This week has been dominated by our Open Evening. It is a key event and one I always look forward to as it gives us the opportunity to showcase our school to the local community. I am proud of our school and believe it has a compelling offer to parents locally. The stars of the show, as always, were the students. More than 1 in 4 of the students gave up their evening to volunteer to support the school and the feedback from the parents in attendance was so positive. Next week sees the first of our two Open Mornings, when visitors get the chance to see the school on a normal working day.

You may have heard that Cirencester College had to put a lockdown in place on Wednesday evening following an incident that took place. It is an unfortunate reality that schools do need to have clear plans in place in the event of emergencies and are required to run drills to prepare the students for such an eventuality. We do this annually and this year’s drill will be taking place in the week beginning 29 September. Full details will be circulated to parents and students next week.

Another part of our safety measures is to practise our Fire Drill procedures. We did this today and I was incredibly impressed by the way the students conducted themselves throughout. The entire school was fully evacuated in 10 minutes and the students were able to return to their lessons within 15 minutes of the bell sounding. We hope we will never have to use these procedures for real but are assured that everyone knows what to do to keep themselves safe in that eventuality.

Sporting fixtures began again this week:

• Year 11 Rugby – on Monday our Year 11s travelled over to The Crypt to take part in the National Cup. As expected, we faced a tough, organised Crypt team. I cannot fault our boys’ effort from start to finish. They defended heroically and attacked when they could. Every player gave it 100% and The Crypt certainly knew they had been in a game. Special mention to Alec P and Victor O for their all-round grit and determination; they really led from the front. Good luck to The Crypt in the next round.

• U14 Girls Football – on Tuesday our U14s travelled to Churchdown for the first round of the England Schools FA Cup, proudly wearing their new kit. The opposition was incredibly strong and despite some brilliant runs, strong tackles and good link-up play, Churchdown were victorious and progressed to the next round. Liv K was chosen as player of the match. There were also some stand-out performances from Brooke F, Amber H and Immy J.

A date for your diary. On Thursday 2 October, the Year 7 Tutor/Parent Evening takes place from 4.00 – 7.00pm. This is a great opportunity to discuss how your child is settling in to life at Severn Vale. Full details will be sent home on Monday, so do look out for an important letter in your child’s bag.

I include my weekly reminder about Free School Meals eligibility. If your financial circumstances have changed, your child may be eligible for Free School Meals. If you click on this link you will find guidance on the eligibility criteria and the application process. It's a quick process and we are notified of all FSM entitlements by Gloucestershire County Council each Monday. I would urge you to have a look if you think you may benefit from financial assistance.  

I do hope you enjoy a great weekend. 

Regards 

Richard Johnson  
Headteacher