Senior Reflections 22 May 2026

Dear parents,

This week has been filled with purpose and practice as pupils across the school have been sitting a range of exams and assessments. These are an important part of the learning process: not only do they give pupils the opportunity to show what they know and can do, but they also help them discover which revision techniques work best for them.

For our younger pupils, this is very much about learning how to revise, how to prepare, and how to approach assessments with confidence. For those in the senior years, it is about consolidating their learning ahead of public examinations and taking pride in the progress they have made. I hope pupils will take time, too, to celebrate their successes and recognise the effort they have put in.

We have also been delighted to welcome Dr Rainbow to school for a couple of days this week. He has spent time speaking with pupils and staff as he prepares for September, and he has been hugely impressed by the warmth, energy and ambition of the school community.

I have thoroughly enjoyed following our Ten Tors teams this year, and I would encourage you to look at the fantastic vlog our pupils have created to capture the experience. It gives a real insight into the teamwork, resilience and good humour shown throughout the event. My thanks go to all the pupils involved in putting the vlog together, they have done an excellent job, and it is well worth a watch:

On Wednesday I had the delight of celebrating World Bee Day with our youngest pupils at pre-prep. We explored why bees are so important for the environment and for our own food chain, and we all enjoyed a little waggle dance (thankfully there is no footage of this!). Special thanks to our amateur apiarist Dr Commin for the loan of some beautiful wax honeycomb and sweet homemade honey.

Another highlight of the week has been welcoming pupils from local primary schools for our Primary Science days. I have it on good authority that our guests had an amazing time in biology, chemistry, physics and electronics, enjoying hands-on activities and inspiring demonstrations. Huge thanks go to all the staff involved, and especially to Mrs Johnson for masterminding the days.

Yesterday, we also enjoyed a wonderful day at the Devon County Show. If you have not been before, it is a superb celebration of all that makes Devon so special, and I thoroughly recommend it, particularly for families with younger children. Our stand is in Avenue A, Stand 94, so do pop in if you are intending to visit tomorrow. The forecast is looking good.

Finally, you may have seen on our local social media feeds that some of our pupils showed remarkable courage and compassion this week. A member of the public suffered a medical episode outside school, near the RDE, and several of our Upper Fifth (Year 11) pupils, on their way home after their GCSE chemistry exam, stepped in to help.

They called 999, placed their school blazers over her to keep her warm, supported her head, and stayed with her until the ambulance arrived. They also had the presence of mind to look for medical information and found an EpiPen. Perhaps most impressively of all, they had the courage to stand firm when another adult told them not to get involved. I am exceptionally proud of them for their calm, considerate and mature response.

I am very pleased to say she has since made a good recovery and has written to me to say that “it would have been a different story if they did not act the way they did” and that we “should be AMAZED and privileged to have these students as part of [our] school”.

I most certainly am.

Enjoy a restful half term and as a reminder, Monday 1 June is a staff inset day, so pupils are expected back in school on Tuesday 2 June.