A HEADTEACHER who once walked seven miles through the snow to get to school on time tucked into a cake in the shape of his workplace at a retirement bash last week.

BHASVIC principal Chris Thomson, who has been principal of BHASVIC since 1998, stepped down on the last day of school on Friday last week.

The man who oversaw a doubling of the size of the school and its rise to the very top rank of state sixth form colleges said his proudest achievement has been enabling students to outperform expectations.

He told The Argus: “I’m proud of having been part of a community that has developed that sense of common purpose, of every member of the school community knowing what the school is there to do.

“We’ve seen the results for students improving the life chances of students as a result.

“The latest examination data we have is from summer 2015 and it says we’re the second best sixth form college in the country for adding value at A Level.”

The ‘added-value’ measure examines the extent to which 18 year old’s grades are higher than might have been expected based on their performance at 16.

He went on: “I think that is showing us that we’re attracting very able students, and we’re enabling them to do better than they’d be predicted to do based on their GCSEs.”

Mr Thomson said that the “straightforward occasion” last Thursday celebrating his contribution to the school had been “lovely” because the packed room in BHASVIC’s new Copper Building was packed with those who had made a contribution to the school.

A massive intricately-iced cake in the shape of the school was served, and long serving teacher Gordon Cairns toasted Mr Thomson’s achievements and regaled the audience with stories of his dedication - including the time four winters ago when Chris trekked seven miles over the Downs on foot get make sure he was in his school on time for his pupils.

“He looked like a Yeti when he arrived,” said Mr Cairns.

From an intake of just over 1,000 when he joined as Principal 18 years ago, to more than 2,500 now, BHASVIC has changed considerably during Mr Thomson’s tenure.

In additional to an inspiring rise in students’ grades, the years have seen the rebuilding of the sports hall, construction of a new student centre, a new three-storey classroom block and laboratory block being built and the restoration of the bell tower.

Mr Thomson will be succeeded by William Baldwin, currently Assistant Principal at Godalming Sixth Form College.