Headteacher's News

All the most recent news from Edith

Tuesday 16th December 2025

Dear parents and carers of Stepney Park Primary School.

You may have noticed that I have not written to you for a few weeks; I have realised the reason for this is that I have been putting it off…

This is because the time has come for me to finally say goodbye to you and the rest of our school community, and it has been really hard to find the right words. But time is marching on; soon it will be the end of the week, the end of the term and the start of a new phase of my life: (semi) retirement.

This big imminent change in my life got me thinking about all the ways we can use to prepare for and handle change. I’ve been talking to the children in assemblies about this, giving them strategies to manage big things like getting a new baby brother or sister, adjusting to a new teacher, starting a new school or coping when a friend moves away.

The three things they learnt were:

• Press the ‘worry button’.

• Use the ‘talk it out torch’.

• Use the ‘small steps map’.

You may want to ask them about what these things mean; I think the children (and I) found it useful!

For me, the semi-retirement plans will mean that I will take a big step back and will leave school after 14 years at Smithy Street and 5 years at Stepney Park. Having worked in and with the Tower Hamlets community since 1990 has been a great joy. The support and trust you as parents have given to both schools and to me personally, through the good times and the difficult ones, has been tremendous. It is something I will never forget; thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Thank you also for your contributions to the gift I was presented with on behalf of the parents of Stepney Park yesterday. I loved the beautiful flowers and really appreciated the very generous gift card. 

Working with our amazing and dedicated staff has been an absolute privilege. They show up day in day out, doing their best for the real ‘stars’ of our school: our amazing children. 

My heartfelt thanks to them all; I will miss them!

A very special ‘thank you’ needs to go to the 5 deputy heads who have worked side by side alongside me in the last 19 years; Annika, Charlotte, Jim, Geri and Richard have all been an immense support during times of challenge. I couldn’t be more pleased that I will be able to hand over the headship to the very talented Richard, who will become the new Stepney Park headteacher from January 2026. I wish him all the success he and the school deserve and I know he will go on to lead the school from strength to strength - the future is bright for the Stepney Park primary school community! 

On a personal note: my semi-retirement plans include leadership coaching, safeguarding supervision, travel and pottery. So, although I’ll be sad to leave Stepney Park, I am also really looking forward to starting the next chapter of my life. I will leave with a strong sense of satisfaction and pride in what we have achieved together and with a lifetime of fond memories; I am full of gratitude that I was given the trust and opportunity by our supportive governors to lead both Smithy Street and Stepney Park – it has been really special!

I hope to see many of you by the school gates at the end of the day between today and Friday so that I can say goodbye to you personally.

I would like to wish you all a restful and enjoyable Christmas break, which will start on Friday, December 19th at 1 pm. The school is looking forward to welcoming the children back on Monday, January 5th 2026 at 8.50 am.

I will finish by saying (in my native language Dutch) ‘Tot ziens’. This means: until we see each other again.

Kind regards,

Edith Philipsen

Headteacher – Stepney Park Primary School