On Monday 27th January our school community commemorated Holocaust Memorial Day, an important occasion that provides our students with the opportunity to reflect on historical events and their relevance to our modern world. Such observances are crucial in developing our students' understanding of global citizenship and the importance of tolerance and respect. Students watched two videos, joined an online assembly and had a tutor time discussion to mark the day.
We have a number of exciting trips and visits on the horizon. These educational excursions are invaluable in enriching our students' learning experiences beyond the classroom, and we encourage full participation where possible. You will receive information about a number of different opportunities in the next few weeks, including residential trips and information about the upcoming Duke of Edinburgh programme.
For our Year 11 and Year 13 students, the upcoming Pre-Public Examinations (PPEs) are fast approaching. These assessments are a vital part of their preparation for their final examinations, providing valuable practice and feedback. We urge all students to approach these with diligence and to make use of the support available to them. If you or your child would like to discuss these further or need any additional support, please speak with their form tutor or Head of year in the first instance.
I am pleased to report on our ongoing collaboration with local schools, including Bancroft's. These partnerships allow us to share best practises and provide additional opportunities for our students, fostering a broader educational community. Next week a small group of Sixth Form students will join their annual Competitive Futures Option event at Bancroft’s where they will hear from a range of university speakers including UCL, Oxford and Warwick and an additional talk by UBS on degree apprenticeships. Our thanks to them for hosting our students on this day.
There are several achievements I would like to celebrate with you. Firstly, we have received over 360 Sixth Form applications for the coming academic year. Interviews for these positions will take place next week, and we look forward to welcoming a wonderful new cohort of students to our outstanding Sixth Form community.
Additionally, I am pleased to report that the work on our RAAC affected building is progressing well. We appreciate the patience and understanding of all those affected by this necessary work. In subsequent newsletters I will share pictures with you of some of the interior work that has already taken place.
I'd also like to issue a final reminder about the Bingo night organised by the Roding Valley Foundation this Friday (31st January)! There are some fantastic prizes on offer, including; £50 vouchers for 8 Rocks, Zizzi and Mayhem Paintball, a bay at Top Golf, Free Benefit Makeover, Loughton Bookshop Voucher and more besides. There will be a bar selling snacks and drinks. Link is here to buy tickets. Please bring family and friends to what we hope will be a fabulous evening! Click here to purchase your tickets!
We are also addressing the issue of litter within our school grounds. Due to the lack of canteen space many students are eating outside at break and lunch time. Last year we invested a considerable amount of money in a number of new bins across the site to ensure that litter is minimised. This year we are implementing a renewed push to encourage our students to take pride in their environment and to dispose of litter responsibly. Your support in reinforcing this message at home would be greatly appreciated.
Finally, I would like to bring your attention to an important notice regarding student conduct. We kindly request your support in ensuring that your children travel to and from school respectfully. This includes being mindful of their behaviour on public transport and in the local community. Our students are ambassadors for our school, and their conduct reflects on all of us. Please encourage your child to make their way home from school at the end of each day in a timely manner. We have received reports from members of the local community who have reported that there are an increasing number of students congregating in different locations after school. Whilst we are confident that in most instances these are not Roding Valley students, we request that you support us and your child’s safety by reminding them of this message.
Thank you for your continued support and engagement with our school community. Together, we can ensure that Roding Valley High School continues to provide an excellent educational experience for all our students.
Stars of the Week!
Year Group W/C 13th January 2025
Year 7
Year 8
Year 9
Year 10
Year 11
Ted Bishop - for his fantastic efforts in lessons every day, and for always showing the correct behaviour in the community
Olivia James - for making incredible progress since returning this term.
Rosen Lekay - for his contributions to the diversity assembly.
Leo Swindell - for really working hard to improve his levels which has shown on his report.
Sara Chowdhury - for her excellent report and 100% punctuality.
Year 12 Iannis Stanuti - for excellent contributions in our assembly with guest speakers and employer talk this week.
Year 13
Warm regards
Mr D Charlton
Sydnae-Rose Smith - for an exceptional presentation of an outstanding EPQ project.
W/C 20th January 2025
Alice Clay - for her excellent progress in lessons, and for her high amount of achievement points which demonstrate this fantastic progress.
Bobby Stone - for consistently displaying enthusiasm, always putting in his best effort, and being a pleasure to talk to.
Vera El-Khalil - for her contributions to the diversity assembly.
Olivia Jarvis - for being a really good example of what a friend is.
Oliver Devereux - for his continued hard work and excellent effort in school. 100% punctuality, excellent ATLs, wonderful report.
Rais Khan - for consistent dedication to his studies and exceptional manners.
Imaan Sattar - for an exceptional delivery of an outstanding EPQ project.
Messages from Our Heads of Year
Our team is proud to be your child’s Head of Year and very much looking forward to supporting your child and with such a great cohort of students, we are sure it will be a great half term. To ensure that you are aware of who your child’s Head of Year is and who to contact, please refer to their details below:
Year 7: Miss Aston
To contact Miss Aston, please email caston@rodingvalley.net
Year 8: Miss Burke
To contact Miss Burke, please email tburke@rodingvalley.net
Year 9: Miss Reed
To contact Miss Reed, please email hreed@rodingvalley.net
Year 10: Mr Ryan
To contact Mr Ryan, please email fryan@rodingvalley.net
Year 11: Ms Wills
To contact Ms Wills, please email rwills@rodingvalley.net
Year 7 News
Message from Miss Aston
We are now into our third week in the second term, and Year 7's have now successfully completed their first set of exams at Roding Valley High School! Their behaviour was superb throughout, and they were a credit to the school.
I would like to also take this opportunity to announce the upcoming French Trip on the 21st – 22nd September 2025 to Boulogne sur-mer. Please find a copy of the letter here, this has also been sent out previously to all Year 7 parents from Miss Lasfer. Any questions on this trip, please email Miss Lasfer directly ( klasfer@rodingvalley.net ).
Just a reminder that we have a superb Year 7 team of Form Tutors who are your first port of call if you have any questions or concerns.
In England, a Free School Meal (FSM) is a statutory benefit available to school aged children from families who receive other qualifying benefits and who have been through the relevant registration process. Recently, the process of applying for Free School Meals at Roding Valley High School has changed to an online application in order to improve speed and reduce the burden of paperwork for parents. For more information on the qualifying benefits and for more information, please visit our Free School Meals page on our school website It is important that parents register their children for free school meals if they are entitled as the school receives additional funding known as the Pupil Premium to support the children’s learning. The use of the pupil premium is personalised to meet the needs of the children who are entitled to support, such as 1-1 tuition, additional LSA support and intervention groups, access to school visits, Learning Mentor, speech and language assistants, Family Support and counselling. If you believe that your child is eligible for Free School Meals, please click here to use our Free School Meals Checker. Your Certificate of Eligibility will then need to be emailed to finance@rodingvalley.net
Year 8 News
Message from Miss Burke
Well done to all of our Year 8 Students who have made a really positive start to the term! I am thrilled to see the enthusiasm and focus of our Year 8 students. As you are all aware, it is Year 8 exam week, and from speaking with students, it has been amazing to see how confident and prepared they are feeling.
If we can maintain this positive motivation both at school and at home, I am confident we will see fantastic results. Let’s continue working together to ensure the rest of the term is equally successful and rewarding for everyone.
As always, the standards for Year 8 are high, and we know they are more than capable of achieving them. This has already been evident through their commitment to behaviour, uniform, and attitude to learning this term. If we can maintain this positivity and motivation both at school and at home, I am certain we will see excellent results and a continued successful rest of the term.
It has been lovely to see how many students are referring to "In a world where you can be anything, be kind” in various situations, showing kindness and empathy in their actions. It's inspiring to witness how this simple yet powerful message is being embraced by so many students.
To report any property lost, please email: lostproperty@rodingvalley.net
We ask if you could provide a detailed description of the item you have lost so that we can reunite you with your missing property.
Options
Year 9 News
Message from Miss Reed
I trust that you attended the Year 9 parents evening on Thursday and hope that you received valuable feedback from the subject teachers. If you were unable to meet with a staff member; please do feel free to email them and they will be happy to assist. All staff emails can be found on the school website here.
A letter was sent out this week detailing the process of options. Some key dates include:
• Friday 31st January - Year 9 Options microsite to be shared with all parents / students. Students will also receive their options pathway on this date.
• Thursday 6th February - Year 9 Options Evening (5.30pm - 7.15pm).
• Tuesday 25th February & Wednesday 26th February - Optional Support Clinics; this is an optional evening where parents / students can book an appointment for any queries regarding the options process.
Students will also have an assembly on the options process as well as an opportunity to experience GCSE lessons in subject areas
Last week was another one of our house weeks where students were given an update on the house system and the amount of points each house has so far this year which are accumulated from house events. Pankhurst are currently leading the way which is great to see as they are renowned for often being near the bottom!
We also celebrated our stars of the form that week. Form tutors selected one student from their form group who has made a positive start since coming back from the Christmas break. Please see below the winners! Well done to all of these students!
9Ar – Abi Chinnock
9Be – Harmani Purewal
9Ca – Telisha Chidembo
9Fl – Galia Varon Brown
9Hy – Amber Woolfe
9Li – William Gill
9Ma – Antonio Budui
9Ne- Christopher Negus
9Ox – Lilly Fegan
Finally, I would like to wish everyone a lovely weekend and if you have any queries at all, please contact your son/daughters form tutor or myself.
Message from Mr Ryan Year 10 News
As we start heading into spring I am reminded that we are very quickly reaching the end of the year and the exam season. I have been frequently asked how to revise for subjects and I thought I would take this opportunity to share a few tips.
The first thing that would really help is if students have access to their knowledge
organisers or Pupil Learning checks. For example, in History, these identify everything that is covered throughout the unit. Each one of these topics/skills identifies a topic that can be turned into either a mind map or cue cards or Cornell notes. Ask your child if they have these sheets anywhere. If they don't, email their teachers to ask for one. I have just mentioned three of our trusted revision techniques. With my own History Class I am asking them all to produce cue cards. In the English department, the year group is currently completing weekly knowledge tests. Each of these is identified on a sticker that is on the front of their exercise book. I would also recommend that they engage with google classroom. Each subject will notify in plenty of time if there is anything to study or focus on.
I also wanted to make you aware of the fact that we have careers week at the end of the academic year. This is the week beginning the 30th June. There is more information about this to follow separately, but I wanted to share the date with you.
As always if you need anything, please don't hesitate to contact us. Staff contact details can be found on our website here.
RVHS Pre Loved Uniform
Any parents/carers wishing to purchase some RVHS preloved uniform, please use this link to select & pay for any uniform you wish to purchase.
The process is quick and easy to use. You will be notified once your order is ready for your collection. All orders will be processed during term time only
Year 11 News
Message from Ms Wills
It has been a very busy start back since Christmas, with students receiving their reports and getting important feedback from their teachers about what they need to do for the next PPEs. The timetable can be found here - Year 11 PPE Timetable - February - March 2025
Thank you to those who attended the Intervention Evening last Thursday. Mr Cocker delivered a very helpful session on how to revise for the exams and gave many good ideas and resources. If you were unable to attend then please do take time to look over the presentation with your child Intervention evening - Y11 & Y13 Revision 2025
We have also collated a list of helpful revision resources by subject, which you can direct your child to as they begin to start their PPE preparations. Revision Resource List - Year 11 & Year 13- 2025
Within school many teachers are offering extra intervention sessions and we would like to ask you to identify which sessions your child would find useful and encourage them to attend. Year 11 Intervention Timetable
There will also be subject specific revision sessions during the Easter and May half term holidays. More information will be sent out nearer the time regarding these sessions.
The Passport to the Prom has now been launched and this week I was delighted to offer the following students a free burrito at Zambrero and the opportunity to have an offsite lunch with a friend:
Christopher Rose Blu Stedman Melisa Turkoglu
6th Form News
Message from Ms Wheaton & Mrs Curling
Congratulations to the Y13 EPQ students who have completed the course, concluding with individual examined presentations on their chosen subject. All presentations were exceptional, with a very wide range of topics being explored.
14th January 2025 - Salesforce
Alumni student, Ella Margetts, returned to Roding Valley to run one of our regular Tuesday employer talks. Ella has successfully completed her degree apprenticeship and achieved a First.
She came back to talk to students about Salesforce, including what it is like on the apprenticeship pathway and what a Solutions Engineer in Marketing does. It was a fantastic presentation and insight into careers at Salesforce. Ella offered those who attended the talk the opportunity to apply for a work experience placement in London.
21
st January 2025 – Investment 20/20
– Guidance to applying
It was a packed study centre for the talk from Investment 20/20, such great tips and advice from Jenny Barber and so many brilliant questions from students. For year 12, it is now the time to research which employers they may be applying to after Year 13. There are a number of opportunities that Year 13 can already apply for. As Jenny said ‘be quick’ to apply as the vacancies will close if there are vast numbers of applicants. Ms Mason will be in the study centre every Wednesday lunchtime to support students who need help to apply to any apprenticeship. Students can share your CV with her to check before applying.
Dates for your diary:
● Monday’s – Sixth Form Assembly in the Sports Hall
● Tuesday’s – Employer talks – sign up in advance!
● Friday’s – Lower school mentoring (students who have completed safeguarding training)
● Monday 3rd Feb – Friday 14th Feb – Year 11 PPE’s
● Tuesday 4th Feb – Year 12 trip to Bancrofts, Competitive Futures Options Evening (20 students)
Please save the date for our annual Careers Fest. We have so many amazing employers already lined up to attend.
✓ Does your company offer early careers opportunities to apprentices or graduates?
✓ Would they like a stand at the Careers Fest?
Please get in touch with me if you would like to find out more. Donna Mason, Careers Leader dmason@rodingvalley.net
Science and Medicine Society - Extracting DNA
Students came along to the Science and Medicine Society to extract DNA from sweet strawberries. All students thoroughly enjoyed the experience even though it got a bit messy!
Science and Medicine Society – CPR Workshops
Year 12 and Year 13 lead the CPR workshops for the lower year students where they experienced CPR but other emergency activities in saving lives. It was well received and we cannot wait to see what will happen in the next session.
RVHS Zoo Lab
On the 31st January we are pleased to announce a chance for students to see different animals and pets. This opportunity is open to Year 7 ONLY. There is a limited number of spaces (up to 32 students) so please click on the link / type the link into your browser to confirm your place to this event.
https://forms.gle/3gPVnCPLKiQDxWkx7 British Science Week Poster Competition –Submissions are now OPEN!
Coming soon… STEM social media update!
On Monday morning, we were delighted to welcome Omari and Esther who led a really interesting and crucial assembly on consent. This was a factual, helpful and well delivered session which enabled students to contribute to questions and show their understanding around what consent looks like. Please could I take the opportunity to remind students that they can contact any member of the 6th form team, or any other member of staff for support and that they can use the iamnotok@rodingvalley.net if they would like to.
w/e 24th January 2025
Year 7
Year 8
Year 9
Year 10
Year 11
Boys
Ismail Ramadan
Henry Smith
Ben Kilby
Nicolas Gigauri
George Prentice
Teddy Richards
Dylan Rose
Oscar Petherbridge
Charlie Shakespeare
Oscar Eaton
Girls
Eden Murphy
Helena Camley
Alice Teofilak
Alexia Cooke
Sophie Bernstein
Erin Brett
Lea Horakova
Ava Tomlinson
Taisiia Khmelevskykh
Shira Harrison
We have currently had a number of PE spare kit items taken and not returned, could I please ask parents/carers to check any PE kit items at home for the attached tag (see picture) on the PE kit or if the PE kit has initials or a name that isn't your son/daughter.
As a PE Department we are also looking for any outgrown or ex-students PE kit to help increase our spare kit numbers, especially:
• skorts,
• leggings,
• boys PE t-shirts
• girls PE t-shirts
If you have any of these items or PE spare kit that hasn't been returned please could it be either handed in at reception or straight to the PE office.
Thank you
Congratulations to the following students for their fantastic work in Literacy and during Drop Everything and Write (DEAW)
Rystal-Leigh Mathieson – 8Fl
Violet Rayner – 8 PL
James Sau – 8Ne
Martin Dimov – 8Li
Student Absence
If your child is unable to attend School for any reason, please report their absence by phoning the school number by 8.30am at the latest, you must also ring in each day of your child’s absence.
0208-508-1173
On their return to School, please ensure your child brings with them a letter or medical evidence if requested explaining the reason for the absence for our records.
Medical Appointments
Please make sure you make any medical or dental appointments outside of school time. If this is not possible then please try to ensure that your child attends before and/or after their appointment.
Holidays in Term Time
The school does not authorise any holidays during term time except if the Headteacher deems it an exceptional circumstances. A ‘Leave of Absence’ form must be completed (these are available at Student Reception) detailing your exceptional circumstances.
Please be aware if the absence is not authorised and the holiday is taken, the case will be referred to the Local Authority who may issue a Penalty Notice for £160 (or £80 if paid within 21 days) to each parent for each child taken out of school.
For full details regarding attendance, please see our Attendance Policy here.
Who to contact
Should you have any concerns about your child’s attendance or punctuality please contact your child’s Head of Year or our Attendance Officer
Ms A Parsley (aparsley@rodingvalley.net)
Explore together: Ask your child to show you their favourite websites and apps and what they do on them. Listen, show interest and encourage them to teach you the basics of the site or app. 1
Chat about online safety little and often: Young people are likely to want to explore new apps and websites this month, whether that is for learning or for fun. Take this opportunity to talk to them about how to stay safe on these new services, and in general. Ask if anything ever worries them while they are online. Make sure they know that if they ever feel worried, they can get help by talking to you or another adult they trust.
Help your child identify trusted adults who can help them if they are worried: This includes you and other adults at home, as well as adults from wider family, school or other support services who they are able to contact at this time. Encourage them to draw a picture or write a list of their trusted adults.
Be non-judgemental: Explain that you would never blame them for anything that might happen online, and you will always give them calm, loving support.
Talk about how their online actions can affect others: If your child is engaging with others online, remind them to consider how someone else might feel before they post or share something. If they are considering sharing a photo/video of somebody else, they should always ask permission first.
Parental controls: Make use of the parental controls available on your home broadband and any internet enabled device in your home. You can find out more about how to use parental controls by visiting your broadband provider’s website.
2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Direct your child to age appropriate information about relationships and sex: It’s natural for young people to start exploring their sexual feelings online and adolescents are more inclined to take risks. It’s important to understand this and to talk to your child in a positive way. Thinkuknow, Brook, The Mix and Childline all provide age appropriate information about relationships and sex that you can signpost your child to.
Make sure they know about CEOP: Young people can report a concern about grooming or sexual abuse to CEOP at www.ceop.police.uk/safety-centre/ and get support from a specialist Child Protection Advisor.
Support your child with Thinkuknow websites
The age appropriate Thinkuknow websites are a great way to start and continue chats about online safety.
Our websites provide open and honest guidance for young people on friends, relationships and the internet, covering topics like dealing with pressure; consent; and getting support when you are worried.
You will find lots more advice on keeping your child safe online at www.thinkuknow.co.uk/parents.
If you are worried that a child or young person is at risk of harm online, you should call the police. Young people can make a report to CEOP at https://www.ceop.police.uk/safety-centre/
Other Recommended Resources
Parent Info: Expert information for parents about building their child’s resilience both online and off. Produced by NCA-CEOP and Parent Zone. This free service can be embedded on to your child’s school website. www.parentinfo.org
Brook: Information and advice for young people on sexual health and wellbeing, including staying safe online. https://www.brook.org.uk
The Mix: Support service for young people with information and advice on sex and relationships. https://www.themix.org.uk
Internet Matters: A useful tool showing how to set parental controls across a range of devices and websites. http://www.internetmatters.org/parentalcontrols/interactive-guide/
NSPCC Net Aware: Provides reviews and guidance on the most popular social networks, apps and games that children use. https://www.net-aware.org.uk/
Childnet – Information and advice for parents and carers on supporting people online. https://www.childnet.com/reso urces/supporting-youngpeople-online
How Can I Access Edulink?
EduLink can be accessed on any device – PC, laptop, tablet or mobile device – via the web browser or via the EduLink app. The link to access the EduLink login page on a web browser is www.edulinkone.com
Alternatively, you can download the EduLink App which is available to download for free on Apple or on Android.
Both the App and the web browser will display this log-in screen.
The School ID is ‘Roding’.
Parents/Carers will need to enter the Username and Password they have been provided with and click ‘Log in’.
The displayed is dependant of the platform you are logged in to:
• Via Web Browser
• Via the EduLink App
Navigating Edulink
You are able to navigate each of the following areas in EduLink:
• Achievement: You van view all positive achievements that have been awarded to your child
• Account Information: In this section you can view the current address we have for your child on file, your child’s Year group and the name of their Form tutor
• Timetable: In this section you can view your child’s daily timetable
• Absence Reporting: This feature will allow you to send a direct message to our Attendance Officer, to notify us of any absence for your child
• Linked Resources: This section contains links to all the schools learning resources available to your child both at school and at home
• Update Information: This section shows all of the contact information we hold for yourself and your child. You can review and update this information with any changes that may occur
• Exams: You can see all of your child upcoming exams; your child can also access this information so they can manage their own exam schedule
• Documents: In this section you can view your child’s reports
Parents can access information on all their children currently admitted to Roding Valley High School. If you require any assistance, please contact Mr Vermaak or Miss Stewart (mvermaak@rodingvalley.net or lstewart@rodingvalley.net )
How to Log on to Google Classroom?
Classroom
Students can log into their Gmail using their school email address and their password. Their school email will be the year they started at RVHS started plus their first initial and surname @rodingvalley.net (example- 19plarkin@rodingvalley.net).
Once your child has have logged in, they will need to click on the google apps button and then select ‘Google Classroom’
Your child will then be able to see all of the classes they belong to. They will then need to click on the class they want to use resources for and take a look at everything that their class teacher has posted for them to work on. They will be able to download items and make comments on them. Teachers will be regularly posting new work on their Google Classrooms.
What to Do if your child is a Missing a Subject their Google Classroom?
If your child is missing a Google Classroom for one of their subjects, they will need to click on the addition symbol, followed by ‘Join Class’ and then enter the Class Code for their missing subject. Class Codes are available from their subject teacher.
Top Tips for Our Students
Students must keep up to date with their lessons by using Google Classroom every day.
Use their workbooks to complete the work shown on their Google Classroom.
Don’t slack on presentation! Keep their notes in order of the lessons on the Google Classroom.
Year 11 and 13 Students: There will be revision materials available on Google Classroom. Please use them.
Heads of Year
Year 7: Miss Aston – caston@rodingvalley.net
Year 8: Miss Burke – tburke@rodingvalley.net
Year 9: Miss Reed – hreed@rodingvalley.net
Year 10: Mr Ryan – fryan@rodingvalley.net
Year 11: Ms Wills – rwills@rodingvalley.net
Sixth Form: Ms Wheaton & Ms Curling – lcurling@rodingvalley.net / awheaton@rodingvalley.net
