I so enjoyed seeing so many families at the CPSC Easter Fair in the glorious spring sunshine. I couldn’t help but contrast it with our starting the first lockdown exactly two years ago. It has been a challenging time for the whole community but this event and the Early Years Mother’s Day Assembly last Friday gave me at last a glimmer of optimism for the coming months. Through the ongoing challenges of the term it has been a source of great pride that we have managed, with the unceasing cooperation of parents, to run a full calendar of events. There has been a near full programme of sporting events, including a Year 5 sports tour to Yorkshire (although this looked slightly uncertain at one point!). Congratulations to all the Upper School children. They have all taken part in either house matches, local fixtures and even regional and national competitions. Some great sporting accomplishments! My thanks, as always, for the dedication and commitment of all the staff this term and, indeed, throughout these last two years for always going ‘above and beyond’ to provide our children with such a range of opportunities across the whole curriculum. At the end of term we say farewell to support assistant Emily Teesdale who has been helping in classes of all ages throughout the pandemic. We wish her all the best as she starts her career as a detective in the Met Police. I’m sure her training at Copthill will be of great use! We also say farewell to Abigail Iliffe in the Catering Department as she takes on a new promotion. We look forward to welcoming our new staff Sara Morris (Y5/6 English and Humanities) and Rowena Jackson (Languages) at the beginning of the summer term. We will also be welcoming Julie Bush back to Copthill. She will be assisting in the cleaning department and taking on the daily care of the animals as this unique facility continues to evolve. The school has always had an extensive and detailed development plan, which like many organisations has had to be modified, but not abandoned, by the challenges of the last two years. Whilst never complacent, the current situation and strategies, on the back of our highly complimentary inspection, gives substance to our new spring optimism. We start a new cycle of developments, both physical and educational, for the benefit of all the children over the coming months. As always our heartfelt thanks to all the parents for your continued support and encouragement as the whole community has tackled the challenges of the last two years. Whilst I have no doubt many still remain, we look forward to the coming terms with a renewed sense of purpose. In the meantime, we wish you all a very enjoyable Easter break.

Mr Jonathan Teesdale