File:School Day Timing/Pupil Parents/RC/SK

17 December 2018

Dear Parent/Carer

I am writing to seek your views on a proposal to change our school day timings, to shorten our school lunch and finish the compulsory school day at 3pm rather than 3.20pm. We believe there are a number of advantages to this possible change:

-More clubs and teams run after school rather than at lunchtime, allowing girls and parents to plan

extra-curricular participation for every day after school if it suits family working arrangements.

-Many of our pupils collect younger siblings from primary schools – finishing at the same time as the local primary schools would make this easier.

-Many pupils feel lunchtime is currently too long and they get bored – particularly in poor weather.

-As other secondary schools in the area finish at 3pm we would avoid the situation where large

numbers of children from other schools are waiting for our pupils. On very rare occasions our pupils have felt intimidated.

-By aligning our timetable with Turves Green Boys’ School we have the possibility, in the future, of offering options currently taught at the Boys’ School but not here.

-As we investigate the possibility of setting up a Turves Green Sixth Form, staffed jointly with Turves

Green Boys’ School, it will facilitate the future timetabling of such an institution.

-We would also seek to ensure Homework Club provision is extended so those families who choose to

take advantage of it can be reassured that their daughter is supervised in school until 5pm.

There are also some disadvantages, specifically the pavement on Turves Green would be more congested at 3pm, and lunchtimes may be too short to be used effectively for exam booster sessions.

If you feel you would like to contribute to our decision, please write to me, outlining whether or not you think the proposed changes are a good idea and why. I will take all responses to our Governing body for them to make a final decision, of which you will be notified in due course.

May I take the opportunity to inform you that the school logo has changed for Turves Green Girls’ School. It is not our intention to incur any extra expense to parents but to phase in the new school logo from September 2016. The school uniform providers have been notified of the changes and will now be stocking uniform with the new school logo.

Yours sincerely

R CROOKES
Headteacher