MHS Update 20-1-2023

My blog this week consists of four short updates:

Academisation consultation reminder

A reminder that we are in the middle of our consultation into whether MHS should convert to academy status, and to form a Multi Academy Trust with Romiley Primary School. Details of the proposal, and how to respond, can be found here. So far we have had some very thought provoking discussions with people either in person over email, and more opinions are definitely welcome.

The next milestone for the class of 2023

Our Year 11s are a week away from the next big step in their journey to the GCSE exam season – the trial exams. These are a really important stage of a student’s final year at school and we are confident that students are taking them seriously. Hard work now pays off not just for the trial exams, but for the real thing too. Good luck!

‘It’s not Ok’

Next week we are embarking on an important but potentially controversial initiative in school to raise awareness of the issues of harmful sexual behaviour, misogyny and sexual abuse. The initiative is named ‘It’s not ok’, a simple but powerful statement that we will not tolerate sexual harassment in any form, from anyone to anyone, and that we will empower people to be brave and call out any inappropriate behaviour. At the same time, we will endeavour to educate young people on the toxic side of high-profile influencers such as Andrew Tate. We are aware that these may be concerning issues to parents and families, so please get in touch if you have any worries.

Potential strike action

One of the main teaching unions, the NEU, has voted for strike action on four days – 1^st Feb, 28^th Feb, 15^th March and 16^th March. Not all our teachers are members of the NEU, but some are and some colleagues may well decide to take strike action. I do not yet know what impact this action will have on school, but I am actively working on the different scenarios and hope to be able to communicate with families well in advance of the strike day so that you know what is happening. However, it is important to note that the situation can change right up to the day of the strike itself, and so some last minute decision may have to be made. Finally, please don’t make any assumptions about what may happen here based on what you hear from other schools. Some schools have no members of the NEU on their staff and so will already be able to announce that it will be ‘business as usual’, others have many members and may be able to announce early that their school or certain year groups will not be able to attend. At MHS we are somewhere in the middle, and so working out the exact plan will take more time.

Have a good weekend,

Joe

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