New Year welcome from the Headteacher
Happy New Year from The High School Leckhampton!
I hope that this message finds you well, having enjoyed a happy and healthy festive season.
I am sure it goes without saying that 2021 will be a momentous year for The High School Leckhampton and as I write this, on the very first day in my tenure as Headteacher, I am incredibly excited about what lies in store for us all over the coming months.
The weight of responsibility, as the inaugural Headteacher of our brand-new school, is certainly not lost on me. Lin Manuel Miranda’s musical ‘Hamiliton’ has been a favourite of mine over recent years and in a seminal moment George Washington sings, ‘History has its eyes on me.’ Without intending to sound grandiose, his sentiment feels very apposite as I take my seat at the helm.
In December, after 21 years, I said an emotional farewell to my colleagues and pupils at Prince Henry’s High School, Evesham and have subsequently been very warmly welcomed into the Balcarras Trust. Indeed, much has happened since my interview and appointment in early October. Initially, I was fortunate to meet many of our prospective pupils and their families during our Open Mornings and since then I have spent much time with Mr Burke and my new colleagues in the Trust, getting up to speed and putting things in place to build momentum for 2021. I was delighted to learn that Cheltenham Borough Council granted planning permission for our temporary home at Balcarras on 17th December. This will be wonderful accommodation and we are expecting building to commence in late January with completion in early July. Over the coming weeks I intend to start recruiting teachers for September and there are several important meetings in my diary, not least with uniform suppliers and GCC to confirm transport arrangements to our temporary site. There is no doubt that 2021 is going to be a very busy time and I suspect that our moto Prorum Sempur (Always Forward) is going to seem very apt this year!
You will see that we are still using our temporary website, but our new and permanent website is currently under construction and I hope to be sharing that with you by the end of the month. When the new website is launched, I will be able to share with you much more about how our wonderful new school will operate but, in the meantime, please keep a look out for regular updates from me and if you have questions or would like to know more about our school, please do not hesitate to get in touch.
With the very warmest wishes for 2021.
Helen Wood
