Message from the Head
Dear Parents
Thank you to Mr Rollinson for this week’s assembly reminding us to work hard at everything in order to leave the door open; working hard brings the benefits of having multiple options!
On that note, short and longer (Year 11) reports are winging their way home to you. For Years 7 to 9 this is simply a check in regarding effort in studies so far. For Year 10 we are trialling a tentative GCSE grade/level. It is very early on in the GCSE course to be doing this and these levels are not set in stone at all but we thought Year 10 parents would appreciate a guideline; much will change yet here. For Year 11 a full report with current, predicted and aspirational grades is making its way to you. From September 2023, reports will be online on your parent app!
Thank you too for feedback on how we run Parents’ Evenings. We are currently looking at a different booking system and timings! I’m always interested in whether you prefer online or face to face – there is a real mixture of preferences out there.
And to Christmas where KS1 and EYFS’s Barmy Bethlehem portrayed a traditional narrative with a twist. It was amazing and totally heart-warming; lines were learned, and songs and actions sung and danced. An incredible achievement! Then to KS2 and the dastardly plot of kidnapping Santa unravelled; parts were played, the singing was amazing, and the jokes were really bad! I enjoyed it all – it was a polished performance and the whole afternoon was one of the best entertainments I have ever seen (and I have been to a lot of Christmas productions in my time!) – a real shout out to the level of input, care and expertise our children receive in the Juniors (or should I say Prep!) A heartfelt thank you to the team that enabled this Christmas gift for Hollygirt.
And I think seniors will do a Christmas production next year to add to the melee of events…
Now to some non-Christmassy info but important for our admin and safeguarding of students. A reminder that registration is at 8.40am in the Seniors and arrival after 8.50am is classed as a Late. Please please email your child’s Form Tutor (a list is in the Senior School handbook on the website under the Parents’ tab) as well as cc’ing Reception in. We move to our new record keeping system in January and if a child is absent (we need to know for every day of absence), both Form Tutor and Reception need to know. Your children will know who their Form Tutors are. Also, please do keep us updated with any new email / phone / and other contact changes.
A Sixth Form Taster Day is planned for Thursday 26th January when our current Year 11 can opt to ‘taste’ some subjects they may like to study at A level and meet external applicants; we will also have a special lunch on this day. We have Entrance Day too and have a good number of families signed up to this! January is going to get us off to a flying start! Back to this week though… Christmas dinners on Wednesday were delicious and my thanks to the catering team for looking after us so well!
It was lovely to see so many of you at the chaos that is Christmas Fair and many of you commented on how happy the school is. It is a happy place; yes we have our moments and ‘fall outs’ but when push comes to shove – we are a rare and wonderful community. That sense of community was really present at the Carol Concert last night. The singing was heavenly and in spite of the cold, the atmosphere was warm. It was a lovely event. Your feedback on all things we do is very welcome.
Today may just see a little surprise for the seniors (oh no it won’t ….) but that is after the end of term junior and senior rewards assemblies followed by a pizza treat for simply being the best students a school could have!
My heartfelt thanks to the whole team at Hollygirt for their hard work and care of the students this term and to the Trustees for their support especially in formulating the five year strategy for Hollygirt; the future of the school.
Apologies regarding my coffee morning cancellation today – there are more planned for next term – the first being Friday 10th February.
Goodbyes and Hellos
We are saying Goodbye to Laura Hudson our Bursar today and wish Laura every happiness. Laura has worked diligently and relentlessly for Hollygirt and we know that she remains our friend. Chris Bowker is taking up the role of Bursar and we welcome him to the Senior Leadership Team and the school. For info, Chris’ email address is bursar@hollygirt.co.uk.
Wishing everyone in the Hollygirt family a happy and healthy Christmas.
Best wishes
Dr Helen Barsham
Head
Message from the Head of Juniors
Dear Parents
The Christmas shows on Tuesday were just amazing. We are so proud of the children for their fantastic performances. So much hard work went into learning lines and songs and we know parents had a huge part to play in this too! Thank you to Mrs Maher and all the junior team who worked so hard with the children.
On Wednesday, the children in Rufford house celebrated gaining the most house points this term with a trip to Sweet Spot for ice cream sundaes. Juniors were all served a delicious Christmas lunch prepared by Chef Julie and the team. In the afternoon, Years One to Six visited Nottingham Playhouse to see Dick Whittington which we all thoroughly enjoyed.
Last night, we held the Carol Service at St Peter’s church. The children sang beautifully and it was a lovely occasion.
Thank you for all the donations for the food bank today. Mrs Howlett has delivered these this morning and as always, they are very much appreciated.
And finally, the Junior School will now be known as Hollygirt Preparatory School (Reception to Year 6) and Kindergarten (Nursery). Titles on communications and the website will gradually be changed.
Thank you for all your support this term. I wish you all a very Happy Christmas and New Year. I look forward to seeing you all on Thursday 5th January.
Mrs Victoria Wright
Head of Juniors