News from MCS

Annwyl bawb/Dear all 

I hope that you and your families have enjoyed the summer break, despite the somewhat unpredictable weather that beset us at times. We are looking forward to welcoming students back for the new school year. Our new Year 7 and Year 12 students start on Tuesday 5th September and Years 8, 9, 10, 11 and 13 start on Wednesday 6th September. Registration is at 8.45am, and, as always, being in earlier to avoid rushing or lateness is advised.

The importance of attending school on time every day cannot be overstated. Please make every effort to ensure that your child attends every day on time. There is a direct correlation between how well a student attends and how well they do at school - not only in terms of individual academic results but also in terms of their wider development and wellbeing. 

We return to our full school uniform (including blazers and ties) at the start of the academic year after our trial of 'summer uniform' last term. We will consult about this trial and other aspects of current uniform policy this year. The full uniform policy is available on our website HERE. 

Being Ready To Learn is an important part of being a student at MCS, and we ask that students come fully equipped with stationery and other items as per the MCS equipment list. This can be found on our website HERE.

Thank you to everyone who contributed to our new approach to feedback via the new survey service. The trial went moderately well, but there are some adjustments to be made for it to feel more specific to us as a school community. We shall continue to work on this. In the meantime, one of the themes that came out was communications, particularly knowing where to go and who to speak to for different types of information - it can be tricky to navigate in such a large school. We are reviewing and updating our contact pages on the website, and will publicise this to you when it is completed. The usual first port of call for queries about your child's education here at MCS is your child's Form Tutor, who may then direct you to other staff such as the relevant Pastoral Support Officer, Head of Year, subject teacher or other member of staff.

Finally, many congratulations to students who took public examinations last year. They have archived a superb set of results, as you may have seen from the recent articles in the local press or on social media channels. Clicking HERE will take you to the website page where you will find the full press release submitted to the newspapers.  We are very proud of all that they have achieved, and we look forward to another productive and successful year this year for all of our students.

Cofion cynnes/kind regards

Hugo Hutchison
Headteacher

Student Safety at MCS

We would like to remind you that the front entrance to the School is for students to arrive safely on foot.  As you will be aware, pedestrian access from Old Dixton Road and the Burgage is limited with some areas having little or no pavement for students to use. 

At the start of the day, the safe ‘drop-off’ point for students arriving by car is at the rear of the School in the car park accessed via the Dixton Road.  Please use the drop-off zone (the vehicle to pavement area on the left) and then exit the school site.   Please do not park in the parking bays to drop off your child/children.  If you need to park and come into School, please use the visitor car park located adjacent to the Leisure Centre, off the Old Dixton Road and report to Reception on arrival.

Students can be safely collected from the car park at the end of the school day from 3.20pm, once home to school transport vehicles have exited.

Your ongoing co-operation is appreciated.

Healthcare

If your child feels unwell during the day, they should speak to the teacher taking their lesson who will call someone from the PSO team to talk to them, find out what is wrong and liaise with Healthcare.  Our Healthcare Support Worker will talk to the student and call home to request that a student is collected, if necessary.

Please remind your child of this process – students should not be calling/messaging home directly, either during lesson time or during break.  Our system means that we are quickly aware that a student is unwell, that we know where to locate them and that we can then ensure they are somewhere comfortable and supported whilst awaiting collection.

If, however, your child contacts you, please contact the school (01600 775177), explain the situation and we will then locate and speak to your child.  As mentioned above, Healthcare will contact you if your child needs to be collected.

Appointments during the School Day

If your child has an appointment outside school during the day, could you please let the school know in advance (01600 775177).  This means that it is recorded at Reception and they can be signed out quickly, avoiding unnecessary delays. You may also wish to give your child a note to show their teacher, who will release them from class. 

If we are not aware of a request to leave school, either via a message or a note, we are obliged to call parents/carers to confirm a child is leaving/being met at Reception.  If we are unable to make contact with a parent/carer, we cannot allow a student to leave the school.

Thank you for your support.

We have been advised by the Welsh Local Government Association that funding has ceased for Year 7 students who receive a free breakfast as part of the Welsh Government free school meals allowance.

This will take effect from the start of the Autumn term 2023.

We are delighted to begin the term with our new Food Hall partner - Aramark.  Please check this newsletter in the coming months for a range of specials and promotions as we head through the term.

The new menus may be found by clicking HERE - we start on Week One on Wednesday 6th September.

As well as the listed menus they also offer Baked Potatoes with a range of toppings along with Freshly Made Baguettes, Sandwiches, Wraps and Salads.

The Meal Deal offer has one small change - the dessert with the Meat or Meat Free Main is now a Cookie or Jelly Pot.  Hot desserts are still available but are not included in the meal deal.

Allergens - students should speak to a member of the Food Hall team if they have an allergy, and need to know what’s in the food dishes as they can advise on available choices.  Should parents wish to speak to the Food Hall Manager, please call on the main school number - 01600 775177- and ask for Mrs Jones, Aramark.