News

 

Monday 10th June 2024

Dear Parents, Carers and Students,

Welcome to our newsletter for the eighth week of the Summer Term 2024. I am pleased to report that all students have settled well to their new timetables and the new academic year has got off to an excellent start.

It is Week B and in our year assemblies this week we will be talking to students about the situation that took place at the end of last week on social media. In particular, there will be a focus on our core school value of respect and the British Values of tolerance and mutual respect, including how these underpin all that we do in our diverse school community. I would like to place on record my thanks to those members of our community, both past and present, who brought the matter to our attention as this allowed the school to take appropriate action.

As this half-term progresses, year teams are gearing up for their trip days which take place in the next few weeks - please ask your child/children about the opportunities which are on offer. A reminder that our enrichment  programme ends with the whole school sponsored walk around Osterley Park on Wednesday 17th July. Please encourage your child/children to take full advantage of the enrichment programme over the coming weeks.

With best wishes for the week ahead.

Stephen Davis

 

 

HAF Summer Program for secondary school pupils

Each school holiday LB Hounslow provides a range of fully funded activities for eligible children. To find out more about eligibility, please see this information. For the full programme, please follow this link.

 

Safeguarding briefing: Coerced online child sex abuse

In a recent survey, over a quarter of girls reported that they have had some kind of experience of requesting a nude or semi-nude photos or videos. Children can be groomed, coerced or encouraged into sexual activities online. This is known as self-generated child sexual abuse content, or first person produced images and videos. It’s where sexual images or videos of children are captured via a webcam or camera-enabled device. There is no physical presence of the abuser and the child is often in their own bedroom or bathroom. Whilst these images can be the product of grooming, blackmail and coercion, they could have also been originally voluntarily produced by the child, but then shared with others without the child’s full knowledge or consent. Any child with unsupervised access to the internet is potentially at risk. 

As a result of these and other dangers, we strongly encourage parents to delay getting a smartphone for your child as long as possible. If your child does bring a mobile phone to school, the school is not responsible if it is lost / damaged / stolen.

If your child does have a mobile phone, please:

● Ensure you monitor and limit your child's phone use - through Apple Screen Time / Google

Family Link.

● From time to time manually check your child’s phone, including social media apps e.g.

WhatsApp groups.

● Ensure internet filters are turned on at home and on your child’s mobile network.

More information can be found in our e-safety guide for parents and carers. 

Please below for info on a webinar open to all parents about risks of child criminal exploitation. 

 

Train to teach with us!

 Do you know anyone who is thinking of joining the best profession in the world and training to teach? Are you currently working with young people and considering taking the next step in your career? Are you looking for a way to train locally and give back to your own community while learning on the job?

 If so, consider training to teach with the London West Alliance ITT, in partnership with the University of Roehampton. We offer salaried and unsalaried training routes working in partner schools across the South West London area, in a wide range of secondary subjects. You will be offered high quality training, with a dedicated team of mentors and experts, and will achieve QTS and PGCE qualifications, propelling you on the first step to the rest of your teaching career.

 Applications for London West Alliance ITT are now open!

 If you’re interested, or you know anyone who may be, please visit our website for more information: https://www.lwaitt.org.uk or contact us on getintoteaching@lwaitt.org.uk