b'Back in the groove (the same.but different)January saw the start of term, only to be abruptly stopped in its tracks after one school day, with further closures of schools and the second lockdown and its measures put in place. The pupil and staff seamlessly merged from in person to online lesson again, including some hybrid models for those international pupils who were staying at the College throughout.February saw Mrs Rhona Avery joining the College as the new Director of Finance and soon to follow her two sons, Dylan and Louie joined us at the start of the summer term into Lower School. (We hope they will be very happy at Ellesmere and welcome them all into our community).Despite the enforced lockdown, work continued in earnest at Ellesmere with the planned renovation to St Aidans dayroom. The girls were all really pleased with the upgrade and the time-lapse video showing the work has certainly been a hit with many on the social media channels.As the second lockdown eased, it was great to welcome back the school community for what was the final three weeks of the Lent term. The energy and enthusiasm levels were palpable and the sheer enjoyment of being back in school and being back with friends and teachers was something that all pupils and indeed staff had missed.The pupils continued to follow the protocols the College had in place from September and the seamless movement from online to in-person education became a quick one. Covid testing became a standard part of the school protocols for all pupils in Year 7 and above. The work of the medical team, the Boarding and Pastoral staff to put this process in place and to deliver it in such a way was testament to the College commitment to ensure the safety of everyone and to build confidence in many pupils who had been away from the school. The testing was done over a set period and once the pupils had done their two tests in week one and a second test in week two, they were then all provided with Lateral Flow Test (LFT) packs to self-test twice a week from home, which has continued to the current point. Our international pupils returned and some took up the opportunity to quarantine at the school. For some of those pupils, the Easter holiday period was a time in school and this enabled them to continue to work for the end of year assessments and ensured a safe and trouble free break away for the worries of travel. A big thank you must go to all the catering staff, cleaners and operations teams as well as those staff who worked in this period to care for and support those pupils in our care.EllesmereCollellesmerecollellesmere_college4'