Welcome back to the summer term and we’ve already experienced the full range of the vagaries of the British weather! We are quickly into the exam season and GCSEs have already begun, with the IB exams starting on Monday (on the Bank Holiday!). Other year groups have started internal exams.  
 
I want to start by welcoming Huw Jones, the new Deputy Headmaster, who started last week. I hope you found useful the email he sent out recently about a number of pastoral concerns. Several of you have already met him around school – please do look out for him. Congratulations to Huw and his wife Kerry on the birth of their first child, Samuel, during the holiday. Also during the holidays, Sarah Shanks was part of a group of local hockey-playing friends – 6 Chicks with Sticks – that successfully cycled the breadth of the UK (420 miles) and, in doing so, have raised well over £12,000 for the new Cancer Centre at the RUH Hospital in Bath. It was a tremendous achievement that made national radio; their fundraising page is still live and I know they would be grateful for any further support:  https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/sixchickswithsticks
 
Although it was a tight squeeze to get everything ready for the end of the first week of term, we enjoyed a splendid Open Morning last Saturday, with a record number of visitors – approximately 80 families – helped by the fact that it didn’t clash with any other local schools. Although Storm Hannah made an appearance, the rain held off and the School looked superb. However, as usual, it was the staff and pupils who made the biggest impression. I was delighted to receive sustained and enthusiastic feedback about the genuine sense of community, the openness, warmth and friendliness of the place and the engagement and positivity of the pupils.  I was, as ever, very proud to be Headmaster of this school.
 
This term’s sport has started with great energy and success, not least on the cricket field, where the 1^st XI have already beaten King’s Bruton and Downside, two tremendous wins. The U13s have also notched up two wins. The girls’ 1^st VI tennis also enjoyed a good win against KES Bath in their opening fixture of the term. Earlier this week, it was my pleasure to take out for lunch in recognition of their success, all four of last term’s undefeated sports teams: basketball, U12A hockey, Junior B and Colts A netball. It’s starting to cost me a fortune – they scoff a lot of pizza! Meanwhile, the girls in Year 5&6 were treated to a training session with two of Bath Rugby’s international players – Aled Brew and Taulupe Faletau. It was wonderful to welcome to the session many other girls from several local schools.
 
Please may I remind you that Speech Day will rapidly be upon us (Saturday 25 May) and it is obligatory for all pupils.  The much-loved evening of Poetry & Prose takes place on Friday 24 May, while some other dates for your diary are as follows: 

• Rock, pop & jazz on a summer’s evening - Friday 7 June
• Mary Poppins - Thursday/Friday/Saturday 20/21/22 June
• Rock Bottom (Year 5&6 play) - Friday/Saturday 27/28 June
• WSPA Summer Ball - Saturday 29 June
• Prep prize-giving - Thursday 4 July
• End of term - Friday 5 July

To those of you going away for the Bank Holiday weekend, I hope you have an enjoyable time, some sun and not much traffic.

Mark Mortimer
@markd_mortimer