THERFIELD SCHOOL
HEADTEACHER'S NEWSLETTER
September 1993

It was an awe-inspiring sight to see nearly 450 new pupils, all smartly turned out in their new uniforms gathered outside the main entrance on Wednesday morning. The Age of Transfer re-organisation was finally with us and all the new students are now settling in, finding out how a timetable works and learning to find their way around our buildings.

The demand for places has been so great that we have had to take in an extra form of pupils into each year. The County has now recognised that this level of demand is likely to continue at both Therfield and Howard of Effingham. To accommodate these future students, even more buildings will be necessary at both schools. Part of the process of getting the necessary money from the Government to fund the building work means that the County needs to consult with local parents. To do this, a meeting has been arranged at HOWARD OF EFFINGHAM SCHOOL at 7.30 on THURSDAY 4th SEPTEMBER. All parents of present or future Therfield students are warmly invited.

EXAM RESULTS
One of the reasons why so many parents choose Therfield is the ability of the school to get top level examination results. I shall be publishing shortly full examination results when they have been fully analysed and checked. However, the publication of A Level results in the national press over the holiday would seem to suggest that Therfield is the highest performing Surrey State school.

The Daily Mail placed us 88th in the country on the basis of the percentage of passes at Grades A and B (in our case 43%). We were the ninth highest comprehensive and by far and away the best result for any Surrey school listed. The average points score per pupil went up from 16.8 to 17.9.

Four students gained four Grade A passes. Of the 85 students in the Upper Sixth we know of 70 who have achieved places at University or on degree courses, despite the very high grades being asked for. Others are still negotiating places. A full list of Higher Education destinations will be published shortly.

GCSE Yet again the GCSE exam results have improved. The crucial measure used to judge success is the proportion of examination passes awarded at Grades A-C. Last year this was 58.3% and this year it has increased to 62.1%, which should place us amongst the leading Surrey schools. This success rate has meant that 120 students have so far indicated that they want to return into the Sixth Form to continue their studies, the large majority following A Level courses.

NEW BUILDINGS
The promises that all the new buildings would be finished on time have been nearly met. They are all sufficiently far advanced for us to be able to get classes into them, but we still have quite a lot of finishing required, and we will be teaching around workmen for the next couple of weeks.

The new Science building is superb, the Technology area transformed and new English rooms and Micro-Technology Labs are in operation.

NEW STAFF
To cater for the extra students we have appointed the following new teaching staff:
Miss K Bate (Geography)
Mr P Boucry (Modern Languages)
Mr P Campbell (Religious Education)
Miss H Cook (Maths)
Miss S Davison (Science)
Mrs H Kenworthy (Geography)
Miss K Lawson (History)
Mrs M Lidderdale (Art),
Mr P Marshallsay (Physical Education)
Miss H Reece (Science)
Miss E Smith (Technology)
Mrs J Waite (History)
Mrs E WIlliams (Economics).

FUTURE NEWSLETTERS
In response to parents' requests for more information, we now plan to publish a monthly newsletter on the Friday closest to the end of each calendar month. Do please check that your son/daughter is bringing these home, as we are aware that some do not arrive.

If you are aware of problems, or have anxieties, please do not hesitate to contact us, in the first instance the Tutor or Head of Year. I am also aware that some parents of new students were only allocated places at the very last minute and may not have had a chance to look around and see the school at work. If you would like to visit us please contact the school office and we will be very pleased to give you a tour.

Yours sincerely,
TJ Reddin