From The Headmaster P T Fraser MA Tel 0117 9655207 Email headmaster@colstons.bristol.sch.uk
		The Headmaster demonstrating his shoe cleaning prowess at a charity event this term

March 2009

Dear Parents / Guardians

As we enter the last week of term, Houses are preparing furiously for the Music Competition and our Sevens sides are looking forward to the National Sevens Tournament at Rosslyn Park. It has been a busy Spring Term, involving the varied challenges of the Entry Examination, Modular Examinations, Colston’s Got Talent, the AS and A2 Drama and the show! For all this, we have conducted business as usual and you will find your son / daughter’s report enclosed, which will provide you with an overview of academic progress and achievements. Should you have any concerns, I would urge you to contact the Tutor or Head of House in order to discuss matters further.

It is very unusual for staff to leave during the academic year but Mr Arrand moves to take the Deputy Headship of the Monmouth School for Girls. By any standards, Mr Arrand has been an outstanding teacher and Head of Department, and the growth in the number of pupils taking Philosophy and Religious Studies is testimony to his excellent work. In addition, Mr Arrand has been a committed Tutor, sports coach and member of our boarding community. Latterly, he has been the Key Stage 4 coordinator and has looked to our management of Years 10 and 11. There is no doubt that Mr Arrand has contributed a great deal to Colston’s and we would all wish him every success at Monmouth.

The Governors will be scrutinising the School Development Plan and authorising an extensive range of projects designed to enhance the academic facilities available to our pupils. All being well, we will see the DT Department refurbished, Phase 2 of the laboratory refurbishment, completion of a second computer room and new facilities for the Sixth Form located in Bishop’s Palace, all available for September. We will also look to complete an ambitious refurbishment of Mortlake, which will provide a new facility for the Art Department and six new teaching classrooms. Such development is essential, in my opinion, to ensure that we provide a high quality environment for teaching and learning.

Parents may be aware that we have had an unfortunate incident involving youths attempting to intimidate and rob members of the school. I have met with the Police to discuss my concerns and have been assured that they will attend any future incidents as priority calls. Should any pupil or parent be involved in, or witness, to any incident, they must phone 999 without delay. Once this is done, the Police will respond immediately and I, for one, am confident that the Street Robbery Team will be proactive in the future.

Following extensive discussions I have decided to change our uniform supplier with effect from the start of the Summer Term. All items of school uniform previously obtained from John Lewis (Cribbs Causeway) will be supplied by Ikon Ltd, and Mr Brian North, the Managing Director, has assured me that he will look to offer us excellent service. Ikon has a retail outlet in Henleaze (190 Henleaze Road, Bristol BS9 4NE), and offers online ordering in addition to a school delivery service. In addition to ourselves, Ikon supply uniform for BGS, QEH and Red Maids, who all previously supplied their parents through John Lewis. As a dedicated uniform supplier, Ikon will undoubtedly offer us an improved service and give greater attention to our business. There will, of course, be some ‘teething problems’ during the transition of business but these will be resolved by the start of the new academic year.

Parents ought to be forewarned of the following events which will, I hope, receive strong parental support.

Friday 22nd May 10:30 am Prize Giving
Saturday 27th June 7:00 pm Parents’ Association Dinner Dance
Thursday 2nd July 12:15 pm Leavers’ Service and Lunch
Friday 3rd July 10:30 am Lower School Prize Giving

Term will end at 12:00 pm on Thursday 2nd July for all Upper School pupils and lunch will not be provided. In addition to the above, I would cordially invite parents to the Drama Club production (Thursday 25th and Friday 26th June) and assure you that parents are welcome visitors to any school event.

The Summer Term will be heavily influenced by public examinations and I am grateful to Mrs Brighton, the Examinations Officer, for her excellent work. We have agreed the dates and structures for Study Leave (Years 11,12,13) but these are complex and need to be fully assimilated by pupils. Should you have any questions or concerns regarding examinations, Mrs Brighton will be only too happy to assist.

Predictably, the issue of traffic, parking and school pickup remains sensitive and I would ask all parents to observe parking restrictions and to exercise judgment, good sense and courtesy in the use of cars. We have also had to address issues of site security and I regret to inform you that we will be looking to take a number of measures in response to recent burglaries which continue to occur. In this, I trust parents will be understanding of the measures we feel obliged to take.

As always, I would ask for your support in respect of term dates. Leave of absence should only be sought in exceptional circumstances, and holidays should not be booked in term time. Requests for leave of absence should be made, in writing, well in advance of the event. Naturally, we have an expectation that pupils will honour their school commitments, particularly those scheduled in the calendar. Should this be an issue, parents ought, as a matter of courtesy, to contact the relevant members of staff.

The Easter holidays will, I hope, provide opportunities for pupils to get some well-earned rest and for families to spend some time together. We are fortunate to have staff who are able and willing to take overseas trips and I would want to thank all those involved in the Cricket Tour (Grenada), Hockey Tour (Barcelona), Skiing Trip (USA) and the History Trip (Turkey). If this were not enough, we have pupils engaged in Duke of Edinburgh and the training of our Ten Tors teams. These provide wonderful opportunities for your pupils to travel and take full advantage of our wider provision. I have the great pleasure of accompanying the cricketers on tour and have never been to the Caribbean. You will find my tour diary published on the school website, which continues to provide a wide-ranging and vibrant commentary on all that goes on at Colston’s.

With best wishes to all our families.

Yours faithfully

Peter Fraser