JFS pupils bewail antimuck up day move

JFS HAS been accused of party-pooping by bringing forward study leave for GSCE students in order to prevent the recurrence of a “muck-up” day.

On muck-up days, students traditionally let their hair down and play pranks.

But Year-11 pupils said they were told on the Friday before last not to come into school the following week as planned except to attend a leavers’ breakfast.

In an email to parents, headteacher Rachel Fink said study leave would start early to ensure students “maximize the time they need to study”.

The vast majority of Year 11s had been focused on their learning, she said.

“Sadly this has not been true of every individual. Therefore an additional reason to start study leave early is in order to avoid students making poor choices regarding how to spend their final few days in school.”

She was trying “to ensure that nobody behaves in such a way that they later come to regret or that may cause damage, either physical or reputational, to the school. This has not been an easy decision to make and I know that it may disappoint some students. ”

But one pupil said his friends were “extremely outraged as we have been looking forward to muck-up day ever since our first day of JFS — and not to mention watching the legendary muck-up day of 2015”.

Four years ago, the entire Year-11 group was sent home by the school after events were said to have got out of hand. Several students were later barred from taking exams on the premises because of their involvement in “loutish and dangerous behaviour”.

Reports emerged of fireworks brought to the school, egg and flour fights in classrooms and school property damaged. The antics of a few students were criticised by some sixthformers.

But the Year-11 pupil this year said that although some had talked of bringing in water balloons and water guns, “we wanted to use the amphitheatre — which we have been banned from since the beginning of Year 10 — one last time and have a relaxing last day before exams. Our plan was not to terrorise the school but to say thank you and goodbye and leave a good legacy of our year behind.”

Another student said some of her peers were “crying” after being told of the school’s decision “They have done this in fear of muck-up day, however there has been no proof of any plans for muck up day besides rumours.”

A third student said: “For most, the last day of school would just have been a chance to say goodbye to friends and teachers... however, now we are being thrown into our exams.”

Our plan was not to terrorise the school’