Principal’s Weekly Post – Week 39

Dear Parents and Carers,

As the academic year draws to a close, I’m filled with immense pride for everything we’ve accomplished together at York High School. It’s been a year of growth, learning, and countless successes, and none of it would have been possible without the dedication and hard work of our incredible York High School community.

To our students: Your enthusiasm, resilience, and commitment to learning has been truly inspiring. From excelling in the classroom to shining in extracurricular activities and living by our values of resilience, aspirations and success, you’ve consistently demonstrated what it means to be a York High student. We are incredibly proud of each and every one of you.

To our amazing parents and carers: Your partnership is invaluable. Thank you for your unwavering support and active involvement in our school community. Your encouragement at home and your collaboration with our staff has played a crucial role in this year’s success. We truly appreciate your commitment to fostering a positive and supportive learning environment.

Finally to our extraordinary staff: Teachers, support staff, administrative team, catering team and site staff – thank you for your tireless dedication, your passion for education, and your unwavering commitment to our students. Your hard work, adaptability, and genuine care create the vibrant and nurturing environment that defines York High School. You go above and beyond every single day, and your impact on our students’ lives is immeasurable.

This year has been filled with memorable moments. As we look forward to a well-deserved summer break, I encourage everyone to rest and recharge. We’re already planning for an exciting new school year, and I can’t wait to see what more we’ll accomplish together.

Thank you once again for making York High School such an exceptional place and making my first year as Principal so memorable.

Warm regards

Gavin Kumar
Principal

Year 7 Future Stars Learning Experience Day

On Friday 11 July, Year 7 had a Learning Experience Day, focused on their skills and the world around them. They were absolutely fantastic!

We welcomed 24 colleagues from Aviva who facilitated two hour workshops, as well as colleagues from North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue, Network Rail, and the Yorkshire Ambulance Service, including alumnus Connor Spark.

Students learnt about the skills required for different jobs and started to think about the skills they had. They were a credit to us – well done, Year 7!

We were also delighted that so many Year 8 and 9 pupils wanted to learn from the colleagues at Aviva, from finance to IT to protection to people. Well done to everyone who participated.

Enrichment Experience Day

We had a fantastic day in school yesterday completing enrichment activities for students who chose to not go to Flamingo Land. From crafts to films to cookie making, we had a fantastic time.

Careers Fair 2026

It’s the time of year to start thinking about our Careers Fair 2026, and mock interviews for Year 11s.

Duke of Edinburgh

If you can see payments for DofE on your ParentPay account, your child has a place on the Bronze Duke of Edinburgh Award. We will have an ‘onboarding’ session in September to set students up with their eDofE accounts.

That’s a wrap!

Our budding Year 8 film makers completed filming of their time travel film ‘Until Then…’ on Tuesday. This will be edited over summer and premiered at City Screen in November as part of the Aesthetica Film Festival. More details to follow next academic year.

Clarinet music medals

Congratulations to Arabella, Jules, Liv and Lyra who recorded their ABRSM (Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music) Copper Music Medal on clarinet last week. Their assessment now goes to external verification and we hope to have the results, certificates and badges in the new academic year.

Next year’s show!

We are delighted to announce that next year’s musical will be ‘Annie’! Rehearsals will be after school starting in September, with a view to performing just before the Easter holidays. Anyone in Years 7-10 is very welcome to be involved, whether that is on stage or as part of our stage and tech team.

York College – ‘Getting Sorted drop-in events

York College is holding two ‘Getting Sorted’ events in the summer holidays:

• Tuesday 29 July, 10.00am – 3.00pm
• Tuesday 5 August, 10.00am – 3.00pm

Preparing for Adulthood Opportunities Event

This event is for anyone in Year 9 or above with Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities and their parents/carers. It aims to inspire them about post-16 options and employment.

Exhibitors include education providers, employers, City of York Council and other support services, such as DWP. There will also be sessions on Supported Internships and until 5.30pm, VR activities in agriculture and animal tasks.

The event will be held from 3.30-6.30pm on Tuesday 14 October 2025 at Askham Bryan College.

Flamingo Land tickets at a knockdown price

Jorvik Radio has secured a limited number of vouchers for admission to Flamingo Land for a family or group of 4 people and have decided to offer them to local schools for an unprecedented price of £80 – which is a 64% discount on the full £216 price from Flamingo Land themselves. This offer is not available to the general public who would pay £97 for the same voucher.

Parents can just head over to https://vouchers.jorvikradio.com/ and select the Flamingo Land voucher and when they get to the checkout enter FL80 where it says “Add a Coupon” to receive your very special £80 price. The ticket has to be used by 2 November 2025 – so families can buy now and enjoy whenever they want.