Dear parents and carers, 

Lunchtime clubs continue to be a success with quite a range being very popular including table tennis - which is new - scrabble and chess. It is a real pleasure to see so many students engaged over social time. Alongside indoor activities, a large number play football and other activities outside. Some just sit and chat and enjoy the atmosphere. Aside from different classrooms and the canteen, we also use the hall, the activity studio, and the sports hall, allowing students to eat their food when taking part in clubs.  

A few days ago, a student commented that I smile a lot and she was right. I am thoroughly enjoying the role and see it as an incredible privilege. I also appreciate the support I am getting from staff, governors and yourselves as parents and carers. If things do not go as planned, we are keen to work out solutions with you, either through a phone call or a face-to-face meeting, and do so in a timely fashion. As always, we ask that conversations are done in a respectful manner as we are all in the same team.  

My thanks to all the year 9 parents who attended parents’ evening on Thursday evening. It was a busy evening with lots of praise going round. At present we have a group of 43 students on our French trip. They left early Thursday and return Sunday around 7.30pm.  

We have had some instances of parents contacting their child by text during the school day - my thanks to most of you who don’t. To the few, it puts your child in a very difficult situation and interrupts their day, sometimes making their day much worse. It is also likely to lead to a sanction so please do not, for the benefit of your child.  

On Wednesday I had lunch with a group of year 11 students, chatting about school and life in general. It was such a pleasure to be with them, lots of laughter and humour plus some ideas about how we can continue to improve the school. The time went very quickly and left me so grateful to be here.  

Have a great weekend 

Mr Nixon

Headteacher

Dear Parents and carers, 

Thank you to all the parents and carers of year 7 students who came to the parents’ evening last night. Once again it was a very busy evening with lots of smiling faces and a real buzz. At every event we ask for parents and carers to complete a short questionnaire so that we can get feedback on what’s going well and where we can improve. Thank you to those parents who completed the questionnaire and your feedback which was very positive. 

Personally, I think one of the great pleasures in life is sitting down at a table with family or friends, eating a meal, and having a conversation. Our mobile phone policy has contributed to this experience as previously in schools, students would be on their phones throughout social time. Next week in assemblies, we will be reiterating the view that social time is to enjoy the company of those around you, in a calm and pleasant environment. Next week, year 9 students are joining years, 7, 8 and 11 in early break and lunchtime and we are opening the hall as an additional eating area at the same time. We also restructured the queuing system on Monday, and I was impressed by how quickly students got used to it so my thanks to them for being so supportive. 

The year 11 and year 10 mock exams have gone well. With year 11 there is now a real sense of urgency as we enter the last weeks of their GCSE years. We altered how we get students ready for going into exams with them now meeting in the hall as a year group for a short pep talk before walking to the sports hall. What this means is students will go through exactly the same process each exam so they have a clear routine every single time. Routine is important in preparing for exams so every little thing we can do to keep it the same helps.  

The polling stations were open this week for students to step up and vote in the East Riding Youth Parliamentary elections. Nine of the candidates were our own students, who did their own lobbying before the polling stations opened. It was great to hear students discussing the options, and some very strong views on some of the manifesto messages. Nearly 300 ballot papers have been collected, with some tutor groups smashing the turnout percentage at nearly 50%!!!!! We now need to wait till March before the results are announced, but good luck to all candidates

Have a great weekend 

Mr Nixon 

Headteacher

Dear Parents and carers, 

This morning, it was a real pleasure to present offer letters to the year 11 students who had expressed an interest in staying on in the Sixth Form. The atmosphere in Tranby House was fantastic with everyone clapping and cheering as fellow students came up to get their letters. Two very brief speeches focused on the benefits of Sixth Form, especially staying on at Hessle because the Hessle students are known, of the great culture we have here, and. The room was packed so it bodes extremely well for the future. What a great way to start the day.    

I did a walk round going into lessons with Mark Brown (Executive Director of Education) on Wednesday morning. The standard of books we saw were very good, with some exemplar cases of high-quality work and presentation. Students were attentive and on task and we witnessed some very effective question and answer techniques. We were particularly impressed at how attentive students were and I am really pleased to say that every student I asked said that they were proud of their work - and they were quite right to be proud.  

One of the many privileges of being a headteacher is working with young people, and our students are great. I am a great believer in regular rewards for those students who attend and work hard, so I have just increased our rewards budget. Research shows that lots of small, short-term rewards are really appreciated and have a greater impact. We continue to see a dip on Fridays so please encourage your child to attend, even if they are not feeling 100%. My thanks to the vast majority who do.  

Last night’s Year 8 parents’ evening was well attended. It was a pleasure to be able to walk around chatting with students and parents and hear how their child is doing at school. The format for parents’ evening hasn’t really changed over the decades - except for Covid - and there is a reason in that a face-to-face discussion with a teacher is extremely valuable.  

We are also delighted to inform you that Mrs Kelsey, our current Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead, will be stepping up to take on the role of Interim Designated Safeguarding Lead to support Mr Chapman as he leads the Leap team. 

Finally, I have presented to staff a number of planned changes going forward, some of which are being introduced on our return after half-term. I will be sending out a letter to all parents next week giving more detail.  

Mr Nixon

Headteacher

Dear parents and carers, 

To start on a personal note, it is great to be able to be at Hessle full time to continue the school’s improvement journey. It’s great to be back.  

At the end of last term, I wrote about the importance of exercise books and that they would be a focus, not only now but throughout my tenure. This week I have dropped into a number of lessons to look at the quality of work our students are completing and I am pleased to say that the picture is a very positive one. There were some exceptional examples where I saw work that was nothing short of exemplary. On the few occasions where books were not quite as I would want, the teacher was aware and was addressing it with the student. As previously mentioned, we will also be providing support for those students who may find it challenging. On Thursday after school, all teaching staff were involved in looking at different exercise books to see good practice and get ideas. It was a valuable exercise.    

At various times of the day, though usually at the end of social time, I like to hold the door open for students to come into the building and I have to say that I continue to be impressed by how respectful and courteous our students are on a day-to-day basis. I find myself saying “you’re welcome” repeatedly as almost all of them say “thank you” as they pass by. In addition, conversations with students in the dining hall are a real pleasure with some students still going out of their way to come and speak to me. It is this level of courtesy that will get them far and what’s more, it comes across very natural so my thanks to you as parents for instilling these values in them. You should be very proud.     

Finally, I would like to emphasise the importance of your child being at school. Attendance drops considerably on Fridays and that is a real concern as it means 20% of the week is being missed by too many students. It is especially the case for those who are in year 10 and year 11 with exams either very close or on the horizon. My thanks to the vast majority of parents who send their child into school every day, as your child will benefit from it for the rest of their lives.   

Have a great weekend. 

Mr Nixon

Headteacher

Dear parents and carers,  

On Tuesday I attended my first Hessle High School and Sixth Form Local Governing Body meeting. Governors play an important role in schools as they bring a local context to the Trust as well as provide support and challenge. In my own experience, a crucial aspect of their role is their visits to school, so it was good to read and hear their feedback on what they saw in school, and the meetings they attended. Governors were sent a copy of the presentation I did a few weeks ago and as senior leaders, we went through our plans whilst highlighting how we had already changed how we quality assure the work that takes place in school.  

It has already been mentioned to teaching staff, so I thought it would be useful to highlight the importance I place on exercise books. They are the window to the student’s attitude to their learning. From January when we return, it will be a major focus both in the standard of presentation and the quality of work students produce so I would ask for your support as parents and carers in this. For some students, it will literally be drawing a line under the previous work, as we know they can produce a much higher standard of work and for others, it will be celebrating the work they are currently doing. Some students will need support, but we should be ambitious for every student at Hessle High School.  

Again, I have absolutely loved my two days at the school and whilst I will be sad to leave Howden, I am also really looking forward to the 06 January when I am in Hessle full time.  

Have a great weekend.    

Mr Nixon

Headteacher