Dear all,
We hope you are well and enjoyed the weekend.
We are aware there may still be some questions regarding our return to enforcing our uniform policy and whether this is a worthwhile priority during these times.
We have been genuinely delighted with much of the response to our recent uniform drive as we endeavour to return to the high standards that we enjoyed pre-Covid. We strive to ensure our students leave our school well-prepared for further education and the world of work. We have high expectations for every aspect of our students’ behaviour and learning. This includes a commitment to creating an environment in which exemplary behaviour is at the heart of productive learning, developing students’ independence and helping them take pride and care in their uniform - to dress and act in a professional manner – ready for learning, ready for life.
The challenges of Covid meant we allowed greater flexibility in uniform throughout the pandemic – a key part of our ‘return to normal’ is encouraging the return to proper uniform. To facilitate this, we engaged with students, staff, trustees and families to communicate the rationale behind the enforcement of our uniform policy, including through having separate gates for those in proper uniform.
In just the first week, our gate initiative has proven to be a great success – of the handful of students who started the week in incorrect uniform, nearly all are already in proper uniform, and we continue to support the remainder to ensure they will be fully prepared. We always take great pride in how well our students represent our school throughout our community, and are grateful for all of the support from our students and families in bringing back our normal uniform.
With the cost of living situation as it is, we very much understand the challenges many families face in ensuring their children have the uniform they need, which is why our school has invested funding to provide shoes and uniform for those who need support, ensuring school uniform is affordable and that parents and carers are not under pressure to afford the necessary clothing. To further support this, our next PSA second hand uniform sale will be held on 05/07/2022 between 3.15pm - 4.15pm and we continue to explore other ways to help keep costs down. Of course, if any support is needed, please do just email us at finance@noadswood.hants.sch.uk and we can discuss the best way we can help.
We have put out a social media posting with FAQs about uniform dealt with this weekend:
- Noadswood has no preferred supplier for uniform. We are exploring purchasing Noadswood badges that families can purchase to sew onto non branded jumpers- more info to follow.
- Students can choose to wear a blazer or a jumper, they do not need both.
- Noadswood's Parent Staff Association (PSA) will be hosting a second-hand uniform sale on Tuesday 5th July 3.15-4.15 at Noadswood, please do pop on down.
- We’re extremely mindful of the cost of living increases coming on top of all of the other challenges of the past two years. If you have any financial concerns regarding the purchase of our uniform please email finance@noadswood.hants.sch.uk and we will try our very best to help.
- If you have forgotten anything, had a washing disaster or have missing or broken uniform, come to the right gate and we’ll sort you out.
- If anything regarding our uniform is unclear please email Dan Rowling, our Assistant Headteacher who will happily answer any queries - drowling@noadswood.hants.sch.uk
We do hope this letter, together with our in-person parent forums and the individual conversations we have had, helps to provide reassurance about the timing of implementing this now, and that we continue to have an inclusive and supportive approach to ensuring every student is able to be fully ready to learn each day. If you would like to discuss this further, Mr Rowling will be happy to hear your feedback on drowling@noadswood.hants.sch.uk or by ePraise and he, or I, or another member of the team will call you.
Of course, uniform aside, another important part of our ‘return to normal’ is continuing to focus on supporting our students’ health, safety and wellbeing. In addition to our existing ELSA and school counsellor, your child's tutor, assistant year leader and year leader, we have throughout the course of this year increased resources for our emotional support and wellbeing team in school to ensure students are effectively supported, whether in regards to emotional wellbeing, occasions where bullying may be a concern or in any other area where a student may benefit from additional support.
As always, if you feel your child may need any support in this area, please let us know either by email or ePraise and we will ensure the proper support is put into place. As is the case these days, smartphones and other technology can cause an increase in concerns, so we will be having a renewed focus on online safety in the coming weeks as part of our ongoing efforts to help young people deal with these challenges. If you have any specific concerns related to online safety, please send Mrs Loveday, Assistant Head, an email at hloveday@noadswood.hants.sch.uk.
Lastly, we continue to be very proud of how our students’ behaviour is complimented by visitors to our school, who frequently comment on the atmosphere, calm focus on learning and strong sense of community. We are blown away with pride in what our students achieve every day. However, as with many schools around the country, there is an ongoing need to address the trend of vaping which is affecting young people everywhere. There is a small number of students who vape or waste time in the toilets, and we continue to address this as soon as we are aware of it happening, and we ask for the ongoing support of parents and carers in discouraging this behaviour and reminding young people of the dangers of vaping.
To support this, this week we begin some intervention work from Stacey Miller, an education and training consultant specialising in substance misuse, mental health, and positive wellbeing, to engage some students afresh around all this. We are also about to begin work with No Limits, an organisation that provides support to young people on a host of issues including vaping and substance misuse.
You can help us by checking your children's bags do not have any vapes in them, and of course if you think there's a possibility that your child may be getting involved with this, you can let your child's tutor or year leader know and we can offer the necessary support.
To provide further reassurance around behaviour in school, you are of course always welcome to have a tour – just reach out to my PA, Berni Wyse, at bwyse@noadswood.hants.sch.uk and we will get this in the diary. You'll see our fantastic school in action, hear about us from students and have the opportunity to discuss with me anything around curriculum, pastoral care, student wellbeing, or anything else.
I want to end this letter by looking forward to Tuesday 14th June, which would have been Ben Pavitt's 17th birthday, as the Noadswood family prepares to remember Ben and mark his legacy and his fundraising campaign for child and teenage cancer research/treatments. The school day, as usual, will be filled with so many students learning brilliantly well together, enjoying each other's company and making terrific choices, with the added opportunity for students to wear something colourful and/or set themselves a personal challenge in Ben's name - thank you in advance to all of them, and to all of you for your support and care for our school, and for engaging the way that you do.
With all our best,
Kathryn Marshall and the Noadswood Leadership Team