Monmouth Comprehensive School Parent Portal - Parent Newsletter 16 06 23

We had the pleasure of welcoming our incoming Year 7 2023 students and their families to school this week. It is one of the highlights of our year, and a reminder of what a privilege it is for us all to work with the next generation - supporting and challenging them to be the very best version of themselves possible. There was lots of excitement from students, families and of course from staff too.

One of the areas we spoke about with our new intake and their families was mobile phones, the use of the internet and student access to social media. We recognise that parents and carers will make a range of decisions about whether to buy their child a phone, and whether to allow Internet access. Digital competency is important, but we find that unlimited access is a burden for young people, who are then drawn to spend more and more time on apps and devices that are specifically designed to be addictive or habit-forming. In addition, we are finding that fallouts or arguments on social media or in the community in evenings and weekends is sometimes having a negative effect on student wellbeing and their ability to focus on making progress in their subjects. Robust parental decisions on the following have been shown to have a positive effect on student wellbeing:

Guardian apps such as Google’s Family Link, Apple’s Screen Time, Boomerang or Qustodio
No data/limited data on phones
Regular checks of your child’s phone in order to address any issues
Increased parental understanding of apps such as Snapchat and Instagram and their risks – advice available here on apps and here on keeping safe online, including routes to specialist guidance and support.
Attendance at an Internet Safety event at school or online – we will continue to offer additional support for families, whether that be technical support or the setting of boundaries regarding the internet and social media. These notifications usually come through this newsletter.

We recognise that forming digital boundaries might be challenging if your child is used to more freedom to access whatever they like on the internet, and we are happy to reinforce messages on the above to your child in order to support you and them. Recognition from your child that you have authority over their internet access is part of a wider acceptance of your parental authority in general, and the School’s authority in loco parentis over them whilst they are in school. These are complex matters to navigate for us all, and we know that close collaboration between home and school is at the heart of ensuring students are supported to navigate their digital lives positively and safely. Thank you for your support in these matters.

Many thanks also to MCS Friends for attending and promoting their work to support the School. For anyone not yet aware, the Friends work tirelessly to support students and the school community. As well as events such as Curry and Quiz and refreshments at school productions, the Friends fundraise for the School. This has allowed us to buy such items as specialist equipment in science, music, drama and other subjects; break time equipment such as table tennis tables and shelters; and sports equipment such as girls' football team kit. The exciting Summer Learning programme for 2023 (details out in due course) simply would not be possible without the financial support of MCS Friends. If you have capacity to help out in any way then please do get involved. The email is moncompfriends@gmail.com.

All the best to you all for a restful weekend, ideally with a cooling breeze in this hot weather.

Hugo Hutchison
Headteacher