Cooking up new challenge after five years at Kelsey school

That has been the vision of primary school head teacher, Andrew Cook, who has brought a fun and family feel to education in North Kelsey.

Mr Cook took on his first headship at Kelsey Primary five years ago and in that time has overseen a number of refurbishment projects, as well as making the school a place the pupils want to be.

Now, he is heading off to pastures new and in September will officially take over as head at Horncastle Primary School, part of the Wellspring Academy.

Mr Cook said: “I wasn’t actively looking to move on, but this position came up and I decided to go for it.

"There are obviously mixed emotions, as this is such a great place to work and I am so proud of everything we have achieved here."

Mr Cook continued: “It is the right time to go. Sometimes, you know you have done as much as you can and it is time for someone else to come in with a fresh pair of eyes and that is what will happen when Kate Grantham takes over in September."

Ms Grantham is currently deputy head at Holton Le Clay and has visited the school on a number of occasions to start to get to know the pupils and staff.

Mr Cook added: “It is an exciting time for the school; there are some new governors starting, as some have come to end of term of office, as well as a new head and other staff.

"The kids have been aware of me leaving for a while and have been really supportive. I am proud of them and everything we have achieved here over the past five years.”

One of the things Mr Cook wanted to build on was the ‘extras’ the pupils could experience.

The school now has 12 clubs on offer and has regular trips and extra activities.

He said: “Every couple of weeks there is something extra going on, alongside the regular clubs – and all are free.

"Some of the clubs are done on goodwill, while others are bought in.

"We use the local tennis courts once a week, have a football club and also go swimming at Brigg, but it isn’t all about sport, there are gardening and other clubs too.

"This year we have added a drama club and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) club to the list.

"Seventy per cent of our children do at least one club and we know they are really grateful – you can just tell when you talk to them.

"It is a credit to the staff for organising things – and they are always looking to find the next opportunity for the kids."

Mr Cook also praised the school’s parents’ association and the ‘go ahead’ attitude of the governing body.

He said: “The PTA is amazing; it is always about experiences for the kids and when I have gone to the governors with an idea, their response has always been ‘right, how can we do this’ rather than looking at why something can’t be done. It has been a real pleasure working with them.”

Mr Cook said his proudest achievement has been attendance levels, which are above the national average at 97.3 per cent and persistent absence is at 0 per cent.

He said: “There is no secret to it – the kids just want to come to school and parents want to send them.

"For my first headship, this has been an absolute dream and I know there will be more exciting things to come.”