Andrew Burns - June 2020

Andrew Burns – June 2020

Dear Parent/Guardian,

I hope that you would indulge me as I share some personal news with you. At the end of the academic year, I will be leaving Forge to take up a position working for Ormiston across the West Midlands region. I will become the Regional Executive Principal, supporting principals and academies in the West Midlands.

At the end of the term, it will be almost 10 years since I was appointed to the position of Principal at Forge. It is the longest I have ever worked in one school. It has been both a privilege and a passion to serve this community and we have all shared some incredible memories. We’ve laughed together and cried together and we’ve shared a common drive to ensure that the life chances of the young people from this area improve and that any barriers to their successes are removed.

I leave with our Academy in an excellent position having had Ofsted this year and the expectation of another good set of results in the summer despite the obvious challenges.

In Lisa Mason, you have a leader who understands our community and who will always do the right thing for our young people. This is, and always will be, the most important thing about Forge; our young people are the beating heart of all we do. The transition of leadership over the last 18 months has been seamless and Dr Mason, with great staff alongside her and the support of this fantastic community, will continue to drive the Academy forwards.

Ultimately, this is both an exciting and a sad time for me as I have been given this opportunity, in no small part, because of the support and trust you have placed in me. We have done this together – worked together with our staff, Governors and the students to create a vibrant, culturally richer and aspirant family. The pride that I have in everything that we have done will never leave me and I’ll take greater pride in seeing things go from strength-to-strength.

The current situation is challenging, I’d love to be on front gate duty again before the end of the summer term but I’m not sure that is likely. Despite what you might think, doing duty on the gates at the start and end of the day really is one of my pleasures in life, even in the thick of winter. I’m not going far so I’ll save the rest for my final letter before I leave Forge in the Summer but hopefully, I’ll see you on the gates again at some point.

Andrew Burns