Les Varendes’ two-year transition nearing an end

Verona Tomlin has been head of the school since 2023 and has overseen nearly two years of having one school operating across two sites – the former Grammar School and La Mare de Carteret.

But that will all change come September, as all students converge on the St Andrew’s site.

‘We’ve tried to make sure that we bring students together as much as possible, so that that transition doesn’t just happen in September 2025,’ Mrs Tomlin said.

She was excited that the transition was coming to a conclusion, she said.

‘This is the first time that I feel like we’re almost at the end of the uncertainty.’

Mrs Tomlin was previously a teacher and then principal at La Mare, and when she took over at Les Varendes, the then-head of the Grammar School and Sixth Form Centre, Kieran James, took on the sixth-form principal role.

Since taking on the principal’s role, Mrs Tomlin has been overseeing one school on two sites, making weekly visits to La Mare while students and teachers from there regularly attending Les Varendes.

For example, there was recently a moderation day for PE students and teachers and both groups from La Mare came to Les Varendes as a means of teachers cross-checking their marking with their counterparts.

Students from both schools have attended classes with those who they will be sharing classes with next year, she said.

There have also been tours of the school for students from La Mare with additional learning needs, meeting their head of year and spending the afternoon with the special education needs coordinator.

Some students will remain at La Mare and enter the relocated sixth form, but the work that is going on is aimed at all of those on the site.

‘We need to make sure that the final year of that school, especially for the Year 11 who won’t be transitioning here, is the best year that it can be for them,’ said Mrs Tomlin.

She herself has made some changes, moving the principal’s office from its previous location at the front of the school into an office off a hallway that is often a busy thoroughfare.

‘People can just walk past, and children just pop in,’ she said.

‘On the other side of my office is the quad area, so I can see both sides.

'I am at the heart of the school, which I think is important. I’m not a figurehead. I am an integral part of being here as a school.’

One of the most significant changes for the students was the uniform, which was brought in at the start of this academic year.

With the ending of the Grammar and La Mare as separate schools, a new uniform was designed for Les Varendes.

Kobi Nagy, 16, was one of those involved in coming up with the design and is now one of the school’s Junior Leadership Team.

While both he and fellow team member Ben Tooley, also 16, said they liked the new uniform, not everyone was happy, said Ben.

Other than that, he said the only changes had been relatively minor.

‘Things like changing the name and the signs outside.’

Both of them will be joining the sixth form when it moves to the La Mare site in September.

‘I’m looking forward to it,’ said Kobi.

While Kobi has his sights set on becoming a teacher, Ben said his goal was to be a doctor.