In our latest blog, SGGS Assistant Headteacher, Chris Hall, considers how the first post-lockdown half-term has been and what it has been like attending school since September.

 

Over to Chris …

 

 

Last year was my 30^th anniversary of working in education and the start of this most recent term represented my 14^th year spent at SGGS. To say it has been nothing like any start of term I have ever experienced would be an understatement, but I am pleased to say it has been no less exciting.

 

A positive start

The overwhelming feeling from everyone walking through our school gates in September appeared to be one of relief. Attending school in person again, albeit under new restrictions, has created a sense of normality for all involved, which is very important during these times. It is worth remembering that our catchment area is county-wide, meaning many of our students have not seen their closest friends in person until returning to school. Students were visibly excited to see their peers and their teachers, who have all missed them in return.

 

It was reassuring how quickly a sense of calm and purpose shone through once more. School is different now, but everyone has relished the chance to partake in live lessons, socialise in their lunchtime bubbles and most importantly, learn. We worked hard to plan well ahead of the return to school and this has paid off, with safe and efficient ways of operating now the norm around school.

 

Resilience and lessons learned

Of course, flexibility was needed and we have refined some aspects since the first few days. For example, to avoid queues building for some of the toilet facilities, we made additional facilities available. The washing of hands in portable basins has been incredibly helpful and once we saw the footfall upon arrival, we adjusted the placement of these to speed up access and make the process flow better.

 

Our ability to migrate to a virtual environment so quickly when lockdown was announced has allowed us to learn a lot in a very short space of time. Those lessons have not been forgotten now that we have returned to school. Already this term, homework is being set on Microsoft Teams, with lessons and resources shared on the platform. This is an exciting development that has seen our educational practice become more technologically advanced than it may have been at this stage of the year. It is clear that our commitment to technology was accelerated by the rapid nature of our lockdown solution, but we are now reaping the benefits. We are all hoping that we do not find ourselves in a similar situation again, but it is comforting to know that we have an excellent response and strategy in place should that happen. 

 

The most notable day-to-day change has come in the shape of moving tutorial time to the start of the school day. Tutor engagement was historically after lunch, but now students have this valuable settling time first thing in the morning, before learning begins for the day. Social engagement is high on the agenda, with tutor groups focusing on our community ethos, commitment to learning and care for one another. Additionally, students used to move classrooms between lessons, but now they remain safely in their bubble teaching spaces with the staff moving to teach them.

 

Wellbeing and support

Children are generally very resilient and this is especially true of the students in our community. As such, the changes to the daily timetable (one-way systems and staggered departure times) have all been taken in their stride. The quality and calibre of our student body undoubtedly helps with this, and we are grateful for the advantage of having a picturesque green site, with plentiful room and space for fresh air during breaks outside in the bubble spaces.

 

SGGS is proud of its pastoral care and we continue to offer the same level of support that we always have. Due to each student being treated as an individual and remaining well known to pastoral staff and progress leads, we are able to quickly identify those in need of extra support. Others will emerge as testing times continue to unfold, but these will be treated with the same attention as in any other circumstance. No additional measures have been needed to meet current challenges as they are already woven into the care strategy we have always had in place. 

 

 

Hopes for the future

 

Our institutional resilience is to be admired and there is no doubt in my mind that SGGS can and will cope with whatever comes its way. Our hope of course is that schools do remain open throughout the year and a more ‘normal’ education can continue to be provided, with as little disruption to academic and personal and growth as possible.

 

Beyond our stable learning platform and care ethos, we are looking forward to broadening enrichment elements and bringing back more clubs, competitions and trips that our students love so dearly. We are all hopeful that further clarity will be provided as time progresses on topics such as examinations, and we will continue to support students in every way that we can.

 

It is great to be back at SGGS and our first half-term has proven we are still a vibrant community of optimistic and committed learners. We remain focused on both the short and long-term futures of the remarkable students in our community.

 

We are still SGGS.