At St Michael’s, we aim to show love, care and kindness to all in our community. We value what we have and share with others, and we aim to enable everyone to achieve their full potential. In 2017, Ofsted again judged our school to be Good, awarding us Outstanding for Personal Development and Welfare. In 2019, our Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools visit resulted in the highest judgement of Excellent for ‘The impact of collective worship’; ‘The effectiveness of Religious Education’ and the ‘Overall Judgement: ‘How effective is the school’s distinctive Christian vision, established and promoted by leadership at all levels, in enabling pupils and adults to flourish?’ This outcome was a very prestigious, highly valued honour.
Academic success at St Michael’s has gone from strength to strength: pre-COVID-19, there had been a significant improvement in examination results, culminating in two years of exceptional student progress with many subjects and cohorts exceeding national figures for attainment and progress. During the height of the pandemic, our school community donated food, gifts, aprons and goggles, and we manufactured and donated visors to hospitals, surgeries, care homes, hospices and schools during lockdown. Whilst COVID-19 has forced changes upon us, our children have adapted, continued to flourish and proven their resilience.
In October 2021, St Michael’s suffered the loss of an inspirational Headteacher, Mrs Jayne Gray. Staff and students took solace in the love, thoughtfulness, kindness, care, and compassion received from the local community. Suffering bereavement from this tragic event has united staff and students, and we remain relentless in our pursuit of excellence.
Our award-winning Student Voice children work tirelessly for the benefit of others: highlighting the problems faced by 21st Century children; liaising with local agencies to tackle environmental and social issues; supporting our local and global community and raising money for charity (over £60,000 to date). Our Junior Leadership Team and Well-being Champions are pioneers within the school; through collaborative working partnerships, they help inform strategies and help shape curriculum design.
As the parent of a teenager, I understand the difficulties and challenging circumstances faced by our young people due to disrupted learning over the last two years. As the new Headteacher, I look forward to working in conjunction with you to ensure that normality resumes, high standards and expectations are upheld, and school attendance returns to the pre-COVID level of 97% or above.
I would like to take the opportunity to thank you for your support, and I look forward to working with you over the coming years.
With kindest regards,
Mrs Christina Handy-Rivett (MA; NPQH)
Headteacher
