Pastoral Reports
Year 8
Year 7
Page 2
Newsletter 1 - September 2025
Mr Bligh, Pastoral Leader Year 7 (mrblighj@strichardscc.com)
Welcome Parent/Carers to the Year 7 section
of the newsletter. In our section we discuss
upcoming events, things to celebrate and
areas that we believe may need your attention.
Communication between home and school is a
vital way to ensure that your child is supported
and that you are aware of what is going on here.
Pastoral support can be accessed via a variety of staff
here at St Richard’s. Generally, day to day issues
should be raised with your child's form tutor and
anything subject specific would be their classroom
teacher. You can access email addresses via Edulink.
Alternatively, contacting the school office is another
good way to speak to someone. Emma Dann & I are the
safeguarding leads for Year 7 and you can also access
well-being support via the HIVE.
This term is extremely busy and I will continue to update
you regularly with my pastoral emails. Next week, I will
share dates for the diary for the Year 7 disco, drop-in
coffee morning, Induction Mass and clubs list.
As a general guide, anything to do with IT can be raised with our
IT team via helpme@strichardscc.com. This includes forgotten
passwords, username issues and help with Edulink. Edulink will
be essential to keep track of how well your child is doing, contact
subject staff directly, book parents evening appointments and
check homework! As of next week all pastoral emails will be sent
via Edulink so please ensure you have signed up!
I would like to welcome all Year 8 pupils and
their parents/carers back to a new academic
year at St Richard's. I hope you and your
families had a restful summer and are looking
forward to the year ahead. I am privileged to
be a part of your children's journey as they
begin their next chapter.
and attributes they need to navigate life and thrive in the
modern world.
Building Good Habits: Year 8 is an important year for
building good work habits in preparation for Key Stage
4. Excellent attendance, diligent homework completion,
and consistent effort in lessons are the cornerstones of
a successful education. Regular attendance ensures
pupils don't miss crucial explanations, while homework
reinforces learning and provides opportunities to practice
new skills. Working hard in lessons - by actively listening
and participating - allows pupils to absorb information
effectively and develop a strong work ethic. Together, we
can help them establish these habits and create a path
to academic and personal growth.
Please do not hesitate to contact me if you wish to
discuss any aspect of your child's learning, progress, or
well-being. I look forward to working in partnership with
you to ensure Year 8 is a successful and positive year.
Mrs Harker, Pastoral Leader Year 8 (mrsharkerh@strichardscc.com)
I have no doubt they will build on the positive start they made
in Year 7. Having already begun our transition before the
summer, I've seen how many wonderful pupils we have in Year
8, and I am excited to watch each of them continue to develop
their individuality and passion for learning. Your children are
supported by a fantastic group of tutors who will continue to be
a familiar and friendly point of contact. Please do not hesitate to
contact your child's tutor with any questions or concerns.
PSHEe: Pupils will continue to explore a wide range of topics
in their PSHEe lessons on Tuesday mornings, including
British values, mental health, puberty, RSE, and careers. The
curriculum is designed to equip them with the knowledge, skills
Support: Now that your child is in Year 9 and, in some
subjects already on their GCSE pathway, it is more
important than ever to keep a track on their progress
at home. There are a range of support services
available for pupils in Year 9. These range from one
to one mentoring for academic support to health and
counselling support, should it be required. Your child
can self-refer to these support services through their
form tutor or myself.
Please do not hesitate to get in contact should you
wish to discuss any aspect of your child’s learning,
progress or well-being. I look forward to working
with you in partnership to ensure that Year 9 is as
successful and happy as possible for your child.
Mrs Hills, Pastoral Leader Year 9
(mrshillsa@strichardscc.com)
Year 9
I would like to begin the year by wishing
parents/carers and pupils a warm welcome
to Year 9 and hope that you and your families
have had a good summer break. I am delighted
to be leading this year group and the excellent
form tutors in Year 9 who will continue to do a
wonderful job of supporting your children.
I would urge you to contact them if you have any questions or
concerns. Having taught many of the year group and had a
detailed transition handover from Mrs Harker, I am already aware
that they are a lovely and talented year group. I look forward
to guiding them through to the conclusion of their Key Stage 3
education and supporting them in their choices for GCSE .
PSHEe: Year 9 will focus on some crucial topics in PSHEe this
year, including confidence, exploitation, finance, careers and
RSE.