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Welcome to Blackfen School for Girls

                              

Reminders for parents


Key information for exam candidates can be found here

To view our new Behaviour Charter, click here. 
 
To check if school is open during adverse weather visit the council's website or the opencheck website
 
 A new page, Dates for Your Diary, is available here, showing key dates in the school's calendar. 

 

You can also pay for trips and resources here...WisePay

 

Take a few minutes to check out the Head Teacher's Blog below and the virtual tour and you’ll see for yourself why Blackfen is such a popular choice for parents, students and staff.

 

 

 

Blackfen is a progressive and forward-looking school where learning is enjoyable and success for all is nurtured. Our school provides a safe environment for all its students. Our staff are committed to safeguarding students through recruitment and working practices.  Our latest Ofsted Report shows that our care, guidance and support for students is a particular strength. If you would like to find out more, have a look through our School Prospectus or get in touch to arrange a visit.

To view archives of Mr Brown's Thoughts for the Day, click here.

 

Mr Brown’s thoughts for the day

Monday 17June 2013

Monday 17 June 2013
This week we reach mid summer!  I know - it feels like we are still in winter at times.  The summer solstice is this Friday (21 June).  Solstice comes from the Latin - Sol (sun)  and sistere (to stand still).  At this point the seasonal movement of the sun's path (as seen from Earth) stops before reversing direction.  Of course ...it does not stand still for long.  Life can be very much like this - we have periods of time when things seem to stand still and sometimes standing still and reflecting is a good thing to do.  However, unlike the sun, following any reflection we must move forward rather than reversing our direction (although there is also the argument that sometimes to move forwards we need to move backwards first).  So, before the gloomy news of the nights drawing in .... stand still ...wonder at the power of the sun ....reflect ..... and then move forward.  Enjoy the longest day!!!
Monday 3 June 2013
I was looking through a cupboard in my office recently when I came across a Head Teacher log book which stretches back to the day the school opened.  Looking back I found the entry for June 2 1953 (Coronation Day).  "20 girls in the charge of Mrs Wheeler and Miss Fuller went to reserved places on the Victoria Embankment to see the Coronation procession."  On June 8th 1953..."School closed in the afternoon to enable the girls to be taken to see the State Drive of Her Majesty through South East London.  A stretch of pavement in Westhorne Avenue was reserved for the school."  These are real historic memories and the girls who attended these events will now be in their 70's.  It is incredible to think that in all that time there has only been one monarch ruling over the country.  A truly historical way to start the new half term.
Tuesday 21 May 2013
Our year 11 students spent a tearful (at times!!!) few hours on Monday during an event to celebrate their five years at the school.  Although the Raising of the Participation Age means that young people will no longer "leave" school or education at 16 in the UK.....the end of year 11 marks the end of a chapter of formal education in a school setting.  As they embark on examinations and start to plot through the uncertain future ahead we wish them every success.  They are all aspirational in what they are aiming for ..... and they are all inspirational young people - to us, their peers and younger students.
 
Tuesday 7 May 2013
This week we are honoured to welcome two colleagues from our partner school in Chennai, India. Two teachers from Chettinad Hari Shree Vidyalayam arrived yesterday to join us for a week of sharing learning and teaching practice. Hema and Sundari have already been involved in lessons, on human rights and will be helping to teach a dance and mathematics class later this week.
Students have been asking our visitors about how they live, if they have bathrooms, wi-fi and clean water to drink, which they of course do. Partnerships like this can help to combat the lack of knowledge and prejudice many of us have about other countries, cultures and ethnicity, much of which is fuelled by the media.  This will ultimately combat stereotypes and hopefully racism.  
The visit from our partner school also marks the start of International Week here at Blackfen, where we explore different ways of living, eating, playing and working across the curriculum. On Friday, we end our week with a whole evening celebration, with a fashion show, international food, music and stalls. Click here for more information. Why not join us for a friendly and lively end to the week. . 

 

Friday 19 April 2013

At last summer has arrived (well some warmer weather and some sunshine).  The start of summer heralded the end of the Easter break (as so often is the case).  School is back in full swing and this week students in year 12 have been doing external examinations in Art and Photography - yes, examination season is back upon us.  The start of any term enables us to take stock, to reflect ..... and to move forward.  The theme for assembly this week has been reflection.  The key message is that through reflection we can further improve.  Everyone makes mistakes.  Learning is about taking risks, trying out new things and reflecting on what went well and what we can improve on.  Reflection must be honest, although we should never be too hard on ourselves, and must be the key to trying not to make the same mistakes again.  Enjoy the summer!

Monday 25 March 2013

Three weeks ago I wrote about the beginning of Spring .....since then we seem to have had constant cold weather including snow on several occasions.  The term ends this week and there is still snow on the ground as I write this.  This week is also Holy Week in the Christian calendar and the last few weeks have been extremely busy ones in both the Anglican and Roman Catholic Churches.  The end of term ..... and the end of Lent both provide an opportunity for reflection.  This enables us to become better and stronger people.  I wish you a peaceful and restful Easter break and I look forward to resuming my blog during the summer term ....when hopefully the snow will have disappeared!

Thursday 14 March 2013

There has been a buzz of expectancy and eager anticipation in school over the last few weeks as students prepare to perform Oliver today and tomorrow in our brand new performance space.  This is the first (of many) school productions in recent memory in the school and we are all very excited about it.  Staff and students have been working hard in preparation for the 2 nights of the performance.  At Blackfen we believe that performance is vitally important in the development of all young people.  It enables all young people to develop confidence, it builds self esteem and it allows youngsters to work as a team with our highly talented staff.  We cannot wait for the curtain up!  ....And we say to all of them .....break a leg!

Friday 1 March 2013

Today marks the official start of the season of Spring after the 3 months (seemingly long months) of Winter.  A flash of yellow along grass verges greets us on our various paths during the day - daffodils and primroses in flower .... and a strange yellow glow in the sky greets the mornings as the sun once again starts to feel a bit warmer.  The daffodil is the national symbol for Wales and is very important on this date - St David's day.  The daffodil symbolises new growth - for months it has been working hard behind the scenes (underground) ready for the moment that it shoots out of the ground and produces this beautiful flower.  On this day let us think about all those people who work so hard behind the scenes (underground) in every organisation.  We don't see them but the organisation could not flourish without them.  Happy St David's day!

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