Newsletter Summer Term 2023
First half
After just returning from Cumbria for the holidays it does seem strange to be talking about summer. It was a little wet up north and made me realise why I abandoned the homeland! However, it is now the summer term which means we are now in the summer uniform. Not much changes for the boys as the hard-core wear shorts all winter however the girls are in summer dresses. The dresses should be dark blue gingham. The juniors can wear play suits in navy gingham as well. The reason we don’t have infants in play suits, is that they get trapped in them and struggle to go to the toilet.
The children should still be in black school shoes- not trainers, boots, or trainer shoes. Just black shoes. Coats should have no logos and be plain black or blue. It is lovely that the children have got designer clothes, but these are not appropriate – despite the cost of them - unless they are plain black or blue with no logos on. Please also note that the school does not allow dry robes as school coats- even plain black ones. We pride ourselves on how well behaved and smart the children are and when you chose the school you signed up to support this.
Parking
I would say that you know who you are- however it is clear that you either don’t or are so arrogant that you really think you can just do what you want.
The parking is always going to be lively however there are certain things that any sensible person can see would be dangerous. Here is a rundown of the most dangerous people.
- Do not drop off on the zig zags. There are subcategories of stupidity even with this. The entry level is to stop on the zig zags so that other children cannot see if cars are coming. Then there is phase two. Stop on the zig zags, let your child out to cross in front of your car so the traffic behind thinks you are parked, overtakes and then very, very nearly hits your child. Stage three is even worse. Just stop in the middle of the road, let your child out and then drive off hoping that your child can avoid the overtaking cars.
- Park in the entrance to the church car park because you do not want to walk from the back even when there is space. The subcategory of this is just park on the road outside the entrance so no one can see to cross the road.
- Park on the double yellow lines- this means cars have nowhere to pull into and this causes absolute chaos around the school and some very angry motorists.
We would rather that your child is a bit late and safe so please think about your parking. Think if any of these apply to you and stop doing it. I do not want to be writing to you to inform you that we have lost a child at school because someone was in a rush.
Hair
The children’s hair should be tied back if it is past the ears or a fringe that gets in the children’s eyes.
Please can you make sure that no hair products are used- that is gel, wax and hair spray.
Pool
The pool is moving at a great rate of knots with the groundwork outside completed- it looks fantastic.
The inside work is also progressing - the entire pool has been re tiled, re floored and new showers fitted. Blue Print Properties are picking up the entire- and very considerable bill for this! We are looking at a September start to swimming, all being well.
Hall
The new hall extension is now finished apart from the final finish to the floor. This takes 75 days to dry before we can add the new surface, so should be done next week. This room will be used for group work, visitors who do presentations to the children, dinners and also some small PE sessions. Breakfast club and the after-school club will also operate from here.
After School Club.
I am really pleased to announce that we will be running an after-school club. The idea is that it will start after half term, however this is dependent on recruitment of staff. The very latest would be September. The club will be on site and run from straight after school until 6:30pm. The pricing will be £16.00 for a full session with a reduced rate for a 5pm pick up. I will give you exact details in a couple of weeks.
Funding
It is getting tighter and tighter each year. In real terms there is more money in schools. We got about £100,000 more this year. However, with inflation, energy cost and staffing the cost of running the school was actually £250,000 more than the year before. We are lucky and are in a better position than most. This is due to great staff and very good planning and management of funds. However, it is also down to the fantastic support you all give the School Association. Without the income from all their hard work, then we would be really struggling.
Stubbers (Juniors)
We are again having a day to do our outdoor and adventurous activities at Stubbers. This is a fantastic fun day where the children challenge themselves, get very wet and make memories. The only downside is the cost. This is unfortunately the only place we can use that does not involve a bus- and extra costs. We are always mindful of keeping costs to a minimum, if it helps you can pay for this in instalments.
On the website is a rough outline of the trips and their coats for each year group.
York (Y6)
This year we are packing York into 3 nights instead of 4. The children will do all the same activities as the previous years – it just means we come home Thursday evening instead of Friday morning. This is such a fantastic trip that really prepares the children for secondary independence.
Sport
We have already had another amazing year of sport with the children being district champions in football in year 2 and 6. District champions in swimming with the boys and runners up with the girls, district rugby champions again and second in Essex- we were robbed at the county finals. Also county cross county, county champions and we won the Langhelt Cup in football- the first time since 2001. We have such great PE teachers and parental support at the school. Thank you to all involved.
Testing
We have various tests that will be happening this term.
We have the year 1 phonics screening. This is where the children have 20 words and 20 pseudo words that they have to read. The required standard is usually 32 out of 40. Any children who do not reach this will get extra support.
The year 2 children have a maths, reading, writing and grammar assessment in June. This is internally marked but moderated by Essex County Council.
Year 4 have a times table assessment that takes place at the end of May start of June. The children get 40 times tables with 7 seconds to answer correctly on an i-Pad. This is externally marked and it is only the second year it has taken place.
Year 6 have grammar, three maths papers, a reading paper and a grammar and spelling paper that is externally marked. The children also have a writing paper mark that is given by the class teacher based on their work this year.
All other year groups have internal end of year assessments.
The reception children are assessed against all 17 early learning goals and they either get a met the expected development standard or did not meet the expected standard grade. To get expected the children have to reach the standard in all 17 areas. The children are only 4 and 5 so it is no drama if they do not reach these standards.
Iain Gunn