Summer 2019
The
Park Post From The Head Change is an aspect of life that some may find frightening, challenging and unsettling, but we all have to change. Although change can be linked very closely, at the same time, with remaining fundamentally the same… Our school has undoubtedly changed; for the better, and it will continue to evolve. The Dalai Lama says: “Open your arms to change, but don’t let go of your values.” Many people have related to me during the course of this year, that it is abundantly clear that The Park School values hold strong; our ethos, Christian values and motto of Trust, Respect and Friendship all remain evident irrespective change. Our raison-d’être, our pupils, have adapted well and continue to be kind, considerate and proud of their school.
There is much talk in education at the moment about the importance of STEM subjects, and we are enhancing this further as STEAM: Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Maths. In addition to our current offering of subjects we are in discussion with Yeovil College to see where we can work together. For example, to offer a mutually-beneficial subject exchange programme in topics such as GCSE Engineering. There is much to explore, but the future is exciting and I believe we can be at the forefront of this expansion, as long as We are on:
we are prepared to change. A Chinese proverb states: “When the winds of change blow, some people build walls and others build windmills.” Look out for the windmills here!
With windmills in mind, we are working towards becoming an Eco-School and have appointed Dr Mort as our Eco-Teacher to lead this initiative. Our School Councils have already met to launch this programme and many exciting ideas are in the planning stages. As a starter, we are adopting a new blazer made from recycled plastic bottles from September and to eliminate single-use plastic bottles we now offer cans of water in addition to encouraging use of our water fountains. Gardening club plans to build a poly-tunnel in the new term from recycled plastic bottles and will grow vegetables for the kitchen. We cannot tell what will happen in the future but as long as we embrace change and are excited by it, we will succeed. There will be challenges for us all and they will come in all shapes and sizes. They may
be personal to us, or they may affect the world in which we live. Let us help our children to become hard-working, funloving, resilient individuals, who will become successful, responsible adults to lead our world and sustain it for future generations.
Jane Huntington Head
Independent Day School 4-18