It’s a little late, but we wish everyone a happy new year.

New year, new details? If there are any new contact details for you or other contacts, please remember to let us know. We need up-to-date details for the people on our lists in case of emergencies. (The people on our lists are the ones you gave us when your child school – in most cases, this will be three different people.)

Attendance

Our attendance so far this year is 94.5% – this is a lower than the national figure for primary schools (95.1%) and lower than our attendance rate for Autumn 2024 (95.9%). Let’s hope it can rise across the Spring term.

Please continue to check the NHS site, Is My Child Too Ill For School.

Positive home-school relationships

Have you read our Positive Home-School Relationships Policy? It sets out reasonable expectations for meetings or emails with teachers and – occasionally – what we might do if we encounter unreasonable communications or unacceptable behaviour.

Staying safe online

Here’s an extract from an email from, Dame Rachel de Souza, the Children’s Commissioner:

I have recently published a new guide, What I wish my parents or carers knew: A guide for parents on managing children’s digital lives.

Supporting children’s safety is a shared responsibility between families, schools and wider society. For parents and carers, this responsibility has become increasingly complex as children’s lives are now deeply intertwined with the digital world. Many parents face difficult decisions about how to balance protecting children from online harm with enabling access to spaces that are now central to learning, socialising and play.

This guide…focuses on the challenge of managing children’s everyday online habits.

This guide was written with the direct involvement of children in England. It is a reflection of their views.

When I speak to children about what they would do differently when it comes to being online, with the benefit of hindsight, I ask them: would they give a smartphone to their own teenager? Almost unanimously, they tell me no. They want to be protected from it as long as possible.

As parents, carers, and educators, our job must begin and end with our children’s care and safety. It’s what they expect and what they want from you.

As one young person told me: “Don’t be afraid to be firm… If you are worried [that] your child is seeing harmful content and you don’t know what they’re watching and it’s affecting the behaviour, just take it that you know best – they don’t.

School dinners

In January 2025, 7,724 pupils entitled to a free school meal missed out on a free, hot lunch. School meals can be cheaper than a packed lunch. Think of the time you could save, too! All of our school meals are cooked on site and freshly prepared. Find out if you’re entitled to free school meals by applying online.

Zebra crossing

This week, we’ve had reports about cars ignoring waiting pedestrians at the zebra crossing outside our school. If your child walks to school on their own, please make sure they know how to cross carefully, still looking out for traffic as they cross. (And, if they have a mobile, please remind them how important it is to concentrate as they walk to school.)

Forest school

Your child may have noticed some recent changes to the land near the Key Stage 1 playground. These are part of our exciting plans to develop a Forest School area.

Forest School is an approach to learning that takes place outdoors. It supports children’s holistic development through regular sessions that encourage play, exploration and supported risk-taking. Through hands-on, learner-led experiences in a natural environment, children build confidence, resilience and self-esteem.

We’re pleased to be working with experienced Forest School practitioners, Børn of the Forest. They will deliver Forest School sessions to pupils across school. Our intention is for all children to experience Forest School as they move through the school – currently, this will be when children are in Year 3 and Year 5. This half-term, pupils in will Year 3 attend sessions led by a Børn of the Forest practitioner alongside a member of school staff. Next half-term, pupils in Year 5 will attend the sessions.

Sessions will take place outdoors and will run in most weather conditions, unless conditions are particularly extreme. Children will therefore need suitable clothing to keep them warm, dry and comfortable, and clothes that they do not mind getting muddy. Guidance about this has been shared in advance of your child’s first session – we’ll communicate again with parents of children in Year 5 nearer the time.

If you’ve any spare waterproof clothing or wellington boots that you would be happy to donate, we’d be very grateful. We also welcome donations of items such as pots, pans, sieves or spoons for use in our mud kitchen.

Our second Watch Us While We Work session for parents of children in Key Stages 1 and 2 is next Wednesday at 9.00am. As always, there will be two parts. One will focus on a feature of our Living and Learning curriculum that we call Feelings First, and one will focus on Reading. See you then!