Welcome back colleagues! I hope you had a restful summer. 

We have had some staff changes over the summer, with Angela McNicholas joining us for two days a week as Assistant Director (AD) Schools, focusing on School Standards and outcomes; Clare Potter is joining us on Monday 22 September as AD SEND and Fern Edwards will be Head of Traded Services overseeing the Catering transfer until March 2026.

The education outcomes for children in the borough demonstrate the commitment of schools and education support teams: 

Early Years: 75 per cent of children achieving a Good Level of Development – well above London and national averages. The numbers in the borough is one of the highest in the Country and we have been visited by national researchers who wanted to know what we do and how we do it!

Key Stage 1: 83.6 per cent met the expected phonics standard, and at Key Stage 2, 72.9 per cent achieved the expected level in reading, writing and maths – again outperforming London and national benchmarks.

GCSE results across the borough were stable, with 69.8 per cent of pupils achieving Grade 4 or above, compared to 67.1 per cent nationally. A Level pass rates were in line with national figures at 97.1 per cent, with a slight uplift in average grades from C to C+.

A huge thank you to everyone involved in helping our children thrive. 

The half-termly school’s briefings are in the diary, with the first one on Tuesday 23 September, please do contact me if there are any items you would like to add to the agenda, and I look forward to working with you to address a range of issues and projects over the next academic year.

Mary Jarrett

Corporate Director, Education