The Week Ahead weekly newsletter

I have received the draft report from our inspection which is not yet to be shared publicly. However, I want to share that as the head of school I am delighted with many of the comments made. We have met all ISI required standards, and a number of encouraging comments have been made about the culture of our school. Of course we always have areas to work on, but the one they identified was already identified in our development plan. This was a great encouragement to us. I am grateful to God for the team we have, and each of the people who was part of this inspection process.

Hopefully the report will be with us soon, and we can share it with you in its fullness.

This week I have borrowed my contribution from Elisha Hutcheson, one of our ex students and youngest teachers. She encouraged staff on Monday with her thoughtful reflection about her apologetics lessons.

It is a beautiful privilege to see people grow in their roles - enjoy reading

"As someone who teaches Apologetics to year 7&8, my job is rather easy when it comes to discussing God in the classroom. However, when it came to planning my lessons, I came to the conclusion that I wanted to go beyond simply discussing the hard questions of the Christian faith; I wanted to impart core values that can be applied in ALL aspects of life, not just in the Apologetics classroom.

So, going directly to the source of all values and principles, I found my answers in 1 Peter 3:15-17 and Colossians 4:5-6 (pictured below). Reading through these verses, I began highlighting the key words that I perceived as vital tools when communicating our faith.

I was particularly struck by the words 'seasoned with salt' in Colossians. After a quick google search, I discovered that salt is not just an ingredient to bring flavour to our food. Salt is a binder and stabilizer ingredient; the body requires salt to maintain its proper balance. Our faith isn't just something that we believe in, it's something that makes us whole and keeps us balanced.

Therefore, when it comes to sharing who we are, we should be people of honour, speaking out with gentleness and respect; we should approach our discussions with a good conscience, allowing the Holy Spirit to fill us with His knowledge and peace. We do not want to be forcing our opinions or views, but in wisdom, seek the right moments to share with others what God is doing in us.

There is so much power in our words, even more so when they are God influenced. We have the authority to bring change and balance into the world with how we choose to share our faith.

So, taking on board those principles, at the end of every apologetics lesson, they are reminded to:

Imparting values that will stay with our students right into their adult life regardless of where they might end up. Something that, as an ex-student myself, I am incredibly grateful to BCS for. Being taught not only academics, but also life values that help me to be the best version of myself."