Westwood St Thomas looks to the future (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

Westwood St Thomas looks to the future

rizewinners at Westwood St Thomas School evenng of achievement.AN exciting and bright future lies ahead for pupils and staff at Westwood St Thomas School, headteacher Brian Eales has promised.

Next year, Westwood St Thomas will become the only comprehensive, co-educational school in Salisbury for 11- to 18-year-olds and plans are well in hand for this, Mr Eales told parents and guests at the school's annual evening of achievement, held in the City Hall last week.

Building work is already under way with three projects - the refurbishment of the technology and IT suite, a modernised sixth form and new buildings to cope with the influx of new students in 2005 - brought about by the changes in education planned for south Wiltshire next year.

One of the most exciting plans for the future is the school's bid to become a media arts college.

Mr Eales told guests there were no guarantees this would happen, but Westwood St Thomas intended to lead the way for other schools to follow.

He said: "The school has immense potential and it has many strengths.

"The majority of our students are hard-working and pleasant and want to succeed. The staff are hard-working and want the best for the students.

"The future is bright and exciting. I think Westwood St Thomas is a school with immense potential and I am determined to make it a centre of excellence."

Mr Eales said that, over the coming months, they intended to improve catering facilities at the school, bring in a new curriculum with special emphasis on students with special talents and students with special needs, and work to make the school a happy and well-behaved community.

They will continue to introduce modern technology, so that the school becomes "ICT-rich".

The evening began with a special presentation to Christine Le Page, whose 15-year-old son, Robert, died in November last year from natural causes while playing with friends in Queen Elizabeth Gardens.

Robert, who lived in Hilltop Way, Salisbury, was a student with potential, guests heard, and his mother was presented with the certificates he had gained before his death from a heart condition.

The certificates were for effort and achievement and excellent attendance records during the academic year 2002/3.

There was also a special presentation to Kelly Woodford, who has become Westwood St Thomas's first gold medal winner in the Duke of Edinburgh award scheme.

The evening's awards were presented to successful students by Journal publisher Bill Browne, whose address outlined the part the newspaper plays in the community life of south Wiltshire.