Dear Parents and Carers,
What a fantastic week it’s been at York High School.
We had a truly memorable Year 9 Graduation event on Wednesday. This evening provided the wonderful opportunity to celebrate Year 9s’ graduation from Key Stage 3 to Key Stage 4 and to recognise all of their hard work, growth and amazing progress over the past three years. It was wonderful to see so many of our students, families and staff come together to celebrate their achievements and mark this important milestone.
Our students also had a brilliant time at Excel Learning Trust’s SportsFest which was hosted at York High School. They enthusiastically participated in a range of sporting activities alongside students from across our family of schools. It’s always great to see our students demonstrating such excellent sportsmanship and teamwork.
As we approach the end of the academic year, I’d like to invite you to a ‘Coffee with the Principal’ next Wednesday 16 July from 4.00-5.00pm. This will be an informal opportunity to chat about how this year has been for your child and to gather your valuable feedback. Your insights are incredibly important as we plan for the future. In conjunction with this, please remember to complete our annual Parent Survey. Your feedback helps us to continuously improve and ensure we are providing the best possible environment for our students. Please click here to complete the survey.
Next week marks the final week of the academic year. We have many exciting activities planned to round off the year, and we’re looking forward to celebrating the achievements of our students at Awards Evening next week. Please keep an eye on our usual communication channels for specific details regarding end-of-year arrangements.
I look forward to seeing many of you next week.
Warm regards
Gavin Kumar
Principal
Wednesday 16 July
Coffee with the Principal – 4.00-5.00pm
Friday 18 July
School closes for summer break
Monday 21 and Tuesday 22 July
School closed for Training Days
On Tuesday, students performed the play Bright.Young.Things. following a collaborative project with Pilot Theatre.
Students put this together in just ten weeks directed by Carolyn Bradley from Pilot Theatre and the University of Leeds and pulled off an incredibly powerful performance.
The dedication of these students, both actors and tech/stage crew, has not gone unnoticed and we are very proud of their achievements. We hope they will want to be part of the school show and play next year.
Last week we welcomed Twinnie-Lee Moore to York High, a local country pop singer-songwriter and actress.
Twinnie hosted our Year 8 assembly during which she talked about her traveller background growing up, her school experience and how bullying can affect others. Twinnie also performed one of her singles ‘Hypothetically’.
You can find out more about Twinnie here:
As part of our work introducing students to workplaces, we were delighted to take Year 9 and 10 students to Hiscox on Monday. After lunch under their 12-metre tall (decommissioned!) rocket, students went on a tour of the workplace, including the beautiful rooftop garden with views of the Minster!
We were delighted to welcome back Kane Robinson and Molly Yates from the 2024 Year 11 cohort, as well as Connor Spark and Helen Simons from the 2021 cohort. This was a fantastic opportunity for our students to get top tips on success in Year 11, experiences at college, and specific understanding of the Ambulance Service and the world of drama and acting. Connor and Helen then provided specific discussions about their industries and experiences.
Our students listened wonderfully, and asked some excellent probing questions. Thank you to Kane, Molly, Connor and Helen for taking the time to return to York High. We are so proud of all of your successes, and cannot wait to see you again in the future!
York College is holding two ‘Getting Sorted’ events in the summer holidays:
These events are aimed at students who plan to start at York College in September and may be feeling particularly anxious about this and their new environment. Parents and carers are very welcome too!
Students will meet the Wellbeing team, discuss the support available, and can visit key areas of the College and their subject classrooms if they feel it would be reassuring to see where they will be based. There will also be a wide range of support teams to chat to if you have questions about travel, funding, careers choices etc.
For more information, please contact Julie Murgatroyd E: wellbeing@yorkcollege.ac.uk
We had a great session at Business Club this Monday with Dr Alex Altersyke from the University of York teaching students about entrepreneurship.
York’s Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme offers fun activities for keeping active, being creative, and trying something new over the Easter, summer, and winter school holidays.
Children and young people in receipt of benefits-related free school meals can receive up to sixteen sessions of free activities during the summer holidays. Each day will include: a healthy meal and a selection of activities ranging from sports, drama and creative workshops, nature activities, and more.
The York Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) Programme Summer Activity Brochure (23 July – 31 August 2025) can be seen here. Information is also available on the HAF web page on the Raise York website.
Our school is committed to helping those in need through our community cupboard, ensuring that every student and family has access to essential food/household items. Donations are always welcome and greatly appreciated, as they help us continue to support the local community.
If you or someone you know needs any support, please contact Aimee a.stewart@yorkhigh.elt.org.uk or Emma e.masterman@yorkhigh.elt.org.uk, or pop into main reception.
All requests will be handled with care and confidentiality.
This is the official York High School (UK) Facebook Page - LIKE this page to stay up to date
🍔Free School Meals are Changing🍕
From September 2026 more families will qualify for Free School Meals.
If your household is in receipt of:
🔘Universal Credit
🔘Income-related Employment & Support Allowance
🔘Support under Part 6 of the immigration and Asylum Act 1999
🔘Guaranteed element of Pension Credit
your child will be entitled to free school meals, but it's not automatic - you MUST apply for them.
Visit: www.northyorks.gov.uk/freeschoolmeals to start your application
(When completing the form, make sure you change the 'Local Authority' to York)
For further information see the letter from Mr Kumar on our website:
www.yorkhighschool.co.uk/2026/07/changes-to-free-school-meals/
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🎤Prizes Galore🎤
What an Unmissable day we have had...
This morning we started the day with our fantastic end of term Blue & Platinum Ticket draws - handing out vouchers for H&M, Playstation & Amazon for the lucky Blue Ticket winners, and the big one, a £250 Amazon Voucher to our Platinum winner, Daenerys!
Mr Kumar then celebrated with our RAS Achievers, Andrea & Carter, both nominated by members of SLT.
And we cannot ignore the fantastic 'SINGO BINGO' which has been absolutely amazing.
Have a fantastic Summer - We will see you all in September!
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⚽Is it Coming Home?⚽
Tonight England take on Argentina in the World Cup Semi-Finals.
Will they win, and join Spain in the Final?
Is Football Coming Home?
We are looking forward to seeing you all in the morning, for those gate chats on how the game went!
Win, Lose or Draw, we can share our thoughts tomorrow.
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