As we enter into the Christmas break, I am thinking warmly of each of you and wishing your family an extra measure of comfort, joy and hope this Christmas. The act of kindness is the most important value which we must hold on to tightly and I extend my thanks especially to all the staff, pupils and parents at Jupiter Primary whom show this each and every day. 

As a final thought, I wish you all happiness and much needed time to be spent with family and friends over the Christmas period and leave you with the words of Plato to reflect upon as we approach 2023; 

 'Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle'

#Together #Kindness

Karen Armstrong, Jupiter Primary 

As we draw to the end of the Autumn term, we begin to reflect and celebrate the learning that has taken place so far this academic year. Christmas is one of the many times of year that we come together as a community to celebrate. We celebrate through Christmas performances, Christmas lunches, Christmas Fairs and much more. 

I would like to take this time to not only send Christmas wishes to the community of Lanchester Primary School but also to reach out to our bigger community of Danes Educational Trust. May this time of year bring you love and joy. I wish you all a happy new year and look forward to what 2023 has in store!  

Take care.

Claire Hammond, Lanchester Primary 

“None of us, including me, ever do great things. But we can do small things, with great love and together we can do something wonderful.” Mother Teresa

This quote resonated with me, especially at this time of year when Christmas performances are coming together, assessments are being completed and the children in our school are full of Christmas joy. There is not one thing or person that makes De Havilland a great school; it is everyone’s love, dedication and hard work that helps us to achieve great things. I thank each and every one of my team and extend that thanks to the Central Services team and other colleagues across the trust who continue to support us so well. I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and New Year.

Sarah King, De Havilland Primary

After another tumultuous year in education, I reflect on how unbelievably proud I am of the student and staff commitment to our vision of success for all, character development for all and dignity for all. This is a vision that, as Mary Myatt suggested, “is built on hope, on character, on opportunity, human development, intellectual, physical and cultural.” It requires the belief in the possibility that, no matter what the institutional or individual barriers, things can and will move forward or improve.

As Mary Myatt explains “Hope holds things together.”

That hope comes from the staff in our schools who are “humans first, professionals second”. It is their humanity that engenders the hope and the cheerfulness that makes the hard work and obstacles surmountable.

My hope for 2023 is that our humans rest and recharge for the year ahead and we are all able to continue to create a culture of kindness and respect enabling the humanity and hope of our staff to reach all of our young people.

Toby Sutherland, St Clement Danes

As I look out at a wintry scene that resembles one from a Christmas card, I would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a very happy and healthy Christmas.  

Life is challenging for all of us at the moment. We cannot help but be affected by the significant difficulties our students and families face, as well as its impact on us, our schools and the wider community. Once again, we have remained determined, resilient and optimistic throughout and shown considerable drive to thrive (rather than merely survive), making further improvements to our schools and Trust.

At Chancellor's, we've had a hugely successful term and, as we approach the end of term, which is marked by the school's Carol Service, we can look back on many highlights such as the whole school musical production of Guys and Dolls, various (residential) trips and numerous sporting events as well as lots of superb teaching and learning. We shall never take these things for granted again and I am extremely grateful to the whole Chancellor's team for their professionalism and hard work! More than anything, however, school remains a safe and warm space for our students and, by continuing to work together, we will navigate through these challenging times.  

My Christmas message to you all is to enjoy a very good break, a well-deserved holiday and some time off with your nearest and dearest! I look forward to seeing you all again in 2023!

David Croston, Chancellor's 

There has been so much to celebrate at Onslow St Audrey’s School this term and I am immensely grateful to our staff for the opportunities and experiences they have provided for our students, both inside and outside the classroom.  We have celebrated students’ individual and collective academic successes, the performance of sports teams across a range of disciplines never before seen at OSA, a full extra-curricular offer to enrich students’ learning, our Student Leadership Team devising initiatives and projects to improve all students’ experience of school life, fund-raising initiatives to support our chosen charities, the Learner Voice Council going from strength to strength to enhance the quality of teaching and learning, our Music concert and Senior Celebration Evening, and so much more!  Alongside this, we have witnessed the physical transformation of our school with our new Science block coming into commission and new MFL classrooms entering the final stages of construction.

On a personal note, I would like to thank the staff, students and parents of the OSA community for the warm welcome they have extended to me and to all staff and students who have joined us this term.  I wish you all a restful and enjoyable Christmas break and look forward to our return to school in the New Year.

Julie Jones, Onslow St Audrey's

My Christmas message to all the amazing staff at Ascot Road. I saw this poem and thought of you all:

T’was the last week before Christmas at Ascot Road School
And all the staff were still keeping their cool
Santa searched for the ones that gave their time and their hearts
He wanted to thank them but how could he start?
So many hours, they worked without fuss
They worked for the children; they all gave so much.
What could he do to show them their true worth;
The difference they made will all their hard work.
‘I know’ said Santa, ‘I’ll open their eyes
So they can see clearly the impact they have on small lives.
They’ll see smiles on face that their work puts there
They’ll see kindness in children taught the lesson to care.’
‘They’ll hear laughter from families that share in their days
They’ll get hugs that without them would just go away.
And at night when they rest, they’ll sleep soundly and know
That down to them , they keep the children aglow’

Happy festive wishes to everyone, relax and enjoy the break and see you all in 2023.

Cathy Elsley, Ascot Road

For many of us, this time of year represents a sense of excitement and an opportunity to relax, enjoy ourselves and meet up with friends and family to exchange gifts and enjoy the annual festivities. However, this year more than ever, I am dwelling upon the prospect of those who will not enjoy the upcoming holiday. Those that will find the next few weeks an entirely different experience as they face challenges regarding escalating energy payments and inflationary increases to food bills..

We all lead school communities that represent a cross-section of society, yet we have to acknowledge that a larger percentage than ever of that cross-section will be approaching the Christmas break with a sense of concern and anxiety rather than anticipation. As such, I am delighted that over the course of the last week the students at Croxley Danes brought in 300kg of non-perishable foods for a local food bank.

My main hope for next year is therefore rather easy to predict. I hope that the UK economy recovers quicker than has been estimated to support the cost of living crisis that many families are facing and will continue to face. But I also hope, that we can continue to find new and innovative ways to support our families and thereby strengthen our school communities.

Steve Thompson, Croxley Danes