Headteacher's Blog #11

I try to use these blogs to express all that is positive about life at LSA. There is so much to be proud of, and we have so many benefits that we should be grateful for. In my long career I have often had to run schools where it is incredibly challenging to recruit and retain quality staff, this is not the case at LSA, our staff stay at the school for a long time and are dedicated to the school community. I have also had to lead schools where deep rooted problems have caused tensions and division between the school and the community it serves. This is not the case here. Our facilities and school buildings offer a high-quality environment for our young people to learn in. There is much to be proud of.

What we can't be proud of however is the attendance of our children to school. While the school punches above its weight in so many ways the attendance of our young people is a blot on the landscape. Too often our students take days off where they could get themselves into school. This really has to change because if we want productive futures for our young people then the resilience to turn up to school every day is the backbone of future success. Prior to the pandemic LSA's attendance was better than the national average, since then it has lagged consistently behind. We have to face some difficult truths about what this means. Allowing our young people to not attend school is to teach them that duty, hard work and learning are less important than comfort. This needs to change and all of us need to accept responsibility, if we do not then we are consigning many of our young people to less than prosperous futures. I remain proud, as ever, to be LSA.