Dear parents and carers,
It’s great to be back! I’ve had a fantastic time at the World Inclusion Congress in beautiful Almaty, Kazakhstan, meeting people from all over the world, learning from them, and sharing the brilliant work we do here at William Ford. As a result, we now have schools in Ghana and Zambia who wish to partner with us, and visitors hoping to come from as far afield as Belgium, Holland, Switzerland, and the United States. Several visits from others closer to home are already being added to the diary.
This was an incredible opportunity to see what is happening globally and to reflect on how we can continue to develop by learning from others. For us, I think the big learning points will be around speaking and listening, pupil voice, and pupil leadership – ensuring our pupils have every opportunity to present themselves confidently, whether in debates, assemblies, or public speaking events.
It was not only an honour to be invited to speak four times across three days, but deeply moving to see how much interest there was in our work here at William Ford. What I shared was translated into several languages, and it became clear that what we have created together really is something very special. That has also been reflected in the Local Authority review, which described our provision as exceptional, and the Diocesan review, which was equally impressed with what they saw. Even one of the major teacher training universities has expressed interest in finding out more about our approach.
Our unique curriculum, which connects learning to real life and future careers, continues to inspire other schools as well as our own pupils. Through approaches like our cookery lessons, Careers Village project, and Mantle of the Expert work, we give children a sense of purpose and hope for the future – helping them to understand not just what they are learning, but why it matters.
This week, we also welcomed Lawrence Banda, a young entrepreneur who spoke to pupils about his experience of living with ADHD. He shared how what others once saw as a barrier became his strength – helping him to think creatively, problem-solve, and build his own company in the tech industry, creating gamification software to make maths learning more engaging for schools. His story was a real inspiration to our pupils and a great link to our careers education focus.
In Collective Worship, we have continued our journey through Genesis, learning how sin entered the world when Adam and Eve gave in to temptation. It reminded us that while it isn’t a sin to be tempted, giving in to temptation is – and that we all need God’s help to make the right choices.
As we reach the end of what has been a long but rewarding half term, there is so much to celebrate. We clearly have something very special here at William Ford, and we should never take that for granted. Let’s continue to be grateful for everything that takes place here, and for the difference we make in pupils’ lives through the strong partnership between school and home.
I hope everyone enjoys a well-earned and restful half term break. When we return, there’s plenty to look forward to – from our Year Six residential at Trewern to the many Christmas events already being planned.
I pray you all have a wonderful weekend.
Mr. David Huntingford
Headteacher
