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An Easter Egg
1st April 2021
It is relatively well known that the egg, or the sign of new life and hope, is a symbol associated with Easter. Whether through religious faith, or merely springtime farming seasons, the new beginnings, fresh starts or hope as we progress to British summer time, is welcome.
Our schools have done an amazing job on their ‘return’. I am the first one to acknowledge that we were never ‘away’ – but the last few weeks on our return to site has been a super-human effort by all involved. Staff and students have been so happy to return. To breathe life back into our learning communities on a scale more typical to our way of working.
I have seen and heard of many tired bodies and staff bemusement at how this can be when we have only been back for three weeks? We haven’t - we have never stopped and we have had to deal with multiple ways of working. It has been a spring term like no other! The depth and quality of remote provision and the follow up of support, classroom practice and hitting the ground running is going to be exhausting. The sense of uncertainty for some in our communities around assessment is also challenging. We should look back proudly on our spring term and celebrate the achievements of staff, children, and parents alike.
However, it is with hope, that we believe we have turned a corner. The vaccine, the increased testing and better weather all provide optimism for the summer term. All are aware that distancing and careful management are still required – but, like an Easter egg we have hope that our measured and staged return to the educational environments we relish can be built piece by piece once more in our schools.
Thank you to everyone in our school communities for your efforts at this most difficult of times. This is not something we will get over or move on from either personally, or professionally. However, with a spring hope for new beginnings, we embrace our rest to come and the opportunities which await us when we return.
I wish you all a very happy and restful Easter.
Jack Mayhew, Executive Headteacher Athena Schools Trust
It is relatively well known that the egg, or the sign of new life and hope, is a symbol associated with Easter. Whether through religious faith, or merely springtime farming seasons, the new beginnings, fresh starts or hope as we progress to British summer time, is welcome.
Our schools have done an amazing job on their ‘return’. I am the first one to acknowledge that we were never ‘away’ – but the last few weeks on our return to site has been a super-human effort by all involved. Staff and students have been so happy to return. To breathe life back into our learning communities on a scale more typical to our way of working.
I have seen and heard of many tired bodies and staff bemusement at how this can be when we have only been back for three weeks? We haven’t - we have never stopped and we have had to deal with multiple ways of working. It has been a spring term like no other! The depth and quality of remote provision and the follow up of support, classroom practice and hitting the ground running is going to be exhausting. The sense of uncertainty for some in our communities around assessment is also challenging. We should look back proudly on our spring term and celebrate the achievements of staff, children, and parents alike.
However, it is with hope, that we believe we have turned a corner. The vaccine, the increased testing and better weather all provide optimism for the summer term. All are aware that distancing and careful management are still required – but, like an Easter egg we have hope that our measured and staged return to the educational environments we relish can be built piece by piece once more in our schools.
Thank you to everyone in our school communities for your efforts at this most difficult of times. This is not something we will get over or move on from either personally, or professionally. However, with a spring hope for new beginnings, we embrace our rest to come and the opportunities which await us when we return.
I wish you all a very happy and restful Easter.
Jack Mayhew, Executive Headteacher Athena Schools Trust
