Dear Parents and Carers,
What a year!
Well, here we are at the last newsletter of the term and almost at the end of a long and fruitful academic year. A year is a long time in education (certainly a year at HB) and yet it seems only yesterday that we were setting out on another adventure in learning last September. In that time, Mrs Warner-Smith has returned to the fold and done a smashing job in Class One alongside another HB returnee, Mr Northmore. He now makes way for the return from maternity leave of Mrs Game. Of course, we learnt this year of the wonderful news of Miss Trofa's pregnancy - and that will elicit changes next autumn. At Christmas, Mrs Goss left to work in TEAM's central office and we were delighted to appoint Mrs Sanders who has been an absolute star since jumping into the admin role. Who says High Bick can't do staff change?! That having been said, we are super-fortunate to maintain such a strong, experienced and skilled staff and to be able to manage staff changes from one year to the next pretty efficiently.
We've had all manner of visitors to school, from the 'Reptile Man' to 'Share the Story' to Marcelle and Susie from North Devon Hospice. We've had trips to Bristol, Bath, Exmoor, Dartmoor and Lyme Regis (to name but a few). We have hiked, cross-countried, swum, cycled, gynmasticed and basketballed (sorry - not real verbs, but you get the drift). There have been rock music, drumming, piano and guitar concerts. We have had residentials to Georgeham, Bude and London - and for some, to Go Beyond. We have learnt about Romans, Food and Farming, Castles, Industrial Revolution, Ancient Egypt and Ancient Greece to mention only a small fraction (we've learnt about them as well!). We've battled extreme heat, rain, ice and windy days. There has been laughter, sadness, smiles and tears (and that's just the staff), a bit of forgetfulness and an incredible amount of learning. There has been a huge amount of pride taken by the children in their own achievements and in the achievements of their friends. Staff have also felt great pride in the effort, resilience, perseverance and willingness to go the extra mile shown by the children. And of course, we've had our Ofsted inspection.
Those two days in March exemplified the 'High Bick Way'. The outcome was a credit to all the children, staff, families, governors TEAM leaders and Trustees who work so hard on every day to make High Bickington Church of England Academy such a wonderful place to work. Thank you so much to all of you: you are all wonderful!
Farewell Year Six
Talking of wonderful ... It is nearly time to say farewell to our 'Dazzling, Dedicated, Dependable, Dynamic, Determined Delightful Dozen'. Thinking of saying good-bye evokes many memories for me - almost all of them positive! They have been a truly wonderful, eclectic, friendly, kind and caring bunch. All of the staff will miss them very much. But, as always seems to happen to Y6s at this point in the year, they have become ready to move on. Each will head off with their own unique skills and talents; all with a tremendous work-ethic and moral compass. You have all been absolute stars and, as we say farewell to Freddie, Freddie, Freddie, Elsie, Evelyn, Esmay, Emilia, Daniel, Kaitlyn, Francesca, Isaac and Jack, we wish you every success on the next part of your learning journey. Thank you for everything you have brought to HB over the years. Go well all of you!
Leavers' Service
We will be celebrating the Year Sixes as they leave next Tuesday at 2:00pm in the church. This will be followed by refreshments in the church hall, laid on by the PTA. Many thanks to them for this.
Sports Morning
Our Sports morning will begin at 9:30am next Monday at the field. Please do come along and support the children as they show off some of the skills they have practiced in PE. We will end the morning with year-group races for those children who want to take part.
Collective Worship
We came to the end of our A-Z of wellbeing in CW on Monday and it was fitting that all of the Y6s contributed brilliantly (as did Ezra, who I think could remember the words for all of the letters!). Here is a poem to remember the 26 weeks:
You are accepted
Breathe deeply
Be compassionate
Dwell in God
Empty your troubles
Think of your family and friends
Know that you are growing
Have hope in God
Think about your interests
And what brings you joy
Plan an act of kindness
Lament for the sad things today
Meditate on true words
Know that God knows your name
And that you are the one He chooses
Be present
Be quiet
Be renewed in your mind
Keep it simple
Be thankful
Be united with others
Keep to your values
Wait for God
Spot where the x is
Know that you are His treasure
Now sleep ... Zzzzz
And our final prayer this week was: And so to sleep knowing God will keep you, He will hold you because He knows you best of all, however big, however small, He loves you, sees you, is ever near you. This God of wellbeing will help you to be you. So rest, just rest. God knows what's best. Amen
Finally, just to reiterate my thanks to you all for the support you give school in educating your children. Learning is so much easier with a strong home / school partnership. Thank you also to staff, volunteers (you know who you are!), Rev Tracey and Rev Gary and to everyone who has contributed to this year's adventure. Above all, thank you to the wonderful children of High Bick. As ever, you have been amazing.
Have a wonderful summer holiday when we arrive at it next week. We will see most of you back at school on Monday 7th September when we begin again: Who knows what the next adventure will bring!
Best wishes,
Rob Norton
Head of School
