Dear Parents,

It is always a joy to welcome all our pupils back to school in September and this year has been no exception. The term has got off to a hectic start with the Prep School Curriculum Evening and the Year 7 Transition Evening already history. Apprehensive new pupils who only two weeks ago were tentatively taking their first steps to integrate themselves are now well established and ready to go! The recent Macmillan Coffee Morning and inaugural inter-house Tug of War event has left us aching and exhausted but proud to be members of such a dynamic community. Thank you all for making both events such a success. The PTFA raised over £350 for Macmillan Cancer Support and the girls over £850 for the same cause.

I hope you enjoyed reading about last term’s events in the summer newsletter. Your new school calendar is evident that time never stands still here. In fact as I write this letter I am conscious of preparations going on around me to welcome fifty guests from the Salesian College who are here this beautiful Friday evening to share a supper with our sixth form girls and launch this year’s pilgrimage to Lourdes and its associated fundraising events. I am keen to get to know the group who will be joining Mr Maher, Miss Hobday, Miss Williams and me for next Easter’s enterprise. Watch out for a series of exciting events to support this pilgrimage. For up to date news, make sure you visit our website regularly on www.altonconvent.org.uk where we plan to track our efforts.

As the cycle of school life resumes, both Senior and Prep School pupils are already attending team trials and starting the relentless round of sports fixtures. Congratulations to Year 3 who competed with considerable determination and success in their first ever tournament last week. Congratulations also to St Madeleine’s for coming out on top at the memorable inter-house Tug of War which got the competitive year off to such a splendid start. Commiserations must go to the Lower Sixth who were vanquished by their elders and betters in the Upper Sixth and to Mr Wallace’s team who fell foul of the competitive instinct of Mr Maher’s staff team. Any new year brings with it the promise of change and consolidation.

We are delighted to welcome Mrs Jackson as a Year 1 class teacher, Ms Glass to the Drama Department and Mrs Hinds to Year 4, covering for Mrs Riches who is recovering from surgery. Miss Givon returns to us in the General Office having completed her degree. This year the Senior School roll has again risen and has necessitated some room reallocations. More efficient use of rooms in the Creative and Performing Arts Centre means that most students are taught creative subjects in the new building. ‘Before and After School’ care is now accommodated in the Prep Activities Room which also houses Learning Support. The holiday has afforded us the time to complete a number of important refurbishment and redecoration projects including the bridge corridor and the Nursery classrooms. The new Day Care Centre is under construction and we aim to launch the new provision in the spring.

Once again I am able to report on excellent external examination results achieved by our senior girls. At A level the Upper Sixth celebrated their 100% pass rate with outstanding results across the board and with 87% of all results at A/B grades including a magnificent 71% at grade A. In spite of all the gloomy media coverage that university places were in short supply, it will come as no surprise that all our students are off to first choice universities with no one having to go in to the dreaded ‘Clearing’. Their chosen subjects include Medicine, Mathematics, Politics and Philosophy, History, English Literature, Neuro-Science and Theology. I am enormously impressed by the diversity of their courses and believe they are equipped with the necessary independent study skills and crucial self confidence to be extremely successful in the future. Outstanding individual performances were attained by Katie, Alicia , Rosemary, Lucy, Isabel, Poppy and Alex although it is somewhat difficult to single out anyone from what were uniformly excellent results. My congratulations go to all of the Upper Sixth leavers. What a pleasure it was to see so many deservedly happy faces among staff and students who together had worked so hard to make this day happen. This all goes to prove that our ethos combined with academic breadth and personal commitment produces students who aim high and study to full effect.

Our Lower Sixth students also achieved encouraging AS Level results and are very well placed to achieve similarly good results next year. They will now specialise in their chosen A Level courses and already are receiving individual guidance on university applications!

Again outstanding GCSE results were achieved by our Fifth Year students with 100% of girls achieving the national benchmark of 5 GCSE subjects. 61% of all passes were achieved at A*/A with 85% of all passes gaining the top A*/B grades. All the girls can look forward to Sixth Form studies with real confidence. It is a pleasure to have students with such academic and creative potential progressing to the Sixth Form Centre where in addition to academic excellence and personal tutoring they enjoy a broad and hugely varied cultural and social experience.

Fourth Form students are also to be congratulated on their excellent GCSE results this year achieving 82% grades A* and A. Overall the picture is a very rosy one with all the staff and students thoroughly deserving of their success.

Despite journalists’ desire to convince us to the contrary, most students in the country do not achieve examination grades of the quality that we appear to take for granted. Partnership between home and school is the cornerstone on which such success is built. I should like to thank parents for cajoling their daughters to forgo the delights of social networking sites in order to meet deadlines and for ensuring that homework is taken seriously from the Prep School upwards. One further way you, as parents, can help, is to ensure the regular and punctual attendance of all pupils.

Slippage on timekeeping has a detrimental effect on the orderly running of the school. Please ensure that the relevant start time is adhered to. In the Senior School students should arrive no later than 8.30am to ensure they are prepared for registration at 8.40am. Senior School finishes at 4.10 pm. The prep school day starts at 8.45am. Finishing time is 3.30pm for KS1 and 3.40pm for KS2 pupils.

Both schools continue to provide extensive extra-curricular programmes for all pupils including lower prep. We are pleased to be enhancing our Before and After School Care provision for our Prep School children. This will provide a stimulating extended day from 8.00am to 5.30pm for children if parents so wish. Please ask in the General Office for latest information. Should senior students need to stay at school on an occasional basis, parents should contact Mrs Hoyes who will facilitate arrangements for homework to be completed in one of the classrooms. This is an unsupervised provision and requires students to work sensibly and to be picked up at the agreed time.

Last year we again received many accolades including the Artsmark Gold Award. No doubt this year will bring similar successes and initiatives. I certainly am looking forward to the continuing development of Environmental Studies and garden initiatives, through our associations with the Royal Horticultural Society. How exciting it will be to grow more of our own produce in the splendid raised beds which have recently been constructed in the Walled Kitchen Garden.

We continue to listen carefully to pupils’ and parents’ views and have endeavoured to be as responsive as possible to the needs expressed. Under the new chairmanship of Mr Kevin Ryan, our Governors have been considering the future development of the school along with school managers. All are agreed that we should do all in our power to protect the unique ethos of Alton Convent School whilst embracing changes where appropriate. They, like our extremely committed staff, have the interests of each of our pupils at heart. We value all members of our community and work together to help the school become the very best it can be. Once again I am confident that together we can look forward to another extremely happy and productive year. I look forward to welcoming many of you to the school in the next few weeks, whether to the Harvest Festival, the Sixth Form Open Evening, or the India fundraising evening!

Yours sincerely

Sue Kirkham Headmistress