It has been another fantastic week in school, full of activity, celebration, and exciting developments.

We were delighted to welcome so many families to our very busy Options Evening. We are incredibly excited by the range of new courses we are offering, from Astronomy to Psychology.  We truly believe this reflects the broad and balanced curriculum we are proud to offer our students.

This week also saw our second Afternoon Tea, where it was wonderful to welcome parents into school once again. It was a real pleasure to see young people receiving recognition alongside the influential adults in their lives. All too often we shy away from praise, so it was lovely to pause and indulge in celebrating success together on Wednesday afternoon.

Our charity fundraiser, The Traitors, led by staff who have given up their free time to get involved, is continuing to generate excitement. The trailer has now been shared with both parents and students, and the winning staff member will choose the charity to which all funds raised will be donated. Students will have the opportunity to watch footage over lunchtimes in exchange for a small charity donation, and we are very much looking forward to seeing how this unfolds.

We are also hoping to introduce dog therapy shortly. Doug the dog will be joining us in a couple of weeks’ time. If you have any concerns, please do contact the pastoral team. While Doug is incredibly gentle, we fully appreciate that some children may have phobias, and we want to ensure his presence does not unintentionally upset anyone. That said, there is strong evidence to support the positive impact of animal therapy, particularly for students with SEND or those experiencing school refusal, and we are hopeful this will be a valuable addition to our pastoral provision.

We have let parents know about a price increase to the bus fares from the 1st February.  We have been told by Stagecoach that this change has come from East Sussex County Council (ESCC) where they are stopping the East Sussex BSIP fare reductions. Most age-related discounts are ending on the 1st February 2026. Can parents please raise any concerns direct with ESCC here; https://www.eastsussex.gov.uk/roads-transport/public/travel-passes-fares-discounts/fares-and-discounts

Thank you, as always, for your continued support. We wish you a restful weekend.

Best wishes,
Mrs May
Headteacher

pastoral-11@willingdonschool.org.uk

Dear Parents, Carers and Students,

We have had another full on and busy week within Year 11, with lots of engaging teaching and learning taking place. Students have been receiving further feedback from their subject teachers following the mock exams. Whilst they have their raw marks, students are not aware of their grades yet. This will be shared with students during their Mock Results Assembly on Monday 26^th January at 2pm. This will allow students to digest the information and their results, ahead of the final Positive Progress Evening of their school journeys, taking place on Thursday 29^th January. Information regarding this evening has been sent separately and the booking system is now live for parents and carers.

We have also had the arrival of the sample Leavers Hoodies, that will be available to try on for size from Monday 19^th January at break and lunch time in the Year 11 office. Please see below for the correspondence sent separately regarding the Leavers Hoodies:

As we progress through Term 3, we are in a position to be able to offer students the opportunity to purchase their Leavers Hoodies. This option is available on ParentPay for

payment:

£21.50 for Standard Hoodies

£24.50 for Personalised Hoodies

Please make payment via ParentPay and then complete the form on the following link to added in sizing, personalisation and to give consent:

https://forms.gle/NfGvzMn2maZ848y87

Deadline for final orders is Monday 26^th January at 3pm

Once the hoodies have been ordered, we are then in a position to be full speed ahead with planning the Prom. More information on this will be shared in due course, but please see below for the 5 x criteria that have been shared previously for students to meet in order to gain access to attend:

1. No more than 8 days out of school in Year 11

2. Achievement points to outweigh behaviour points

3. Perform better in the Year 11 mocks compared to the Year 10 mocks, based on average grade

4. Not be suspended from school

5. Be present and complete all GCSE exams in May/June 2026

We also have our Saturday morning Grade Up session taking place again this week. Please sign up using the following link: https://forms.gle/9CmLwuzkM5LEjC5n7

Finally, a huge well done to the students photographed below who represented the school during a Basketball tournament on Monday evening, finishing 2^nd across all of the schools entered, Well done boys!

The Year 11 Team

pastoral-10@willingdonschool.org.uk

Dear Parents, Carers and Students,

Well done to our Year 10 students for another successful week at school. Despite some challenging weather conditions, the vast majority of students have conducted themselves exceptionally well during break times, demonstrating resilience and maturity throughout the week.

During coaching time, students have been focusing on their wellbeing, taking part in debates, and learning about the staff ‘Traitors’ activity that has been taking place behind the scenes. This has generated a great deal of interest and engagement across the year group.

Our assembly this week focused on promoting the Morfa Bay residential trip, which will take place in July 2026. In addition, our Student Leadership Team spoke to students about the opportunity to apply for the role of Head Student or to become part of the Student Leadership Team. The Morfa Bay trip will open on ParentPay on Monday 19^th January, the deadline for Student Leadership Team applications is Friday 30th January.

I have been particularly impressed with the strong focus shown by students in lessons this week. A special mention must go to our Year 10 GCSE PE students, who battled the weather to complete a 12-minute Cooper Run Test, assessing their cardiovascular fitness, excellent effort demonstrated by all involved.

We also have another Year 10 Coffee Morning being held next week on Tuesday, 20th January, please complete the google form below if you would like to pop in to raise any issue or concerns with the year team.

Book here:  Year Teams and SEND Coffee Mornings - Term 3

cjohnson@willingdonschool.org.uk

pastoral-9@willingdonschool.org.uk

Dear Parents, Carers and Students,

A really successful start to the new term and new year for Year 9. I shared in assembly, that in the first week back 72% of the year group had no behaviour points at all and 86% had one or none. This really demonstrates that the majority of our students are meeting the high expectations we have for them. This is supported by the learning walks we take during the week that show them to be focused and engaged in lessons, well done Year 9!

Congratulations to 9CFR, who again won the attendance award this week and are also leading the way again in the term three coaching team competition.   The competition is based on reward points received and attendance. 

3 stars for the highest coaching group attendance for the week

2 stars for attendance over 97%

3 stars for the highest coaching group reward points for the week

2 stars for 360+ reward points for the week

Further congratulations go to Kyle W-J, Iris S, Aviv S, Beau  K and Charlie S, who all won treats with the team for their exemplary behaviour last week.

The options process really picked up pace this week with students taking part in a variety of taster sessions in subjects such as psychology, sociology, astronomy, child development and travel and tourism. Teaching staff also produced videos to introduce their subjects which were shown during coaching time. On Wednesday, both students and parents had the chance to talk to teaching staff about the many subjects we have on offer at our Year 9 Options Evening.

We also have another Year 9 Coffee Morning being held next week on Wednesday, 21st January, please complete the google form below if you would like to pop in to raise any issue or concerns with the year team.

Book here:  Year Teams and SEND Coffee Mornings - Term 3

We hope you have a restful (and hopefully dry) weekend.  

The Year 9 Team

pastoral-8@willingdonschool.org.uk

Dear Parents, Carers and Students,

We have again had a positive week in our second week back after the Christmas break. Behaviour continues to improve, and it has been great to see a mature Year 8 cohort returning with a clear focus on their studies. Students are putting good effort into their lessons and demonstrating our personal values and commitment to personal excellence.

Attendance for Year 8 is currently at 94%, which is encouraging. However, our target remains 96%, and it is important that students are in school as much as possible. Poor attendance can have a significant impact later in a student’s schooling, and as Year 8 students begin to prepare for making GCSE option choices next year, developing strong attendance habits is vital.

I would also like to remind parents that we are a no-nut school. This includes all products containing nuts, such as Nutella, peanut butter, chocolate products containing nuts, and nuts themselves. This policy is in place due to severe nut allergies within the school community, and we appreciate your support in ensuring that no nut products are brought into school.

Please take a moment to look at our latest Staff Traitor trailer on our social media channels. Several staff, including myself, are taking part the Willingdon Traitors. Episodes will be shared for those who are interested, and the current trailer is already available online.

Upcoming notices:

• Friends of Willingdon Quiz Night – Thursday 30th January at 6:30pm. Entry is £5 per person, with all proceeds supporting the school and a range of charitable causes. We would love to see you there.

• France Trip (Ypres & Passchendaele Battlefields) – Taking place from 26th–27th June. This is an overnight trip, and we are nearly full. One or two places remain, and further information will be sent to parents shortly. If you are interested, please contact Mr Keast.

Student celebrations:

• This week’s hot chocolate rewards go to Calista S, Josh F, and Isabella P for their outstanding contributions in and out of school.

• Chocolate rewards from the Year 8 team will go to Josh F, Sophia I, Rose H, Ruby L, and Sophia G for positive behaviour and high achievement points.

• The tutor group with the highest attendance in the first week back was NWE, achieving an impressive 98.28%. Students in this tutor group will receive biscuits from the Year 8 team on Monday.

Thank you for your continued support. We wish you a restful weekend and look forward to starting our third week back with the continued maturity and positivity we are seeing from Year 8.

The Year 8 Team

pmuller@willingdonschool.org.uk

pastoral-7@willingdonschool.org.uk

Dear Parents, Carers and Students,

It was lovely to see all the Year 7 ‘s in their brightly coloured mufti today for Wellbeing Day. It certainly made the school a lot brighter!!! Please can I take this opportunity to remind you of the payment on ParentPay that covers the mufti days for this year. 

Winners for treats with the team this week were Lexie, Henry, Logan, Isla and William. These treats are awarded each week for the 5 students in the year who got the most achievement points in the previous week.  In fact this week, we had 3572 reward points in total given out to Year 7, which is fantastic!!!

Attendance has also been great this week for Year 7, with it collectively coming out as being above national average.

So a fantastic return in all areas from the Year 7s.  Keep it up guys!!!

The Year 7 Team

Raystede are extremely short of newspaper and desperately need some more, do you have any that you could kindly donate? Our small animal enclosures have newspaper placed underneath their bedding. As you can imagine, we get through a lot of it!

If you have some newspapers stashed away that you do not need, your child can bring them to G2 in school or parents/carers can drop them off to our Welcome Team at the Raystede entrance. We are unable to accept any shredded paper.

Unfortunately we are unable to accept newspaper drop offs at our charity shops.

Do you have any Xmas presents not needed that you would like to regift? 

Your child can bring any items to Student Support FROM MONDAY ready for collection. 

Please see below some useful safeguarding links:-

• Free support for parents and carers in East Sussex:-  https://view.pagetiger.com/safeguarding-newsletter-january-2026/1/SupportGuideJan-March2026.pdf 

  
  

• Information relating to Crimestoppers, Youth Service; for children to report crime and share their concerns anonymously :- https://crimestoppers-uk.org/fearless 

  
  

• Report Remove tool for children to safely report an online image of themselves which they want to have removed:-  https://www.childline.org.uk/info-advice/bullying-abuse-safety/online-mobile-safety/report-remove/ 

  
  

With many thanks

The Safeguarding Team

Thank you to all the parents and carers that attended the Options Evening on Wednesday. We hope you found it useful and that you now feel well-equipped to help your child make their option choices. Please could you take a few minutes to provide feedback on this Google Form: https://forms.gle/KpDgHJHeChmsAF8t9 Even if you did not attend the evening there are still some relevant questions.  Thank you in advance for your time, it is appreciated.

Students should now have received their Options Form. It is also available on the website: https://willingdonschool.org.uk/learning/year9-options Please can these be returned via your child's coach by Friday 30th January. 

If you have any further questions regarding options please do not hesitate to contact the Y9 Team or email Miss McKie (lmckie@willingdonschool.org.uk). 

Feedback from the Year 9 Options Evening

The colleges/sixth forms were all very pleased with the event last night, they said that got some great leads and had chats with some brilliant families.

From Plumpton College -  

I just wanted to thank you for such a fabulous event on Wednesday. There was such a buzz of activity and lots of excited Year 9s with plenty of questions.

We are delighted to welcome Lauren Carvalho from the charity Adam’s Light to our in-person Parent Forum on Monday, 2nd February 2026 at 6pm.

We have invited Lauren to speak to parents as suicide is the leading cause of death among young people aged 5–35 (YoungMinds). What sets Lauren apart from many other suicide prevention speakers is her deeply personal perspective. She speaks as a mother who lost her 19-year-old son to suicide, bringing both compassion and authenticity to this vital subject.

Lauren’s talks focus on prevention, building resilience, and practical coping strategies, while encouraging a culture of openness, understanding, and inclusion. She is also extensively trained in mental health and suicide prevention, combining professional expertise with lived experience.

For all of us who are parents, carers, or who have young relatives or friends, this session aims to inform, increase understanding, and empower us to help prevent suicide among young people.  We strongly encourage parents to attend this important and supportive session.

Parent testimonials from Lauren’s talks at other schools:

‘Your presentation was just wonderful. It was real, touching and so informative and helpful. Ever since, I’ve been asking my daughter how she is feeling and talking with her much more. The work you are doing is lifesaving, thank you so much.’

‘I came along to your talk last week and just wanted to say thank you for providing parents with the opportunity to learn from your devastating lived experience. I'm so deeply sorry this happened to you and your family and my thoughts are with you. Obviously, it's a very difficult topic but I was very pleased to see the school taking the initiative and beginning to open up the conversations about suicide and what to look out for with your wonderful support’

‘Thank you very much for a very informative and moving talk. I am a parent of an autistic boy, who has verbalised about feeling depressed, and ending his life not long ago. I found your talk very useful and informative on how to manage the kind of situation I was faced with, moving forward in the future.

May you continue to help other parents prevent suicide of young children by arming them the knowledge that they need, just like you did that evening.’

‘I found your presentation really informative and we were both really engaged throughout.  From your own experience and from a place of love you are able to bring teenage suicide, very much a subject that often people know little about and just don't think it would happen to them to the forefront.  You give signs to look out for and the courage as a parent to have those forthright discussions with our children. 

I thought that the subsequent personal journey you shared was also important and you conveyed that sense of loss with disbelief that you "never saw it coming".   I think for most parents there is that fear that a young person will take their own life with no prior warning and that we as parents may have been negligent in our observations and could have done something to prevent it.’

Lauren is also coming in to speak with small groups of students over the coming months as part of our Year 10 RSHE programme.

If you wish to attend the Parent Forum on the 2^nd February, please confirm your attendance on the below google form.

Parent Forum - Adam's Light - Monday, 2nd February 2026 6pm - In person

Building a Healthy Reading Habit

For some, the start of a new year is about making resolutions, but research shows that by mid-January many people have stopped. Why? Maybe because the goals are too big or there is no plan to reach that goal.

Since September, we have been using the 1% strategy: looking for the tiny changes that we can make each day to help us build healthy reading habits so that all students can access all parts of the curriculum.

Developing a Reading Toolkit

This week Year 7 students have been embedding the reading strategy of predicting using a history text.

Question to ask:

Ø  How do you use predicting as a reading strategy?

Ø  How could you use the reading strategy of predicting in your different lessons?

How can parents support their child with Sparx Reader?

In Year 7, students are set Sparx Reader every week to enable them to build up resilience in their careful reading. Sparx Reader shows teachers the speed and accuracy of students.

If a student has a WPM (words per minute rate) that is too slow it suggests they have become distracted. Parents might need to help students to: put away devices, avoid multi-tasking and use short, timed sessions of up to 10 minutes so that the student can stay fully focused.

If a student has a WPM (words per minute rate) that is too fast, it suggests they are rushing and missing meaning. Parents might need to help students to slow down perhaps by asking students to say the text out loud or to check the meaning of words by hovering over a word and right-clicking to find the meaning in context. Short, timed sessions might also help to provide focus.

Sparx Reader is about building careful reading skills vital for use across the curriculum.

Careful reading means understanding and remembering what you’ve read. It’s not just about finishing a book—it’s about thinking deeply and making sense of the words.

Questions to ask:

Ø  Has my child completed their Sparx Reader homework before the Monday deadline? Check the automated email update from Sparx Reader on Saturdays or ask your child to show you on Sparx Reader. It will be green if all complete.

Ø  Does my child need any IT or computer access support? Encourage them to use the library Chromebooks. Some students are reading only on phones and whilst this is possible, it is more tiring because by scrolling they feel like they are reading long sections of text (which would appear smaller on a larger screen). Speak to your child’s coach if support is needed.

Ø  Does my child have a scheduled time to complete Sparx Reader? Plan in when Sparx Reader homework can be completed either in one session or several shorter sessions. Students tend to become more inaccurate if they are trying to complete at the last moment.

#WCS2026 challenge: 26 YA books from a range of genres and on a range of topics all available in the library.

This week’s spotlight is on:

If you are a student, parent, member of staff or member of the wider community, you  can get involved in the discussion by adding your reading ideas and questions here.

In next week’s edition:

Find out more about the Year 9 Poetry by Heart competition and Reading Fluency intervention success.

A big well done to 10DLE for regaining their spot at the top of the Sparx Maths leaderboard this week —we hope you enjoy your biscuit reward!

The Year 10 Team

Meet the Team

It was a pleasure to spend time meeting three of our Year 10 students that were rewarded with hot chocolate and a chocolate bar this week. These students are organised and have their work experience placements set up and are looking forward to the experience. They also are consistently demonstrating ambition in their lessons and with the pathways they are considering beyond their time at Willingdon. Well done to the three students and keep up the great work!

It is time for the Student Leadership elections!  As we move closer to GCSE examinations, the Year 11s will be transitioning out of their roles and supporting the new team as they take over during Term 4.  Information has been shared through coaches this week and in assembly.  All this information can also be found on our website at  https://willingdonschool.org.uk/our-school/student-leadership

Please do encourage your young person to consider this fantastic opportunity.  There is much that they can contribute and this cohort of Year 10s are extremely strong.

They have so many ideas for events and improvements - Student Leadership is a great way to have a say in what happens at school.  We really do value their input.  Whatever their skill set, there is a role that will suit them, so we do hope that a wide range and large number of students enter an application.

Each student in Year 10 will be sent a link to a Google Application Form that they should complete in as much detail as they can to support their application. 

The deadline for submission is Tuesday 27^th January at 4pm

The link for this form is also here https://forms.gle/RWheoDAd5gykS96q8

If any student needs any additional support to complete the form, they can access this through their coach, pastoral team or the student leadership team in G2 any lunchtime. The timeline for the rest of the application process can be found below.

· W/c Monday 2^nd February – Students and staff are invited to vote based on the three key priorities identified by the candidates.

· W/c Monday 16^th February – Candidates with the most votes from the staff and student vote will have the opportunity to then present to a panel of teachers and current student leaders.

Any of the successful candidates may then be invited to interview with the Head Teacher, Chair of Governors and the current Head Students.  From those finalists, a Student Leadership Team will be selected.

After the panel has deliberated, the newly elected Head Students will be notified and the rest of the student leadership team will be contacted in due course before the end of term. If the students have any questions or queries, they can contact me directly on lcollins@willingdonschool.org.uk

Kind regards

Mrs Lucy Collins

Head of Department for Geography and Religious Studies

Thank you so much for supporting us!

MORFA BAY 2026 – Year 8-10 Enrichment Opportunity

The Morfa Bay trip takes place during Term 6 of the academic year between Monday 13^th and Friday 17^th July. The trip takes place at Morfa Bay Outdoor Adventure Centre, in Pendine Sands, South West Wales. Departure will be from Broad Road on Monday 13^th July, returning back on Friday 17^th July via coach (times to be confirmed).  Activities include coasteering, near St David’s/Tenby, rock climbing, sea activities (paddle boarding, surfing, raft building or sea kayaking), assault courses, zip wires, caving and team building.  We have used Morfa Bay in the past and they offer an excellent provision of activities with highly qualified instructors.  

The cost of this trip (which can be made in instalments) is £550. The suggested instalments are:

First come first served – £120 non-refundable deposit (ParentPay to open Monday 19^th January 2026 approx. 3pm)

On or before Sunday 1^st March 2026 – £110 instalment

On or before Wednesday 1^st April 2026 – £110 instalment

On or before Friday 1^st May 2026 - £110 instalment

On or before Monday 1^st June 2026 – £100 final instalment

This price includes daily activities, all tuition, full board accommodation (in bunk houses), insurance, travel and wetsuit/equipment hire.  It also includes transport to the offsite activities. 

A NON REFUNDABLE DEPOSIT of £120 will secure a place on this fantastic trip. Payments should be made via ParentPay. Due to the popularity of this trip, it will be offered, as in previous years, on a first come first served basis.  Where numbers permit, the upper and lower year groups are kept separate for travelling, sleeping and activity groups.  The activities also vary depending on the ability and age of the students. We do endeavour to take every child wishing to attend this trip.  Where numbers do not afford 2 coaches the first 45 students that have committed will be guaranteed a place.  We will then explore the options of a second/third coach or additional minibus.  

If you require support with the payment of this trip, please feel free to email Mr Cain to discuss this further. For more information on the site that we will be visiting please access via www.morfabay.com  to check it out.

Yours sincerely,

Mr Tom Cain             

Head of Year 11