Welcome back to the Spring Term at Meadow High School.  I hope you have all had a great Christmas break and spent time with friends and family.  There is a lot planned for the term ahead as we continue our journey towards one school, two sites from September 2026, but for now a few reminders now that school has returned.

Strong attendance is key to educational success.  Our attendance as a school is above the National Figures for Special School Settings but is not reaching the 95% we aspire to for all our young people.  This figure is key as it has a direct correlation on educational outcomes and positive next steps beyond Meadow.  Please can you ensure your child is in school everyday on time and that any appointments are made outside of school hours wherever possible.  If a student wakes up feeling unwell, give yourself 20 minutes or so to see how they are once they are up, dressed and ready for school and see if they can make it in for even a part of a day.  We have trained medical staff on site who can decide if a student needs to go home once they are in school, but every little helps where attendance is concerned.

The weather is also turning colder this week.  We have worked hard to prepare the site for the return of students and, having looked at the weather forecast, I don't believe we will be hit by the snow that is forecast for parts of the country.  It is important, however, that students dress appropriately for the weather and this includes a proper outdoor coat as students will be out at break and lunchtime.  Hoodies are not accepted on site and will be confiscated if seen.  Please support us in this by not letting them leave the house wearing them.  The same applies for the rest of the dress code.

Car parking on site is tight, as you know, and on a daily basis we have multiple buses and taxis dropping students off.  Please help us ensure students arrive at school safely by not using the turning circle to drop off or collect students at the start and end of the day.  Please use the roads around the school or the car parking for the mosque.  Please also ensure that if you walk your child to and from school that you use the two designated crossings to model the road safety we expect of our students.

These might seem to be small trivial things; dress code, attendance, parking procedures, but these basics are an indicator of the type of organisation we are, the standards we set and the behaviours we are willing to accept.  Please can you support the school and your child by working with us to stick to them.

I wish you an enjoyable term ahead.

Mr G Cunningham
Headteacher