first parents-staff meeting in person since joining the school in September 2020. As with all the other measures we continue to manage, we do so with care and recognition of keeping people safe. It seems very much the case that relationships can be topped up by virtual conversations and messages, but being able to 'press the flesh' seemed to lift all of our moods.
I am delighted to welcome everyone back to Senior Boys for this new Academic Year. As our various induction days for staff and pupils have shown, we have had a huge amount of 'heavy lifting' to manage to reconvene school 'as normal', and on balance I am delighted with what we have been able to achieve. We would love to get some of the gremlins sorted earlier so all communications to parents on new arrangements are sent out in a timely manner, and can only apologise for the late notice of bus seats and some sport arrangements, though some of these arise inevitably because of changes in circumstances and availabilities.
My last bulletin words of this academic year commence with huge thanks to you, our parents and guardians, for all of your support and encouragement over the last term. It is always understood that in the immediate aftermath of a crisis, communities pull together and compromises willingly made for the greater good in the immediate term.
The growing frenzy of sporting activity in school, round and about is giving us an even greater sense of society coming together, despite concerns on Covid-19 Delta variants.
It was a sheer delight to receive the news over the weekend that two former pupils, Ellier Rayer and Amber Hill have been chosen for the Tokyo Olympics this July. Given the highest quality of Ellie (Hockey) and Amber (Skeet Shooting), if Claires Court was a country, we’d stand a good chance of finishing well up the medals table at the end of the Games!
The welcome cooling at the close of this week, the rain dampening down the pollen count as well reminds me that we Brits are a resilient crew, there being no such thing as bad weather, just poor clothing choices. The T101 schedule for today had us clearing the Maidenhead Waterways just east of the High street on our community contribution day, where through their voluntary efforts we have just about managed to clear the Prime Minister's memorial Rowan tree and Green Way Guardian before we took shelter for the rest of the day!
The return after half-term to school has brought with it many welcome changes at school; greater flexibility around the site, fuller dining rooms, academic classrooms back in use as subject areas and, of course, summer dress and the weather to go with it.
Our final week of GCSE assessments is concluded , and our celebration of Year 11s academic, pastoral, leadership and community successes will have taken place on this Friday morning. It's a huge tribute to the fortitude of the boys who have led them this year that our Head Boy, Charlie, his deputy, Matthew, senior prefects Henry and William have become regular fixtures on our Open Evening circuit, performing brilliantly as the pupil voice speaking of their school and their 'growth' within.
As we reach the end of another working week in what feels like an eternal Winter, most are hugely comforted by the friendship and camaraderie that abounds. Even on the worst of wet breaks, 4 square, basketball and cricket matches erupt across the bubble zones, and it’s clear that we have every hope that the warm weather will soon come, to further lighten the mood.
The lives of virtual headteacher and parents recommenced this week, with briefing presentations for both Year 11 and Year 9, and their future schooling over the remaining weeks of the summer term.
Mr Wilding shares a short film outlining the Senior Boys' visit from Stephen Larkin.
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Ray Mill Road East, Maidenhead, Berkshire, SL6 8TE
