Dear Parent/Carer

There is a lot of talk about change at the moment and Bridget Phillipson, the new Secretary of State for Education wrote to all schools this week as she wants this moment “to mark a reset in our relationship: under this new government, education will once again be at the heart of change and the forefront of national life”.

The Secretary of State for Education also said “There’s a lot of work to be done to realise this mission against some major challenges. A huge part of my role is to understand the scale of the challenges you are facing, and the support needed to fix them.” She also highlighted the “financial pressures, strain on care, mental health and SEND services, among many other issues, have made your jobs increasingly difficult. This is a tough inheritance – none of these have quick and easy solutions but I will work with and for you to find practical ways forward.”

Clearly there is lots to do; there always is and there always will be. At West Oaks we will continue to put the needs of our children first and we will focus on what we can control.

What is clear to me is; there will be 480 pupils attending our three sites from September and we do have an ambitious 5-curriculum pathway model and an incredibly talented staff group that will meet pupils and our learning community needs.

As a school we have already begun refreshing and reorganising our provision to keep pace with the challenges as we have instigated staff moves, created new roles, and will have a strong focus on Project 25 and our “Learning Community” model over the next few years.

Other changes from a national perspective we will incorporate into our school delivery model when they become apparent. Meanwhile, we will continue to sustain what we do well and grow other elements of our provision.

I would also like to welcome Dr Mohammad Shan-A-Khuda PhD, MSc, BSc who joins us as our new West Oaks School Parent Governor in September and we are all looking forward to working with him and the rest of our Governing body during the next academic year.

I am also looking forward to my 18^th year as leader of our school and working with Keeley Murray (Vice-Principal) and our four Heads of School as we transition into new ways of working both at a local and national level. I am very much focussed on working with our wider school community as we strive for “excellence for everyone.”

Following on from earlier correspondence from Leeds City Council, I have been asked to remind you that the Leeds City Council consultation on proposed changes to transport assistance for post-16 learners with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) is currently live. If approved, any changes to transport assistance policy would apply to all new post-16 applications for transport assistance for the September 2025/2026 academic year onwards, from the date the new policy is implemented, with phasing arrangements put in place for existing post-16 learners.

The consultation period began on Monday 24 June 2024 and finishes on Tuesday 23 July 2024.

They have two remaining engagement sessions, which I urge you to attend and feedback to the council. The details are:

Further information about the proposal and a link to an online survey for people to express their views, can be found on the Leeds City Council website at www.leeds.gov.uk/post16transportpolicyreview

As we enter a magical time of year for our school, I also wanted to thank-you all for your support throughout the year. I am so privileged to work at West Oaks and with you all. A reminder that we close for the end of this academic year on Friday 19^th July and return to school on Wednesday 4^th September 2024. I will contact you all again before we break up for the summer and will see many of you at our 2024 Student Graduation and Alumni event on Thursday July 18^th at Woodhouse Learning. Take care all.

Best wishes

Andrew