At the end of last term there were many achievements to celebrate. Congratulations to all the students who gained prizes in the Rotary Competitions and the record numbers of students who achieved Awards in our Celebration assemblies. On the last day of term children working in Retrack spread some kindness by making and delivering cakes to staff on Valentine’s Day – Thank you to Mrs Bone (Internal Alternative Provision Lead) for organising this. We were also delighted that a number of Parents/ Carers nominated teachers and support staff for Special Recognition. Kindness is a theme we will be continuing next week.
We hope all our students have managed to have a rest and are ready to go for Spring Term 2. A reminder that school starts again on Monday 24 February at 8:30am.
Over half term we emailed home the newsletter and this contained some important reminders, as well as lots of information about student achievements. If you have not had a chance to read it, please do so here: https://www.thehambleschool.co.uk/newsletter/
Next week is WEEK 2
Question of the Week
Parents’ Evenings are valuable events for fostering communication between school and home. The evenings provide an important opportunity to discuss your child’s progress, set goals for their development and ensure we are all working together to support their success.
We would love to hear your thoughts on whether you would prefer the Parents’ Evenings to be held in person or online. Your feedback will help us make the experience as convenient and meaningful as possible for everyone. Please complete the survey question below:
Please select your answer in the form below, all fields marked * are required and to help prevent SPAM this form is protected by Google reCaptcha v3.
Events w/b 24 February
Monday 24 February
Year 11 Maths Paper 1 Exam
Year 11 Music Exam
Year 11 Business Studies Exam
Year 11 French & Spanish Written Exams
Tuesday 25 February
Head Teacher/House Assembly
KS3 Achieving Excellence Evening – 5:30pm in the Hall for all KS3 Parents/ Carers and their children. Sign up here: https://forms.office.com/e/jYHagQSgLh
Year 11 English Language Paper 1 Exam
Year 11 History Exam
Year 11 RE Exam
Wednesday 26 February
Head Teacher/ House Assembly
Year 11 Combined Science Exam (Biology)
Year 11 Geography Exam
Year 11 Extended Maths Exam
Thursday 27 February
Head Teacher/ House Assembly
Year 9 Boys Football Team National Cup Quarter Finals. KO 1pm at Mallards Moor. Parents are welcome to watch.
Year 11 English Language Exam
Year 11 Maths Paper 2 Exam
Year 11 History Exam
Friday 28 February
Head Teacher/ House Assembly
Year 11 Combined Science Exam (Chemistry)
Year 11 Geography Exam
Year 11 Extended Maths Paper 2 Exam
Future Dates
W/b 3 March – Year 11 Exams Continue
Tuesday 4 March – Year 9 PSHCRE Day
Thursday 6 March – Year 8 Parents’ Evening
Thursday 6 March – World Book Day
Thursday 6 March – Year 9 National Careers Week Game Show event
Friday 14 March – INSED Day (school is closed to students)
Extra Curricular Timetable:
You can find all letters sent home over the week here – https://www.thehambleschool.co.uk/letters-to-parents/
The canteen menus can be found here: https://www.thehambleschool.co.uk/food-and-drink/
Please check your child’s Attendance regularly on Class Charts
Theme of the Week – Kindness: A Little Goes a Long Way
As Parents/ Carers, we all want our children to grow up to be kind, compassionate individuals. This week, our school is focusing on the theme of Kindness during tutor time. We will be exploring its importance and practical ways we can all show kindness to others. We believe that fostering kindness within our school community creates a more positive and supportive learning environment for everyone.
Kindness is more than just being polite. It’s about empathy, understanding, and showing genuine care for others. It can be a simple gesture, a helping hand, or simply taking the time to listen. In a world that can sometimes feel rushed and impersonal, acts of kindness, no matter how small, can make a significant difference.
During the week, students will be discussing what kindness means to them and exploring different scenarios where they can choose to be kind. They will be encouraged to think about the impact their actions have on others and how even small acts of kindness can brighten someone’s day. Tutors will be facilitating discussions around empathy, respect, and the importance of treating everyone with consideration.
We encourage you to continue this conversation at home. Ask your child about what they’ve learned during tutor time and share your own experiences of kindness, both giving and receiving. Discuss how kindness can make a difference in our families, our school, and the wider community.
This Week at the Dinner Table…
Some questions to ask your child:
- What does kindness mean to you?
- Can you share an example of when someone was kind to you?
- How can we show kindness to others, even when it’s difficult?
Uniform and Expectations
Please do ensure that you have checked your child’s uniform and equipment before Monday. The uniform policy is available here: https://www.thehambleschool.co.uk/uniform/
Please pay particular attention to shoes (there is a guide on the uniform page), piercings (only one stud in each ear lobe is allowed), nails (no nail varnish/ false nails are allowed) and skirts (if you child wears one it must be on the knee and not rolled up).
Year 11
A reminder that written Mock Exams continue on Monday and this is the last set of Mocks before the final GCSE exams. The timetable has already been distributed but is on the website here: https://www.thehambleschool.co.uk/examination-information/ You will also find the Summer 2025 Exam timetable on the same page.
Please ensure that your child has read the information for candidates below and comes to school with the correct equipment. It is also important that you have been through the start and finish times as some exams will start at 8:30am and some continue beyond the end of the school day. As already communicated students have to stay in school until the end of the exam, just as they will need to do in the summer exams. Other commitments will need to be rearranged and if they get the bus home, alternative transport will need to be arranged. Please ensure that your child is in school and remind your child on the days when they need to stay later.
During the final GCSE exams students will still need to be in if they are feeling unwell; they will only get ‘Special Consideration’ if there is a serious issue on the day of the exam and they get a Doctor’s certificate to prove this. These rules are put in place by the exam regulators JCQ (not The Hamble School) therefore it is worth ensuring that students develop the resilience needed during the Mocks and ensure that they are in school everyday. Please also note that we do not operate Study Leave, therefore, when students are not in exams, they will be in lessons preparing for exams.
Intervention after school on a Tuesday/ Thursday is cancelled for the next two weeks so that students can go home after the exams and rest/ prepare for the next day.
World Book Day
World Book Day this year is on Thursday 6 March. The literacy and communication skills of our students are vitally important and we are constantly striving to improve these skills so that children are able to access all areas of the curriculum and successfully interact with those around them.
In order to promote these essential skills in our school and foster a love of reading, as part of our World Book Day celebrations, we would like to invite students to dress up as a character from a book. Our whole school theme will be ‘The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe’ which students are welcome to join in with, however, they can dress up as any character from a book that they choose. There will be competitions held in school and prizes awarded for the best costumes. If students are not in fancy dress, usual school uniform rules will apply.
There will be various activities on the day, some of the highlights will include:
- Literacy themed activities in lessons
- Book reviews in English lessons
- Reading Week in Tutor time
- Fancy dress competition for students and staff
- Signed book competition on the day
- Book swap shop at break and lunch
- Golden prize tickets for students and staff.
As a reminder, you can find information on our whole school reading curriculum here: https://www.thehambleschool.co.uk/reading-curriculum/
If you are looking for recommended reads for your child, we have ideas updated each term here: https://www.thehambleschool.co.uk/library/recommended-reads/
Your child will also bring home a book token which can be redeemed at local book stores.
Hampshire and IOW Youth Commission
APPLICATIONS NOW OPEN
Closing 28 February 2025
The Hampshire & IOW Office of The Police & Crime Commissioner’s Youth Commission are recruiting for new members!
The Youth Commission is a diverse group of young people aged 14 to 25, from across Hampshire and the IOW, who represent the voice of young people on police and crime matters. They gather and represent the views of young people at a number of local and national strategic level meetings, attend events, create youth led campaigns and projects and help to shape policing in the area. Each year they hold The Big Conversation Survey and they present these recommendations to the Police and Crime Commissioner, The Constabulary and other partners, to support positive change for young people.
The link for the online application form is here
Applications close on 28 February 2025
This is a fantastic opportunity for young people to be heard.
New Grade ReadingTest
As you are aware, Year 7 and 8 successfully completed the New Grade Reading Test (NGRT) in Autumn Term 1. The insights we gained from this data have allowed us to increase our understanding of the reading levels our students are currently working at.
Using this data, we have been able to focus on staff training to ensure teachers are able to best support students in the classroom. We have also been able facilitate specific interventions for students through the Inclusion department and our English Higher Level Teaching Assistant.
From Monday 10 March, Year 7 and 8 will be repeating this testing process. This will allow us to check the progress students are making, gauge how effective the interventions we have undertaken have been and refocus them where applicable. We will also be sending out support materials to Parents/ Carers that can be used to support reading at home.
Like last time, students will be taking the test during one of their English lessons, in a computer room and using headphones. It is important to ensure that they spend an appropriate amount of time on the testing so they can demonstrate the effect that all their hard work has had over the course of the year so far. Please do have a conversation with students about doing well and how it has gone after they have taken it. The specific dates will be passed on by their English teachers in due course.
We do not anticipate any issues with the testing as it was very successful previously. If you have any questions about any aspect of the above or the NGRT in general then please do contact Mr Clark-Lyons for a discussion via general@thehambleschool.co.uk
Support
If you or your child would like support with wellbeing, please check out the links of our website: https://www.thehambleschool.co.uk/student-wellbeing-support/
We have recently added information about a number of free parent/ carer courses or events to this section of our website.
