UPDATE FOR PARENTS AND CARERS OF ALL YEAR GROUPS - 16/1/26

Dear Parents and Carers,

I am writing to update you following the recent temporary closure of Higham Lane School and the subsequent rolling return of students by year group, after the serious cyber attack we experienced.

First and foremost, I would like to sincerely apologise for the disruption this has caused to the education of our students and to family life.  Due to the severity of the cyber-attack, we had no choice but to close the school on safety grounds in line with the advice from the cyber experts from the Department for Education and the police.  We lost access to key infrastructure that is essential for the safe operation of the school, including the electronic gates used to secure the site, the fire alarm system that ensures safe evacuation in the event of an emergency, and our systems for taking registers to confirm students had arrived safely and were in the correct locations throughout the school day.

I would like to thank our parents, carers, students and staff for your patience, understanding, and support during what has been an extremely challenging time for our entire school community.

Over the past two weeks, the school has worked tirelessly to restore operations and ensure that it is safe for all students to return as soon as possible.  Many staff have worked exceptionally long days, including evenings and weekends, to get us to this point.  This has included effectively rebuilding our entire IT infrastructure from scratch, which in a school of our size is a truly mammoth task.

Communication during this period has been particularly difficult.  We have been without school phones, internet and electronic devices, and many staff have been relying on their personal mobile phones and personal data simply to keep functioning.  As Headteacher, I would like to say a heartfelt thank you to our amazing staff, especially our IT staff, and the staff who have supported us across the Multi Academy Trust CEAT, who have gone truly above and beyond to get our school back on track.

I continue to attend regular meetings with the Department for Education, the police and external cyber security experts. They have all been extremely impressed with how quickly Higham Lane School has recovered, particularly given the scale and severity of the cyber attack.

I am delighted to announce that we are now in a position for all students, from Year 7 through to Year 13, to return to full-time education from Monday 19 January.  School will operate as normal, starting at 8:40 am and finishing at 3:15 pm, and students will follow their full, normal timetables.  Students return on a week B timetable.

Lessons may look different to what students are used to, as staff still have very limited access to IT systems and electronic resources.  Many teachers will need to adapt how they deliver lessons, but as ever, our staff will rise to the challenge and provide the very best education they can under these challenging circumstances.

Year 11 trial examinations have gone extremely well.  Next week, all year groups, including Year 11, will return to normal lessons.  The Year 11 trial examinations will continue, and when students are not in an exam, they will be expected to be in school and attend lessons as normal.

I would like to remind parents, carers and students that while we have taken a flexible and supportive approach during this period of disruption, our normal high expectations will resume from Monday.  This includes correct school uniform, punctuality, having the correct equipment and our extremely high standards of behaviour.  Please ensure that your child is in school and on time on Monday morning, is dressed correctly in line with school uniform expectations, and has all the correct equipment for the day.  The canteen is expected to be fully operational on Monday albeit with a reduced menu.  It is possible that it may be a little bit slower than normal so students may choose to bring a packed lunch, but a break and lunch service will be provided. Meals for students who are entitled to free school meals will be available.

We are aware that the disruption to education and to routines will have been very difficult for many students, especially students with SEND, and students who need that little bit of extra support.  Please be reassured that our SEND team, pastoral leaders, our safeguarding team, school counsellor, learning mentor and behaviour support staff will all be on hand to support students reintegrate back to normal school life.

Please note that we still do not have working landline telephones.  For general enquiries, we kindly ask that you keep contact to an absolute minimum.  We currently have only one mobile phone for the main school (Y7-11) and one for the sixth form (Y12 and 13):

Main School: 07308 508637
Sixth Form: 07475 409929

Please only use these numbers if absolutely necessary, such as to report a student absence or in the case of an emergency.

I also apologise to any parents or carers who have already contacted the school and are awaiting a response.  Our response times will be significantly slower than usual, as many staff are still working without devices or internet access.  Even as Headteacher, I have written this letter, along with all other letters over the last two weeks, on a personal mobile phone using my own data connection in order to maintain communication during this period.  I would kindly ask for your continued flexibility and understanding if staff take longer than normal to respond and please only contact the school if you absolutely need to.

All three gates will be open on Monday morning, and we very much look forward to welcoming our entire school community back at the normal time of 8:40 am.

I wish you and your family a wonderful weekend, and thank you once again for your continued and unwavering support.

Yours faithfully, 

Michael Gannon
Headteacher
Higham Lane School

 

UPDATE FOR PARENTS AND CARERS OF ALL YEAR GROUPS - 15/1/26

 

Thank you to all year 7 and 10 students for a really positive return to Higham Lane School today. All students showed fantastic attitude and effort throughout the day, and we are looking forward to welcoming year 8 and 9 students back tomorrow.

Please read reminders below about arrangements for students for tomorrow:

Arrangements for Friday 16 January 

Years 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13 students are to attend Higham Lane School but please read below for specific timings and instructions:

Year 11 students will continue to only attend their trial exams, these are AM- Religious Studies (meet 8:45am) and PM- Geography (meet 1:00pm). Students to access school site via Shanklin Drive entrance. 

Year 10 students are to attend Higham Lane School. Students to access school site via Higham Lane entrance at 9:00am and will finish at 3:15pm. They will be attending their normal lessons. Year 10 students must bring their own packed lunches.

Year 9 students are to attend Higham Lane School. Students to access school site via Higham Lane entrance at 9:15am and will finish at 11:15am.

Year 8 students are to attend Higham Lane School. Students to access school site via Higham Lane entrance at 1:15pm and will finish at 3:15pm. 

Year 7 students are working from home.

All students in school must wear normal school uniform and bring pencil case and equipment.

Thank you to all parents/carers and students for their patience and co-operation whilst we managed this difficult situation. We are planning a full return to school for all year groups from Monday and further information will be sent to parents/carers shortly.

Kind regards

Higham Lane School

 

UPDATE FOR PARENTS AND CARERS OF ALL YEAR GROUPS - 14/1/26

A massive thank you and well done to our students for their hard work and excellent conduct whilst at HLNA and to our year 11 students for their positive and mature approach to their trial exams. 

Please read reminders below about arrangements for students for tomorrow:

Arrangements for Thursday 15 January

Years 7, 10, 11, 12 and 13 students are to attend Higham Lane School but please read below for specific timings and instructions.

Year 11 students will continue to only attend their trial exams, these are AM- Biology (meet 8:45am) and PM- GCSE PE (meet-1:00pm). Students to access school site via Shanklin Drive entrance. 

Years 10 students are to attend Higham Lane School. Students to access school site via Higham Lane entrance at 9:00am and will finish at 3:15pm. They will be attending their normal lessons. Year 10 students must bring their own packed lunches.

Year 7 students are to attend Higham Lane School. Students to access school site via Higham Lane entrance at 1:15pm and will finish at 3:15pm. 

Year 8 and 9 students are working from home.

All students in school must wear normal school uniform and bring their pencil case and equipment.

Please check emails for further information.

Kind regards

Higham Lane School

UPDATE FOR PARENTS AND CARERS OF ALL YEAR GROUPS - 13/1/26

Thank you to all our families for your support and patience whilst we deal with this difficult situation.  

Please read reminders below about arrangements for students for tomorrow:

Arrangements for Wednesday 14 January 

Year 9 students only are to attend Higham Lane North Academy (HLNA), Upper Farm Drive, CV11 6YN.

Arrival time 9:15am and Departure time- 2:10pm

Students are required to wear normal school uniform, bring pencil case and packed lunch. If possible, please drop off students away from the school entrance to reduce traffic near HLNA.

Years 11, 12 and 13 students only are to attend Higham Lane School. Students to access school site via Shanklin Drive entrance. 

Year 11- Please be aware that your child is only required on school site if they have a trial exam, the Wednesday morning trial exam is French Higher Paper students only. Business Vocational trial exam has been postponed therefore there will be no trial exams on Wednesday afternoon. 

Years 7, 8 and 10 students are working at home on Wednesday 14 January.

Please check your emails for further information on individual year group arrangements.

Kind regards

Higham Lane School

 

UPDATE FOR PARENTS AND CARERS OF YEAR 10 STUDENTS - 12/1/26

Dear Parents and Carers of Year 10 Students,

I am writing to provide you with an important update regarding our plans for Year 10 students returning to face-to-face learning at Higham Lane School following the recent severe cyber attack.

Firstly, I would like to thank you sincerely for your continued support, patience and understanding while students have been unable to attend school for face-to-face learning and have instead been engaged in home learning. We fully appreciate the disruption and challenges this situation has caused for students and families. Please be assured that the decision to keep students away from school was not taken lightly.

Following advice from cyber security experts at the Department for Education and specialist cyber teams from the police, we had to take this course of action to ensure the safety of both students and staff. Unfortunately, the cyber attack did not only compromise our IT systems and result in the removal of data, but it also deactivated several crucial systems; these included our electronic gates, fire alarm system and our ability to take electronic registers — all of which are essential to maintaining a safe school environment.

I am delighted to confirm that we will be welcoming Year 10 students back to Higham Lane School on Thursday and Friday this week. We will carefully review how these two days go and, if all proceeds well, Year 10 students will continue to attend school full-time from that point onwards.

Arrangements for Thursday and Friday:

• Students should arrive at Higham Lane Gate only, at 9:00am.

• Students will be registered in the gymnasium.

• They will then follow their normal school timetable, although all lessons will be re-roomed to teaching rooms within the Science Block.

• Please note that staff and students will still not have access to IT equipment, so lessons may look a little different to normal. However, we are very much looking forward to welcoming our Year 10 students back to face-to-face learning.

Students must attend in full school uniform, and bring a school bag and all normal school equipment.

Please be aware that there will be no canteen facilities available at this time. Students should therefore bring a packed lunch and a drink. Students who are eligible for free school meals will be provided with a packed lunch by our catering company.

I would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused by this situation. The cyber attack was extremely serious and entirely beyond our control. Staff at Higham Lane School, alongside colleagues from other schools within our Multi Academy Trust, have worked tirelessly over the past week to ensure the school can once again operate safely.

Thank you once again for your support and understanding during this difficult period. We very much look forward to seeing our Year 10 students on Thursday morning at 9:00am at Higham Lane Gate.

Yours faithfully,

Michael Gannon
Headteacher
Higham Lane School

UPDATE FOR YEAR 11 PARENTS AND CARERS - 9/1/26

Dear Parents and Carers of Year 11 students,

I am writing to inform you that, due to the adverse weather conditions following the recent snowfall and the forecast for further heavy snow in the Nuneaton area, Higham Lane North Academy has made the difficult decision to close today.

As a result, the planned Year 11 lessons that were due to take place today at Higham Lane North Academy will sadly not be able to go ahead. Consequently, Year 11 students, who were due to attend at Higham Lane North Academy today, should continue with home learning for today.

We would like to apologise for any inconvenience this may cause. We were very much looking forward to welcoming our Year 11 students back following the recent cyber attack, and it is extremely disappointing that today’s plans cannot proceed as intended. However, the school is obviously unable to control the weather, and conditions are treacherous at present. We therefore fully support Higham Lane North Academy’s decision to close in the interests of safety.

There is a very small number of Year 11 students who are due to sit a real Cambridge National IT examination later today at Higham Lane School. As this is a formal examination set by the exam board at a national level, it cannot be rescheduled. Therefore, this examination will continue as planned today. These Year 11 students involved are still required to attend Higham Lane School, and a small number of staff who are able to travel safely to the site will be present to facilitate the examination. We will be directly contacting the students involved. We wish these students the very best of luck with their exam today. 

Our current plan is for Higham Lane School to be open on Monday, and for all Year 11 students to sit their trial examinations as scheduled, in line with the published trial exam timetable. We look forward to welcoming our Year 11 students back to Higham Lane School on Monday morning.

Thank you, as always, for your understanding and continued support.

Yours faithfully,

Michael Gannon
Headteacher
Higham Lane School

UPDATE 8/1/26 - PLEASE REFER TO YOUR EMAILS TO FIND INDIVIDUAL YEAR GROUP INFORMATION

Dear Parents and Carers,

I am writing to provide you with an update following the temporary closure of the school this week as a result of the recent cyber attack. I would like to begin by sincerely thanking you for your patience, understanding and support during what I appreciate has been a very challenging and disruptive time for you and your families.
I fully recognise that it is far from ideal for students to be out of school, especially for our GCSE and A Level students. However, the school has had no choice but to close this week in order to ensure the safety of students and staff and to follow expert advice. I would like to clearly explain the reasons for this decision.

Firstly, as a result of losing our electronic systems, we were unable to operate our electronic gates. This meant we could not ensure that the school site was safe and secure.

Secondly, the fire alarm system is controlled by our electronic systems, including the fire doors that must close in the event of a fire to prevent the spread of fire and toxic smoke. Without these systems, we could not guarantee the safety of students and staff in the event of an emergency.

Thirdly, student registers are held electronically. Without access to these systems, we would not be able to accurately confirm who was on site and who was not, and where students need to be and at what time. 
Fourthly, in the event of an emergency, we would have had no access to parental contact details and therefore would have been unable to contact home.

Finally, if students or staff entered the site and switched on electronic devices, this could have further compromised our systems, leading to additional loss or damage to the integrity of our data and infrastructure. Crucially, the advice from the police cyber specialists and the Department for Education cyber security experts was very clear: it was not safe to open the school.

I hope you can appreciate that, given these significant risks, the school had no option but to close and to follow the advice of the Department for Education cyber expert team in order to protect the safety and wellbeing of our students and staff and do all we can to protect our IT infrastructure following the serious cyber attack. As soon as our systems are ready, we will of course bring all of our students and staff back onto the school site without delay.

We would like to thank you for your patience and understanding during this extremely challenging situation.

 

Kind regards,
Michael Gannon
Headteacher
Higham Lane School