Dear Parent or Guardian,
The ‘seasons’ take on a whole new dimension for anyone who works or goes to school. Behaviour, attendance, illness, attitudes and motivation of students are all clearly impacted by the time of year, and even the point we are at in each term. It even goes as far as the pastoral team knowing there will be more students doing daft things on windy days! Spring brings lighter mornings and longer afternoons, and a generally more positive feel, accompanied by the slow wind up to examinations for years 11 and 13, which brings a whole new type of anxiety for students and staff. This is accompanied by the inevitable short term stress caused by the developments we have decided to undertake. We don’t always get things right, but hope that everyone appreciates that the stresses this creates are the result of our aim to try to improve the service Borden offers to its whole community.
On that note, you will already be aware from the letter that went out that we are moving over to Arbor at half-term. We can already see some major advantages for how we analyse information in school, but also know that no system is perfect. To be honest, it’s not until you do something like this that you realise all the pitfalls that occur with data transfer, made more difficult by the fact that none of these systems will allow the ongoing sharing of data. Again, I am sincerely grateful for your patience and understanding, and we hope to get the parent app running as soon as possible.
Our extensive internal building work is still ongoing and extremely disruptive. Anyone that’s had an old house rewired knows how disruptive it is, but try to imagine this on a massive scale with lots of people living and moving around it daily, and you will get the picture! This is in the context of the disruption previously caused by having all the heating and plumbing replaced. Whilst, again, compromises will always have to be made, with long weekly meetings for key staff, the overall outcome of this will be a whole new infrastructure for the school that will last a generation. You will see the finished result from the picture of our main corridor here, where bundles of trailing wires along the ceilings are gone. The outcome will ultimately help to improve the environment for all of our young people.
Our changes to site security this term seem to have had the required impact, not only in making sure that a site designed for a different generation is as safe as it can be, but also in terms of following up for punctuality. Please remind your child that they should be in school at 8.40 am, in uniform and ready to learn. Gates close at 8.45am and any student after that time will need to come through the front entrance and will be treated as ‘late’ with follow up taking place when this is deemed regular.
This term has also seen the introduction of our Friday morning rewards and recognition breakfast where students are nominated during the course of the week. This appears to be working really well with some heartwarming comments from staff that make the students beam with pride. I have included a few anonymised examples below so you can see the Borden values we recognise weekly, but also to see just how spectacular our students can be every single week.
“He is determined to succeed in every lesson and is doing everything he can to improve his confidence and notation. Well done, you're doing all the right things to prepare for your summer exams”
“He saw I was dealing with an accident in the corridor and instead of chatting to his friends, helped me by getting the classroom ready for when I came back in. He showed kindness, consideration and initiative and made my day.”
“He was such a fantastic ambassador for the school last week on our visit to a local primary. So many of the students there lit up chatting with and learning from him”
“Coming to the classroom to tidy up the room after school. It's the kindest act one could ask for. Little details showing who you are as a person, exceptional!”
“A lady on a mobility scooter got herself stuck between a tree and the school gates along the public path. He was calling for help from passers by to help her and then informed a member of staff in case the public couldn’t help her.”
“Thank you for being THE most enthusiastic A Level student- it's infectious!”
“He knows how to behave every moment of the day. When it is time to have fun and when it is time to focus, to make an effort, to produce outstanding work, to work with others. You can always see he is the one to embody all the values we are trying to teach at Borden. I am proud of you.”
I have also been lucky enough to congratulate some of our dedicated students who have had successes this term in a variety of different ways. Our Borden Kent swimmers, semi-finalist footballers, international Sambo martial artists and national darts player are just a few of the many successes mentioned in this newsletter. A year 8 student even brought me his own brand of honey he has harvested from beekeeping! We also recently received a wonderful thank you from a local male mental health organisation that year 7 chose to donate to from the Christmas fair. It shows Borden at its very best. I know there will be some I haven’t mentioned, but we are so proud of the varied achievements of Borden students and would like to thank you for all the support that helps to make this a reality.
Finally, we have had a really successful term with attendance, both for students in general, but also for parents turning out to events. The school’s student attendance, at near to 96%, is one of the very highest attendance rates locally, but we have also had over 80% for all our recent events, including 90% for our year 10 parents evening. We try to keep our events focused for this reason, but really thank you for your commitment to the school - it does make a palpable difference.
I hope the rest of this newsletter gives a useful picture of all the positive things that are happening and wish you the very best if you have any kind of break over half-term.
Ashley Tomlin
Headteacher
Year 10
Lastly, on the 25th February, Mr Brinn (the Head of Sixth Form) and myself will be taking 15 students to Cambridge University to explore the campus and the courses on offer. This is an exciting opportunity, and we look forward to experiencing a true taste of university life!
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