I have just arrived home from a really magical evening. Our ‘Mercia Moments Christmas Showcase’ was everything I hoped it would be. It was like the Royal Variety, just with less ventriloquists and acrobats! Oh… and no Prince Harry. Shame. Pupils offered an incredibly varied repertoire – they sang as an ensemble, recited poetry, danced the jive, made impassioned speeches, played individual instruments, soloists sang their heart out and a handful of pupils even rapped! Watching it was a really wonderful experience, all of the staff felt an enormous sense of pride. The pupils were magnificent.  

School productions are a passion of mine, they can be incredibly fulfilling. I always encourage colleagues to roll up their sleeves and get involved in these events, they have such a lasting impact on pupils. A real perk of the job is supporting pupils to perform and support a culture of performance within a school. Seeing pupils enjoy performance and work outside of their comfort zone is completely inspiring. Pupils who play a musical instrument with care and courage – total admiration. Pupils who stand up and sing their heart out – absolute respect. Pupils who aren’t the most natural of performers getting up and giving it a good old go – I am in complete awe!

This kind of showcase is not unusual, of course. I have had the joy of being involved with some of them across a couple of schools and they have all been wonderful evenings, without question. This evening, however, was a little bit different for just one reason… The entire school took part. 100% of pupils. They all had a role to play. They were all challenged to participate, and they rose to that challenge with aplomb. It was so nice to see boys dancing with girls, boys taking a lead role in dance, girls making empowering speeches, passionate singers expressing themselves vocally, keen instrumentalists showcasing their musical talent. Total respect. Perhaps what filled me with pride the most was seeing slightly shyer children performing with confidence in front of a large audience – it should not be underestimated how much courage it takes to walk on to a stage surrounded by an audience of strangers! I have nothing but positive regard for those pupils.

In closing, these evenings are so, so vital to pupil development. We hope we are setting pupils up for the future by developing the character traits – resilience, bravery, kindness, gratitude to name a few – required to succeed in the twenty-first century. We are working incredibly hard to ensure all avenues are open to all pupils. I felt so very proud of them this evening and I know all of my colleagues did too. Tonight’s performance is what Mercia School is all about – 100% of pupils and staff doing their very best, 100% of the time. We want pupils to embrace challenge, try new things and commit to the school and its vision. At Mercia School, we put just as much emphasis on building character as we do on our knowledge rich curriculum – we think this will help develop the young people in our care and support them to flourish both at school and beyond...

It is only right to thank my colleagues for their endeavour and hard work in producing such a special evening. We are a close knit team and every single staff member played their part tonight. A special thank you to all of our parents and carers for their ongoing support.  

Joshua G. Fisher
Deputy Headteacher