As parents will know, the Education Secretary has recently made an other statement in the House that suggest the possibility of further changes. At the time of writing this there is no substance for us to discuss as the paper has yet to be published. May I assure parents that we will seriously consider any opportunities to improve our offering to our children, but that I cannot speculate at the moment on whether we will be able to do more than we are. I will communicate any proposals as soon as we have them.

Pupil Online Learning Survey

Please would parents encourage children to complete the online learning survey. We will close this survey on Thursday afternoon. The link to the survey is in the last edition of the Twyford Link.

Leavers

David Owens is retiring from his role as Chaplain, having previously also been Head of Latin and Director of Studies

Clare Johnson will leave at the end of this term, after 24 years as a Teaching Assistant/Art Technician. She moved to Twyford, with her then husband, Tony Francis, from Aysgarth School in 1995.

Janet West has decided to leave us to work closer to home, possibly part time.

Kate Fay has decided to take a break from teaching after a difficult year managing family illness and bereavement.

Matthew Gale is returning to Cornwall, after a one-year, fixed term contract teaching Maths.

Eddy Newton is leaving to take up the Headship of Marlborough House School in Kent, after being with us for one year as Head of Latin.

New Appointments for September

Shirley Davies joins as a KS3 Teacher from King’s Furlong Junior School, where she is Head of Year 6. Earlier in her working life, Shirley was a Staff Nurse at Southampton General Hospital and then the Royal Free Hospital, London. Shirley then completed a B.Ed. in Maths and Physics at Exeter University, followed by a PGCE at Winchester University. She is a maths specialist with experience in several schools but is also qualified and experienced in supporting children with additional needs. She is a keen musician with an interest in a range of sports as well: having competed in Fencing both for Hampshire and Devon.

Mollie Stallard joins us in Year 3 as an NQT straight from her PGCE in Primary Education (Maths) at Exeter University. Before that, Mollie took a 1st Class Honours in Music at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. Mollie has Grade 8 in Piano and Singing. Mollie also holds the Diploma of the ABRSM in Bassoon Teaching. She is keen on outdoor pursuits, having been an active CCF member at Taunton School, as well as competing in the Ten Tors Competition.

Theodora Johnson has been appointed as Head of Latin and Lay Chaplain. Theodora lives in Twyford and has taught Latin and French to GCSE and A level at Hampshire Collegiate School since 2006. She is a ‘competent violinist’ and has also been an active contributor to the life of St Mary’s Church, Twyford, having edited the parish magazine for a decade.

Darren Ford will join us as Head of Maths, a post he currently holds at St Swithun’s Junior School. Darren graduated from the University of Winchester with a 1st Class Honours in Primary Education with Maths. He is a keen coach of hockey, but also has experience in coaching cricket and leading outdoor pursuits.

Kelly Holdway has been appointed to the English Department. Kelly is currently Director of Studies at St Edmund’s, Hindhead. She is local to Winchester, and took her BA in Childhood Education at Chichester University. This was followed by a Primary PGCE and later her MA in Education. Kelly has more than 100 County Caps for Hampshire in Badminton, also having represented England at a tournament in Holland. She is a Level 2 Badminton Coach.

Other changes:

Gary Crook will take on the role of Head of Year 3 from September.

Anthony Lafferty will stand down as Head of Year 8 after sterling service.

I am very pleased that Will Fleming (Sports Assistant) will continue with us next term, and so he is not a leaver.

Also, I wanted to confirm who next year’s Form Teachers will be:

Year 3 Gary Crook, Clare Robinson, Mollie Stallard

Year 4 Eloise Goldstraw, Ian Keen, Pippa Higham

Year 5 Olaf Mathar, Tim Grabham, Shirley Davies

Year 6 Tim Goldsmith, Tom Parsons, Georgia Rudkin

Year 7 Liz Clarkson, Mark Brett, Kelly Holdway

Year 8 Kelly Archer, Anthony Lafferty, James Christie