Dear Parents, Carers, and Friends of The Woodroffe School,
Thank you for taking the time to read through our last edition of ‘Rough Notes’ for this academic year. Across the year, our students and staff have continued to do amazing things. We have done our very best to celebrate these achievements and share the good news stories with you, we hope they have been welcomed. I would like to take this opportunity to thank you again for the support you have given the school during this year.
This latest edition of ‘Rough Notes’ contains some of the best articles from across the school year and, with so many to choose from, it was tough to whittle it down to those included, we hope you enjoy our selection. In addition, you will find some new pieces from the final few weeks of the year. So, what have the students been doing this month?
Students in years 7, 8 and 9 participated in their Junior Awards celebration evening with award winners also having the chance to join their peers and enjoy a slice of pizza in the beautiful summer sun. Congratulations to all the award winners.
For the first time since 2019, we were able to run a full sports day. It was great to see so many students participating in and supporting a huge number of events across the morning. Congratulations to all the participants and to the PE department who ran a very tight ship. And to those who joined us on the day, thank you for supporting our students and adding to the atmosphere.
After a few years without or with amended year 11 and year 13 proms, it was great to be able to join our students at the traditional end-of-year events. They had a fantastic time at their respective events and looked amazing.
A talented group of artists were asked to participate in a school art project where they were supported by a graffiti artist in brightening up the wall in the playground. We think they did an amazing job.
Year 9 students enjoyed ‘Health Day’ where they spent time looking at several key issues surrounding mental, physical, and sexual health including consent. I would like to thank the external groups that provided sessions on the day for our young people, the feedback was fantastic.
In addition, year 9 also participated in Enterprise Day (not linked to Star Trek) as part of the school’s award winning careers programme.
Starting on Monday the 27th of June and running into the first few days of July, we ran our first ‘WIDE Week’ in school. WIDE, Woodroffe Inclusion Diversity and Equality, week encompassed many opportunities for students to engage in a range of topics focused on supporting and developing an inclusivity society. Thanks to Mr Hennessy, our WIDE Champion, for his work in setting up this opportunity for our students.
Activity days, what a lot of fun we had. Students enjoyed time together as year groups and then had the opportunity to participate in a range of activities all on inflatable equipment. Year 9 enjoyed a fabulous end to the year with their residential visit to the Mendips, participating in outdoor and adventurous activities.
And what about Annie? A fabulous performance by the cast and all those who made it possible. A truly brilliant musical performance What about the staff?
July gave us a great opportunity to be able to get back to focussing on learning and teaching across the school. Staff, in mixed department teams, had the opportunity to attend a whole day training event where we focussed on our priorities for the forthcoming year under the heading, ‘Teaching for Excellence’.On the 20th of July, we were able to welcome members of the community to our school, providing them with an opportunity to tour our new build. We are delighted with the new facilities and can’t wait until we are able to make them feel more like home.
This year we say goodbye to several long-standing staff members as well as some who have only been with us for a shorter time, that’s most when you consider one staff member has done an amazing 50 years at Woodroffe. I would like to thank you all for your service to the school and the community but, most of all, I would like to thank you for your unwavering support of our students. You have all done an amazing job and we wish you the very best for the future. Thank you.
I hope you enjoy our latest edition of ‘Rough Notes’. Should you wish to find out more about our school, news or events, please visit the school website, which I am sure you will find useful. In addition, for regular updates, why not look at our social media outlets:
The Woodroffe School Headteacher can be found on Twitter - @HeadteacherTws
The Woodroffe School can be found on Twitter - @WoodroffeSchool
The Woodroffe School on Instagram – woodroffeschooldorset
Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your continued support and encouragement.
Best wishes,
Dan Watts
Headteacher