You may be aware that absences from school have been a major concern since the return of school after the COVID pandemic. Thanks to the support of you as families the absence rates at Greenshaw High School are far lower than the rates nationally or in London. In fact, we have just under 1,200 students whose attendance is 95% or higher this term which I am very proud of, but also grateful.

There are two parts to this. One is supportive families, and the other is our responsibility to make sure school is enjoyable and a place that our students actively want to be.

Two of our Year 10 students took part in the student council of the Greenshaw Learning Trust this week, and were asked how they felt about life at school. They used three really powerful terms: heard; supported; and involved. I am very proud that they chose those words, and we always make sure that our pupils value being at our school and feel connected to school. Alongside your efforts as families to ensure high attendance, we also need to play our part to make school a great place, where our students want to be.

Sixth Form fund raising

It has been a busy week in the Sixth Form. As Year 13 mocks finished last week, the students turned their attention to fund raising for their prom next summer with a ‘Spirit Week’. Students made payments for the privilege of wearing themed clothes each day. These included a ‘Wear Green for Greenshaw’ day, another day where students wore an item of clothing of colour that represented their country, and yesterday was called ‘Throw Back Day’. I did have to do a double take when I walked into the Sixth Form Centre and saw our most intelligent young adults dressed in 1980s style, complete with about 50 sideways baseball caps – quite the sight. I hope by the end of today they will have raised a good amount of money for prom 2026, which will enable the tickets to be subsidised and students paying less for their tickets.

Year 13 away in Wales

Our A Level geographers (pictured) have had to substitute the daily themed dress code for lots of warm clothes and water proofs while they have been away from school. They have been collecting data and exploring along the Porthcawl coast of south Wales. Fortunately, the weather has generally been kind to them, and seen them develop their understanding of how the shape of the beach changes with the distance from the sea, and without too much interruption from the Welsh rain. 

Promotional discount for school uniform

I know that many families will have fully purchased school uniform for the year, but SWI – the company that supplies our uniform – are running a discount at present. So, if you do need to top up with anything further, add the code SAVE20 at the online checkout and you will receive a discount if you shop between 27th October and 9th November. To be clear, the school does not receive a commission from any uniform sales, so I am purely sharing this with you as I am sure that any help with cost of living issues is helpful.

Stars of the half term

Congratulations to our stars of the term who have demonstrated something special in their attitude to their peers, the community or their learning. Well done to each and every one of them.

Year 7	Year 8	Year 9	Year 10	Year 11	Sixth Form
Abeed	Kiara	Nathan L	Linda	tbc	Jayden R

Sixth Form Open Evening – 13th November – changes to the timings of the day

On this day, timetabled lessons will remain unchanged from AM registration until the end of period 3. Then all students will have their period 4 lesson at the same time. Following this, students will return to their tutor bases at 1.20pm before being dismissed by no later than 1.30pm. There will only be a light offer for students to get lunch and this will be at the end of the day. We will be encouraging those students requiring a meal to do this during the morning break.

• Year 7 and 8: 1.25pm
• Year 9, 10, 11: 1.30pm

Support while school is closed

At Greenshaw we work closely with a variety of agencies including the London Borough of Sutton, volunteer groups and the NHS. Please be aware that our website has many signposts to support agencies in the section ‘Care & Support’ as needed.  

Our Help for the Holiday leaflet here also provides lots of useful information including the HAF programme offering children on benefits-related free school meals access to exciting activities, enriching experiences and nutritious meals – at no cost!

Next half term starts on Monday 3rd November

A reminder that we will have a full two week break from school, returning on Monday 3rd November with staff welcoming students at the normal time from 8:20am. We welcome our students back on Week 2, so if you could please remind your child to pack the correct books for their Week 2 timetable lessons.

Our Year 11 students will return to their mock exams, and Mr Johnson will be texting all students’ families with details of the online sessions available, as well as other revision activities. I hope all of our students have a good break, and that our Year 11 students combine their rest with purposeful preparation for their exams. 

See you all in November.

Mr N House, Headteacher