Tuesday 28 January 2020

HM Blog- Tuesday 28 January 2020

This week I am delighted to be writing the Blog on behalf of Mr Tomkins.

On Sunday, twenty-eight Year 12 students and three members of staff – Mrs Van Mol, Mr Rivers and Mr Tomkins- flew out to New York and Boston to take part in the 67^th session of the Harvard Model United Nations. The students have spent many hours, weeks and months preparing to take part in the prestigious four-day event. Over 4,000 students from around the world will take part in the international relations simulation, modelling the role of real international decision makers, discussing and debating international issues and developing innovative policy solutions. We wish them all the best of luck and look forward to hearing about their experiences when they return.

Many congratulations go to the 2nd XI senior football team which secured a strong 7-1 victory over Oakwood Park in the Kent Cup Quarter Final – well done boys and we look forward to seeing your ongoing good effort in the competition!

On Thursday 23^rd January, the whole of Year 10 and 11 watched a safeguarding presentation on County Lines and grooming delivered by the St Giles Trust, supported by Kent Police. The exploitation of young people via so called “county lines” criminal networks is a key safeguarding issue at a national, county and local level. The St Giles Trust presenter focused on debunking myths and stereotypes around crime and related issues and challenging some of the messages put out on social media and via popular culture. He also gave students insights to help them identify potentially risky situations and talked about strategies they might use to overcome negative peer pressure. The presentation is part of our proactive and preventative PSHCE and safeguarding programme. A big thank you goes to all of the Year 10 / 11 students who proved themselves to be a fantastic, engaged audience throughout.

Also this week, Mr Tomkins and Cameron B in Year 13 delivered four House assemblies on a green, environmental theme. As well as raising awareness of the wider global climate crisis, they also focused on what we can do - both as a school and also as individuals - to “make a difference”. One key area that we are ALL going to focus on immediately is litter. It is vital that we take care of our environment – in school and beyond – and looking after our immediate surroundings for our own benefit and the benefit of others in our community is a great place to start! Initial reports indicate that the school site is already a much more pleasant place to be – keep up the good effort everyone.

There is a growing number of squash players at the school and we were able to enter teams for the Kent Schools’ Squash tournament on Friday 17^th January at the Mote Squash Club.  The boys faced some tough opposition from schools across Kent, but performed admirably with the Junior Team progressing beyond the pool stages to the semi-finals.  Well done boys!

Finally, we are looking forward to Tonbridge House Charity Day on Friday 31^st January. There are many events planned throughout the day with the aim of raising money for ‘Brain Tumour Research’.  In addition to the usual non uniform day, students are also invited to ‘Wear a Hat’ for a small additional voluntary donation towards this very good cause. Good luck Tonbridge – I am sure you will all be working hard to raise lots of money AND earn lots of points towards the House Cup Competition.

Miss Johnson, Deputy Head

 

Friday 24 January 2020

Sorry for the delay in uploading this week's Blog.

Firstly, I wish to congratulate the boys of the U13 Football Squad who successfully reached the semi-final of the Kent Cup last week, beating Dane Court Grammar School 2 – 1.  Well done boys and good luck.

 

This week Year 10 returned to normal school following the examinations last week.  Over the week the boys will be finding out how they got on.  Also this week the theme for the school assemblies was further highlighting our green agenda and how we are looking after our environment.  The biggest challenge is changing habits, but we are determined to work hard on this to begin a much-needed change.

 

Year 9, 10 & 11 attended what we are calling a ‘Futures Briefing’ this week.  The main focus is to illustrate to the boys how they can achieve their aspirations by showing them what former Maidstonians have gone onto and what their profiles were like when they were at school.  I have seen the presentation and software package, and it is an excellent resource to get the boys really thinking and how they can position themselves for the future.

 

Our budding sixth form artists visited Maidstone Museum to get further inspired, and on Thursday boys from years 10 and 11 had a presentation given to them from Kent Police about gangs and county lines.  This latter event is vital for supporting young teenagers about how society is changing.

 

And on Sunday 28 sixth form students, accompanied by Mrs Van Mol, Mr Rivers and myself, fly out to New York and Boston to attended the Harvard Model United Nations Conference.  Only two school nationally attend the conference, so knowing that it will be Maidstonians standing on a world stage debating global issues is incredibly rewarding and fills one with pride.

Tuesday 14 January 2020

The main focus for this week are the Year 10 examinations.  Not only will the examinations highlight how much progress the students have made at this halfway point in their GCSE studies, but they will also provide the first opportunity for the year group to experience examinations in the main hall.  We wait and see what happens.  Good luck boys.

 

Last night was a busy one for me as I attended three after school meetings: The Staff Wellbeing Group, the Parent Forum and the Harvard parent meeting. Much was discussed.

 

And this Friday the application window for applying to be the next School Captain and School Vice-Captain opens with the deadline being Friday 7th February.  Jonah and Jack, the current incumbents, still have three months left in the roles, but the process of finding their successors begins now.  The current Year 12 is a good year group, so we look forward to welcoming many applications.

 

Tuesday 7 January 2020

Welcome to the first Headmaster’s Blog of 2020.  Welcome back to a new term; I hope you all had a good holiday, and Happy New Year. 

This week is a quiet one to ease us back into school life. 

Tonight we welcome parents of year 8 students to hear about the GCSE options process.  The time has come for year 8 students to consider what they would like to study next year, and tonight’s information evening explains the detail.  And tomorrow night is the Year 9 Parents’ Evening.  After two terms of GCSE studies it is a good point for parents to hear how their sons have progressed.  We look forward to welcoming them.