Time has certainly flown by since my arrival in May and now it is hard to believe that it is time to farewell our leavers and to wish our senior students well for their external exams. 

In the short time that I have been here I have met a large number of outstanding young adults who possess a lot of talent, who are very caring and respectful towards others and who will lead very successful lives in the future.

I am confident that our senior students are going to achieve excellent results this year. Many of them have made a huge contribution to the school through sports, various performances and involvement within the community. To these students, I say well done, and to those leaving, I say thank you for your contributions to the school and the community. Hold your heads up high, be proud of your achievements and make the most of the opportunities ahead of you.

At the time of writing this comment we have already celebrated a lot of student achievement in the formal sense through our Senior Prizegiving, Sports and Cultural Prizegiving assemblies and the Leavers’ Dinner and Breakfast. Thank you to the large number of parents who have supported many of these events and have added to their special character.

Looking forward to next year we have much to venture into. We will be introducing two specific form periods, which don’t impose on valuable curriculum time, and will provide our form teachers with more opportunities to support our students in the pastoral sense. It will mean a slight adjustment to the daily timetable in 2016, specifically on a Monday and Friday. You will find details regarding these changes included in this newsletter and a comment on how this will affect those students who take designated school bus services.

Next year we also look forward to welcoming the new students in Year 9 and a small number in other year levels also. We will add to our existing cohort a whole new group of students - their talents, abilities and personalities. Welcome to those parents and students who will be reading this newsletter in anticipation of next year.

As this is my final comment for 2015 may I take the opportunity to thank you, the parents, for your continued support and input this year. We enjoy and appreciate your involvement even if your sons and daughters don’t always encourage it!

Wishing you all a happy Christmas and a restful break.