A Word from the Head Teacher of Stepping Stones

by Melissa Grigsby

Undershaw, September 9, 2016

Grand Opening of the Stepping Stones School

(Photograph courtesy of Roger Johnson)

As Stepping Stones School sails into its third year at Undershaw, we reflect on the unfinished and unknown tales that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle never drew to a close or was unable to complete.

One such story was that of “The Giant Rat of Sumatra”, a story that distorted one’s imagination beyond the concepts of the days he sat to unfold and write his stories. Within his writings, Doyle has Sherlock Holmes declare, as an aside, to Dr. Watson:

“Matilda Briggs was not the name of a young woman, Watson... It was a ship which is associated with the giant rat of Sumatra, a story for which the world is not yet prepared.”

The young people that have their educational journey hosted under the roof of Undershaw can at times be seen and labelled as the unknown, special, and - in our eyes - gifted with exotic rareness. People from the outside can be scared and unsure as they perceive that these young people do not fit the social norms of society. However, within the walls of Undershaw and under Doyle’s watch, and with his wishes in mind, these young people participate in layered therapeutic interventions and differentiated education with the same outcomes as many young people of their age.

Like Matilda Briggs, they are the vessels of social mobility and changed mindset, preparing the world for the day that they dock and take their place in society.

Thank you for all your support and companionship on this voyage with the young people of Stepping Stones School.

Melissa Grigsby

Executive Head Teacher, Stepping Stones, Undershaw

July, 2018