A message from Mrs Marchant

We are finally in the swing of our new routines and it has been so lovely reconnecting with pupils and welcoming our new cohorts. So many parents and carers have attended our Welcome to Year… Evenings and I would like to thank the staff that have given up their time to ensure that you are all inducted well into the new school year groups.

We are, again, members of the National College and this means that there are a number of free training sessions and resources for parents and carers, particularly around keeping children safe online and online safety. The attached letter here has further information as to how you can sign up and access these vital resources.

The first PTA meeting of the year took place this week and it has become apparent that we are in urgent need of your help. As pupils move on, so do the committee members and, without parents’ involvement, the PTA simply cannot exist.  The PTA has many committed event owners who deliver experiences for our pupils such as the recent Bubble Football Palooza, the Year 7 and 8 Discos, the Parents’ Quiz, Easter Egg Bingo, the Sponsored Walk… the list goes on. However, the committee needs to urgently fill the following roles: Treasurer, Secretary and Vice Chair. These roles do not require more than a few hours every half-term, but are crucial to the survival of the PTA. Over the years funds raised have directly contributed to construction on the site (Sports Hall, Hazell Building) and have enabled purchasing of so many things that enrich and enhance the learning environment for our pupils such as interactive white boards, the floodlights on the netball courts, the lights in the hall for our productions, a new sound system for the music department. Again, the list is too long to mention. If you can spare a few hours, being a member of the committee not only provides a social connection to other parents, but it is a very rewarding way to be involved with the wider TWGGS community. The school Sponsored Walk is next on the calendar, on Monday, 29th September, so please keep an eye out for communications about this. Volunteers are always appreciated for all our events, especially the upcoming discos. With your help, I know that the PTA can continue their excellent work and I would like to thank them for their time and endless support for the school. Please contact Janey at pta@twggs.kent.sch.uk to find out how you can take part. Thank you.

As PTA events take place on school premises I would like to remind parents of KS3 and KS4 children that we still operate a ‘no phone’ policy. I understand that a pupil may need to have a phone to contact home at the end of the disco/event, but they are not permitted to have their phones out during an event and they are strictly bound by our Online Safety and Acceptable Use policies. Here they are not permitted to film, photograph or share any images of anyone.

The evenings are beginning to draw in and temperatures are dropping so it can be tempting to drive to collect your child and pick them up from school. Please can I remind you that you are not permitted to drive onto the school grounds or to use the entrance as a turning circle. A number of parents are still coming onto the site or blocking Southfield Road which causes issues with our residents and is unsafe.

So many of our pupils engage in activities outside of school which we are very proud of; if you wish your child to be featured or celebrated please do let us know by emailing media@twggs.kent.sch.uk, with a photo if you are happy for this to be used for publicity purposes.

I wish you all a very happy weekend.

Mrs Katie Marchant, Headteacher

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ParentPay

Please be aware that it has come to our attention there is a fake ParentPay app on the App Store. ParentPay does not have an app. ParentPay can only be accessed via www.parentpay.com on your web browser. Thank you.

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The News Blog

Stories from life in school are all hosted on our website, which is linked to via the ‘View All News’ button below. Links and buttons will take you outside of this document. Please don’t forget to return to the newsletter to scroll all the way through.

This edition of the newsletter contains:

• ParentPay Notice
• Online Safety Bulletins
• Give Your Best
• Link to School Calendar
• Tales From the Archives
• Attendance and information on reporting absences and family holidays

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Online Safety Bulletins

What Parents and Carers need to know about Snapchat

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Ella H (Upper Sixth) – For being the first person to submit her UCAS application
Holly H (Year 8) – For representing the school
Demi J (Upper Sixth) – For her fantastic attitude to life
Aadhya B (Year 7) – For being very polite and a perfect role model
Kanhai K (Year 10) – For being attentive and determined; an active and thoughtful learner

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Upcoming Events

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Tales From the Archives

We are in the very fortunate position of having a school archive, and we thought we would share some items with you so that the whole TWGGS community can appreciate items from our history . The focus this week is a piece of artwork which has hung in a quiet spot in the Lower Library for years, most probably unnoticed by passing pupils and staff alike. The piece is by Ralph Steadman, a British satirical political cartoonist and illustrator, who has worked with writers such as Ted Hughes and Hunter S. Thompson, and has illustrated editions of Alice in Wonderland, Treasure Island, Animal Farm, Fahrenheit 451 and many others. The cartoon is a theatre scene, originally drawn in 1980, entitled ‘Seasoned First-Nighters and a First-Time Theatregoer‘.

According to the Victoria and Albert Museum, where the original can be found, the poster ‘depicts a full house of patrons viewed from the stage whose reactions vary from the somnolent, indifferent and mildly engaged, to the enthralled and astounded first-time theatregoer in the centre of the second row of the stalls. It is titled by the artist and inscribed: ‘A Quote: “Theatre is for the bored, the disenchanted, the hangers-on, the dreamless, the frustrated and anyone else who doesn’t know how to entertain themselves” (a critic – circa 1980)’. The poster was originally produced to raise funds for what is now the Kiln Theatre, in Kilburn.

Our print of the poster is certainly unique. The dedication reads: ‘For T.W.G.G.S. Encore! From Ralph Steadman, 19 July’ (the year is unclear). In 1971, he sold original illustrations for Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas to Rolling Stone magazine for $75 on the advice of his agent, a fraction of the illustrations’ later value. He regretted selling for such a sum and has since refused to sell any original artwork, having kept possession of the vast majority of his work. He said, ‘If anyone owns a Steadman original, it’s stolen.’ Whilst we don’t have the original, we do have an original signed print, of which we are very proud.

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Attendance