Dear parents/ pupils and other visitors

As the Summer holidays arrive I would like to take a moment to reflect on the academic year which has passed. The website gives an insight into the life of our school and hopefully shows that Brighouse High is so much more than a building with classrooms. We focus relentlessly on raising achievement for every single pupil in our school and work hard to ensure that the school experience is happy, but challenging.

2009-10 has been a busy and successful one for Brighouse High School. We began the year celebrating excellent GCSE results with 85% of our Year 11 students achieving the benchmark 5 A*-Cs. The trend of improvement also continued at Post 16. The Value Added Score (a measure of progress used by the government) places Brighouse High Sixth form in the top 5 sixth forms across West Yorkshire. As a fully comprehensive college, we are very proud of the success of all our students and will continue to work hard to ensure that we work with them to achieve the best outcomes possible.

There have been many highlights during the school calendar and many opportunities for pupils and students to rise to challenges both inside and outside the classroom. The school production of Annie, a joint project organised by the Drama and Music departments was certainly a memorable event during the year. Pupils from Year 7 -13 were involved in the show; all putting in fantastic performances. The production must rank as one of the best ever. The photographs on the website give a flavour of the show.

Music has featured highly once again this year. The carol service organised by the Religious Studies department lived up to its usual high standard. The band also performed in Piece Hall and on the streets of Brighouse over the Christmas period. Our musicians were invited to perform alongside the Brighouse and Rastrick Brass Band at the Central Methodist church. As ever this was an amazing experience and provided a memory of a lifetime for the pupils involved.

For the first time ever we were involved in the National School Idol competition this year. Three acts went to the finals in Preston where they performed well but unfortunately did not win. The Midsummer Soiree at St Martin’s church was a fitting end to the year. Pupils and staff took the stage to share their talent. A full account of this and the other musical events can be found in the parents’ bulletin on this website.

At Brighouse High we follow a ‘Challenge curriculum’; we are constantly looking for ways to challenge pupils in their learning and to develop, not just their academic skills but the important skills of team work, decision making and communication that are invaluable in life. Year 7 pupils rose to the challenge of the Blencathra Trip again this June. Almost 200 pupils and staff spent 6 days in the Northern Lakes undertaking a variety of outdoor activities and team building tasks. There are some fantastic photographs of the pupils taking part in these activities in the Parents’ bulletin. Every year staff return saying ‘this was the best trip ever’. This was the 25th time the visit has taken place and once again it was the best ever! Thanks to all the staff involved and to the pupils for their excellent behaviour and effort during the week.

Other trips and visits this year have involved Catterick Army Camp, the Sixth form adventure to San Diego and the Grand Canyon, the Geography Dept trips to Liverpool and Holmfirth, Duke of Edinburgh expeditions, the Year 8 London trip, a History visit to Berlin, the annual ski trip, the French study visit to Normandy, as well as regular visits to Mixenden Outdoor centre, Bradley woods and the usual end of year trips to a range of theme parks. We met our aim this year of involving every single pupil in at least one activity outside the classroom. All of these activities help enrich the life of the school and give the pupils a chance to learn and develop in a different setting. In particular they develop the important qualities of responsibility, independence and team work.

It is fantastic to have the opportunity to include such a wide range of enrichment activities during the Summer term, but inevitably when pupils return in September the focus is on study in the classroom and at home. We try to develop good study habits from the start and would encourage parents to support us by ensuring pupils are well equipped and that uniform is correct. A few reminders about uniform can be found in the parents’ bulletin.

We welcome new Year 7 pupils in September and look forward to them making an excellent start and becoming part of the Brighouse High team. Year 12 too will embark on new courses at the sixth form college and we wish all of them well, whether they are former Brighouse High students or are coming to us from elsewhere.
I hope that everyone has an enjoyable summer break and look forward to seeing you all in September.

Liz Cresswell