Shwmae bawb
We are on the penultimate lap of the academic year, and there is so much to talk about, once again.
First, many congratulations indeed to the wonderful Performing and Expressive Arts team, who once again pulled out all the stops and delivered a wonderful lower school production of Newsies Jr. Many thanks to them, to the whole cast of course, and to students who worked the lights, sound, backstage, raffle and refreshments. What a great team they are. Thanks also to parents and carers who supported by getting students to rehearsals and, of course, for buying tickets to what was a fabulous show. The power of that chorus was something to behold, and there were outstanding individual performances across the board.
I hope that those who attended also had an opportunity to visit our Year 13 Art Exhibition in the atrium as well. I never cease to be astounded by the quality of the final exam pieces, and looking through the project folders that students develop over the course is a real treat that I look forward to every year. If you’ve not toured the exhibition before, I can strongly recommend it.
I would like to thank Mrs Jones and her team in the Food Hall for the hard work they put in yesterday, to make the Mad Hatter's Lunch such fun for the students. The students are always delighted to see Mrs Jones and her team fully committed to dressing for whichever theme is chosen and pleased with whatever food delights are on offer and this was no exception.
I am at risk of stating the obvious here, but the weather has been particularly warm. We will continue PE kit all the way to the end of term, and please can I emphasise the importance of students bringing refillable water bottles into school. This includes when on visits and adventurous trips out during next week. Sun screen is also a must, especially given that students will be spending longer periods outside next week. May I also please draw your attention to the messages below regarding the dangers of unauthorised swimming in reservoirs and other bodies of water, especially given the weather. There have been tragic cases in the news this week where teenagers have died whilst swimming in such places, and so it seems apposite to raise this important safety issue now.
And finally, talking of the news, you may have seen coverage on BBC radio and television of the Monmouthshire schools campaign to advocate for children not to have a smartphone (and not to have any social media access) until they are at least 14. This is a message you have heard before, and that Year 6 parents have also heard in our current transition process. Something that has strongly come back from my discussions with others is that starting the messaging in Year 6 is often too late, and so we are giving careful consideration to how to work with primary schools to communicate with parents and carers of younger children too. We have also had requests for more information, and beyond recommending reading The Anxious Generation to you all, I will have a think about how to get more information out about the research that lies behind these messages, as well as suggestions for practical steps that you can take to address this with your own child.
All best wishes for what looks like a very sunny weekend ahead.
Hugo Hutchison
Headteacher
Recently, 
Congratulations to Year 8 student, Laurence Regan, who has been confirmed as the new voice of Rubble in Nickelodeon's Paw Patrol series 12, as well as for Rubble and Crew series 3. 
Year 7 student 
Congratulations to George Sims (Year 9) who became the Welsh Open Topper Sailing Champion at Llandegfedd last weekend, winning seven out of the eight races.
Congratulations to former student Eleanor Lawrence-Preston on winning the Diamond Jubilee challenge Cup (Junior women’s quad) with Wycliffe College at Henley Royal Regatta. 
Please note that all students will be required to remove their padlocks and empty their lockers by the end of term on Friday 18th July. The last week of term is always exceptionally busy with Summer Learning, but it is important that students ensure that all padlocks are removed and the lockers are emptied.
