On Tuesday 2nd May we hosted our annual Year 13 Leavers BBQ, marking the first of many lasts with our Year 13 students who begin their study leave next week.

It was a great pleasure to host students we have known for such a long time, some joining us in Year 7, some making the journey all the way down Margaret Street from Pre-prep! We were also delighted to welcome students’ families into school, as they have been so pivotal in supporting their children throughout their school careers, and who we know will be just as nostalgic about their daughter’s Wakefield Girls’ journey as the students themselves! 

The afternoon was a wonderful event, celebrating friendships, reflecting on memories made and excitedly sharing future plans over a lovely late afternoon BBQ. The Head Ms Boyes shared a special message during the Leavers BBQ: “Year 13 have all been a real privilege to teach and will be greatly missed by us all. You intend to venture off in different directions to embrace really exciting, new things. Wherever you end up and whatever you do, the people you meet are incredibly lucky to have the opportunity to get to know you.”

There are several more Leavers events lined up before study leave commences next week. On Wednesday and Thursday, some Year 13 students who have been involved in Music clubs and the Music department during their time at Wakefield Girls’ will perform in their final ever Foundation Music Concert at QE Hall, QEGS. Then, on Friday all attention turns to the highly anticipated Foundation Leavers’ May Ball at the Royal Armouries in Leeds – where staff from the whole of the Wakefield Grammar School Foundation join students in Year 13 from Wakefield Girls’ and QEGS to celebrate. We can’t wait to see all the students there!

Celebrations continue the following week with a Leavers’ lunch and time to share special memories with each other. The highlight of this lunch is undoubtedly the Year 7 Time  Capsule letters that students wrote when they joined the High School, which discusses their dreams and ambitions for a career, hobbies, and what they think of school so far. Most students can’t remember anything that they wrote in the letter, so it is always a big surprise and hilarious moment seeing how much they have changed, and interestingly, whether their handwriting has changed!