With the first half of a first term brought to a triumphant conclusion with the marking of a House Day, I also reflect with great pride upon an outstanding exhibition of musicianship, the hosting of several events for prospective parents and the conclusion of an enormously successful series of Parent Teacher Conferences.

The break ahead will allow for rest, recouperation and the refreshment of our boundless enthusiasm for change, growth and improvement. It will also see preparation for the arrival of our Board of Governors finalised.

Students return on Tuesday 29th October. Featuring the arrival of a visiting orchestra, a parent led Halloween Disco and an Open Morning on Saturday 2nd November, we have a great deal to look forward to.

Featuring a second showcase of our Hanqing Bilingual Pathway, delivery of the latest in our parent workshop series and the gathering of our School Management Committee, I write from home this week, in advance of a final week prior to the arrival of a mid-term break.

With preparations for the arrival of the Board of Governors taking good shape, the coming five school days will see a first set of Parent Teacher Conference meetings drawn to a conclusion, the hosting of two separate campus tours and the continuation of a lesson observation cycle that will act to focus professional dialogue among the academic team for many months to follow.

The time away from school will allow for reflection, rejuvenation and re-engagement of the restless mind that continues to drive for the incremental improvement of all we offer to students and families.

The onset of Parent Teacher Conferences and a lesson observation cycle designed to facilitate the analytical exploration of student engagement in the light of our teaching and learning policy, reminds us that a mid-term break is now on the horizon.

Between now and then, the regathering of our School Management Committee, the finalisation of plans for an upcoming meeting with the Board of Governors and the hosting of three separate events for prospective parents are sure to keep us occupied. With the next in our series of parent workshops also featuring on 9th October, those keen to learn more about the process of school selection are warmly encouraged to register here.

The hosting of another parent workshop stands particularly prominently in my mind as we approach the conclusion of our sixth week this academic year. Prompting thought on the mechanisms of learning and the ways in which we enable children to build and use interconnecting networks of information stored, an enraptured audience proved suitably participative. Parents keen to join our next session on the thorny subject of school selection are warmly encouraged to register here.

Next week will bring the onset of Parent Teacher Conferences and a lesson observation cycle that will allow us to revel yet further in the pedagogical expertise of our academic colleagues. I also look forward to hosting a campus tour, arranged on demand given the high levels of interest expressed at a recent international schools fair.

The visit of Shrewsbury School Music Director, Maria McKenzie, provided a triumphant end to another nourishing school week that also featured the launch of Co-Curricular activity, the gathering of our School Management Committee and the marking of Mid-Autumn Festival. In Hong Kong ahead of a concert soon to be hosted on campus here in Tseung Kwan O, Maria enthralled Orchestra members over the course of an hour-long workshop, designed to challenge their musicality and teamship.

Tomorrow, I'll be joining a panel discussion at the South China Morning Post International Schools Fair on the subject of school transitions. Mindful of the many ways in which we support families in their journey into our community, I'll also be available shortly thereafter for those keen to learn more about the unique benefits of a Shrewsbury education.

Next week, we'll be participating in a mathematics competition hosted by the Federation of British International Schools in Asia (FOBISIA), gathering for the latest in a series of parent workshops and concluding a round of standardised assessments. An early sequence of formal lesson observations begins shortly thereafter and with it, the opportunity to dive deeper into the complex range of decisions that shape learning each day.

The hosting of a successful parent workshop and an assembly led by Year 6 students stand most prominently in my mind at the end of another productive week, that also saw the opening of a report that will shape the October engagement of our Board of Governors.

We will welcome the broadening of Co-Curricular options on Monday, alongside the initiation of one of four service programme initiatives, designed to challenge, engage, affect and inspire our young students.

With Mid-Autumn Festival landing on Wednesday, our School Management Committee will gather on Thursday, just a few days prior to attendance at another International Schools Fair hosted by friends at the South China Morning Post. Scheduled to speak at 13:30 on the subject of school transitions, I look forward to engaging with parents keen to learn more about the many advantages of a Shrewsbury education.

The week that opened with a bang and closed with a storm, will be most prominently remembered for the incredible array of costumes that marked the launch of an ongoing engagement with Numbots and Times Tables Rockstars on Monday. Whilst typhoon related class suspensions drew the school week to a premature close, attendance at an International Schools Fair hosted by friends at The Standard tomorrow now seems assured.

Following a first round of academic committee meetings, Wednesday will see the opening of a new parent workshop schedule. Reading Coordinator, Sam Taborn, will be presenting Five Ways to Foster a Love of Reading. If you would like to join us for what promises to be a fascinating discussion, please register here.

I also look forward to welcoming Year 6 to the Auditorium stage for the first of a flurry of student led assemblies, productions and performances this term.

Following the initiation of a Performance Management Cycle designed to stimulate growth among an ambitious academic team, the presentation of a Digital Citizenship Acceptable Use Agreement provided the opportunity to explore the opportunities and risks presented by our ever more entwined relationship with technology. Attention has since switched towards the development of materials that will support the delivery of information sessions to parents keen to learn more about the January opening of the Hanqing Bilingual Pathway.

Next week will see the schoolwide launch of Times Tables Rockstars. Countering the inevitable furore, a series of Operational Plan meetings and an engagement with the Education Committee at the British Chamber will precede attendance at an International Schools Fair hosted by friends at The Standard. I also look forward to concluding a trio of assemblies on the theme of friendship and the upcoming arrival of class-led presentations.

The flurry of early engagements that characterise the start of a new school year at Shrewsbury always heighten the feelings of connection, commitment and ambition members of the community share. How fitting therefore to conclude the week with an assembly on the theme of friendship and the acknowledgement of a collection of students that have had a particularly positive impact upon the lives of those around them during our first five days.

Next week will see the initiation of a Performance Management cycle that underlines an institutional commitment to growth and improvement. Meetings will see subject and phase leaders directly engaged on the evolution of our Strategic Plan and the realignment of our long-term objectives. I also look forward to hosting a first campus tour and to joining the presentation of our Digital Citizenship Acceptable Use Agreement alongside a keen group of parents, mindful of the growing influence technology has upon the lives and minds of the young people we are privileged to work alongside.

With five fulfilling days of orientation and induction behind us, we are now on the cusp of a new academic year and brimming with ambition for all that lies ahead. Before the full return of students on Monday 19th August, we greatly look forward to hosting an informal gathering of families on campus tomorrow.

Messaging to staff has centred upon the roots of our success: an unerring attention to detail, an enthusiasm for well informed change, the embracing of professional critique, the conscious implementation of a high-autonomy, high-responsibility work culture and a close-knit collegiality.

Next week will see relationships reignited and routines revived, a coffee morning with parents, the regathering of the Senior Leadership Team and a first meeting with the School Management Committee. We'll conclude with the first of a trio of assemblies on friendship.

Fresh from an afternoon with our newest recruits, they head into the weekend having journeyed (both physically and metaphorically) around all things Shrewsbury for the very first time. A social engagement tomorrow morning will set them up well for a deeper dive next week: a review of our policy compendium and an introduction to our digital infrastructure awaits, before the return of the wider team, the engagement of Oracy Charity Voice21 and the welcoming of students and families onto campus for a special orientation morning.

A new school year is almost upon us. With it arrives renewed ambition, our high expectations a sign of commitment to the evident potential of the students we are fortunate enough to work alongside.

Back on campus following a refreshing summer break, much of my early endeavour has revolved around reconnection with members of the operational team and the reviewal of materials set to guide the induction and orientation of colleagues prior to the return of students on Monday 19th August.

Among the priorities featured, an introduction to the distinctions and similarities between the two pathways now available to prospective parents will star: the refinement of a sector leading bilingual option acting only to further strengthen the distinctiveness of our offering, as the only premium level provider of primary education in the region.

Next week, we journey towards the arrival of a new group of teachers and the journeying through a series of early engagements that will ready them for an introduction to the wider school team. Both socially as professionally oriented, an appreciation for the early complexities facing those new to the region will greatly support their settling and readiness for the embracing of opportunities to follow.