As you will know, our previous head teacher left in December 2024 and since that point we have been managing the school with fewer senior leaders. Consequently the Richard Huish Trust has teamed up with a large and successful multi academy trust, the Midsomer Norton Schools Partnership (MNSP), which will now be providing additional support to our school.
MNSP manages 36 schools, 12 of which are secondaries, therefore it has capacity to provide staff and resources for Pyrland. The trust has a very strong track record in supporting schools to improve. Recent data shows that it is the best performing south west based trust for educational outcomes. The closest secondary schools to Pyrland are St Dunstan’s in Glastonbury, Preston School and Buckler’s Mead Academy in Yeovil.
MNSP has agreed to provide an experienced head teacher from 24th March, along with other senior leaders to support our work to raise standards. Our new head teacher will be Mark Lawrence, who has led Buckler’s Mead over a number of years. During this time the school has seen significant improvements in pupil outcomes and behaviour.
Our initial focus will be on embedding a culture of high expectations around behaviour, curriculum and attendance. We will be simplifying our policies towards uniform and conduct, so that everyone is clear about what is expected in the school environment. The vast majority of our pupils behave well and work hard. However, for some students it is a challenge and we would like your support to ensure that improving behaviour is a success.
In addition to this initial focus on embedding high expectations, the MNSP trust will also be supporting our work on improving teaching and learning and we will have full access to the trust’s subject specialists. We will also gain bespoke support to improve attendance and leadership.
This is a really exciting time for Pyrland School and I look forward to your support in the next stage of our school’s development. I will be stepping back into my substantive role as Deputy Head Teacher and would like to take this opportunity to thank parents and carers for their support during the last few months.
Joanne James
Acting Head Teacher