7th February 2020A Message from the Head...As another busy week draws to a close we had a bit of added excitement to proceedings when Mr Lenihan announced the destination for the next Choir Tour which is due to take place in the summer of 2021. Following a very successful first tour to Tuscany last summer, Mr Lenihan is raising the bar yet again by taking the choir to New York next! And you know what a choir tour means? Yep - Cabaret Evening will be back - yay! More details will emerge in the next few weeks so watch this space. I am seriously thinking of taking up singing lessons in an effort to bag myself a place on this particular trip! Looking ahead to next week, please can I remind U5 and their parents that the second of our 6th form information evenings takes place on Tuesday evening in the Cox-Simpson Library. Following a couple of brief presentations, subject staff will be available for 1-to-1 discussions with parents and pupils about what their subject involves at A Level, what other subjects it might pair well with and what doors it might open for university courses and future careers. Last night saw a similar event for our current U4 parents and pupils regarding GCSE choices and I was sorry not to have been able to be there for that. Sadly, having been rather unceremoniously carted off to A&E during the course of the day with a very low and irregular heartbeat, I was following doctor’s conditional discharge orders to ‘do nothing’ for 24 hours. Well, I managed it until this morning at least… Another event we are looking forward to next week is our 2nd skipping day in Prep. All years from Reception to Lower 3 will enjoy a creative skipping lesson and then all classes will come together at the end of the day to perform their routines in front of each other. Thanks to Miss Cooke for organising this event once again – I’m particularly looking for to Mr Scholfield and Mr Arnold’s performance! Sadly they are without their wing-man this year as Mr Dixon is away at CCF Officer Training in Frimley all week with Miss Sadler and Mrs King. Have a great weekend everyone. - Dr Tracy Johnson - Mental Health Awareness WeekChoose talk, change lives. This was the tag line for this year’s Mental Health Awareness day. Mental health problems affect one in four of us, yet too many people are made to feel isolated, ashamed and worthless because of this. Gateways has supported various mental health initiatives this week - Time to Talk Day encourages everyone to be more open about mental health, to talk, to listen, to change lives. The new 'Inside Out Day' campaign was also supported in school as staff and children wore an item of clothing inside out to show that people often look ok on the outside but don’t always feel good on the inside. High School form time was used to discuss these issues and encourage the children to talk about mental health. Staff wellbeing was also promoted with delicious cakes being provided at break time, so that the staff know ‘someone is thinking of them’. We raised £92.00 in donations for #Ifucareshare. Mrs Borlant who brought the 'Inside Out Day' event to our attention sent the following message, "I just wanted to thank you for your support with Inside Out Day. We’re thrilled with the response with over 300 plus schools (impossible now to keep track as it has reached as far as the USA!) to what started only 4 weeks ago as a very informal, family led campaign with no resources in place, except a poster! Our family were most touched that Gateways participated as the day was held in Jenny's memory and Jenny enjoyed 13 years at Gateways! It was great to see Gateways Inside Out finishing touches from your own posters to the lovely messages that appeared with the delicious cakes. Thank you again for all your support with Inside Out Day - we really hoped it got conversations going and that the children understood the message." Thanks to everyone for taking part and helping to raise awareness of mental health. Check out the latest blog on our website which is focused on 'Finding your Brave' which was the theme for Children's Mental Health Week. - Mrs Leslie Wood and Mrs Karen Titman - West Yorkshire Disability Games Further to their involvement and support of the secondary school event back in December, the nine Gateways Sports Leaders were all able to attend the primary school festival on Monday to support the event in much the same way. The Gateways girls had visibly grown in confidence since the first event and were able to build upon their experience to support another fantastic occasion. We look forward now to supporting the Yorkshire Sport Foundation on the 25th March for the West Yorkshire Winter Games Finals in Leeds. Thank you to all the students involved on Monday for their continued commitment and representing Gateways in such a positive manner. - Mr Simon Scholfield - Cadets pass their Drill testIt is a pleasure to report that 26 cadets have now successfully passed their Drill (Marching) Test by getting it together and stepping off on the right (correct) foot… which is always the left foot first, when marching! Cadets will be officially presented with their Regimental Headdress (Berets) from Major David Crawford from the Cadet Training Team on Tuesday the 11th February, at the Cadet Enrolment Ceremony. This will be a proud moment for our new Contingent and marks the end of the recruit phase. - Captain Col Davies - Sponsor wanted! The Gateways PFA Summer Ball is taking place on 27th June 2020. We are currently seeking our main sponsor for the event and want to give our school community the opportunity prior to promoting this to the external market. The package is priced at £2,000 and in return you or your business will receive: If you would like to be our main sponsor, then please contact me at GPFA@gatewaysschool.co.uk - Kathryn Dyer, Chair, Gateways PFA - Quick Links To Popular ContentArticles from ... |