9 October 2026
Dear Parents and Carers,
I had a lovely email from a parent this week where they shared the photo below with me showing the school at the end of rainbow. It certainly brightened my day at the end of a long week and was the inspiration for this Friday bulletin!
(Credit to Mrs E for the photo.)
"The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain."
Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton famously repeated that line throughout her life, not because it sounded cheerful, but because she genuinely believed in resilience, gratitude and hard work - the idea that the brightest moments often follow the toughest ones.
It is a sentiment that feels particularly relevant in school this week. On Sunday, 160 of our Year 7s returned from their activities trip to Newby Wiske, looking equal parts exhilarated and exhausted. They spent the weekend in glorious sunshine – not a drop of rain in sight – tackling high ropes, raft building and other team challenges. Ten members of staff also gave up their weekend to support them, and we are incredibly grateful for the time, energy and enthusiasm they brought to the trip.
At the other end of their secondary journey, our Year 11 students are preparing for their mock exams, which begin next week. Whilst mocks can feel a bit daunting, they are an important part of the learning process: a chance to practise under pressure, to learn from mistakes, and to further build the resilience that will carry them through the months ahead. Like Dolly Parton, we regularly remind students that success rarely arrives without effort. Hard work, setbacks, determination – these are the “rainy days” that make the rainbow possible.
Alongside their mocks, our Year 11 students are also beginning to think seriously about their next steps. Choices matter, but they are never made alone. Over the coming months we will support every student as they explore A‑Levels, BTECs, apprenticeships, T Levels and other pathways. For those considering A‑Levels, we look forward to welcoming families to our Sixth Form Open Evening this Monday 12th October from 5–7pm. Students will have the chance to meet our specialist teachers, explore our broad curriculum, hear from our current Sixth Formers, and discover the opportunities available in our outstanding Sixth Form. Whether they dream of Medicine, Engineering, History or something entirely different, we will share their ambitions, and our expert Sixth Form staff and teachers will provide the structure, expertise and inspiration to help them realise their potential.
And for those who aren’t yet sure what they want to do – that’s perfectly normal. As Dolly Parton herself often said, optimism isn’t about pretending everything is easy; it’s about believing that with the right support and the right attitude, you can shape your own future. Our personal development programme, careers guidance and pastoral support will help students do exactly that.
Finally, I want to say how proud I am of all our students and the excellent attitude they have shown throughout the early part of this year. Year 11 in particular have returned with an impressive maturity, and I have the absolute pleasure once again of teaching them maths. It is, irrefutably and consistently, the best four hours of my week.
Have a lovely weekend – and if it does rain, keep an eye out for the rainbows.
Mrs McFadden
Dates for your diary
A reminder of some upcoming events in school:
Monday 12th October
Sixth Form Open Evening, 5.00-7.00pm
Wednesday 14th October
Year 11 Mock Exams begin
Year 7 Library Access
We are pleased to announce that Year 7 students will be able to use the library from this week. All Year 7 students will be issued with a barcode, which will be stuck into their planner, to allow them to scan out books from the library.
Students will be able to borrow one book at a time, with a loan period of three weeks. They can renew the loan, or return the book, by visiting the library. Students will be given an overdue reminder via their form tutor if the book is not returned by the given date, allowing for a further week for the return. If the book is not returned within five weeks of the initial issue date, we will presume the book is lost and a replacement charge of £5 will need to be made via ParentPay.
For your child to start borrowing books from the library, please agree to these borrowing terms via the form shared on Class Charts. Please also confirm whether you would like your child to read KS3 only or KS3 and KS4 books. For more information on KS3/KS4 books and content please see the letter linked below.
Miss Bailey
English Department
Computing News
Year 8 TechFirst Girls Competition
The Year 8 TechFirst Girls Competition is now open for registration!
What is it? - An online competition where teams of up to 4 girls complete as many challenges as possible within a 10-day period
How many teams can our school have? - We can have as many teams as we want, and we are aiming for a record number of girls to take part!
Why should I do it? - The prizes for the highest-scoring team receive a goody bag of tech (usually a laptop and AirPods!)
Is it for me? - Well, we've won this competition three times before (formerly known as CyberFirst), so why not give it a go and find out?
If you are interested, please speak to / Teams message Mr O'Connor by Monday 2nd November.
If you already have an idea who you want in your team, you can message with all of the names and their forms.
Good luck!
Programming Club
We've had an excellent turnout for Year 7/8 Programming Club so far this half term!
This week we are developing code for a maze program, creating a player to get through the entire maze whilst avoiding hitting the walls (or else they teleport back).
There are still some spaces available if you are in Year 7 or Year 8 and would like to attend! The club will run for 2 more sessions before resuming again after Christmas.
Mr O'Connor
Lead Teacher of KS4/5 Computer Science
PE News
On Sunday 18 of our runners travelled to Sedbergh School for the English Schools National Championships. The conditions were very good, but it is an incredibly demanding course around the Cumbrian fells. All our runners performed very well with four finishing in the top 30 in the country. In the Year 7 race Teddy C finished 9th and Rufus C 20th. In the Year 8/9 race Felix H finished 10th and Celia De Lucas 26th. In the Year 10/11 race Henry E was 19th.
On Monday our Year 7 boys’ football team travelled to Hartlepool to take on Dyke House in the English Schools Cup. We reached half-time level at 1-1 but took control in the second half reaching the next round with an excellent 3-1 victory. Goals from Sammy M, Harrison R and Matty S. POM was Sebastian B for a solid defensive display.
Also on Monday, our U16 girls’ football team were in Sunderland facing Castleview in the County Cup. This was a close match throughout which we unfortunately lost 2-1. Our goal was scored by Emily R with POM awarded to Maisie N. Finally on Monday our Year 8 boys’ football team hosted Keiper School in the English Schools Cup. We struggled against a very strong team and despite never giving up lost 5-0.
A busy week of football continued on Tuesday as our Year 7, 9 & 10 boys’ teams travelled to Sedgefield for league games. Our Year 7s produced another commanding performance running out 8-3 winners with 6 different goal scorers including 2 goals from POM Owen. Special mention to Noah for a fantastic penalty save. It was an identical story for our Year 9s who also dominated the game, winning 8-3 with 6 different scorers. The whole team were POM. Our Year 10 team completed the clean sweep of victories as we lead 4-0 at half time and went on to win 6-1. Alfie BL scored one of the goals and was POM.
Finally on Tuesday our U13 girls’ football team hosted Consett Academy in the County Cup. It was another excellent result as we won 7-0 thanks to 4 goals from Martha W. However, POM was Daisy W for a solid defensive display.
On Wednesday, our Year 11 boys’ team played their first game of the season as they hosted Cardinal Hume in the County Cup. We played some amazing football and were 3-0 ahead at half-time. We controlled the second half and reached the next round with a 4-1 victory. POM was Louis B with an outstanding performance and a goal.
Yesterday it was the turn of our Year 7 girls’ football team to be in cup action as they took on Acklam Grange. This was another great performance as we played some great football on our way to a 3-1 win with goals from Rosie R and Vesper H. Our Year 7 boys were also in action away at King James in the league. We started strongly and secured another 3 points with a convincing 8-1 win with 6 different scorers. POM was Hugh. Incredibly our Year 8 boys’ team also beat King James by the same score with POM Blake I scoring 4 goals. Finally, our Year 9 boys also scored 8 goals against King James in an 8-2 win. Harry F-H scored a hattrick, but POM was Oscar S for his excellent defensive work.
During the afternoon our U13 boys’ rugby team were at Durham School competing in the county cup. After a very tough first match against the eventual winners Yarm, we improved with every game securing excellent victories against High Tunstall and Emmanuel College. Special mention to the Year 7 boys who played up a year.
Also yesterday, our Year 7 & 8 netball teams hosted Hermitage in league games. Our Year 7 team played some great netball winning 12-6. It was an excellent team performance. Our Year 8 team proved too strong for Hermitage as we secured a comfortable 22-1 victory. POM was Martha W
Finally, good luck tonight to our Year 11 boys’ football team who are travelling to Walker School in the English Schools Cup.
Mr Hopper
Subject Leader for PE
A reminder of our weekly sports bulletin:
We’ve also been asked to share the following:
Our local Police Community Support Officers have raised that there has been an increase in young people setting fires in wooded areas in our local communities. They have asked that we remind parents and carers about the importance of knowing where young people are during evenings and weekends, and to discourage them from such antisocial behaviour. There is increased patrolling and police presence as a result of these events.
