A WOODLEY secondary school has a new headteacher, but she insists the core values will remain consistent.
Lindsey Humber was appointed as the new headteacher at Waingels in September this year.
Mrs Humber joined the school in January 2018 as deputy headteacher and throughout last year served as the head of school.
“It’s been a nice graduation to taking on the full responsibility,” she said.
“Having been head of school last year helped me to understand what the challenges are in the role but also what it entails so I was well informed coming into the headteacher role.”
The school’s motto is “Better Never Stops” and Mrs Humber believes that should remain at the heart of the school’s culture
She said: “We are really confident in what we do and because I have been deputy here I have been part of that strategic work.
“Our ambition is to be an exceptional school in the heart of our community.
“We have a lot of areas in our school that are exceptional but we want to make sure we are exceptional in all areas and that we continue to provide the best quality of education and care for the students of Woodley.”
In August, GCSE and A-Level students received their results after more than two years of disrupted learning.
More than 75% of GCSE pupils achieved grades 9 to 4 with nearly 30% receiving top grades of 9 to 7, which is above the national average.
Mrs Humber said: “We were really pleased with the results last year but also we have had a clear trend of above average results, certainly at GCSE, for many years.
“Initial feedback from the performance tables show that, on average, our students perform a third of a grade higher than what they were expected so there’s lots of added value there.”
The school’s sixth form also performed highly as almost two-thirds of those studying A-Levels were awarded A* to B grades, with 35% achieving A* to A.
Mrs Humber feels the environment for sixth form students is beneficial to their learning.
She said: “They have their own cafe, a common room, a study room like at university and a library type space with lots of computers.
“There are also group work breakout areas so it’s a space where they can make it feel like their own and it feels slightly different to being a lower school student.”
Approximately 60% of Year 11 students choose to stay on at the school’s sixth form.
As well as the environment, Mrs Humber believes this is also the result of the curriculum on offer.
“The curriculum we offer is very broad,” she said.
“There’s opportunities to do lots of different A-Levels but also vocational courses and I think the resources are really strong for a sixth form.
“I also think it’s the relationships the students form with their teachers as they know those teachers have supported them to get really good GCSE grades and they have the confidence to come back and continue to learn at Waingels.”
Whether a lower school student or studying at the sixth form, all pupils are encouraged to follow the school’s values of respect, kindness, resilience and pride, something Mrs Humber is keen to see continue as headteacher.
She said: “When I speak to students, when I talk to parents the two things that are really important to me is, one, that every student tries their best.
“And secondly, although we’ve got the values of kindness, resilience, pride and respect, for me kindness is really, really important.
“I think with social media pressures and coming out of covid, being kind to yourself and being kind to others is incredibly important and that’s the message that I send to our students and parents.”
