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Dear Parent/Carer
As we reach the end of term 5, I hope you enjoy reading about what students have been up to, as well as some school updates.
I am pleased to let you know that the Regional Director has now approved the proposed merger between RCT and CIT. As you’ll recall, we consulted with parents earlier this year about the proposal, and we are now working towards a planned merger date of 1 September. This marks an exciting new chapter in our journey, and we’re looking forward to the opportunities this will bring for our school community. After the half term break, we will share more information about what this means and outline the next steps. Thank you, as always, for your ongoing support, which we appreciate as we move into this next exciting phase.
Thank you to those parents of Key Stage 3 students who took the time to share their feedback on the new curriculum newsletters. They provide details of the topics, themes and learning for students in the summer term. If you haven't seen them you can find them in the downloads section at the bottom of this webpage Kesteven & Sleaford High School - Curriculum Overview We are currently planning the Autumn term newsletters so your positive feedback was much appreciated. Our Year 10 intervention programme is also underway. Year 10 parents will have received a separate communication, but all parents can look at the materials here Year 10 Summer Term Support.
And finally, thanks for all your support of students as they undertake their external exams. We are very proud of how students have approached them with maturity and a real keenness to demonstrate what they know.
Wishing you all a restful and productive half-term.
Mrs J Smith
Headteacher
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The DofE Young Leaders Programme is an exciting opportunity for young people to take a leading role in promoting, guiding and mentoring DofE participants in their centre.
Young Leaders work with their adult DofE Leader to choose which activities they will support with and then access online training from the DofE charity. They provide peer to peer support and help other young people to access and achieve their DofE programme.
Moira has recently undergone and completed her training.
‘Being a DofE young leader is a national award that offers DofE participants the opportunity to help widen accessibility from within the programme. The opportunity is open to everyone completing any level of DofE, although I only recently became a young leader at the gold level. Mrs Banks has always been happy to help, and it has resulted in me being able to take on a more impactful role within our school community, as well as improve my confidence, leadership, and communication skills. I wholeheartedly recommend it, and I'm excited to see what opportunities it opens up for me’.
Moira 12F
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Duke of Edinburgh - Silver Award
Our group really enjoyed our silver practice expedition at the weekend. It was a very fun but challenging three days. Our group all did bronze prior to this expedition, so we all had experience and a good idea on what to look forward to.
We headed up to the Peak District for a 7:15am start along with Carre’s on Friday morning. Once we got there, we were greeted by our instructor from Lupine who gave advice to us that would help us get through each day. We then set off on our 20k walk to the first campsite with regular stops explaining how to use our compass and map and what to do in case of a first aid crisis, all whilst enjoying the sunny countryside views of the Peaks. Once we arrived at the campsite, we set up our tents and cooked our meals and then to bed for a long-awaited and well-deserved sleep.
We then repeated this for the next few days and we all managed to complete our practice with smiles, filled with pride as it was challenging but a very fun experience.
Ruby 10W
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Year 9 'World of Work' Day
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On Tuesday 20 May, Year 9 benefitted from a ‘World of Work’ day, where they had the opportunity to hear from a range of professionals in different fields. This day is part of our varied Careers Programme at KSHS where students can learn about different paths open to them and start to explore their career ideas.
Following an introduction to the day, students had 9 sessions with different employers, some of whom are alumni of the school and others who are parents. Visitors gave a talk on their career and what it involved, including routes into the profession and what skills were required. Our visitors included two midwives, a vet, the Lead Lawyer for Siemens Energy, the RAF, a lecturer and quantity surveyor, the Head of Innovation at Westfalia Fruit, a catering business owner, an osteopath and a radiographer.
Year 9 remained very engaged all day, asking questions and completing a fact-file style booklet about each career. They had the chance to win sweets and raffle tickets for asking questions and participating; the raffle will be drawn on Friday.
I would like to thank all our visitors for giving up their time so generously to plan and deliver their sessions, often bringing in props or freebies (such as home-made brownies!) to bring their presentations to life.
Miss S Chant
Careers Lead
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Sleaford Students impress at UK Martial Arts tournament
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On Saturday 10 May 2025, four dedicated students from Sleaford Korean Martial Arts, Eleanor, Grace, Megan and Sophie, travelled to Bury St. Edmunds to take part in the first Traditional Martial Arts Group UK tournament. The event brought together 130 competitors from four different schools and featured a wide range of categories including forms, techniques, sparring, Jool Bong (nunchucks) and staff sparring.
Black belt trio and experienced competitors, Eleanor, Grace and Megan, who competed together, delivered outstanding performances, winning a total of 12 medals between them - 1 gold, 4 silver and 7 bronze. With such close competition, every point counted and their success was a testament to months of hard work and preparation. Sophie, a brown black belt, excelled in her division and enjoyed a fantastic tournament, claiming 2 gold medals and a silver medal in her category. It was a remarkable accomplishment by all four competitors that highlighted their skill under pressure.
To conclude the event, Eleanor, Grace and Megan gave a striking demonstration of the Jool Bong form, offering spectators a preview of what’s to come in the future syllabus for students below black belt level.
Despite being a small team, Sleaford Korean Martial Arts achieved remarkable success, outperforming many larger groups in terms of medals earned per competitor.
Sleaford Korean Martial Arts teaches a traditional Korean martial art that incorporates kicking, hand strikes, board breaking, sparring, weapons training, acrobatics, and forms. With such a wide range of disciplines, there's something for everyone, whether you're new to martial arts or an experienced student.
Classes for both children and adults are held in Sleaford on Sundays. For more information, visit sleafordkoreanmartialarts.co.uk or email sleafordkoreanmartialarts@outlook.com.
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Library and Literacy News
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Live Lounge
In amongst the books and beanbags this month the library has played to host to the music department with the inaugural Library Live Lounge; an informal lunchtime recital with students performing to staff and peers. Thank you to all who came along to support this event, and especially well done to those who performed. There will be further dates to follow in the coming months.
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The Carnegie Medal for Writing
This term our 6th form enrichment reading group have been meeting fortnightly to discuss the shortlisted titles being considered for this year’s prestigious Carnegie Medal for Writing. Each year young people from across the UK are invited to participate in the official judging process- shadowing the professional judging panel. This is a unique opportunity to participate in a prestigious book award and allows young people to read, review and vote for their favourites; influencing authors and publishers by providing a young person's insight into the latest literature directly aimed towards them. The Carnegie Medal shortlist is a fantastic way to discover new authors and expand individual reader identities, and through choice and access to a range of diverse, good quality books our young readers can safely explore and expand their curiosity about the world around them, benefit from increased lifelong learning outcomes, improved mental health and greater empathy and understanding.
All the 2025 shortlisted titles are available to borrow from the school library and can be found alongside previous shortlisted titles and winners. The winners of this year's Carnegie Medal and Shadowers Choice Medal will be announced at a live event from London in June.
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Textbook and library book reminder
As exam season gets underway, please could all students in Year 11 and Year 13 who have textbooks and library books on loan from the KSHS library, return them by:
FRIDAY 27 JUNE at the latest
It is essential that textbooks are returned by this deadline so that individual departments may plan and purchase resources to support students in the next academic year. Students may return books before the deadline if they are no longer required and should refer to their school email account for individual reminders, detailing all that they still have on loan. Books and textbooks that are not returned by the deadline will incur a replacement charge, which will be added to ParentPay accounts. Alternatively, a like for like replacement copy is acceptable if the original item is lost or damaged.
- Books can be returned in person to the KSHS library
- Posted in the returns box by the library main desk.
- Deposited in the labelled box in the KSHS main school foyer.
Mrs C Gibson
Learning Resource Centre Manager
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‘Macbeth’ on stage at Tolethorpe Open Air Theatre
In our Year 8 English classrooms we are currently studying Shakespeare’s tragedy, ‘Macbeth’. Visiting the theatre to see a studied play on stage can be a brilliant way to enhance a young person’s understanding of the plot, themes, and key characters. So we are just signposting the fact that the Tolethorpe Open Air Theatre in Stamford is showing ‘Macbeth’ in July and August this year; tickets can be found here: Macbeth - Tolethorpe Hall
Year 8s – if you do manage to attend this performance, make sure you let your English teacher know!
Ms A Natley
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Following the successful GCSE Maths Breakfast Warm Up Session before paper 1, the Maths department will be offering further sessions in K16 on the following dates:
Wednesday 4 June and Wednesday 11 June
These will be available7.45-8.30am and provide students the opportunity to talk to members of the Maths department about any Maths topics they wish prior to their exams. We will have warm-up Maths questions specific to each exam, as well as a variety of food and drink including fruit and croissants.
All GCSE pupils are welcome.
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On Wednesday 14 May, Year 12 A-level Geographers and Biologists visited Gibraltar point near Skegness. The purpose of the trip was to introduce us to data collection methods to support coursework and to look at sand dune and salt marsh ecosystems. In the morning, we visited the sand dunes and took part in a range of activities measuring infiltration rates, temperatures and wind speeds. We completed grid quadrat sampling to identify vegetation types. In the afternoon, we visited the salt marsh where we observed a range of different plant species. We explored which species dominated the upper, middle, and lower marshes. To end the day, we took a well-deserved visit to the visitor centre where we all enjoyed a sweet treat after a cold and windy day. We all thoroughly enjoyed our visit and believe it has helped our learning for our A-level courses.
Amelia, Kitty C, Ed and Kitty W, Geography prefects
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23 May 2025
Staff are invited to nominate students who have demonstrated a Growth Mindset in the past few weeks. This might have been in lessons, in clubs, tutor time or simply around school. Please note we already award bi-annual subject badges and merits for good academic work, effort and improvement. Th...
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On Thursday 1 May, Year 8 students at KSHS took part in a STEM day (Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths). Sessions were delivered by a range of staff and outside organisations. The RAF visited and delivered workshops about Engineering careers within the RAF, with students getting hands on building communication towers. The University of Nottingham delivered a range of STEM based activities, linking the skills they learn in school to potential careers. The I4IS (Initiative for Interstellar Studies) delivered a workshop called ‘Skateboards to Starships’, ultimately teaching students what a career in engineering could look like in the field of interstellar studies, but also linking the Physics they learn in school to their future careers. Students also looked at how engineering can support those in developing countries, by taking part in the ‘squashed tomato challenge’ from practical action. Finally they used nothing but spaghetti and marshmallows to build towers to hold a crème egg, while learning about careers as a structural engineer.
Students had a great time, and hopefully many will go on to consider a career in engineering! If any students in Year 7 or Year 8 are interested in engineering as a career, they might consider taking part in the Raytheon Quadcopter challenge launching this term. This challenge allows students the opportunity to design and build their own quadcopter, with the aim of flying them at competitions against other schools. If you are interested, then speak to Mr Norris for more information.
Mr S Norris
STEM coordinator
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Well done to both the Year 9 and Year 7 Rounders teams who won all games in their tournaments against local schools.
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Friday 4 July 2025
We are excited to tell you that our annual school sponsored walk will take place this year on Friday 4 July. We launched the walk to students in assemblies this week and more details will follow for parents via letter after half term. We would very much appreciate your supporting your child to raise funds. Please do pass on the fundraising link below to all your friends and relatives.
The highest earning form groups in each year group will qualify for some in school treats such as pizza lunches, non-uniform days or jump the dining room queue passes in September.
Every donation is welcome with money going towards sports facilities, Performing and Visual Arts activities and wellbeing areas in our soon to be refurbished Inclusion area as well as local and national charities nominated by students.
Donate here KSHS Sponsored Walk Fundraising Donations or by going to the home page of our school website www.kshs.uk
This year the staff and students will be walking a new, carefully planned route over 10 miles. This will be part of the school day and students will then remain in school until 3.30pm.
We would really appreciate your support with sponsorship. Please forward this link to our digital sponsor form to as many friends and family as possible.
Monies raised will be split between these well deserving charities chosen by each year group, and school projects. Last year money raised bought wireless microphones used in ‘Mary Poppins Junior’, a smart new Sports Hall volleyball net and cameras for the Art department amongst other extra resources.
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Student fundraising for Cancer Research
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Elizabeth in Year 8 and Grace in Year 9 organised a cake sale to fundraise for Cancer Research at their local equestrian centre. They advertised it together and baked together raising £221.53. They chose cancer research because Elizabeth’s friend’s sister has unfortunately been diagnosed with a grade 4 incurable brain tumour and they wanted to do something to support the family.
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The Beyond Project in Sleaford
This term we have welcomed visitors from the Lincolnshire County Council programme ‘The Beyond Project’, a personal development education initiative for schools and young people.
The intention of the project is:
• To look ‘Beyond’ perceptions to encourage positive community relationships
• To look ‘Beyond’ perceptions and encourage individual aspirations and development
• To look ‘Beyond’ the project lifespan with a future focus of sustainable change within the community
Our participating Year 8 and Year 9 students have worked through a range of activities focusing on their personal values, self-esteem, resilience, and community attitudes. We look forward to sharing a full report on the Project after its completion.
Outside their direct school programme, the Beyond team are hosting community sport sessions in Sleaford from now through to the end of July. These sessions are for young people aged 11-18. All sessions are free of charge but will require a signed LCC consent form from a guardian for young people to participate.
ontact – Joe McCreesh:
Tel: 07833366718 Email: joseph.mccreesh@lincolnshire.gov.uk
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Dance and Disabilities at the Hub
This workshop is a relaxed, inclusive, and fun creative dance session for young people with learning disabilities, autism and/or physical disabilities. The session focuses on developing dancers to become more confident in dance by experimenting with different ways of moving through prop explorations and creative tasks. Please follow the link for more details and booking.
Dance & Disabilities | Hub Sleaford
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The Zone
The Zone is a youth space for 11-18-year-olds and will be in Sleaford Market Place from Thursday 5 June until Sunday 8 June. There’ll be a range of youth work activities such as gaming, table tennis, board games and will also introduce young people to creativity and culture through arts, crafts and music workshops and activities. It aims to provide a safe fun space for young people, reducing levels of anti-social behaviour. There’s more info at: https://zesttheatre.com/thezone/sleaford
The operating hours are as follows:
Thursday 5th June: 3pm – 7pm
Friday 6th June: 3pm – 7pm
Saturday 7th June: 11am – 5pm
Sunday 8th June: 11am – 5pm
The Zone will also return to Sleaford Market place for a week in September.
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Teenage Market
The Teenage Markets are returning to Sleaford this year and will launch on Saturday 7th June at Sleaford Market Place, alongside The Zone from 11am-5pm. We have 6 spaces available for teen traders and are also inviting young performers to dance, sing or entertain in the space also. You can view the event at: https://theteenagemarket.co.uk/events/sleaford-teenage-market-2/
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20 Mar 2025
We are looking to appoint Cover Supervisors
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