Read all about the latest news and activities happening, and reasons to celebrate our school in the below Headteacher's blog.
Happy New Year to all and we are of course excited to start this new term following the recent holiday. Attendance and punctuality remain our key focus and we appreciate the support of all parents and carers in ensuring our learners attend school every day and arrive on time. Establishing these routines will lead to positive habits over the year and we know that high attendance (over 98%) results in excellent outcomes and progress.
The points below summarise the information shared with learners this week.
As we approach the end of a very busy half term we can all look forward to a range of rewards and experiences to finish the half term on a high. As noted below we are rewarding specific forms for each year group with a film event to recognise their collective efforts to maintain their attendance. Good attendance to school remains the single most effective method to achieve the highest grades. Learners with more than two days' absence this term will already be below the magical figure of 98% that statistically supports achievement in line with their targets.
The end of term will also finish with our traditional staff pantomime that all learners enjoy. Staff have been rehearsing for a number of weeks to maintain standards and we are delighted to see the return of a previous member of staff to support the production. Please make a note of the slightly earlier finish of 13:30 on Friday to allow us to support this event.
Gary Kibble
The points below summarise the information shared with learners this week.
School Events & Learner Rewards
As the holidays approach, learners and parents are reminded of important safety information:
Year 11 have successfully navigated their Pre Public Exams and can now look forward to Thursday where they will have the chance to sample life in our sixth form. Staff have organised the day so everyone has the chance of tasting some lessons in areas they are interested in, plus enrichment activities. Applications for BG6 will also close at the end of this term so it is important for all our learners who want to apply that they complete this application before we finish next week. We guarantee every BGHS learner a place if they meet the criteria of their chosen courses.
Gary Kibble
The points below summarise the information shared with learners this week.
Key Notices and Logistics
Academic and Key Dates
|
Year Group |
Announcement |
Action Required |
|
Year 8 |
Learner Reports were sent home. |
Reports were sent out on Friday (w/c 01.12.25)6. |
|
Year 10 |
Parents and Carers Evening is scheduled for this week (w/c 08.12.25). |
Please attend to get important feedback. |
|
Year 11 |
BG6 College Taster Day is on Thursday 11 December 2025. |
Learners must complete the Google Form to select their pathways, subjects, and enrichment sessions immediately. |
Literacy and Personal Development
November has come and gone in what seems like incredible speed as we enter the last month of this half term. Traditionally December is very busy with year 11 and 13 both sitting their Pre Public Exams, both important for UCAS and college application forms. Applications for BG6 will also close at the end of this term so it is important for all our learners who want to apply. We guarantee every BGHS learner a place if they meet the criteria of their chosen courses.
Gary Kibble
The points below summarise the information shared with learners this week.
We will be highlighting this important day, encouraging learners to develop an understanding of modern slavery.
A very positive week was had last week as we were fortunate to have the support of governors, local business leaders, BGHS Alumni and staff to conduct mock interviews with year 11 learners. Without fail all visitors to the school were very complementary about our learners and the preparation they had undertaken for these interviews. This annual event is of course only possible thanks to our supporters and the hard work of our careers team. This will of course place our learners in a strong position for those important college interviews. The next step on this journey starts today with our PPE exams. An important milestone and something we will use to guide learners onto appropriate post 16 courses, many of which will be with us in BG6.
Gary Kibble
š Rewards, Recognition, and Competition
This week sees a change in our weather from the insistent rain we have had to a drop in the temperature. Having a warm coat to wear to school obviously helps to ward off any illnesses or infections, but we recognise in school that this is an extra cost for parents. We have circulated on our website information from a range of organisations that can help with this and other cold weather costs, which include:
Uniform Exchange: https://www.uniform-exchange.org/free-school-uniform/ which is running a big winter coat give away.
Kirklees Council support
Kirklees Council have a range of assistance to support, for more information please follow the links: Cost of living | Kirklees Council and Local Welfare Provision | Kirklees Council
We are also a referral for Batley Food Bank and will sensitively support families who may need this assistance.
Equally if you don't require help, but would like to support these charities please do get in touch with them to make a donation. Everything goes to help our local community.
Gary Kibble
Learner Careers Champion (LCC) - Years 7-10
Learners in Years 7-10 have an exciting opportunity to become a Learner Careers Champion to help support careers by representing their form group and driving change.
Clubs and Activities Survey - Years 8, 9, 10
Learners in Years 8, 9, and 10 are encouraged to complete a survey to have a say in the extra-curricular clubs and activities offered at school. The survey also asks what barriers prevent learners from joining in, so the school can work to make activities more accessible.
Universal Children’s Day (Thursday 20 November)
To celebrate Universal Children's Day and promote children’s rights, learners are asked to design a piece of A4 artwork during form time, featuring a right they believe all children should have. This artwork will be displayed on a new 'Rights wall' (artwork should be taken to room 35).
'ELEVATE' Curriculum Reminder (Years 7-9)
Learners in Years 7-9 are reminded to check the daily timetable, specifically for 'Week 2', to ensure they attend their ELEVATE sessions.
The Brilliance Bucket is our local school challenge designed to encourage our learners to undertake a variety of activities in school and within their community. Each activity is allocated a specific number of points. Learners who complete extra 'Brilliant Activities' can get their Premium Points added by Mr. Scurr in the LRC during Monday breaktime. Please discuss with your child the challenges they have completed or would like to complete in the future.
Following a very busy first week back in school following the holiday we have another action packed week. Thursday 13 November 2025 is the key date for your diary as we invite learners, parents and carers into school for our BG6 Open Evening. Please come along and speak to staff about the exciting range of courses, extra curricular opportunities and of course personalised support in our very own rapidly growing sixth form provision.
Careers education is a real strength here at BGHS thanks to our dedicated staffing team. Recently one of our Year 11 learners successfully applied and completed a one week work experience at a local Leeds based accountancy firm. This was an amazing achievement given the vast majority of applicants were sixth form learners. More details will follow on this with a transcript from this learner about her experience, needless to say we are very proud of their achievement and the manner in which they represented the school.
Gary Kibble
Key Academic and Development Updates
Curriculum Focus: The ELEVATE Program (Years 7-9)
The ELEVATE curriculum has been introduced for learners in Years 7-9 to help develop resilient, confident learners. Please remind your child to check the daily timetable to ensure they attend all of their sessions, which supplement their main curriculum timetable.
Attendance and Achievement
There is a strong link between Attendance and Achievement. With rates of illness now thankfully falling please support us in encouraging your child to attend school every day. As we know:
Enrichment and Extracurricular Opportunities
Learner Careers Champion (LCC)
An exciting opportunity is available for learners in Years 7-10 to become a 'Learner Careers Champion' (LCC).
Reading and Literacy Clubs: Please encourage your child to come along.
Community Points Competition
Learners win 'Community points' for their Community groups within their form through various challenges and activities. Prizes are awarded for the winning community each term.
It is great to welcome all learners back to school following the half term break and as you can see there is a lot going on in school in this first week. Attendance remains our priority and for those learners and families who were hit with the recent viruses circulating the area, now is the time to catch up on missed work and push attendance levels back up to the expected successful level of 98%.
We are very much looking forward to welcoming year 13 parents and carers into school on Thursday to meet subject staff and discuss progress, offer advice and review those all important next steps. Following on from this will be our BG6 Open Evening which will take place on Thursday 13 November starting at 16:30. Please come along and look at what we offer in our rapidly expanding BG6 offer.
The details below highlight information shared with learners this week.
Gary Kibble
Another busy week in school as we approach the end of school. We were delighted to invite Split Second Productions into school for their road safety workshop which year 7 enjoyed. Please support our efforts by parking safely and considerately in the local area.
We have also held our annual careers fair which was well attended by a range of employers and educators helping our learners think carefully about their next steps. Careers education remains at the heart of what we do and is a real strength for our school.
Illness has been a challenge last week, please encourage your child to return to school as soon as they are able. As highlighted in the information below, attendance to school is the single most important factor determining successful progress in their courses.
The details below highlight information shared with learners this week.
Gary Kibble
If you have any further questions about the information contained in this blog, please contact the school.
This blog provides a summary of key activities, academic updates, and successes that are shared with our learners each week. Thank you to members of our highly successful parents forum who suggested this would be helpful for all parents and carers. Of particular interest this week would be to take the opportunity to talk to your child about the careers fair and the stands they visited including any notes they made. Careers is a very strong aspect of our outstanding personal development provision and our team led by Mrs Sawyer and Mrs Mehat takes a lot of pride in ensuring we have a wide range of providers attending on the day.
The Brilliance Bucket continues to be a key driver for rewards in school, heavily weighted towards attendance and recognising the benefits of high attendance. Please see the information below regarding points for 100% attendance to school.
Gary Kibble
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