How to...
Some items of school uniform can only be purchased from our approved supplier, Sportswear International. A price list giving details of sizes can be obtained from the school office. The order will need to be sent directly to Sportswear International and the order can either be delivered to your home or into school for collection.
Many items of school uniform, ie. shirts, blouses, skirts and trousers, can be bought from any high street retailer. When buying these items please take note of the guidelines on our uniform checklist.
There will be a number of occasions when you will need to make contact with the school. The first point of contact is your child’s tutor. They will soon put you in touch with the right person.
On rare occasions an issue may seem so important that you must see someone fairly quickly. While it is usually essential to phone for an appointment, should this not be possible, the school will do what it can to arrange for you to speak with someone able to help on the day of your request. It is inappropriate to turn up, expecting someone will be able to see you. Those wishing to speak with the Principal or one of his deputies must make an appointment.
Good attendance is essential for a student to progress well in school. Parents should, therefore, avoid any plans, which mean a child misses lessons. Please consider carefully before you agree to a routine doctor’s or dental appointment in school time.
Where absence from school is due to illness or some other reason that could not have been anticipated please let the school know the reason for absence by telephone between 8am and 10am on the first day of absence. Direct Dial – 01606 333313. Where no explanation has been received by this time, we will attempt to contact you by phone to establish the reason for the absence. Where an illness causes prolonged absence, please contact the school to discuss work that might be appropriate.
Several students are eligible for free meals and/or free transport.
You can register your child for Free School Meals if you get any of these benefits:
- Income Support
- Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
- Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
- Support under Part VI of the immigration and Asylum Act 1999
- The Guarantee element of State Pension Credit
- Child Tax Credit, provided they are not entitled to Working Tax Credit and have an annual income (assessed by HM Revenue & Customs) that does not exceed £16,190
- Working Tax Credit ‘run-on’ – the payment someone may receive for a further four weeks after they stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit
The law does not give any entitlement to parents to take their child on holiday during term time. Any applications for term time holiday will only be granted in exceptional circumstances. The Principal must be satisfied that circumstances are exceptional and will determine the number of days a child can be away from school if the leave is granted.
The school has a strong musical tradition. We are pleased to make available to our students a wide range of instrumental music lessons. The governors encourage participation in this programme, not least by subsidising the cost. Students wishing to take part in this programme should speak to our Head of Music, Mrs Curry.
Payment for school trips can be made either via the online School Cash Office Internet Payments system (SCO), this system enables you to view your account and keeps an accurate record of all payments for the trip or at the EVC/Payments Office. We ask that you do not send your child into school with large amounts of cash; a cheque is far more secure. All cheques for school trips should be made payable to The Sir John Brunner Foundation T/A CHSL with the students name written clearly on the reverse. Please place the cheque and signed reply slip in an envelope with your child’s name on the front.
At the beginning of each academic year a letter can be obtained from the EVC/Payments Office regarding the allocation of lockers. We currently charge £10 for the Locker each year, plus a deposit of £2.50 for the key. Due to lack of space, there is a limited number of lockers and are therefore allocated on a first come, first served basis.