I do hope everyone has enjoyed spending time with their families over the last two weeks, having fun and making memories. When I think back to the end of term, which seems forever ago, there were certainly many memories and lots of fun had at Westroyd. The staff are used to my ways now, and the pace, as I plan as much as possible into our calendar, to ensure our children have the best primary school experience possible. A couple of highlights in those last weeks for me:  

• Running around Westroyd Park, dressed as elves, raising money for Simon on the Streets! We certainly got some interesting looks from the local dog walkers that afternoon. Mr Popple and our local councillor/Governor Craig Timmins certainly went for it with their costumes.
• The performances by the children, especially the camels and the many other moments that made the audience laugh and cry all at the same time.
• Singing in Leeds Kirkgate Market in front of a large crowd and how they showed their appreciation for the joy the children created.
• Playing knock a door – carol sing with the Y5 singers. We brought our joy to the doorsteps of some of our special local friends of the school. Which again made the audience both cry and laugh at the same time! Very special moments.
• Watching a very exhausted Y6 class get off the coach from residential, which, to me, highlighted that they had made the most of every moment. Which is the Westroyd Way!
• Watching the staff open their secret santa presents, valuing how much love, respect and banter there is between them all!

Moving forwards now, into Spring One, which I always think is a strange thing to say, because even though the snowdrops are coming through the frozen ground in my garden, we are very much still in the midst of winter. Especially the cold weather snap currently and the ongoing threat of heavy snow. It is the time when the Met office weather app becomes my best friend, helping me to make decisions that ensure I can safely open school for children and staff. We have had a close shave with the snow this weekend, looking at the images from the East Coast and unusually dry weather over the whole school holidays. I have been up in Swaledale for the two-week break, and we have had the most beautiful cold, dry crisp conditions. Only slight moaning from my two last week, when it was minus 8 in the valley and the wind chill was -20 on the tops. The promise of an ice-cream in the village ice-cream parlour in Reeth, at the end of the walk – powered them on up high. Which really didn’t make sense to me!? For me in 2026, I am really looking forward to taking Y4 & Y5 up to Swaledale, the most beautiful and remotest of the dales, to stay in Grinton Lodge Youth Hostel.  We will be studying the river Swale and land use both in the past and modern day. It is certainly very contrasting to our local area! Very importantly though, we will be learning important life skills that can only be achieved when staying in such a remote location. If I am honest, watching the children’s response to having sheep wandering about around us and all the other wildlife is going to be fun!

Finally, we have a routine as a staff. When we take a break, and have time to think about things other than school, it is that when we come back we share something, a fact that in the moment is fascinating. Something that, in term time, your brain is too full to consider. Well, my return was interesting but not very useful in day-to-day life fact this time is the following. The optimal gestation period for a baby lamb is 84 days! Only marginally less interesting is the fact that, as generally the climate is warmer, sheep are going higher up the fells in the winter as the grass continues to grow at higher altitudes.  Which actually makes a farmer's job harder to deliver feed on frozen days. Can’t wait to hear what the staff come up with!