The Darrick Wood Way
Parent Bulletin
“Education is for improving lives of others”
– Marian Wright Edelman –
Message from the Head Teacher
Public examinations were well underway this week and we have been very impressed with how our students in Years 11 and 13 have conducted themselves during this time. We have also been very grateful to students in other year groups who have been very mindful of the need for quiet close to our many exam venues. We are all keen to wish those in Years 11 and 13 the very best of luck at a stressful time for them.
Today I attended a presentation along with other Bromley secondary head teachers from the Smartphone Free Childhood group. I have written before about smartphones and the growing desire of parental groups such as these, as well as those of us working in education, for schools to enhance their bans on smartphones, especially for our younger cohorts. There is also a desire for collective action, with schools and parents working together to promote a childhood which does not involve access to a smartphone until children are more ready to handle the issues these devices bring into their world. As a school we have not yet agreed what the implications of this will be for us, but it is likely we will want to make some changes to our smartphone rules ahead of our return in September. Whilst these devices have become very much part of the adult world, I am increasingly aware of the issues our children and young people are facing as a result of being allowed access to social media and the wider internet, via an addictive device many of them carry with them most of the time. For parents who are keen to find out more, there is much you could read about this including a very compelling case in the book by Jonathan Haidt (The Anxious Generation).
I will leave you read our latest news from across the School here and wish you an enjoyable weekend ahead.
Attendance Focus
93.5%
Highest Attendance
Congratulations to 7XL on an outstanding attendance level of 97% with a number of other form groups from all years closely following at 96%. We know their achievements and experiences will benefit as a result.
Reading Recommendations
Click below for details
Upcoming Events
26/05/25 – 30/05/25 half-term break
02/06/25 return from half-term break
20/06/25 – Years 11 and 13 Book Return, Year 11 Leavers’ Assembly and Prom
02/07/25 – Sports Day (Years 7-9 only) – Norman Park
Week commencing 14/07/25 – Year 8 residential trip to Sayers Croft
23/07/25 last day of term
14/08/25 – Post-16 results
21/08/25 – GCSE results
01/09/25 – Professional Development Day (only staff attend)
02/09/25 – Years 7 and 12 in school
03/09/25 – All years in school
Useful Links
Previous Bulletins
Highlights of the fortnight
KS3 Readathon
Thank you to everyone who supported our Year 7, 8 and 9 students with sponsorship money and encouragement to read. We made an amazing £1,139 for the charity Read for Good which provides storytellers and books for children in hospital. Students spent time over the Readathon fortnight listening to teachers in the School reading books aloud, reading in Form or in the Reading Realm. It’s been proven that children who read for pleasure are more likely to be successful and happy throughout their lives (OECD, 2002), and it was fantastic to see many of our students enjoying their reading. The individual sponsorship winners have been announced. Congratulations to Tabetha, George, William, Abigail and Thomas!
UKMT Junior Maths Challenge.
Well done to all 116 students from Years 7 and 8 who participated in the 2025 UKMT Junior Maths Challenge on 1st May. All of them demonstrated excellent effort and there were some fantastic results. Congratulations to the six students that achieved Gold Certificate standard, the 18 that achieved Silver Certificate standard and the 34 students that achieved Bronze Certificate standard.
A special mention to Daniel B and Stanley W from Year 8 and Matty G and Leila W from Year 7 who have been invited to the follow-on competition – the Junior Kangaroo Challenge. Well done!
DWS Audio
Tyra, in Year 10, recently represented Darrick Wood School at this year’s Jack Petchey Speak Out Competition with her speech, entitled ‘Stars’. She has recorded an audio version of her inspiring speech, which you can hear on our audio blog, Here is the link: Speak Out: Stars – DWS Audio
Year 13 Leavers’ Ball
It was a great turn out from students and staff with lovely photos upon entry and a welcome (non-alcoholic) drink. The students were amazing, brilliantly behaved and thoroughly enjoyed the night. The venue was stunning with a huge function hall and great back drop of the golf course. The sit down meal was very civilized! Everyone sat at their designated tables throughout both courses and then the real fun began – we had a series of awards given out for ‘most likely to…’ with Mr Hammond being the excellent master of ceremony. Mr Utton was on duty to capture some great shots throughout the night and they danced right up until the final song. We have had several members of staff mention in the week following that it was the best leavers’ ball they have been to. We were extremely proud of Lucy and Harry for putting together such a great event and of the whole year group for representing the School so well. All who attended had such a good time and we will miss them very much.
Curriculum Showcase
Year 9 German has recently been looking at Märchen or fairy stories in German. So many of the familiar tales that we hear as children have their roots in German culture and language and it was a great opportunity to hear and read those stories in German but also to be creative with our interpretations of them.
Year 10 are now roughly halfway through their GCSE studies and here is an assortment of bookwork of everything from practising being more confident in speaking, reading complex texts for comprehension, translating into the target language and reflecting on learning using mark schemes/grade descriptors.
Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
At Darrick Wood School, we are proud to recognise and celebrate events that promote equality, diversity and inclusion within our community. This week, we are marking three important global awareness days:
15th May – International Day of Families
This UN observance celebrates families in all their diverse forms – including single-parent, blended, extended, adoptive, and chosen families. We are encouraging students to reflect on the meaning of family and the importance of love, care and support in all types of family relationships.
15th May – Global Accessibility Awareness Day
This day is dedicated to raising awareness about digital access and inclusion for people with disabilities. As a school, we are reflecting on how we can make our learning environment more inclusive, and students are being encouraged to consider how accessibility benefits everyone.
17th May – International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia
This day highlights the ongoing need to challenge discrimination against LGBTQ+ people worldwide. At school, we are reinforcing our values of respect and inclusion, and reminding all students of the importance of standing up against prejudice in all forms.
These events serve as a reminder of the importance of understanding, empathy and being an ally. Thank you for your continued support in helping us build a school community where everyone feels safe, respected and celebrated.
Sports and PE News
The annual sports day event is now being organised and will be held on the 2nd July 2025 at Norman Park. Click here for more information
The Year 11 boys unfortunately lost 1-4 to Forrest Hill School in the Bromley Cup Final. They put in a valiant effort on a big pitch and hot day. We are hoping that a number of these boys will be staying on in the Sixth Form and competing in the North Kent Leagues next year for our 1st and 2nd Xi teams.
The U13 Girls also unfortunately lost 0-1 to Bullers Wood School. Another hot day and huge pitch for these young ladies made it a very tough day for the lungs and legs. They fought and fought all the way to the end but could not quite work enough chances to equalise.
The U12 girls also faced Bullers Wood School and despite being on top for most of the first half found themselves 0-1 down at half-time. A rousing team talk by Ben Greenhalgh at half-time meant we started the second half with some fresh energy and the desire to finally beat Bullers Wood this year. Two brilliant strikes from Alana S from outside the area meant we won the game 2-1. All the girls were fantastic and did themselves and the School proud. We look forward to watching them grow and get even better in the years to come.
U12 Girls team: Jess R (c), Alana S, Elise S, Annabelle C, Beth L, Tilly M, Alarna G, Megan D, Phoebe W, Darcy G, Mia Y, Phoebe S.
Safety & Awareness
For information on ‘What you need to Know about Instagram’ please click here
Click below for details
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Wellbeing
This week is Mental Health Awareness week. The Mental Health Foundation has shared their best mental health tips…
https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/explore-mental-health/publications/our-best-mental-health-tips
If your child is struggling with their mental health, there are many avenues of support available via their pastoral team. Please contact your child’s Form Tutor or Achievement Coordinator for further advice. They can refer your child for School Counselling, support from the Mental Health Support Team or more specific intervention through Bromley Y’s Integrated Single Point of Access – iSPA.
Student Leadership
Main Assemblies
Last week in Main Assembly we had Evie-May, Maryam, Tia-Rae and Rahma from our Deaf Centre celebrating Deaf awareness week. They told us about how we can help our deaf students to understand more and small things that we can do that would make a huge difference to them. We would like to thank them for all their work on this and delivering with such confidence.
This week in Main Assembly we had Rosie, Jess and Annabelle talking to us about the Netball Tour and the various activities they took part in. We thank them and Miss Harrod for all the hard work they put into this.
Work Related Learning
Monthly Parent and Carer Guide to Apprenticeships
Please find the link below to the May edition of the parent and carer guide to apprenticeships with lots of useful content to support your child with post-16 and post-18 pathway options.
STEM Summer work experience – click here for more information.
We have been asked to share information regarding Social Mobility Month which has been created by Digilearning and the Rio Ferdinand Foundation. The programme is a national initiative offering free access to career-boosting experiences throughout June.
From online masterclasses and LinkedIn Lives to real-world insight days with brands like Accenture, Spotify, Telegraph and The Financial Times – this is about showing young people what’s possible and helping them get there.
Ages: 16–30
Cost: Free
When: Throughout June
Where: Online + in-person across the UK
Sign up: socialmobilitymonth.org visit the schedule and select, sign up
