Chailey School has been selected to take part in the Tesco Stronger Starts community funding scheme. We are raising money to fund our careers trips and activities for KS3 and KS4 students during the 2026–2027 academic year.

These trips give students vital real‑world experiences, helping to raise aspirations and support informed choices about post‑16 and post‑18 pathways by meeting employers, visiting workplaces and exploring future options.

How to cast your vote

• Shop in: Tesco Burgess Hill Superstore & Express, Haywards Heath Express Stores at Northlands Wood and Hazelgrove Road

• Make a purchase of any value

• Receive one red or blue token per transaction at the checkout - if you aren't given one, there is usually a box that you can help yourself to tokens from 🙏

• On your way out, place your token in the Tesco Stronger Starts voting box and vote for Chailey School

Where you can vote

• Burgess Hill Superstore, RH15 9QT

• Haywards Heath Walnut Park Express, RH16 3TG

• Burgess Hill Gatehouse Express, RH15 9XB

• Haywards Heath Express, RH16 3PH

Voting closes on: 31^st July 2026

The project with the most votes in our region can receive up to £1,500, so every single vote really does count. Please support us by voting when you shop — and encouraging family and friends to do the same.

Thank you for your support with this, we have raised money this way for the last two years and have been able to increase the amount of trips that we can run, so every little really does help!

To support parents and carers in helping young people make informed career choices, we’d like to share a useful resource:
Career Decisions in Secondary Education – A Guide for Parents and Carers (2026), produced by Careers East Sussex.

The guide provides clear, practical information about:

• post‑14, post‑16 and post‑18 options

• qualifications, apprenticeships and vocational routes

• how to have positive career conversations at home

• local labour market information and support services

You can download a free digital copy from:
👉 https://www.careerseastsussex.co.uk/information/parents

If you would prefer a printed copy, these are available on request — please contact Gail Wickens, gwickens@chaileyschool.org who will be happy to provide one.

Our Careers, Post‑16 & Work Experience Padlet is the main place where we share up‑to‑date information for students in all year groups, not just Year 11. It includes guidance and opportunities to support career exploration and future planning from Year 7 onwards.

The Padlet brings together information about careers, college and sixth‑form options, apprenticeships, work experience opportunities, application guidance, open events, and useful Unifrog resources for both students and parents/carers.

Rather than sending regular newsletters, this Padlet is updated continuously, so we strongly encourage families to save the link and check it regularly to make sure they don’t miss important information, deadlines or opportunities.

👉 Access the Careers, Post‑16 & WEX Padlet here:
https://padlet.com/chaileyschoolcareers/chailey-school-careers-post-16-and-work-experience-padlet-dlwrt4c8u2afvyrh

·         Log into Arbor

·         Navigate to 'Quick Actions' and click - this is usually in the top left of the screen

·         Click 'Attendance'

·         Click 'Log Absence'

·         Enter the reason for absence

·         Click 'Log Absence'

FOR GENERAL ENQUIRIES

office@chaileyschool.org

01273 890407

TO BOOK AN APPOINTMENT FOR THE SEND SURGERY

(Friday Mornings)

SENDCO@chaileyschool.org

01273 890407

TO BOOK AN APPOINTMENT FOR THE SLT SURGERY

(Friday after school)

srodd@chaileyschool.org

01273 890407

The three parent‑focused webinars will be running over the summer term, offering practical guidance and useful resources the first one will be:

How to Support Your Child During Exam Season
🗓 Wednesday 29 April

This session will cover:

• Recognising signs of stress and burnout

• Ways parents can support effective revision

• Creating a calm and supportive home environment

Followed by:

How to find work experience

May 13^th - 6pm

This session will cover:

• What really counts as work experience, including less obvious opportunities that can still strengthen applications.

  • Understand why work experience matters and how it helps young people explore interests and future career paths.

• Get practical advice on how to find placements, approach employers confidently and make the most of every opportunity.

Everything you need to know about applying for University

10^th June - 6pm

This session will cover:

• The full university application process, including key steps and deadlines for the UK and overseas destinations.

  • How to access support with choosing the right university, using practical tools to explore options, goals and next steps.

  • How to stand out to admissions teams and approach applications with confidence, including competitive pathways such as medical school and Oxbridge.

Book HERE

Parents can view the full schedule of upcoming webinars and find further details by visiting the provider’s website.

For all things Careers, Post-16, Work Experience and more, please check out our Careers Newsletter/Padlet HERE.

Gail Wickens

Careers & Work-Related Learning Coordinator

Please find attached a PDF of the competition leaflet and poster for this exciting, FREE competition. 

Young designers will have a chance to win:

• £150 Amazon vouchers, 

• Family tickets to ‘Glow Wild’ at Wakehurst Gardens, Ardingly.

• A family train travel ticket

• An opportunity to work with world-class, professional makers to make their design, which could be seen by 80,000 people if they are one of the lucky winners.

All details along with a dedicated email address are on the leaflet for submission of ideas, designs or any potential question or queries.

Our Creative Futures Lead, Nigel Allyson-Ryan is the point of contact for this project at the following email: Kew-WakehurstComp@escg.ac.uk.

Please pass on to your Heads of Art and encourage your students to enter.

Visit the Kew/Wakehurst site for insight and inspiration: https://www.kew.org/wakehurst/whats-on/glow-wild.

We have students in our school with severe nut allergies, and exposure can pose serious health risks. We kindly ask for your cooperation in helping us maintain a safe environment for all children.

Thank you for your understanding and support.

This is a polite reminder that students should only travel on their allocated permitted school transport.

Please remind your child to ensure they have their valid bus pass with them before travelling. Students may be refused travel if they do not have a valid pass for the service they are using.

This helps us maintain safe and organised transport arrangements for all students.

On Sunday she competed at the Street Dance International Championship Qualifier in Essex and came 1^st in the Under 14 newcomer class – her first ever top placing as a solo dancer.

She then went on to win the ‘Top of Solos’ Newcomer category (dancing against six other dancers aged 8-17).

She also won 1^st place in her team event and 3^rd place with her duo partner.

The students were welcomed by Jonathan Owen, Hotel Manager, who spoke openly about his own career pathway into hospitality and how his role has developed over time. Jonathan explained that there is no single route into the industry and that many people progress by starting in entry‑level roles and learning on the job.

He introduced students to the variety of job roles within a hotel, including:

• Front of House and Reception

• Housekeeping

• Food and Beverage (Restaurant and Bar staff)

• Chefs and Kitchen staff

• Leisure and Pool staff

• Events, Weddings and Conferences teams

• Maintenance and Management roles

Jonathan highlighted that the Hydro Hotel values people with a strong work ethic, positive attitude and great customer manners. He emphasised that, in hospitality, attitude and willingness to learn are as important as qualifications. 

During a tour around the hotel, students learned about the bespoke services the Hydro Hotel offers, including tailored packages, weddings, events and leisure facilities such as the swimming pool. This helped them understand how hotels meet customer needs and create memorable experiences.

Finally, Jonathan explained how hospitality is a global industry, offering fantastic opportunities for those who enjoy meeting new people or wish to travel and work around the world. The transferable skills gained – such as communication, teamwork, problem‑solving and customer service – are valuable in many career pathways.

The visit was an excellent opportunity for students to see real‑world careers in action and to understand how effort, experience and attitude can open doors to exciting futures. 

The participation from Year 8 was excellent, all students listened well, asked appropriate questions, responded confidently and politely when spoken to and really seemed to make the very most of the opportunity. Well done Year 8, reward points have been issued 🤗

As a side note - The Hydro Hotel offers lots of work experience opportunities as well as a good apprenticeship programme. Please contact the hotel direct if this is of interest. They have spaces available for our WEX week this year, so if you are Year 10 and can get to Eastbourne please give this opportunity some serious thought! 

Our Year 11s have started their GCSEs this week and have been a credit to the entire school community. I have written to Year 11 separately, but I want to wish them all the very best of luck throughout this exam period which will culminate in their celebration assembly and prom.

This week I want to draw particular attention to the 'student success' section of the bulletin. Mollie, Tom, and Jack all have different talents which have been recognised in a major way recently, and I want to thank them all for sharing their success with us, well done to all three of them, we always want to hear about student success stories!

It has felt like a long time since our Ofsted inspection in February, and I want to assure families that as soon as the report is published, we will proudly share it with you all. 

We wish you all a lovely weekend,