Dear parents and carers,
With the days lengthening and the weather warming, surely, please, at some point… I write to you with our Trust’s end of term 5 Pillars of Excellence Newsletter.
As many of you may recall, the Easter break and the start of this term has been a very difficult one; but, as always, our students have buoyed us and their incredible achievements inspired us to keep moving forward. In flicking through this term’s Newsletter there is so much that our young people have done; always determined to be the best that they can be and taking advantage of everything that our Trust of schools and nurseries is able to offer through our Pillars in sport, performing arts, academia and practical learning. I know I speak on behalf of all my Trust colleagues, past and present, when I say how very proud we are of our students, the support that we have from our community of families, and, as a consequence, all that our children are doing and all that they are becoming.
As we move into term 6 we know that the Prime Minister has called a General Election for 4th July; so, by the end of this school year there may be a change of government. With this, naturally, comes the prospect of change; which, for some, may promote uncertainty. In light of that, though, let me provide some reassurance…
As our Trust community will know, we committed ourselves to an unwavering set of values a very long time ago. We committed to a culture of togetherness that should see everybody ‘caught in,’ not ‘caught out.’ Our philosophy should see all of us recognised as individuals, with our uniqueness and brilliance celebrated. We believe that we, through our schools, exist to serve you, our community, your children, their dreams and their futures.
The mechanisms through which schools are judged may continue to change; the pendulum of accountability may swing back and forth; the tides of new policies will come in and go out. Yet, in all of that, we will never compromise our comprehensive and fully inclusive culture; where every young person is special and where we believe we are all good at something. We will continue to lead our Trust with courage, integrity, and only the best interests of our students in mind. I remain sincerely grateful to all of my colleagues for committing to our values so completely, and, of course, to you, our parental community, for your unrelenting support of our message.
We shall see what 4th July brings, but, regardless, you can be absolutely assured that across our schools, nurseries and divisions of The Canterbury Academy Trust, we shall simply keep on keeping on. We know that what we do works, and, most importantly, our students and our families tell us that it works.
I continue to wish all of our students in Year 11 and the Sixth Form the very best of luck, as they continue with their public examinations in term 6. More broadly, I know that Heads of Schools have already written to you about details for the start of next term, and I hope that you and all of your families enjoy a restful half-term break. We shall look forward to seeing our students back in our schools for a normal school day on Monday, 3rd June.
With my every best wish to you all,
Jon Watson
Chief Executive Officer
