Category : Headteacher’s Blog

Whitby was the destination for our Year 8 Geographers last Friday. Mrs. Gomersal reports ‘, ‘Year 8 students recently took part in an exciting Geography fieldwork trip to Whitby, where they investigated the key question: Should Whitby be protected from coastal erosion?

Blessed with glorious sunshine, the students carried out a range of fieldwork tasks including a land use survey, environmental quality assessments, and a field sketch—completed while sitting on the pier overlooking the River Esk and Whitby’s picturesque East Cliff.

Everyone showed excellent focus and teamwork throughout the day, with students behaving impeccably and showing great determination as they climbed the iconic 199 steps to Whitby Abbey.

 

To round off the day, everyone enjoyed a well-deserved ice cream in the sunshine—a perfect end to a successful and enjoyable field trip. Well done, Year 8!’

 

 

 

 

 

The weekend then saw our Bronze Duke of Edinburgh students on their qualifying expedition. Mrs Murphy reports ‘On Saturday 23 year 9 students commenced the Bronze Duke of Edinburgh Qualifying Expedition. The weather conditions made the expedition particularly challenging, although not as hot as was predicted, it was very muggy and it made the walking hard work. The students worked well as teams and with all but one group having some navigational challenges it really tested their resilience and ambition to succeed. There was a little shower in the afternoon which helped cool the students down and everyone utilised the lovely showers at the campsite after a long day walking. The students were up pretty early on Sunday; the windy start to the day meant the tents were all dry, but it was a bit more interesting packing them away. All groups managed better on the Sunday and were very relieved at seeing the coach at the car park at the end of the day. A great success for all. A special thanks to Stan, who is a Duke of Edinburgh Young Leader and supported the participants throughout the weekend. He was absolutely brilliant helping advise and support the students and really helpful for all the volunteer staff on the trip. We also had a number of adults who commented on what lovely, polite and respectful students we had. Thank you to Mr Lough, Mrs Bauwens, Mr Groves and Mrs Webb for their support on the weekend.’ Our thanks go to Mrs. Murphy too, not only for the expedition but for her work on the Duke of Edinburgh award throughout the year.

 

 

 

We must also congratulate all our Duke of Edinburgh Award students for the amazing community contribution that they’ve made throughout this year with the recognition that they have, in total, spent 1144 hours volunteering between 1st April 2024 and 31st March 2025 with a social value of £7320. We are, indeed, very proud of them.

 

 

 

 

And so to this week where we’ve started our new school year with our new timetable. As usual, it’s created a high level of focus with classes meeting new groups and new teachers. GCSEs and BTECs have been started and new options begun. We have the opportunity to experience two cycles of the timetable before the end of term, therefore securing a smooth start in September.

In assemblies this week, Mr. Field has been looking forward with students to the excitement of Sports Day which, weather permitting, will be on Friday 11th July. Each form class will be choosing their team with the clear understanding that points are not just awarded for being placed in a track or field event but also for participating. The overall winners are usually those who work best as a team so we’ll see how our teams perform this year.

We’re also now taking payments for the Rewards Trip to the Great Yorkshire Show on Thursday 10th July where the vast majority of our students, due to their commitment to our values, being ambitious, respectful and resilient, have been invited. We’re looking forward to a great day out.

 

 

A date for your diary, it’s our Summer concert next week on Tuesday 8th July. All are welcome.Next week we look forward to welcoming our new Year 7 students and their parents and carers.
 

 

 

 

 

 

Finally, we thought you’d like to see a Prom photo of the Class of 2025. A lovely photo capturing a great evening. We wish them well for the future.

Have a lovely weekend!

With the final GCSE exam on Wednesday, it’s been another eventful week for our Year 11s. On Monday, the end of year traditional football match between Year 10 and Year 11 boys, affectionately known as ‘El Classico’ took place, ending in a thumping 5-1 win for the departing Year 11s. Then last night we had the Prom in what has become our favourite venue over the years, the Bridge Inn. Students arrived in many modes of transport, all looking incredibly smart and ready for the red carpet. Following a lovely meal, there was much dancing, laughing and hugging. As a year group they have always been kind and supportive of each other and this was very much in evidence last night, And so we say our farewell to the Class of 2025, the year group who began their life at Boroughbridge High School in a pandemic ‘bubble’ and leave ready to make their mark on the world. We wish them well.

Year 10 had been showing their commitment earlier in the day by arriving in smart business dress ready for their annual careers networking event. It was a very productive and successful day with Mrs. Town reporting, ‘Yesterday, all year 10 students were involved in our annual careers day where we welcomed 9 local and national employers into school. As they begin to consider their post-16 pathways, students were able to find out about a range of different careers and interview the employers before learning more about the world of work, interview skills, post-16 pathways and career planning. The students were a credit to the school and many of the employers commented on how mature their questioning had been. We would like to thank the employers who came in and, in particular, our Enterprise Adviser, Mrs Lorraine Kirbitson who organised the event. Lorraine has worked with the school for many years and is stepping down from the role this year so she will be sadly missed.

With the new timetable almost upon us, in assemblies I’ve been reinforcing our values with students and revisiting the routines that we have in place to ensure that all are safe, happy and successful.

In Forest School this week, Mr. Woodward and his class learned valuable lessons in outdoor survival, building camp fires to cook nettle fritters and pan-fried cookies.

In sporting news, Miss Robson reports, ‘Last week a Year 8 girls team played a hybrid rounders friendly with Ripon Grammar School. They joined forces to create two ‘Ripon-Borough’ teams to compete against RGS. In one match the Hybrid team won 11.5 rounders to 11 and in the other match RGS won 15.5 to 5.5 rounders. Highlights included Daisy’s bowling and catches out, Anabelle’s speed when running from base to base and Ava’s quick and effective fielding skills around 3rd base. A fun-filled afternoon out, demonstrating our values of ambition, respect and resilience, as well as a creative team photo.’

On Wednesday, it was the Year 8 boys turn to face Nidderdale High School. The boys were incredibly ambitious with high expectations of a win, to which they succeeded, 15.5 to 4.5 rounders! MVP was Max C, fearlessly cruising around the bases to score multiple rounders. Several outstanding catches were made throughout the game from multiple players. The boys were treated to a very high standard of umpiring from Nidderdale’s PE teacher who is a qualified regional umpire and England Rounders player.’

 

 

 

 

Year 8 have been out today on location in Whitby for their Geography fieldtrip. I’ll tell you more in the Blog next week.

A date for your diary, it’s our Summer Concert on Tues 8th July at 6p.m. 

We wish our Year 9 students well as they set off for their Bronze Duke of Edinburgh expedition tomorrow.

Have a lovely weekend!

We’ve enjoyed hearing about the Year 9 Bewerley Park trip this week. Mr. Field reports, ‘The trip proved to be a great success. The pupils fully immersed themselves in the experience from the moment they arrived at the centre and quickly began to impress the Bewerley staff with their enthusiasm and their budding resilience.  Comfort zones were challenged from the offset but the pupils rose to the occasion and showed great ambition in their endeavours.  The range of activities satisfied the pupils’ appetite for adventure with mountain biking, ghyll scrambling, climbing, leap of faith, Jacob’s ladder and canoeing amongst the day activities undertaken.  The pupils were also kept busy in the evenings with orienteering, team building initiatives, walking to explore the local countryside and a games night including the traditional country sport of Welly Wanging.

All pupils faced some very challenging situations throughout the week, most of these were within the activity sessions but lots were learning to work with others, learning to take responsibility for themselves and their belongings so prepared for each day, learning to live with peers who they might not have spent much time around.

The reflective written work completed on return to school clearly showed how much the pupils had each taken from the experience, hopefully the amazing stories have already been shared with parents and family members to show how valuable the week was.

The photos taken help to document the week and provide some evidence of the personal journey undertaken.  The memories will last a lifetime and hopefully inspire them to explore more of what Yorkshire and big wide world have to offer.’

Our thanks go to Mr. Field, Mrs. Cummins and Mrs. Murphy for ensuring that students had such a fantastic time.

 

In other active opportunities, our Silver Duke of Edinburgh Award students gave their presentations and answered insightful questions posed by the group of parents, carers, siblings and staff in attendance on Monday evening. It was great to hear not only how many skills the students had developed but also how much fun they’d had along the way, working impressively as part of a team. Their photos and video gave a great insight of the commitment and resilience needed for them to secure this success.

 

 

On Wednesday morning, our Service students were in action as they participated in the Armed Forces Day for Children which was held at Catterick Garrison. This event brought together Service Children from primary and secondary schools across the County. They participated in activities such as assault courses, mine clearance, first aid and engineering. Our students had a great time.

 

 

In assemblies this week, Mr. Grierson has been exploring the importance of different mindsets in helping us to achieve goals. His starting example, which may not surprise you, was the approach of Celtic when they won the European Cup in 1967 by being coached not only on physical improvement but also in having the correct mindset for victory. Students left the assembly aware of the impact of positive thinking and belief in success.

 

With the exams almost over, we had our Year 11 Leavers’ Assembly this morning. It was lovely to get students and staff together to reflect on and celebrate their time at Boroughbridge High School. When students join our school I say to them that the school should be a better place because they are a part of it. Our Year 11 students have certainly made this a reality. There were lots of smiles as photos of times gone by were shared, shirts were signed and form tutors shared their most special memories. It all concluded with a rendition of ‘I’m gonna be (500 miles)’ led by Mr. Grierson with 100% participation. We’ll look forward to further celebrations at the Prom next Thursday.

 

Our thanks go to the Friends of Boroughbridge High School who were raising money for school funds at Tractorfest last weekend. Thank you to you too if you were able to support.

Have a lovely weekend!

It was great to welcome students back from the half term break on Monday. This week has certainly been one of high activity. We’ve had a group of Year 9 students at Bewerley Park pushing their ambition and resilience to the limits. From mountain biking to ghyll scrambling, they’ve been making the most of the great outdoors. We’ll tell you more in the Blog next week.

On Thursday, 64 students across Years 7 to 9 took part in the Colour Run as part of the third annual Wellbeing Festival at Dalby Forest organised by North Yorkshire Sport. Alongside the Colour Run, there were a number of activities with the aim to build confidence, resilience and teamwork. BHS had the greatest number of students at the first of these events and we were delighted that, this year, some of our Sports Leaders were invited to lead the an element of the festival and prepared by attending a Kin ball training session the previous day. Our congratulations go to Millie, Alice W, Alyssa, Summer, Freya, Beth, Kyla, Chloe B and Evie B who all received certificates for their Kin-Ball Activator Award.

 

In assemblies this week, Mrs. Godsell-Wright focused on our school values and why these values are important for all aspects of student life, helping students to be successful. Everyone was also excited to hear of the reward point winners of the rewards points issued by teachers. These are

Year 7 – Mr Atkinson (3781), Year 8 – Mrs Gomersal (3490), Year 9 – Mr Scott (2632) and Year 10 – Mrs Murphy (2305). Well done to all.

Every two years since 2006 North Yorkshire Council has done the Growing Up in North Yorkshire survey with children and young people in schools across North Yorkshire to find out what they think about various aspects of health, wellbeing and learning/education. You can look at the main findings here and you can also find out information, support and services that may be helpful.

If you’re at Tractor Fest at Newby Hall this weekend, look out for the Friends of Boroughbridge High School tuckshop. Any proceeds will directly benefit our students.

Have a lovely weekend!

It was commitment all the way last weekend when the Duke of Edinburgh bronze practice expedition took place. Mrs. Murphy reports,

‘All 25 Bronze D of E participants completed the practice expedition! They were very fortunate with the weather which started off a bit chilly in the morning but the sunshine was out by lunchtime and there was a still good breeze preventing anyone from getting too hot.  All groups worked on their navigation skills and lots of lessons have been learnt regarding packing and their kit.  We look forward to them all putting it into practice in June on the qualifying expedition.  A big thanks to Mr Murphy, Mr Groves, Miss Robson, Mr Lough and our young leader Stan in Year 10 who supported all the groups with great navigation knowledge and tips to help them better succeed.’

 

Our thanks go to Mrs. Murphy too for making the expedition possible.

As it’s Safeguarding Awareness Week, Mrs. Godsell-Wright has been leading assemblies on this theme. Students have had the opportunity to reflect on how they use the internet i.e. through social media, online gaming, messaging apps, YouTube and TikTok. With 2 in 3 children nationally reporting experiencing online harms, they explored how to stay safe.  You can see top tips for staying safe online here.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/zl7tRKFhe1Q

Thank you to the many Year 7 students, parents and carers who attended Parent/Carer evening on Wednesday. There was a real buzz in the Hall as we shared the progress that our students are making, what’s going well and what actions they can take to make further improvements. It was lovely to hear how pleased our families are with how well Year 7 have settled in. In only a few weeks’ time, we’re looking forward to welcoming our next cohort of young people.

As you’re aware, we have been working on reinforcing our school values and we thought you’d enjoy seeing the photo from our ‘Respectful’ assembly last week.

A reminder that Boroughbridge Lions are holding their Summer Fete on Monday from 11a.m. to 4p.m. on the Sports Association Field, Aldborough Road, Boroughbridge. Look out for the Friends of Boroughbridge High School stall.

Have a lovely Bank Holiday weekend and we wish our students a happy half term break!

With a focus on our core value of being respectful, Mr. Grierson has led assemblies getting students actively involved this week. He reports, ‘Each letter represented an important part of school life and its importance in supporting our school values.  It was also linked into the 5 core British values.

R was respect for school rules which are followed on a daily basis by the overwhelming majority of our students.  The letter E represented our school environment and ensuring that we keep our beautiful site clean and tidy.  The letter S represented respect for ourselves, demonstrated by our exemplary school uniform standards and valuing our own personal strengths. The letter P stood for participation, encouraging our students to respect and engage in the many opportunities outside of the classroom to enrich their school lives such as our Science club, Film club, sporting enrichment and our musical and drama performances.   The second letter E represented respect for equality, which has been recognised as a strength by Ofsted. C was for our Community and being respectful to our school and wider community. I mentioned the highly positive emails that we have had from the community praising our students coming in on service buses and walking to and from school for their positive behaviour. The letter T represented tolerance of individual beliefs and how it helps create a harmonious atmosphere in school. Respect for family was the letter ‘F‘ and the importance of respecting family, our traditional family and our school family. ‘U’ was for understanding others, being supportive and kind with the final letter representing liberty and respecting everybody’s right to be heard.’

It was an affirming assembly and enabled students to celebrate all that is good about our school community.

In sporting news this week, Miss Robson reports that ‘12 Year 8 girls took part in a School Games’ organised bench ball competition against Thirsk, Richmond and Queen Mary’s School. This event is all about creating a positive climate around being physically active and developing resilience that students can apply to their PE lessons and beyond. All who took part were awarded a medal, with Ella receiving a ‘thumbs up’ medal for her unwavering enthusiasm throughout the competition.’ Well done to everyone.

Meanwhile, Mr. Field reports, ‘Monday evening saw the Yr9 boys proudly take on King James’s School in the semi-final of the Harrogate & Craven District Cup.  The excitement before the game was palpable as the boys could taste the prospect of representing the school in a cup final.  The game was an edgy affair at the start with both sides showing nerves from the occasion.  L Pitts produced some fine goalkeeping to keep the visitors’ advancing attack at bay but even his efforts couldn’t stop KJS taking a 0-3 lead into the half time break.  The second half saw some tactical and personnel changes in which saw the Boroughbridge boys take the game by the scruff of the neck and forced the KJS goalkeeper to make some brave saves as the confidence grew within our team.  The efforts were rewarded with a close range finish by T King, as the game drew to a close the KJS lead proved a bridge too far for the Boroughbridge boys to overcome and with more committed to the attack some gaps in defence were exposed with further goals added to their tally.  The game finished 1-5 but despite the loss the Boroughbridge team held their heads high knowing that they had shown great resilience throughout the game and gave their all to achieve their ambition of reach the final.  The boys will be ready to prove their worth next year and hope to take that next step in reaching a final.’

Students in Years 10 and 11 are now well into their GCSE and BTEC exams. Having had a number of Progress Exams over the last few years, they are fully aware of the routines and their approach has been impressive.

 

Alongside his revision, one of our Year 11 students, Ted, is in the midst of an intensive training schedule having secured a highly competitive football apprenticeship with Grimsby Town. Our congratulations go to Ted on such a fantastic achievement and we send our best wishes for his return to the academy later in the month. We’ll watch his progress with great interest.

 

 

Following on from our celebrations last week, Mrs. Ennis reports, ‘Year 8 have shown some fantastic historical skills. They have been working on a VE Day project, exploring why we should commemorate VE day and how WW2 helped to shape and preserve our British values. Students have conducted their own research including primary sources and exploring their own family history and local connections to WW2. Students presented their knowledge in a variety of ways from written essays, speeches and collages.’

 

 

Please continue to send in tombola prizes for the Friends of Boroughbridge High School stall which will be at the Lions Summer Fete on Monday 26^th May. This could be chocolate, bottles, little gifts etc. All funds raised directly benefit students in school.

Next week we’re looking forward to welcoming Year 7 with their parents and carers to hear about their progress at Parent/Carer evening on Wednesday 21^st May.

Have a lovely weekend!

Exams are now well underway with the GCSE Art exam, MFL speaking exams, PE moderation and BTEC Travel and Tourism exam taking place this week. Taking that into context, Sandra from the Wellbeing in Mind Team took the opportunity to have a stall in the Dining Hall at lunchtime so that she could discuss with students the strategies that they can use if they are feeling exam stress. As you’ll be aware, the Wellbeing in Mind Team are based in the Bungalow at BHS and work with young people in schools across our area.

In Forest School at the beginning of the week, as part of a team building activity, students were engaged in trying to build the highest structure. As you can see, they had a number of innovative ideas.

They were certainly also demonstrating our core value, resilience, which was  the focus of my assemblies this week. We discussed what resilience means to us, that we are determined to succeed and see mistakes and setbacks as an opportunity to learn, and explored how the expectations and routines that we have in place support our students in becoming more resilient. For example, our BHS marking strategy very clearly gives the students the opportunity to identify the areas where they need to improve with the requirement to act upon them so they can ‘Show’ their teacher. Students were challenged to reflect on four questions,

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. Do you meet learning expectations (phases of learning)?
2. Do you get rewards not detentions?
3. Do you answer and ask questions?
4. Do you act upon written feedback?

and, if they could answer ‘Yes’ to each then they are certain to be developing their resilience.

This week marked the annual distribution of Year 11 hoodies which now become part of the uniform for Year 11. As in previous years, the pink proved to be a popular choice.

 

With the 80^th anniversary of VE Day taking place on Thursday 8^th May, we’re running a Victoria sponge cake baking competition. A message from Miss Robson that any students wishing to take part should bring their cake in a container that is clearly labelled with their name and hand it in to reception Thursday morning. The cakes will be taste tested by teachers and then sold to raise money for the Royal British Legion. Other bake sale items (cookies/cupcakes/brownies etc) are welcomed to be sold on the day too. 

Staying on the fundraising theme, a message from our Parent/Carer group,

“The Friends of Boroughbridge High School will be running a stall at the Lions Fair in Boroughbridge (a tombola) on Monday 26^th May and at Tractor Fest on 7^th and 8^th June (a tuck shop). We could do with a few more volunteers to man the stand with us at Tractor Fest so if you feel you can offer half a day that weekend please do email the Friends on   boroughbridgehighschoolfriends@gmail.com  We are also looking for donations for the tombola – this could be chocolate, bottles, little gifts etc. Really anything goes! Please can you drop any donations for the tombola at the school office by Thursday 22^nd May. Thank you!”

We wish our 18 Year 10 and 11 students well as they’ve set off on their Silver Duke of Edinburgh Expedition today. We’ll let you know how they get on in next week’s Blog.

Wishing you a lovely Bank Holiday weekend too!

 

 

I hope that you had a lovely Easter break and were able to make the most of the warmer weather. We returned to our own ‘Sakura’ with the site laden with cherry blossom. This natural phenomenon always marks the start of our build up to the GCSE and BTEC exams. Students in Years 10 and 11 are already fully into their revision schedule both in and outside of school. They’ve also had their Exam Expectations assembly where they’ve been re-familiarised with all of the rules and regulations that they need to be aware of as they take their exams.

Our week started with Expectations Assemblies. We revisited our expectations through our core values that we are ambitious, respectful and resilient in order to secure a smooth start to the Summer Term. We also recapped the areas of Teaching and Learning that we have been driving forward this year with our focus on Raising Achievement; questioning, feedback, retrieval and metacognition. These sit within our overall curriculum. A reminder that you can see more detail about our curriculum along with the Progression Maps for each subject so that you can track what your child will be studying throughout their time at BHS at https://www.boroughbridgehigh.com/curriculum/

Sustainability was the theme of Mr. Scott’s daily assemblies this week. He explored how we are already ensuring that we ‘meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs’ by having reusable bags, using public transport, recycling our waste and having multi-use water bottles. He then explored with students the future opportunities that there are for employment in jobs which have a commitment to ensuring sustainability.

And just as the Blog was ready to go our GCSE Historians have returned from their trip. Mrs. Ennis reports, ‘GCSE History students visited the Thackray Medical Museum in Leeds today for a memorable and immersive revision trip that brought their studies to life. Walking through the eerie Victorian Disease Street, they witnessed the harsh realities of 19th-century public health, where none of their characters survived the deadly conditions. One of highlights included the Victorian operating theatre, as it was before anaesthetics and antiseptics, offering a powerful reminder of how far medicine has come. By engaging with real historical artefacts and interactive exhibits, the visit provided a vivid and unforgettable boost to their exam preparation.’

Have a lovely weekend!

We’ve had another productive week! In assemblies, Mrs. Godsell-Wright has been exploring the characteristics of having a growth mindset and the difference it can make to building resilience and resulting achievement. Students were asked to think about how they could act to ensure that they maximised every opportunity.

We’ve also had a Key Stage 3 and a Key Stage Rewards Celebratory Brunch for students with the most positive points in their year group.

Our congratulations also go to our 20 Year 10 and 11 students who completed their Silver Duke of Edinburgh Practice expedition. Whilst the weather was good in most parts of our region, our students had to cope with a night of camping in wet and windy conditions which certainly helped to build their resilience. Our thanks go to the accompanying staff team, Mrs. Murphy, Mr. Lough, Mrs. Cheeseman and Mr. Murphy.

On Tuesday evening we had the treat of the Drama and Music Showcase. With a hall packed full of staff and students we heard a number of superb solo performances along with those from the Keyboard Club and Pop Choir. Combined with this was ‘The Wrong Pantomime’ which kept us chuckling throughout. It was also the last musical performances for Charlotte (vocal) and Rosey (piano) in Year 11. Their rendition of ‘Birds of a feather’ and ‘Don’t Look Back in Anger’ leave us with very fond memories. It was also great to see our student technical team keeping the sound and lighting under control. Mr. Jackson and Mr. West were sincerely thanked by students for giving them this opportunity. Thank you to parents and carers for your support.

Wednesday saw our annual Year 7 Rocket car challenge. Science lessons have been building up to this highly successful event where, in teams, students design and develop a rocket car before competing to see whose is the fastest. The winners this year were Ava, Libbie and Nina in Dr. Lefley’s group whose car reached 81 mph – an amazing achievement.

In other news, Mrs. Cheeseman reports, ‘During this academic year, five Year 8 boys have been working on developing their gross and fine motor skills. This week they harnessed all of our school’s values; ambition, resilience and respect by taking part in a Karate taster session led by Austin in Year 9. He is a purple belt and competes regularly at regional and national competitions. The pupils learnt basic punching, kicking and stance movements. Thank you Austin for your time, the pupils loved it and so did I!’

In sporting news, Mrs. Cheeseman reports, ‘And that’s a wrap! The Netball season is finished for the academic year. Our final fixture was on Thursday against Ripon Grammar School. Two very strong teams to play but Boroughbridge were resilient and kept their heads held high with final scores of 31-3 (Year 9) and 23-2 (Year 8). Well done to our goal scorers, Bodie C, Ruby C and Ben A. What was lovely was the amount of pupils supporting the game and several played up a year group which was very ambitious. It has been a pleasure to coach the team and I hope to see them all coming along to Summer sports in the extra-curricular programme.’

 

 

Boroughbridge Lions are great supporters of BHS and, as you can see, they have an event coming up in May.  

With the Easter break now upon us, we wish all of our families a very happy Easter break and we look forward to welcoming students back into school on Tuesday 22^nd April.  

It’s been an intensive week for Year 7 as they’ve completed their first exam week at Boroughbridge High School. They’ve certainly risen to the challenge and very quickly picked up exam routines and expectations. They can now enjoy a revision free weekend. Meanwhile, students in Years 10 and 11 continue on their revision journey as they advance towards their summer exams.

As part of our Raising Achievement strategy, we’ve been focusing on different aspects of teaching and learning and, over the last four weeks, we’ve been trialling a new approach to written feedback. Teachers across the school are using our ‘BHS’ strategy, identifying in students’ work what they’ve done which is ‘Brilliant’ and ‘How to Improve’ before giving students an opportunity to act upon their feedback so that they can ‘Show me’ where they’ve made the improvement. This consistent approach across the school is supporting students to make greater progress.

 

 

 

Thanks again for your generous donations to Comic Relief. Our grand total was £598.

 

 

 

 

Last Wednesday we took a trip to Snozone. Mr. Field reports, ‘We saw another highly successful trip to Snozone at Xscape, Castleford, for Boroughbridge pupils to take part in skiing activities.  The vast majority of the 47 attendees were involved in ski lessons on the nursery slope whilst the experienced skiers in the group honed their skills on the main slope.  All of the pupils made fantastic progress and the Snozone instructors were very complimentary about the positive attitude and effort shown by those involved.  The additional highlight of the trip for a lot of the pupils was the social time with friends around the Xscape complex.  The food retailers were surprised but grateful for the amount of business that the pupils provided, a truly amazing feat seeing them consume so much food!  We hope to organise another trip soon so that more pupils can experience skiing on real snow at this amazing facility.’

In other sporting news, Mr. Field reports, ‘Wednesday saw the Yr8 boys compete at the York City Knights organised rugby league festival at Manor school, York.  The boys competed against our federated partners King James’s in the first game.  Despite being straight off the minibus the boys competed exceptionally well and secured a well deserved 12-12 draw.  The second game against York High was a closely contested affair with York High playing to strengths well in early exchanges.  As soon as some tactical changes were made the Boroughbridge boys started to make headway into the points difference.  The clock was against the team and they narrowly lost 12-16.  The final game against Sherburn High School proved to be the toughest challenge.  A well organised and experienced opposition forced the very best out of the Boroughbridge team, forcing them to show great resilience and teamwork to work through the strong defence.  The game finished 8-16 in the favour of the opposition but the boys were able to take valuable lessons from the game.’

We’re really proud of our uniform standards and appreciate your support with this. In our whole school uniform check this morning it was pleasing, as ever, to note that the vast majority of our students are in perfect uniform. We have, however, a very small number of students wearing stretchy flared trousers made from legging material – please note that these are not part of our school uniform.

 

 

 

You are warmly invited to our Drama and Music showcase next Tuesday at 6p.m. in the Main Hall.

Have a lovely weekend!