Thank you to everyone who entered the KS1 and KS2 colouring competition.  Mrs Bromwich and our Ju Jitsu coach had the very tricky job of deciding on the winners.  We were able to raise £42.50 for the NSPCC in support of the Childhood Day.

Dear Parents and Carers,

It has been fantastic to have parents in school watching class assemblies.  It is wonderful to see the children sing, perform, and narrate their own learning to their parents.  This week, Year 6 have been away on their residential and it was a privilege to go and visit after school on Wednesday to see and hear everyone talk about the fun they have been having and what activities they have enjoyed.  A BIG thank you to Mr Chiverton, Mrs Duncan and Mrs Wills for going above and beyond to make sure the children had a fabulous time.

After the final interviews this week, I am now in a position to inform you that we say goodbye to Mr Chiverton, Mrs Willoughby and Miss Shadbolt.  I would like to thank them for their hard work and dedication to St Mary’s during their time with us. We welcome new members of staff to the team at St Mary’s and it will be fantastic on Tuesday when you meet your child’s new class teacher. On that note, I can confirm that the open evening is until 5.30pm.

You may be aware from the news that every child in a state funded primary school would receive a ‘Platinum Jubilee celebration book’.  I can confirm that the books have now arrived in school and will be given out by the end of next week.  The books are wonderful and tell a story of a young girl, Isabella, visiting her Great Granny Joyce who tells her about The Queen and this year’s Jubilee.

I do understand that occasionally sets of traffic lights pop up overnight or refuse collection and/or tractors can cause some delays, but persistent late arrivals do cause us problems at school. It can cause embarrassment for the children in front of their peers, mean instructions need to be repeated and delay lessons and interventions. Punctuality is an essential life skill that needs to be taught from the very beginning.

You can see below how the minutes you are late can add up to days lost which ultimately has an impact on your child’s education.  So, arriving at gone 9am really can’t continue. Currently, all children need to be in school by 8.50am.

As you know, every child needs to attend 190 days during any school year.  The latest guidance from the government states that all state-funded mainstream schools will be expected to provide a compulsory week of at least 32.5 hours by September 2023.

Currently, St Mary’s is below this and will need to increase its compulsory hours in school.  To give you advance warning, a parent consultation will take place in September to increase the hours of the school day with the timeline to switch to the new start and finish times from January 2023.

Have a lovely weekend

Mrs North

The books are fabulous and will be given out to all the children next week.

Dear Parents and Carers,

This week has been ‘National School Sports Week’ which has seen St Mary’s return to a ‘normal’ sports day for the children and fun events for the parents.  On Friday, we took part in the ‘Big Breaktime’ where children rotated challenges and games on the playground.  We definitely captured the enjoyment, competition and camaraderie that has been missing as a result of the school closures and social distancing.

A BIG thank you must go to the staff especially Mr Walker, Mr Creber and Mrs Bromwich for organising the events.  The children were fabulous showing great sportsmanship and collaboration in their houses and it was great to see so many parents taking part in the obstacle and sprint events too.

It is with great pleasure to announce ‘Thunberg’ as the winning house of sports day.  As you can see from the picture below, the house captains are very proud to represent their house and for the trophy to have green ribbons on.

On Friday, your child will have come home with a leaflet explaining more about the transition day that will be taking place very soon.  Together in partnership, we can ensure a happy, positive and enjoyable transition for your child.

At St Mary’s, we value a home school partnership that continues to develop the full potential of every child. As part of this partnership, we would like to hear your views of the school. We will then endeavour to use the information collected to make further improvements and developments to the school.  Please use the link sent via email to fill out the questionnaire.

Have a lovely weekend.

Mrs North