A personal reflection on this week’s Ofsted inspection

“You have a lovely school.”

After two gruelling days of inspection, these were the departing words of one of the inspectors as they finally left school late on Wednesday evening.

It was great to hear that from her, of course, and I felt there had been proper recognition of all the fantastic things that go on at Southill – even though we are yet to have our final grade confirmed.

The inspectors were keen to talk to us about the parental survey that so many of you had contributed to. They told us that the results had been ‘overwhelmingly positive’, which was absolutely brilliant news. Thank you to everyone who offered your support to the school in this way.

The staff and I are also grateful for all the good luck messages we received before and during the inspection. There were also a lot of donations of chocolate that helped us through the process – thank you to everyone who sent in gifts and helped keep spirits up.

After the inspectors had left, we gathered together the staff and the governors and had a brief feedback session altogether. During this, I thanked them all for their efforts. It had been a difficult two days.

During this conversation, I noted that, as well as the parents, there was a group of people who were not present, but who had been instrumental in getting the school through the inspection process. I was referring, of course, to the children, and we were able to reflect on their fabulous contribution to the whole process in which they had been observed and questioned in many different ways. The inspectors had praised the Southill children many times, for their maturity, their care for each other and their belief in the school as a happy place to which they enjoy coming – as well as their politeness and ability to discuss important issues.

I would like to offer a personal vote of thanks to the staff of the school who really rose to the challenge of the inspection – and it was very challenging at times – and who worked so hard to make sure all the good things about the school were made apparent to the inspectors. It was a very stressful experience for all of them but what shone through was their care and their dedication to the children and to the school itself.

What struck me when listening to the inspectors’ final report was how well the parents’, pupils, governors and staff had done to show off all the different aspects of the school. Such a fantastic team effort demonstrates the strength of our school community, and I believe the inspectors were able to see this in all their interactions with different people.

It remains to be seen what parts of all this make it through to the final report which you won’t actually see until 30 working days after the inspection. So, for now, thank you all for your support.

Kind regards

Paul Mason

Other messages for parents and carers

Starting school in September 2023

Have you got a child who needs a primary school or secondary school place in September 2023? If so, we’re hoping you saw the Ping we sent this week with the information you require to apply. Alternatively, you can visit the Dorset Council’s website for school applications.

From Ryan Bisset, a tennis coach who sometimes works in school:

Hi everyone,

We are pleased to announce that we are going to be running a half term sports camp in October. A perfect opportunity for your child to participate in a range of Sports and Multiskills.

The camps will involve a mix of Tennis, Multi skills and some other Sports. There will be coaching, individual and team skills and lots of games!

Date – Wednesday 26th October at Indoors at the Wey Valley Tennis Centre at Wey Valley School.

The camp will run from 9am-12pm and the cost is £15 for the session.

The camp is aimed for children from aged 5 up to 12.

Places for the camp are limited, so if you would like to book your son or daughter in, please email me or send me a text which includes your child’s name, age, contact number and any medical conditions we need to be aware of. We will have a break for snacks during the session, so please bring drinks and snacks. Payments can be made via bacs or cash.

metennis@outlook.com

07540625887