We have talked about leadership a great deal this term. We do so unapologetically, as it lies at the heart of the Ridgeway Education Trust - leadership is very much a value to us, not just a position or title we have won.

You may have heard a range of staff members explore different leadership styles. I often talk about quiet and reflective leadership, visible and confident leadership as well as servant leadership, which is about leading to serve our community. It is about leaving a place better than we found it. I love the idea that there is no one definition of 'a leader' at our Trust - it is a rich and inclusive part of our ethos.

Within our growing student leadership teams, we come across a variety of leadership styles which I am constantly in awe of. In this final entry before Christmas, I want to take a few moments to acknowledge and celebrate the incredible contributions our students across the Trust make to our school communities. They have the most wonderful creative energy and seem to be unfazed by any challenge I throw at them. Their resilience, even at this young age, is incredible. Our student leaders regularly help us to plan and run schoolwide events; they design and deliver assemblies of a high quality; they improvise and fill in for each other when they need to; They are polite, respectful, kind and thoughtful. They do all of this without complaining and with a smile on their faces, missing no opportunity to make each other laugh.

I am conscious that I don't want to take any of this for granted: so, student leaders across the Trust, if you are reading this, thank you for everything you do when you go above and beyond for your school. You all lead differently and it is this diversity in thought and creativity that makes our schools such special places to be.

Have a wonderful festive break and a very Happy New Year!