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Please note all communications below are sent via email.
Thursday 28th March 2024
Dear Parents & Carers
Thank you to all of our parents and carers who have engaged with the Progress Review Meetings and more recently the Year 11 and 13 Parents’ Evenings. Our data clearly demonstrates the importance of parental involvement in a student's final outcomes, as only by working together can we hope for the brightest of futures for all of our children.
With the Easter break upon us, I want to remind parents of Year 11 and 13 students that this cannot be seen as a time to rest, but an opportunity to study and prepare for the summer exams which begin in earnest in the week commencing 6th May. Many of your children have already completed big sections of their qualifications, for example in Coursework/NEAs or live performances.
As you will be aware, Year 11 and 13 students have been provided with a recommended homework timetable for the Easter holidays. We are also running targeted intervention throughout the holiday period. Students who have been asked to attend these sessions will have received a letter outlining when they are expected to be in school and we ask that parents support this by ensuring that students are attending. We also hope that students will find time to rest and recuperate in preparation for the term ahead. To have a 'Bright Future' this break needs to be focused and full of revision.
The half term has not only focussed on our examination groups, the end of term assessments have taken place for all year groups and have demonstrated some very pleasing effort and commitment from our cohort. All of our students now have the opportunity to have a well-deserved break.
Looking ahead to next term, I remind all students of the importance of silence around exam spaces; we must always ‘Show Kindness’ to our peers, and never more important to do so whilst they are sitting their public exams.
We anticipate that when students return to school on Tuesday 16th April, hopefully the weather will be much improved. With this in mind, please may I remind you of some uniform and general expectations:
- Skirts must be knee length for lower school students and an appropriate length for 6th Form students. We are increasingly seeing very short skirts which we have tolerated as students are wearing opaque tights. It is not appropriate school wear to have a short skirt and bare legs.
- Long sleeved undervests are not part of the school uniform. If a student is wearing a short sleeved shirt they should have bare arms.
- All students are required to wear their blazers unless specifically directed to remove them. They should not be wearing a coat as a substitute for their blazer
- We strongly recommend that all students bring a reusable water bottle to school which they can refill throughout the day from the water fossetts. It is both much cheaper than buying bottled water and better for the environment.
- If your child suffers with hay fever, please ensure that they are taking their medication before they come to school each day. We are unable to provide antihistamines and there isn’t any treatment that the school can administer
Finally, please may I ask you to work with the school and reiterate to our students the importance of good behaviour both in school and when in the local community. We have had far too many reports of discourteous behaviour when students are on their way home. I am positive that this is not how you want your children to behave when they are not in school or with you. We have, and will continue to sanction any behaviour that brings the school into disrepute.
Again, we thank you for your support and cooperation in the period January to date; it has been a very productive 'Build Character' Term. I’d like to congratulate all students on the last round of assessments, and a particular note to all students who have been awarded either a Gold Star, House Badge or Subject Badge for next term. Well done on your academic and personal achievements, we hope that you will continue to keep up the good work and effort.
To all our community regardless of faith, I wish you all a blessed holiday and may your celebrations be filled with joy. I hope all of our students have a well-deserved break and come back rejuvenated for the new term.
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Friday 12th January 2024
Dear Parents & Carers
Please be advised that we have reviewed the school calendar and there have been some minor amendments with the following changes:
Year 13 Virtual Parents Evening - Thursday 14th March
Year 11 Virtual Parents Evening - Thursday 21st March
We will notify parents via text message when the appointments are open for booking on the School Cloud - https://bishopshalt.schoolcloud.co.uk
As you will be aware, the during the term time we run a wide range of activities, Drop Down Days etc, for further details of what has taken place, you can also find links to the Better Bishopshalter Notices HERE
As part of our PSHE programme a wide range of topics are covered as per the school's statutory requirements. Please also be reminded that the Bishopshalt School Policy for Relationship & Sex Education can be found on the school website. If you wish for your child to be disapplied for PSHE lessons containing sex and relationship information, you must ensure that you complete the form in this policy and submit it to either zbermingham@bishopshalt.school or print and ask you child to bring it to the Main Office, Room 1, at the school.
Thank you for your continued cooperation and support.
Bishopshalt School
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Thursday 14th December 2023
Dear Parents & Carers
I write today to thank each of you for your continued support and cooperation throughout this term. Only by working together can we ensure that our students achieve so as to secure the brightest of futures.
As you will know from my previous messages through this term we have held Drop Down Days, Open Evenings, public exams, assessments, trips, sports fixtures, BODs productions and a plethora of super curricular activities whilst also providing excellent teaching and learning within the classroom. It has been a fantastic start to the academic year.
Some of the highlights of this term's events have been the House Competitions. I am sure your children would have told you that at the start of this year we introduce staff Head of Houses and throughout this term they have been running lots of different events, embedding a culture of teamwork and spirit.
We have had many sporting, cultural and academic competitions, but for me the highlight has been the University Challenge. Key Stage teams of students competed over a course of 10 days, house to house, culminating in the grand finals for each Key Stage. It has been an absolute pleasure watching the students compete and observe. Congratulations to all who were involved.
I would also like to take this opportunity to inform you of some significant national changes to attendance. It is well established that one of the cornerstones of a student's success at school is their attendance to school.
There is a direct correlation between academic achievement and attendance. Whilst we are pleased that attendance at Bishopshalt is well above the national average, we must insist that students aim to have 100% attendance. Whilst the majority of our students have outstanding attendance, where there are attendance issues the school will be following these up with rigour and fines will be issued accordingly. You can find our Attendance Policy on this link.
As always during my communications with you, I would like to draw to your attention some key dates for next term:
Training Day Students Do Not Attend Tuesday 2nd January
Start of Term All Students Wednesday 3rd January
Year 9 Parents Evening (Virtual) Thursday 11th January
Drop Down Day - Bright Futures Wednesday 24th January
Year 9 Options Evening Thursday 1st February
Half Term Holiday Monday 12th - Friday 16th February
Drop Down Day - Build Character Tuesday 27th February
Year 13 Parents Evening (Virtual) Thursday 29th February
Year 11 Parents’ Evening (Virtual) Thursday 7th March
Spring Reloaded Dance Show Wednesday 20th March
Progress Review 4:30-7:30pm Wednesday 27th March
Progress Review 8:30-11:30am Thursday 28th March
Easter Holiday Friday 29th March to Monday 15th April
For full details of the calendar, please click this link School Calendar
With the colder and wetter weather now well upon us, we would like to remind you that students will need to arrive at school with a coat and the correct uniform and shoes. Students are aware that they are not permitted to wear their hoods on the school grounds unless it is raining, and then hoods must only be up outside, not in the building. Our coat expectations are within our Behaviour for Learning Policy on the school website.
For Year 11 and 13 students, this break is a time to rest and rejuvenate, however it is not a time to completely stop their school work. It is imperative that students continue working and preparing for the February assessments, as the more prepared we are for the run into exams, the better their summer will be, and the brighter their future. When we return in January, we will be holding the school open till 5pm for intervention and independent study for Year 11 and 13.
Please note that the school will now be closed to students until Wednesday 3rd January, and as stated above we have a lot to look forward to. Staff will not respond to emails over the holiday period. If do you have an urgent safeguarding concern please email office@bishopshalt.hillingdon.sch.uk, all other communications will be responded to when we return to school.
I hope that you all have a wonderful break with your children, and if you celebrate Christmas or Hanukkah we wish you the peace of the season and a blessed New Year.
Thank you again for your support and cooperation,
Yours sincerely
L McGillicuddy (Mr)
Headteacher
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Thursday 3rd November 2023
Dear Parents & Carers
I do hope that your children had a wonderful half term break and are looking forward to the 'Show Kindness Term' ahead.
As you will be aware from my previous correspondence at the start of the new academic year, I informed you that following the results in August 2023, Bishopshalt School had received its best ever GCSE outcomes and I would provide you with more information. I am therefore very pleased that now the National School Performance Tables have been released I can share this with you.
As I am sure you are aware, the Progress 8 score is based on grades achieved at the end of Year 11, comparing students to both their KS2 SAT scores and all schools nationally.
Last academic year Bishopshalt's Progress 8 score was +0.88, placing it in the top 2% of schools nationally and first within Hillingdon. These results improved on last year (+0.67), which to that point was the best result Bishopshalt had ever achieved.
What is most pleasing however is that whereas nationally boys do worse than girls, and that Pupil Premium students do not as well, at Bishopshalt we do not have a gap between cohorts. Boys achieved +.91 and Pupil Premium students achieved +.90.
All students and teachers should be very proud of their achievements. We do expect a lot from our students, and from parental support, and it is so pleasing to see the impact that this is having on their results.
At this current time, our Year 11 and 13 cohorts are all working very hard and are committed to achieving their very best outcomes in the forthcoming assessments and ultimately their final exams next summer.
As a school, as always, we will now endeavour to continue to improve and be a little each day and do all we can to give our students the brightest of futures.
Key Dates for Autumn Term 2
Tuesday 7th November - Year 12 Virtual Parents' Evening - appointments should be made via https://bishopshalt.schoolcloud.co.uk/
Friday 10th November - Show Kindness Drop Down Day
Thursday 23rd November - Year 11 Virtual Parents' Evening - appointments should be made via https://bishopshalt.schoolcloud.co.uk/
Thursday 30th November to Saturday 1st December - BODS Production - SCHOOL OF ROCK - Tickets now on sale.
Wednesday 13th December - Carol Concert 7:00pm to 9:30pm
Thursday 14th December - Progress Review 4:30-7:30pm
Friday 15th December - Progress Review 9:00am -12:00pm students do not attend school on this day.
Assessments - Year 11/13
Week Commencing 13th November & 20th November
Assessments - Year 7/8/9/10/12
Week Commencing 20th November to 1st December
I continue to be very appreciative of the support you show your children and the school.
Yours faithfully
L McGillicuddy (Mr)
Headteacher
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Friday 29th September 2023
Dear Parents & Carers
It does not seem possible that we are already halfway through the first half term of this academic year.
I am delighted to inform you that as a school, Bishopshalt, is very pleased with the results our students achieved last year. They are the best GCSE results the school has ever achieved, and this is testament to the hard work and high expectations that we hold as a school. When the data is released formally through the Government channels we will write again. For now, it is wonderful to see our Year 12 and 13 students, who have both set record results in Year 11, chasing bright futures.
During these first weeks of the academic year, we have welcomed our new Year 7 and external 12 students. Our Year 7 parents have been into the school to attend induction and the Year Ahead information events. All of the Year 12 students have been inducted and are now settling into their courses; our Sixth Form admissions are now closed for this academic year.
On the 12th September Bishopshalt held our annual Open Evening for prospective students wishing to join Year 7 in September 2024, welcoming over 600 family’s to our school. On Thursday 12th October we will be holding our Sixth Form Open Evening, beginning the admissions process over again!
With regard to Year 7 September 2024 admissions, if you have a Year 6 sibling of a student that currently attends Bishopshalt, please be reminded that you need to provide proof of the sibling relationship. You must supply a full birth certificate for both the child you are applying for and the child already at Bishopshalt and these must show both parents’ names. This supplementary information must be submitted by Friday 13th October 2023. The birth certificates can be brought to the main office or scanned and emailed to cbrown@bishopshalt.school or brought to Room 1.
Please see the ‘Admissions’ section of the school’s website to see if you are eligible for a sibling place.
As mentioned previously, the Year Ahead - Y7 took place earlier this term. As we are conscious of family commitments, especially during the early evenings, rather than having evening meetings for KS3 and 4 we have produced presentations which have been previously sent, are on the school website and below:
Our Year 13 students have begun their preparations for their final exams having sat UCAS assessments last week. Their outcomes will be discussed with parents at the forthcoming Year 13 Parents’ Evening.
Year 10 will begin their GCSE’s with their English - Speaking and Listening exams taking place from Monday 25th September to Friday 13th October. Full details of the preparation and times for these exams are available on the students Google Classroom.
With the colder and wetter weather approaching, we would like to remind you that students will need to arrive at school with a coat. Students are aware that they are not permitted to wear their hoods on the school grounds unless it is raining, and then hoods must only be up outside, not in the building. Our coat expectations are within our Behaviour for Learning Policy on the school website.
If you need assistance with school uniform, coats, stationary etc., please contact The School Uniform Bank at The Salvation Army, 16b Cowley Road, Uxbridge UB8 2LT. Equally, if you have any good quality uniform or coats that no longer fit your children, please donate them to either the Salvation Army or the school.
Finally, may I also remind of key dates for the remainder of this half term:
Friday 29th September Year 11 Ypres Trip
Tuesday 3rd October Year 13 Parents’ Evening
Thursday 5th October Drop Down Day - Love Learning
Thursday 12th October 6th Form Open Evening - a key event for all Year 11 Students
Friday 13th October End of Half Term
Monday 16th to Friday 27th October Half Term Holiday
Monday 30th October Inset Day - Students Do Not Attend School
Tuesday 31st October Start of Autumn Term 2
As always, I thank you all for your continued cooperation and support and look forward to sharing this year’s exam results in the near future.
L McGillicuddy (Mr)
Headteacher
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Thursday 20th July 2023
Dear Parents & Carers
I am writing today to thank you for your continued support throughout this academic year.
I have now completed my fourth year as Headteacher of this wonderful school and I can honestly say that with each year the honour I feel grows. I continue to be proud to be a part of our wonderful Bishopshalt community.
We always aim to be a little better each day, and each year. This year has been no different. There have been so many highlights from welcoming our new Year 7 and 12 cohorts back in September to seeing the Year 11 and 13 sit their public exams, completing the respective stages of their education. I felt honoured to witness all of the hard work and commitment put in by the students and the staff...
Through every day and each term we seek to embody the core values of our school, Love Learning, Show Kindness Brighter Futures, Build Character and Chase Brilliance.
Bishopshalt is above all else a place for learning, however this year I am very pleased with the co-curricular activities we have put in place for our students to learn outside of the academic curriculum. We have had Drop Down Days, overseas trips, careers based activities, BODs, Spring Reloaded, Maths Challenge, Sports Day, Creative Arts and Performance exhibition and our Year 11 and 13 celebration events amongst many others. This week we held the fabulous Culture Day that clearly demonstrated and celebrated the diversity and wealth of our student and staff community. It was humbling to see so many of our students proud of their heritage and culture.
Last month we held the NASA assembly celebrating the return of our school Fidelis badge. The badge had spent 42 days in outer space being proudly worn by Astronaut Stephanie Wilson as part of a mission. As part of the celebration of its return students were able to send six questions to NASA, one from each house, and Astronaut Wilson provided us with a pre-recorded presentation about the badges journey and answered our questions. It was an honour for all of us to be part of this event.
We are pleased to announce that this year’s house winner is for the second year in a row, Cranmer. The winning house students spent period 5 on Tuesday celebrating their victory. In the new academic year we will be enhancing our House System, as each house now has a Head of House who is a member of our teaching staff. We are looking forward to a greater emphasis on teamwork, competition and camaraderie.
Looking to the academic year 2023/2024, it will commence on Monday 4th September with our new Year 7 and Year 12 students attending for the Induction Day.
The whole school will return on Tuesday 5th September with registration at the normal time of 8:30am, please ensure that students are in site by 8:25am,
You can find the link to the Parents’ Calendar here, this will provide you with full information for arrangements for the terms. We ask you to note all key dates which can also be found on the school website
I look forward to writing to you again early in the new academic year to advise you of our Year 11 and 13 cohorts final outcomes.
In the meantime, I wish you and all of our students a wonderful summer holiday and I look forward to welcoming each and every one of them back in September.
Yours sincerely
L McGillicuddy (Mr)
Headteacher
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Friday 24th February 2023
Dear Parents/Carers
Re: Planned strike action by the National Education Union (NEU) - Thursday 2nd March 2023
You will be aware from media coverage that the National Education Union (NEU) has declared strike action, which is currently planned to take place in our region, on:
• Thursday 2nd March 2023
• Wednesday 15th March 2023
• Thursday 16th March 2023
The strikes are happening because of a national dispute between the NEU and the Government over teachers’ pay and the impact of funding on schools over a number of years. The Government is engaging in talks with the NEU, so we will be waiting for any update on the current position with regards to the planned strike action depending on the outcome of those talks.
Members of the NEU are not required to let us know in advance whether they intend to be away from school.
Please note, Bishopshalt will be open for Year 11 and 13, as well as the students who were previously identified as Key Worker students and who have been notified of their place for this day.
We are conscious that continued attendance is important for all students. However, if the numbers of teaching staff striking means that we cannot safely keep the school open for everyone, and in line with the Department for Education’s advice on ‘Handling Strike Action in Schools,’ should we need to either fully or partially close, we will apply the principles set out in the DfE’s emergency planning and response guidance by giving priority to vulnerable children and young people and children of critical workers (Annex A and B at Emergency planning and response for education, childcare, and children’s social care settings October 2022 (publishing.service.gov.uk. We will ensure that there is a lunchtime meal available for those students in school.
I am therefore giving you advanced notice, that if your child is not in Year 11, 13 or has not been identified for a Key Worker place, you need to identify a place of safety where your child can go for the day.
I am sorry that you may have to make alternative arrangements for your child at short notice, and that they may experience further disruption to their education but hope that communicating the uncertainty of the situation at this stage will enable you time to make arrangements.
I understand that this situation may be frustrating for you and I would like to reassure you that Bishopshalt School remains committed to providing a safe and secure environment for our students.
I will notify you as soon as possible if or when I know further details and hope that a resolution can be reached between the NEU and the Government as swiftly as possible.
Yours sincerely
L McGillicuddy (Mr)
Headteacher
Friday 20 January 2023
Dear Parents/Carers
You may be aware from media coverage that the National Education Union (NEU) has
declared strike action, which is currently planned to take place in our region, on:
• Wednesday 1st February 2023
• Thursday 2nd March 2023
• Wednesday 15th March 2023
• Thursday 16th March 2023
The strikes are happening because of a national dispute between the NEU and the
Government over teachers’ pay and the impact of funding on schools over a number of
years. The Government is engaging in talks with the NEU, so we will be waiting for any update on the current position with regards to the planned strike action depending on the outcome of those talks.
Members of the NEU are not required to let us know in advance whether they intend to
be away from school.
Bishopshalt will be open for Year 11 and 13. Students in these year groups are
required to attend as normal.
We will also be open to students identified below, as a minimum throughout these strike days. We are conscious that continued attendance is important for all students. However, if the numbers of teaching staff striking means that we cannot safely keep the school open for everyone, and in line with the Department for Education’s advice on ‘Handling Strike Action in Schools,’ should we need to either fully or partially close, we will apply the principles set out in the DE’s emergency planning and response guidance by giving priority to vulnerable children and young people and children of critical workers (Annex A and B at Emergency planning and response for education, childcare, and children’s social care settings October 2022 (publishing.service.gov.uk)). We will ensure that there is a lunchtime meal available for
those students in school.
I am therefore giving you advanced notice, if you do not meet any of the criteria above, to please identify a place of safety where your child can go for the day.
We will communicate separately and directly with those parents/carers who have
responsibility for children deemed vulnerable early next week. If parents/carers employed as critical workers wish for their child to be in school over any of the proposed strike days please complete this Google Form.
I am sorry that you may have to make alternative arrangements for your child at short notice, and that they may experience further disruption to their education but hope that communicating the uncertainty of the situation at this stage will enable you time to make arrangements. I understand that this situation may be frustrating for you and I would like to reassure you that Bishopshalt School remains committed to providing a safe and secure environment for our students.
I will notify you as soon as possible if or when I know further details and hope that a
resolution can be reached between the NEU and the Government as swiftly as possible.
Yours sincerely
L McGillicuddy (Mr)
Headteacher
Wednesday 19th October 2022
Dear Parents & Carers
I’d firstly like to thank you all for your continued support and cooperation so far, this academic year. It has been a wonderful start to the school year; the school has been brimming with confidence following last year's academic results. There have been many highlights during our ‘Love Learning’ term, from the many trips and extracurricular activities, to our potential Medics and Oxbridge candidates completing UCAS. It has also been wonderful welcoming the new Year 7 cohort, and Year 12 students into the Bishopshalt community. They have been warmly welcomed by their peers. Our next Better Bishopshalt notices will shed more light on what has been a fantastic half-term.
With regard to last year's results, as promised in my first letter to you earlier this term, I am very happy to share with you the validated results which alongside all schools will be publicly available from Thursday 20th September.
The summer 2022 results were the best results Bishopshalt has achieved over the last 20 years, where we have comparable statistics.
| Year 11 GCSE |
Year 13 A Level |
||
| Progress 8 | +0.66 | Average Grade | B |
| Grades 4+ | 91% | A*-B | 35% |
| Grades 8+ | 24% | A*-C | 66% |
| Grades 7+ | 37% | A*-D | 97% |
These results are testament to the diligence, resilience and determination of our students, as well as all of the staff who worked tirelessly to ensure that our students chased brilliance.
We now look forward to seeing how our current Year 11 and 13 students write their own page in the book that is the history of our wonderful school.
The half term ahead is once again going to be very busy. It is our ‘Show Kindness’ term and there will be many events and activities to provide students with the opportunity to give back to their community.
All students will also sit their Termly assessments. Timetables and the topics to be examined have been shared with parents and are also available on the website.
As we will move into the colder months, I am sure like us, you are increasingly conscious of the cost of heating and power. With this in mind we ask that when it is cold, students wear layers to school, for example a white t-shirt or vest under their school shirt/blouse, a navy v-neck jumper under their blazer, girls wearing skirts should wear a thick denier opaque tights and all students should be wearing a navy or black school coat. Please can we remind you that hoodies or sweatshirt, must not be worn to school. Hoods are not permitted to be worn up anywhere on site unless it is on a coat, the student is outside and it is raining. Please can I also remind you that students should be bringing a filled water bottle to school, hydration is very important to learning all throughout the year.
During the last half-term we have had several complaints from residents and concerns raised from our own staff regarding some unsafe practices when students have been dropped off and collected from school. Our Safer Schools Officer, PC Cox, has attended the area on several occasions and verbal warnings have been issued. We are asking that if you do have to drive to collect or drop your children to school, you should do so in a safe and considerate manner. From next term, anyone caught by the Police breaking the law by stopping on the zebra crossing to let their children out or indeed any other driving offences will be issued with a £100.00 fine and three points will automatically be applied to the driver's licence.
We have had several enquiries with regard to the COVID boosters and administration of the Flu vaccinations. At this time, the NHS School Nurses team have not provided us with any information that schools will be facilitating the administration of these vaccinations. If your child has a medical condition that requires them to receive an early booster, we would strongly recommend that you contact your health provider to arrange this. Should we be advised that the NHS will be in school, we will of course share this information with you at the earliest opportunity.
​I thank you again for your support and cooperation. I wish all of our students and their families and enjoyable half-term holiday and I look forward welcoming students back to school on Tuesday 1st November ready for another successful half-term.
Yours sincerely
L McGillicuddy (Mr)
Headteacher