News

Monday 24th March 2025

Dear Parents, Carers and Students,

Welcome to our newsletter for the eleventh and penultimate week of the Spring Term 2025. It’s week A, so our last whole school assemblies of the term are taking place.  I am leading these with sixth form students and we are reflecting on the successes of the term as well as Ramadan, Eid, Lent and Easter.

Year 13 are sitting their final round of pre-public examinations this week. These are of crucial importance in the run up to the real exams which start at the beginning of May. The final year 11 parents’ evening takes place on Thursday this week and we look forward to seeing full attendance at this event. 

Last week the government published a key piece of educational research around attendance and examination success. The data shows that students are twice as likely to achieve the all-important benchmark of a grade 5 in English and mathematics if their attendance is consistently above 95%. At Lampton our whole school attendance is just below 94% and our target for all students is 96%. This means that a number of our students have progress to make to ensure that they maximise their potential. I would urge you to make sure that your child/children are in school every single day and on time. It is clear that days off and lateness have a negative impact on educational outcomes. My thanks to those families who make sure that their children are in school on time every day.

My thanks to all staff and students who were involved in last week’s school production of Shrek at the Hounslow Arts Centre. The impact of holding the event in a professional performance space was clear to see and it was great to have such positive feedback from staff at the Arts Centre who couldn’t praise the students enough. If you didn’t attend, you certainly missed out on a great experience. Planning will start soon for next year’s show!

Media coverage has continued this week about the dangers presented to young people through the use of smartphones and social media. As per last week’s newsletter, we would recommend that your child does not bring a smartphone to school at all. If a mobile is required a non-smart phone can be easily purchased via Amazon for around £30.  This is an easy way to protect your child from online risks. You may find the following website helpful https://smartphonefreechildhood.co.uk/

This term ends on Friday 4th April at 12.30pm. The summer term will start on Tuesday 22nd April with registration at 10am. Normal lessons will follow from period 2 onwards. Years 7, 8 and 9 will be having formal examinations in the sports hall that week, details of which have been communicated separately.

With best wishes for the week ahead,

Stephen Davis

Headteacher

 

Holiday Vouchers

Families with children living in the borough who are aged between 5 and 11 years and entitled to benefits related free school meals, can attend the Holiday Activity and Food Programme (HAF) activities for free. When families are registered for benefits related free school meals, they will automatically receive their voucher(s) to book by email and text message.

Funded by Department for Education, HAF in the Summer will be delivered by experienced providers with fun and enriching activities featuring sports and games, cooking, computing coding, music, arts and crafts, Easter egg hunts, nerf wars and so much more taking place across the borough. Eligible children can attend 4 sessions from 7- 18 April 2025. You will be sent these vouchers to your email. Please look out for these and book the places appropriate for your child's interest.

 

Attendance Data and New Research

New research published by the Department for Education found that at key stage 4, pupils who attended school nearly every day in Year 11 (with an attendance rate of 95-100%) were 1.9 times more likely to achieve the Grade 5 in English and Maths GCSE compared to pupils who only attended 90-95% of the time. At Lampton we have a high number of students whose attendance is between 90-95%. This may seem like a small difference; the impact is great in relation to achievement. So please support us in ensuring your child attends school every day.

We appreciate your support and if there is a reason they cannot attend please let us know. Please contact the Head of Year, Ms Kapila or our Attendance Officer who will support your child and the family if there are ongoing medical issues or other concerns

 

Keeping Your Children Safe Online: Self-generated Imagery

The Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) is the key organisation that works to remove indecent images of children from the internet. Their annual report helps us understand trends in this area, with the last published data from 2023.

The majority of all imagery reported to the IWF is self-generated imagery, meaning that more commonly, children are either independently creating or being asked, coaxed or coerced into sharing nude photos and videos online, either via their devices or a webcam. The largest group of concern was found to be 11–13-year-old girls. This group continues to be the most at-risk group, making up 51% of all actioned reports and 55% of self-generated child sexual abuse reports.

As a parent you may wish to review your children's friends list and ask your child about who they speak to online. Please also consider discussing with your child the tactics used online by those who wish to do them harm, such as asking them to keep secrets, making threats, or even blackmailing them. Children should be empowered to raise their concerns with a parent or a trusted adult or know where to seek support, such as Childline.

 

Grief

If you or members of your family are going through a challenging time related to grief then you may find the following link really helpful:

https://www.youngminds.org.uk/professional/resources/support-with-grief-and-loss/