Dear Parents, Carers and Families,
This is the final parental update of the academic year, with information about results days and the start of next term below. We’ve also looked to celebrate recent student achievements and let you know about some operational changes that will be in place from September, as well as a teaching staff update. At the time of writing, Enrichment Week is nearly coming to a close, with students having experienced visits as varied as to France, Spain, Naples, London, Beamish, the cinema, a mosque in Newcastle, the Gibside estate, and a host of others, while in school students have engaged in coding, art, in some cases circus skills, and other exciting and unusual opportunities. These sorts of experiences can only take place because of staff willing to operate outside their usual role, children willing to show the resilience to try different things, and of course you as parents and carers encouraging your children to embrace the new.
Can I thank all parents for their support for the school, not just this week, but over the course of this year, and I look forward to working with you all again next year as we continue to ensure that every child can achieve and thrive here, as well as have a sense of belonging in our school community.
I hope you all have a good weekend and a great summer holiday.
Michael Wright
Headteacher
Please find this week's key messages below.
Last Day of Term
School ends for the summer on Friday 17th July. School will finish for all students at 12.45pm that day, and we have arranged for buses and taxis to be here earlier as a consequence.
Site access over the summer holidays
During the summer, as part of our rebuild project, the main driveway to the school will become unusable for a significant period of time. The current student pedestrian entrance on Carrside will be opened up to accept cars on a temporary basis over the summer holidays. Of course, very few people wish to access the site over the summer, but please be mindful of this during this time. Normal arrangements will be in place by the time school opens up again in September. This disruption is one of the reasons our results days will be held at The Sjovoll Centre – see below for more details.
A Level Results Day
A Level and L3 qualification results will be available to collect from the school on Thursday 13th August from 8.00am to 10.00am in The Sjovoll Centre. Staff will be available to congratulate students and offer support in terms of their next steps. There will be no parking available on the main school site due to the building work.
GCSE Results Day
GCSE results will be available for students on Thursday 20th August from 9.00am to 10.30am in The Sjovoll Centre. Students will then be able to complete their enrolment into 6th Form. There will be no parking available on the main school site due to the building work.
Year 11 students also have the Education Record app. This is a government mobile application designed to store GCSE results and certificates digitally. Results will appear on the app from 11.00am on results day. If your child did not download the app while in Year 11, they should contact Mrs A. Allan at enquiries@framdurham.com to request their individual code to link to the app.
Progress Reports
Students in Years 7,8 and 9 will receive an end-of-year report which will report on their recent end-of-year assessments. Well done to all students for their hard work and revision throughout these weeks. Any set changes that may occur will be implemented from September.
GCSE Options
All Year 9 students received a letter in June confirming their GCSE option choices. We look forward to welcoming students back in September to begin their GCSE studies. Due to option choices, your child may have moved bands, and this will be informed through their timetable in September.
Year 7 Setting for Lessons
For the Year 7 students joining us in September, we have placed them in a class but there may be some movement between classes in the first couple of weeks as we learn about your child and decide the best fit for them.
School Equipment
A reminder that we shared details with you in the last update about the three items of compulsory equipment that students must bring to school with them every day from September. They will need:
- Pre-prepared pencil case to be purchased from ParentPay for £1.
- Scientific Calculator, which can be purchased from ParentPay for £10.
- A bag to store this equipment and anything else they need for the day.
More detail can be found here: Headteacher's Update 26.06.26
Mobile Phones
A reminder that students should never have their phones out while on the school site; mobile phones have no place in schools. More detail on our position can be found here: Headteacher's Update 15.05.26
Library News
We have finished our year in the Library with an English Reading Competition, which had so many excellent poetry entries it was really difficult to choose a winner (so we chose two!) Congratulations to Molly for the most beautifully presented, and Alice for best original poem. Our runners-up were Grace, Sienna and Phoebe.
Thank you to everyone who took part - and we hope you all enjoy some relaxed reading time over the holidays.
We are excited that there are loads of new books arriving in September from our partnership with Collected Bookshop and the Sir Tom Allen Assembly Rooms - come and check out what's going on and what's new when we return to school!
Just a little reminder of what the Library offers:
We have a small (cash only) shop as part of the Library, so for stationery (think pens, pencils, rulers, post-it notes, etc), please do make use of this - it's only 10p a pen, so there are bargains to be had!
The Library will be open at lunch and after school on Mondays, and before school, break and lunch Tuesday-Thursday. We always have lots of activities and crafts to do, some incredible books on offer, and every half term there is a reading challenge that can win you Amazon vouchers and other prizes. You can be involved in the Library Committee or apply to be a Library Assistant, and there are various themes and days during the year to join in with (Board Game Thursday is very popular!) It is a great space to come and do homework on the computers or at the desks, read, chat about books, or just chill out. We'd love to see you there!
Mrs Morgan, LRC and Library Officer
The Royal Society of Chemistry
Year 12 students have been working on a project with the Royal Society of Chemistry. The work that they have been doing has helped discover some compounds with activities which could help develop the current drugs that are used to treat TB, and will be featured in a scientific journal. Students were invited to London to present their findings directly to the Royal Society, and are pictured below with Sir Chris Whitty, Chief Medical Officer for England and Chief Medical Advisor to the government.
Congratulations to the students for all their hard work.
September Start Dates
A reminder that students in Years 7 and 12 will return to school on Thursday 3rd September, and should be on site at the usual time of 8.25am. On that day, Year 12 students will finish at 1.00pm, and Year 7 at 2.55pm, as they would on a normal school day. All year groups will join us on Friday 4th September, and will have normal start and finish times.
Children’s Commissioner’s National Survey
We’ve been asked to share the link to the Children’s Commissioner’s National Survey – you can find the link here: https://www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/thebigfuture
The Children’s Commissioner for England, Dame Rachel de Souza, explains the purpose of the survey on her website, saying, “I am asking children about the changes they want to see in their communities, their biggest concerns, and their hopes for the future. More than anything, I want to know what they think a good childhood should look like, now and in the future.” You can find more information at her website.
Great British Summer Savings
The below information has been sent to school by the Department for Education who have asked us to share it here.
From 25 June to 1 September 2026, the Government is temporarily cutting VAT from 20% to 5% on children's meals in restaurants, children and family tickets to cinemas, theatres, concerts and exhibitions, and admission to a wide range of attractions. Combined with free bus travel during August for children aged 5 to 15 in England, families and young people will be able to enjoy experiences that make summer special, including visits to the kinds of cultural and educational attractions that enrich children's lives outside the classroom.
As part of this campaign, we have launched an attraction finder website which allows families to type in their postcode and find participating venues near them to make the most of summer savings. To use the attraction finder, please visit https://summersavings.gov.uk.
June Parental Survey Response
Many thanks to all the people who took the time to complete our June survey. In response to the question “What area of school life do you think could be improved?”, there was only one area that was picked out consistently across more than one comment, which was communication, with people wanting in general to be better informed. In any large secondary school this is a challenge, and I imagine when we run these surveys again, people will say the same. However, the intention is to adopt a new approach to home school communication in the coming academic year. I would also remind people that during the working day, staff are focused on the students here, and we can’t guarantee same-day feedback.
Food Price Increase
Unfortunately, we have had to amend the prices of the food available from the school canteen, with a £0.01 increase on all items, except for three items which are rising a little higher.
Students entitled to a Free School Meal will have their entitlement raised so they can still purchase a hot or cold meal deal.
These changes will take effect from September 2026, with details posted here on our website: Catering Information | Framwellgate School Durham
Staffing Update
At the end of this academic year, we say goodbye to the following teachers. We thank them all for their service to the school and wish them all the best in the future.
- Mrs Adams
- Mr Earnshaw
- Mrs Horrocks
- Miss Love
- Mr Lowes
- Mr Oularbi
- Mrs Stirling
- Miss Tomaney
We will also welcome the following new staff members in September.
- Miss Beckford – Teacher of Science
- Mrs Clarke – Teacher of Science
- Mrs Dunn – Teacher of Computer Science
- Mrs Glean – Teacher of Computer Science
- Miss Johnson – Teacher of Food & Nutrition
- Mrs West – Teacher of Food & Nutrition
Safeguarding During the Holidays
We know that during the holiday period, some individuals and families may benefit from some extra help and support.
If you have any safeguarding concerns or worries during the holidays, you can contact First Contact on 03000 267979, or the Police on 101. If you need any urgent support, or are finding the summer holidays quite difficult, you can contact Childline on 08000 1111, or the Mental Health Crisis Team on 111 option 2.
Foodbank Opening Times and Locations
As the summer holidays are approaching, we know a lot of families might find this time particularly stressful for lots of reasons. Here is the link to local foodbank locations in Durham: https://durham.foodbank.org.uk/locations/
The opening times will be available on the foodbank website in the upcoming weeks.
Water Safety
During the recent hot spell, we know a lot of young people have been swimming and visiting the beach and various outdoor spaces. To keep safe when near any water, the RNLI have shared a good variety of age-appropriate resources to encourage people to keep themselves safe. The resources can be found here: RNLI Education Resources for Young People
Rail Safety
National Rail has also shared some resources to encourage young people to stay safe and alert when out in the community during the summer holidays. The link can be found here: Safety education - Network Rail, should you wish to speak with your child further about keeping safe.
Mrs Osborne, Director of Safeguarding
What is my child learning?
A reminder that you can find curriculum details about what your child is studying here on our website: Curriculum Overview | Framwellgate School Durham
How to help support your child at home?
Students can use the link below to access resources that will help them study independently at home, such as:
- Knowledge organisers
- Revision checklists
- Past exam papers
- ‘How to Revise’ instructional videos
Students have been shown how to access this SharePoint site and a 'how to' sheet has been sent to you via ClassCharts. As parents and carers, you won’t be able to access this, but the link will work for all students. Students learning how to use this excellent resource early in their time here will be very beneficial to them later as they approach their GCSE studies. All GCSE students should be making regular use of it as a matter of course.