Last year it was Minecraft (the less said about the lava chicken, the better).

This year? Pokemon.

One of our team (ahem) took it very seriously (full Ash Ketchum costume, gloves, the lot).

The rest spent the morning chasing Ripley – our resident blue monster – around every corner of Seale Hayne.

Ripley, for the record, spent most of the time playing the piano, hanging out in trees and peering around doors. Absolutely no intention of being caught.

We struck poses, synchronised dancing broke out, and we laughed until it hurt.

Because the people who work with some of the most complex, amazing, brilliant, exhausting, rewarding young people in education deserve a moment to be completely, unapologetically silly!

This is our team. We’re incredibly proud of every single one of them.

Our students, families and staff swapped hoodies for tuxedos, dresses and dancing shoes as we celebrated another incredible year together. Seeing our young people walk into the room with confidence, pride and huge smiles is something that never gets old.

The evening was all about recognising progress, resilience, courage and achievement. We celebrated academic success, personal development, attendance, kindness and those moments of growth that often mean more than any test result ever could.

We also presented our Summer Star awards and Principal’s Awards, recognising students who have gone above and beyond this year and truly embody what Phoenix Bay is all about.

This year was particularly special as we introduced the very first Jayne Banks Award. Named after my mum, who has been part of Phoenix Bay’s journey since day one, this award recognises a student who has demonstrated exceptional resilience, determination and personal growth. It was a proud and emotional moment to see this award presented for the first time.

Of course, no Phoenix Bay event would be complete without a little fun. This year’s theme saw our staff transformed into Pokémon cards, with students collecting them throughout the evening. I’ve never seen so many adults quite so competitive trying to catch ’em all!

As I looked around the room, I was reminded once again that Phoenix Bay is about so much more than education. It’s about relationships, belonging, believing in young people and celebrating every step of their journey.

Thank you to our incredible students, families and staff for making this such a memorable evening.

Another year complete, another year of growth.
Another year proving that Phoenix Bay is truly more than just a school.

Mad Hatters Tea Party at Phoenix Bay. And our students had been building towards it all week.

Decorations made by hand. Cakes, scones and biscuits baked from scratch. The whole space transformed with Alice in Wonderland posters and fabric – students walking into something they’d genuinely helped create.

Then the afternoon kicked off:

A rabbit hunt – pictures hidden all around school, each carrying a letter to decode at the end

Riddles, jokes and group games over lovely food

Get the rabbit’s clock out of the jelly. Without your hands!

Eat the donut hung from string. Also without your hands!

There were costumes. There was chaos (in the best way), there was a lot of laughter.

Not because of the tea party itself, but because of what it quietly asks of students – creativity, teamwork, problem-solving, and the kind of silliness that brings people together. The kind of joy that’s hard to manufacture but impossible to miss when it’s there.

The jelly challenge alone was worth it.

Really proud of every student who helped make it happen – and of every student who just turned up and gave it everything.

Brilliant afternoon.

Pounds House is coming back to life, and we couldn’t be more excited.
This stunning Georgian building in the heart of the city has sat empty for fifteen years. And this September, we’re hoping to open it as a school for young people with SEND who need somewhere local, beautiful, and built around them.

The need is real and it’s urgent. Right now, around 100 young people are on our waiting list with no places. Around 80% of the students we support at Seale Hayne travel from Plymouth – journeys that are simply too much for many of them.

Bringing Phoenix Bay School to Plymouth means those young people get to learn somewhere closer to home, in one of the most remarkable settings we’ve ever seen.

We’d just love to add a little context on the parking concerns raised in the piece.
Pounds House could currently be converted into offices, a day centre, a restaurant, or a gym without any planning permission – all of which would bring far more traffic than a school of up to 40 children, many of whom arrive by taxi. We have more than sufficient parking allocated and are fully committed to being good neighbours in Peverell.

We welcome the planning committee process and genuinely look forward to working with the local community.

Because for young people who’ve struggled in mainstream settings, the chance to learn in a building like this is something really special. It’s been a long time coming.

We can’t wait.

And they absolutely deserved it.

What struck us most wasn’t the laser battles (though those were very much taken seriously). It was watching young people who don’t always get to experience this kind of thing – earning it, planning for it, and then fully throwing themselves into it together. Staff included, nobody was spectating.

Days like this matter.

Not because laser tag is the point, but because of what surrounds it. The build-up. The motivation. The moment a student realises they’ve worked towards something and got there. The shared laugh when someone’s “tactical retreat” turns out to be just running away very fast.

Because for some of our young people, school hasn’t always felt like a place where good things happen. Trips like this are part of changing that story – one earned reward at a time.

Huge well done to the students and staff who made it happen.

Pounds House in Central Park in Plymouth.

For those who don’t know the building – it’s a Grade II listed Victorian villa that’s been sitting empty for years, right in the heart of the city. And with planning permission now secured, it’s going to become ‘Phoenix Bay Park’ – a specialist SEND school for up to 40 young people across primary and secondary age.

I grew up in Plymouth, I’ve walked past Pounds House my whole life. The idea that a whole new generation of young people – young people who’ve often had a really difficult time in education – will be building their own memories in that building is something I find genuinely hard to put into words.

Because that’s what we’re really about. Not just giving young people a school. Giving them a place. A place that says you belong here, and your education isn’t over just because mainstream hasn’t worked.

We’re trauma-informed to our core. Small classes. High staff ratios. Bespoke pathways – whether that’s barbering, carpentry, digital media, or something else entirely. We meet young people where they are.

We did it in Newton Abbot. We’re ready to do it in Plymouth.

Thank you to Janet King and The Plymouth Herald for telling our story.

And to everyone who’s been part of making Pounds House what it’s becoming.

This is happening and September can’t come soon enough!

We went in with a Roald Dahl theme… and then, as always, a few staff went rogue with their costumes. Which honestly just added to the fun. Staff and students fully committed, and the whole site felt lighter because of it.

The day wasn’t just dressing up either.

We built it around activities that make reading feel active, social and achievable:

Bookmark making – students designed and created their own bookmarks (small bit of creativity, big sense of ownership).

Extreme Reading – students took photos of themselves reading in imaginative (and safe!) places and positions. We’re voting on the best ones during Golden Time.

A story-themed treasure hunt – clues hidden around the site to encourage teamwork, problem-solving and that “just one more clue” momentum.

Days like this matter.

Not because of the costumes (although they help), but because they create shared moments, strengthen relationships, and remind students that reading isn’t just a task – it’s something you can enjoy, belong to, and feel proud of.

What’s the best World Book Day costume you’ve seen this year?