Gordano School welcomed school leaders from across the South West to see how its fully phone-free approach is improving focus, behaviour and wellbeing across the school day.

Guests observed the school’s morning arrival and pouching process, before hearing from staff and pupils about how their approach is working in practice. The event comes as new government guidance states that schools should operate as phone-free environments throughout the whole school day, with many schools now reviewing how to implement policies that meet both government and Ofsted expectations.

Since June 2025 Gordano School has used Yondr pouches to create a consistent, whole-school approach to phone-free learning. Pupils keep their phones with them, secured in a pouch, which is locked on arrival and unlocked at the end of the school day. This allows the school to remove access to phones during the day without requiring pupils to hand in their devices.

Staff say the pouches have made the school’s phone-free policy easier to manage consistently, reducing the need for teachers to check phone use and giving them more time to focus on teaching, learning and pastoral support. Pupils described being more engaged in lessons and having better face-to-face interactions with classmates and teachers. Parents have also reported positive changes at home, including fewer conflicts over phone use.

The event was covered by ITV News, highlighting the growing national conversation around phone-free schools and showcasing how Gordano School’s approach is delivering positive outcomes for pupils, staff and families. As more schools consider how to implement the latest government guidance, the event provided an opportunity to see a practical, proven model in action and hear directly from those experiencing its benefits every day.

Link to the ITV News coverage:
https://www.itv.com/watch/news/theres-nothing-to-distract-you-students-reflect-on-12-months-of-going-phone-free-at-school/6ddqs84

Louise Blundell, Headteacher at Gordano School, said: “Going fully phone-free has had a real impact on daily life at Gordano School. We have seen pupils more focused in lessons, more present with one another, and better able to engage with school life throughout the day. It has also been encouraging to hear from parents that the benefits are being felt at home too. Today has been a valuable opportunity to share what we have learned with other schools across the South West as they consider the best approach for their own communities.”

Graham Dugoni, CEO and Founder of Yondr, said: “Events like this demonstrate the growing momentum behind phone-free schools in the UK. School leaders are recognising that creating these focused, distraction-free environments helps build a culture where pupils can truly connect with their learning and each other.”

There are some days that perfectly capture the spirit of a school, and this year's Sports Day was certainly one of them.

Despite soaring temperatures, Sports Day 2026 was a fantastic celebration of teamwork, determination, House pride and community spirit. The atmosphere throughout the afternoon was electric, with students enthusiastically competing, cheering each other on and demonstrating the values that make Gordano such a special place to learn.

A huge thank you goes to our outstanding PE team for delivering such a brilliant event, as well as organising all of the activities leading up to Sports Day. Their hard work, planning and enthusiasm ensured the day ran seamlessly and created an experience that students will remember for years to come.

Of course, events like this are only possible because of the collective effort of so many people. Our House teams and tutors inspired incredible House spirit, our Sixth Form team and student leaders organised a fantastic Silly Sports Day, our Site Team worked tirelessly giving behind-the-scenes support, the AV team kept the energy high throughout the day, and many more staff helped officiate events and supervise students, some taking part in the ever-popular staff relay.

One of the highlights was the Sixth Form Silly Sports Day, which brought plenty of laughter and friendly competition. We are also incredibly grateful to Sainsbury's Portishead, whose generous donation of eggs helped make the traditional egg-and-spoon race possible.

The positive impact of the day was reflected in the wonderful feedback we received from one of our parents:

I just wanted to pass on my thanks to the team behind Sports Day. Both of my daughters (y8 and y10) thoroughly enjoyed the events this week and loved the atmosphere and team spirit behind it all.

My Year 10 daughter obsesses over sports day all year as it is her favourite day of the year and she has loved  the opportunity to be involved over the past four years.

My Year 8 daughter experienced her first sports day in this format as it was without spectators last year and she came home enthused and motivated by the day. 

I imagine there is a lot of planning that goes into it, especially when there is a heatwave thrown into the mix too, so I just wanted to pass on my thanks for this.

There were also some outstanding sporting achievements. Congratulations to 7B2, whose Year 7 Girls' Relay team set a new school record of 60.08 seconds, breaking a record that had stood since 1988, an incredible accomplishment and a moment of Gordano sporting history.

Congratulations, too, to Portland House, who were crowned this year's Sports Day champions after a fantastic display of commitment and teamwork throughout the competition.

Whether students were competing on the track, supporting from the sidelines, leading events, volunteering behind the scenes or simply encouraging their friends, every contribution helped make the day such a success.

Sports Day reminds us that success isn't measured solely by winning races or breaking records. It's found in the encouragement offered to teammates, the confidence to take part, the resilience to keep going, the leadership shown by our students and the sense of belonging that comes from being part of our school community.

Thank you to everyone who played a part in making Sports Day 2026 such a memorable celebration of everything that makes Gordano special.

Year 7 students from Gordano School became detectives as they took part in the annual Maths Whodunnit House Competition. The legendary Golden Calculator had been "stolen" from the Maths department, and students had to work out which member of the Maths faculty had committed the crime! 

Our Year 9 students have been getting creative with one of the home learning tasks this week, using photography to capture what the heatwave and time away from school looked like through their eyes.

As you may be aware, the Met Office has issued a red weather warning for extreme heat, which is in place for Wednesday and Thursday this week.