27 March 2024
At the end of what must be one of the shortest and most intense Spring half-terms ever experienced by schools, I would like to say thank you to you, our parents, who have continued to support The John Warner School in so many ways. As a result of your support, we learned on 15 March that, for the first time in a number of years, the school has a waiting list for Year 7 entry from September 2024. We are very much looking forward to welcoming our new students to their Transition Day on 11 July and are also planning to host a Year 5 ‘Introduction Day’ in the second Summer half-term. More information regarding both of these days will be forthcoming after the Easter break.
Hot off the Press!! Today we heard some wonderful news from Balliol College, University of Oxford. Two projects that we submitted as part of the prestigious Young Changemaker Awards have been successful and the school has received funding to support their roll-out. You will find further details relating to the Reading Project that has already started with Roselands School, supported by our Sixth Form students, within this newsletter. The panel who judged the applications commented: '(We) really liked the themes of both projects and the focal impacts on both children and older people, as well as engaging pupils in working with others.'. Thank you to Mrs Bertolone and Ms Haddock for driving these projects through so effectively.
In keeping with a focus upon the younger members of our school community, we very much enjoyed hosting our first Year 7 Parents’ Evening on Thursday 21 March and, again, would like to thank you, our parents, for the very positive feedback so many of our teachers received.
There are a number of significant achievements to comment upon in this newsletter, not least the success of our Year 8 Rugby Team in becoming the District School Champions, having beaten Leventhorpe School 16 - 12 on tries and remaining unbeaten across the season. Many congratulations, boys!
In keeping with the boys’ success and, more broadly, the school’s absolute commitment to sporting excellence, I am very pleased to tell you that, thanks to the intervention of Danes Educational Trust, The John Warner Sports Centre will remain open. As such, it will continue to provide our students with the excellent facilities they have been fortunate enough to enjoy, including its Sports Hall, swimming pool, gym and a new Dance Studio. With many thanks in particular to Susan Poole, Danes Educational Trust Head of Governance and Compliance, for her work in ensuring this valuable resource was not lost to the community.
Last week we were also delighted to hear that the school has been granted a PTi Mark 2023, recognising excellent subject provision, for Design and Technology which will be included within our letterhead moving forwards.
Congratulations to Stuart Higham, Gill Dane and all of the Faculty for Design Technology, Art, Engineering and Robotics for your sterling work in ensuring notable success in this curriculum area.
Congratulations also go to Mrs Lauren Thomas, Assistant Headteacher for Key Stage 4, whose recent submission to the National Poetry Competition was long-listed, a significant achievement given that there were over 8,000 entries and a total of 19,000 poems. Unfortunately we are unable to share the poem with you at this stage as to do so would prohibit Mrs Thomas from publishing it elsewhere. Hopefully, however, Mrs Thomas’s success has encouraged all budding poets within our student body to enter the ‘Just Talk’ Poetry Competition focused upon ‘The Power of Small’. The deadline for entries was 26 March 2024.
Finally...Thank you to all our Year 13 and Year 11 students who have displayed such a sustained and focused attention to their studies over the course of the Spring Term. The latest data submission that has come in this morning indicates significant improvement on the December 2023 Mock Results.
And with this theme of hope in mind, I would like to end my introduction to this newsletter by referring to Amanda Gorman, American poet and activist, who, in 2021, read an original work at the inauguration of President Joe Biden that included the following lines:
‘For there is always light
If only we’re brave enough to see it.
If only we’re brave enough to be it.’
As we reflect upon the new life and light of Spring at this Easter time, may I take this opportunity to wish you all a very happy and restful holiday. And thank you.
Warmest Regards
Rachel Brindley
Interim Headteacher, The John Warner School
World Book Day 7 March 2024
and Scholastic Book Fair 13 to 15 March 2024
and Scholastic Book Fair 13 to 15 March 2024
‘The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.’
The ‘Power of Reading’ continues to be a major focus at The John Warner School, most notably evidenced throughout March in the following ways.
On 5 March 2024, we started our celebrations of World Book Day with our Inter-House World Book Day ‘Paint a Potato’ competition, swiftly followed on 7 March by our ‘Decorate a Door’ and ‘Read for 10’ events.
International Women's Day
On March 8, 50 of our students, chosen from Year 7 to 12, celebrated International Women's Day by participating in a workshop with a number of inspiring women who were kind enough to give up their time for our girls. We were joined by John Warner alumni, Natasha Lamb, Sophie Barber, Jamie D'Ath and Callie Winch, as well as barrister, Rebecca Thomas.
During this networking event our speakers kindly shared their experiences and wisdom and answered the students' questions. Special thanks to Callie Winch who delivered an inspiring Keynote Speech drawing on her work as an advocacy Analyst for Stemettes. Callie left The John Warner School in 2017 to study for a BA in Anthropology at UCL and went on to study for an MA in Gender, Society and Representation. She now works as an advocacy Analyst for Stemettes, an award-winning social enterprise company working across the UK & Ireland and beyond to inspire and support girls, young women and non-binary young people into Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Maths careers (known collectively as STEAM). Callie is also a Fellow at the Royal Society for the encouragement of arts.
Year 9 Options
Further to the Year 9 Options Evening held earlier this term, Ms Brindley and Mrs Creasey have met with all Year 9 students to discuss and finesse their option choices in keeping with the school’s new Pathway Model. Mrs Creasey was particularly delighted to re-acquaint herself with students who she had taught and known in Year 6 when she worked at Forres Primary school.
The school will now use all of the information submitted by our students to construct the Option Blocks that will apply to our Key Stage 4 Curriculum Offer from September 2024. Once these are in place and student choices confirmed, a further update will be provided from Mrs Wallis, Curriculum Advisor for Danes Educational Trust.
'Danes Cup' football tournament
Courtesy of the imagination and foresight of Ms Wood-Thompson, we were also delighted to host the first ever ‘Danes Cup’ football tournament during the afternoon of International Women’s Day. The event involved 48 female footballers and 3 female referees drawn from across 5 of Danes Educational Trust’s secondary schools.
Ultimately the tournament was won by Croxley Danes A Team after a very close 5 rounds of games.
The John Warner School would like to thank everyone from across the Trust, including the media unit from Elstree Screen Arts Academy who recorded the event, who helped to celebrate women and girls being ‘awesome’! #GirlPower
The tournament coincided with the England Football #LetGirlsPlay Event where 465,000 girls from 5000 schools signed up to take part! #HistoryMade
Women's History Month
March 2024 has also been Women’s History Month. As such, Mrs Halley, Subject Leader for History, ensured that students were provided with a range of form-time activities aimed at exposing them to women who have made their stamp on History.
In keeping with the broader theme of History and as part of their most recent History Unit on The Hundred Years War, all Year 7 students were invited to complete a Home-Learning project which encapsulated their learning. From the construction of Motte and Bailey, and Stone Castles, to shoe box dioramas of The Black Death and famous battles, as well as Medieval theme parks and specialised Historical documentaries, our students surpassed all expectations.
Geography Field Trip
Meanwhile, our Year 12 Geographers spent another successful day completing fieldwork, this time in Stratford (and in the dry). The students spent the day collecting data to analyse the extent to which social and economic factors have affected the identity of Stratford.
Yesterday Once More
Congratulations to all our students who performed and contributed backstage to the ‘Yesterday Once More’ Concert held on 14 March. A night of nostalgia, our students performed to music from the 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s, showing true professionalism throughout. All of their hard work paid off in raising £894 for Breast Cancer Now and Make 2nds Count in memory of the school’s friend, colleague and teacher, Mrs Jennifer Pope.
The school takes great pride in the work it does throughout the year for so many worthy causes and it was a pleasure to have contributed to charities that are so close to the hearts of those living in our community.
Parents' Guide To Supporting Children At Exam Time
Information and advice for parents supporting children and young people at exam time, with tips on revision, managing stress and protecting mental health.
Generation Broxbourne Trip
On 6 March, Year 10 students were invited to attend Generation Broxbourne, a local Careers Fayre, at the Spotlight Theatre in Broxbourne. Our students conducted themselves in an exemplary manner and were able to network with a wide range of training and apprenticeship providers and colleges, deepening their knowledge and understanding of the range of opportunities available to them as they consider ‘next steps’ in their school journey and beyond. Thank you to Mr Caranese for facilitating students’ attendance at the event.
Combined Cadet Force Update
With many thanks to our cadets for providing support in stall-minding at Roselands School Easter Fayre on 23 March. Such community spirit is a key part of what constitutes the fabric of our school.
Similarly, there was excellent news from Colchester this half-term, where four of our cadets attended a week-long, residential Senior Cadet Instructor Course. All four cadets named below passed and are to be congratulated on their sustained commitment to The John Warner School Combined Cadet Force:
Cdt Sgt Eren Gunduz
Cdt Sgt David Encalada
Cdt Cpl Anthony Page
Cdt Cpl James Forrest
They are now qualified to instruct our cadets in the Army Cadet Syllabus and, as such, we now have a total of five SCIC qualified cadets in our contingent which is exceptional for any Combined Cadet Force Contingent.
Year 13 English Trip
At the beginning of this half-term, The John Warner School's Year 13 English class travelled to London for the day, engaging in a series of visits that enhanced our learning and understanding of the texts we have been studying. We visited the Tate Britain, where we viewed some of William Blake's artwork. As a result, we were then able to compare these to the poems we had previously analysed in class. We also had the privilege of meeting Glyn Maxwell, a renowned poet and playwright, for a poetry masterclass, focusing specifically on form and structure. Finally, at the Sam Wanamaker Theatre, we watched a modern retelling of Shakespeare's Othello, by candlelight. After a busy day, we reflected on the drama and discussed the adaptations in relation to the way they both progressed and limited our understanding of the play as we know it.
Annabelle O'Bryan (Year 13)
Easter Raffle Winners
Congratulations to Sasha Ireton 10A2, Mason Blankley 9T2, Maddy Cooper 7A1, Lexi Jeffrey 10H1
Thank yous
Dear Ms Brindley,
I just wanted to share with you that yesterday morning I was able to successfully finish my Arduino code and eliminate the problem!
Thank you for everything you have done to help and are helping with.
Kind regards Lily-May Lawrence, Year 11