Mr Hickey and Mr Mulhern were not the only teachers to leave this summer. We were sorry to also say goodbye to other colleagues on our last day too.

Dr Jo Bentham joined the school in 2016, having previously been a Business Analyst, then a teacher in Stafford. Her children, Jacob and David were already part of the school so she has experienced the school from both viewpoints.

Dr Bentham reflects “It has been a privilege and a pleasure to teach so many engaged and enthusiastic students. I have loved being the link teacher for Enterprise. I have fantastic memories of Young Enterprise groups in cold shopping centres in January and February selling their products. Taking teams of Year 9 students to the National Enterprise Challenge, and one of our team members winning the ‘Most enterprising student’ award made me very proud and so aware of the creativity and commitment of our young people.  In recent years, the teams that I have taken to the Haberdashers’ Academy Awards have impressed and inspired me.

I have also enjoyed being part of a dream department team and a fantastic team of tutors in Talbot House. My fondest memories will include many of the house events and particularly House Music - my favourite.

Retirement is an interesting concept!  I am retiring from day to day teaching in school, but I will be continuing with other interests.  These include being a trustee for the Economics, Business and Enterprise Association (EBEA) and also managing the ‘Making a Difference’ market stall in Newport Indoor Market.  However, I am looking forward to playing more golf, becoming a member of Warwickshire County Cricket, and spending more time with family."

Kirstie Evans has been a teacher at Adams for 11 years, primarily teaching Biology, although dabbling in Chemistry too. She also served as the Head of Careers and the Duke of Edinburgh Manager.

On considering her time here, Kirstie “Perhaps most rewarding has been the Sixth Formers I have had the pleasure to tutor. It is such an important (and often very challenging) transitional time."

"What I particularly love about Adams is the way in which every aspect of academic, super-curricular and extra-curricular life is intertwined and the majority of teachers have a variety of different roles, interests and areas of expertise. However, when you are that way inclined, it’s very hard to say no and you can end up taking on far too much!"

Now that her son has moved away for university, Kirstie is taking some time out to consider a career transition and do some travelling.

Tesni Allday and Marie Fowler have retired after working as boarding matrons for 12 and 24 years respectively.

Mr Hickey's wife, Rhi Hickey is joining Gary in partial retirement. She has worked with the school with girl's games and Outreach since 2013.

We wish them all the best for the future.