Email: batheaston_pri@bathnes.gov.uk

primary s

Batheaston CEVC Primary School

BULLETIN - 2 SEPTEMBER 2010

 

We are all looking forward to seeing you next week and hope you’ve all had wonderful relaxing holidays.  As I write this bulletin the sun is shining for a lovely last holiday week!  I hope you don’t feel bombarded by information but I also appreciate that everyone will want to know up to date news and detail.  It is very likely that we will have to adapt and change routines over time, but we will work hard to ensure that communication is effective and fast.  I would make a special plea to ask you to sign up to Parentmail if you haven’t yet, as this is the way to access information quickly.  Please collect a form from the office if you need one.  Paper copies will continue to be sent home if you are not registered.  Please also frequently check the website for updated information on www.batheastonprimary.co.uk.

 Building project: The building work has begun and I am sure you will be astonished about how much has been accomplished during the holiday!  It is so exciting to see that we are now on our way!

 By the start of term, the builders will be working on the main site which is separated from school by a hoarding.  We will be able to take the children on organized visits to see the builders at work but, as an everyday routine, the builders and school community will not come into contact with one another.

A very special thank you from me to all the members of staff who have worked incredibly hard throughout the holiday to get the school ready in time to welcome the children back for an enjoyable and industrious year.  I am sure you will appreciate the time and effort involved in clearing out half the school, relocating all the offices, creating new and temporary rooms/storage and making the classrooms look welcoming, amongst many other jobs.   

As part of our INSET training, all staff have been discussing and learning about Health and Safety processes and guidelines.  We will be spending time with the children to ensure they also understand new rules and routines.  Please could all parents support us by:

1. Not allowing children to play/go in the Church Field before or after school.  The field should only be used by children during school hours/specific Wednesday Workshops and when supervised by staff.  Class 6 and 7 children will be taken over to their classroom by staff and brought back ready for the end of school.  If your child is in one of these classes you should have received a detailed letter about drop- off and pick-up.  If you didn’t get a copy, please look on the website for details, www.batheastonprimary.co.uk
2. Please make sure children have sturdy footwear and any warm/wet weather clothes they need as all children will be walking to the Church Hall and Youth Club over the course of every day.  Weather permitting, many playtimes will take place in the Church Field.
3. Please remember that there is no supervision on site before 8.45am and therefore children should not be at school before this time unless they are booked into Breakfast Club.   A tambourine will be rattled at 8.50 so that Classes 6 and 7 can go with their teachers to their allocated rooms.  This tambourine will also mean that the teachers’ morning meeting has finished and they will all be on the way to classrooms.  As always, I will be in the playground before and after school whenever possible to help in any way I can. 
4. Help school staff by reinforcing messages at home so that the children understand that the building site is completely out of bounds at all times.   I cannot imagine how anyone could scale the hoarding but we still want to make sure the children understand this rule.  We adults are finding watching the diggers and demolition process absolutely fascinating and exciting so we understand that the children will feel the same!  We will work with John Self, our site manager, to arrange visits for the children so they can watch the builders at work.

 The Reception and offices are now located in the old staff room, directly opposite the school gate.   Please do come into Reception if you need any help from the office staff.  The main doors into Reception are painted red to help every one find their way across.   By the time the actual permanent doors and signage is in place we will all be used to the change.   Although there is still work to be completed in the office area, I hope you will agree with us that the Reception is an amazing improvement!  The old reception, by the children’s toilets, is no longer a public space and is reserved as a staff working area. 

 If your child is bringing a scooter or bike to school, please could you help them to remember that they need to come in the little gate by the bridge.  The bike racks will now be located there beside the pond.  Once they have dropped their bikes and scooters off, all children need to carry on round the back of the school and come into the playground via the gate next to the sandpit, rather than go back out into School Lane towards the main entrance.  The plan is to ensure that bikes and scooters don’t enter the playground - you will see that our main entrance is narrow at the moment and the playground is temporarily smaller.   I will be at the main gate to help organize this new bike and scooter system with this for the first few days.

 School Clothes Swap Shop:  Hopefully you received our Parent Mail email about bringing in any unwanted school clothes so that we can quickly begin to stock our quality second hand shop.  We will put out a table in the playground ready for any uniform donations and start as soon as possible.  If you are interested in helping out with this new initiative please do let me or the office staff know.  We will need volunteers to help sort clothes and run the stall once a week at the end of school and I would love to hear from you if you have other ideas. 

 While on the subject of school clothes, please can you make sure that uniform is named so that we can return lost property to their owners.

 NEVER STANDING STILL!  We know we will all be busy during the building project, but have many plans to develop and continue to improve the school experience for all our children.   We have 2 busy INSET days this week so that we can discuss and implement our ideas and plans, and we will be sharing these initiatives with you all within the next few weeks.  We are thrilled to be recognized as an outstanding school by the Local Authority, but continue to want to develop our provision after our usual process of self-review, which includes children’s views and in response to feedback from parents during the Questionnaire process.  The next Bulletin will include a summary of the data collected from parent questionnaires.

 We are all looking forward to seeing you on Monday!

 Best wishes,

  

Sarah

 NEWS AND INFORMATION:

 Congratulations to everyone at Batheaston!  We heard last week that we have been awarded the ‘Green Flag’ which is the most prestigious and sought after award for Eco schools.  One of the visiting assessors wrote to say, ‘Terry and I would like to thank you for a very enjoyable visit to your lovely school and for the delicious lunch you provided. You have such a welcoming busy atmosphere with keen children from all the years. It made assessment very easy.’ Judith and Terry spent the morning meeting the Eco Team; representatives from the junior classes and having a tour with Eco guides.  Mary’s lunches are always delicious but the judges were particularly impressed with the quantity and quality of school-grown produce in their lunches!

 We are hoping our (very large) green flag will arrive at school this week ready to raise up a flag pole in September.  A huge well done to all the children with special admiration and thanks to the Eco Team, Jon and Janine for the hard work and vision which so impressed the judges. 

 Well done too, to our Year 5 class who were a pleasure to take to London for their overnight trip this weekend!  We visited the Tower of London and Princess Diana’s Memorial Gardens and then stayed at Thameside Youth Hostel before playing in Southwark Park and visiting the British Museum.  Thank you to Jo for organizing and leading the trip and to Judy Wilband, Hannah Reeves and Sally Robertson for their enthusiastic and hardworking help!

 Congratulations to all our very hardworking and successful Year 6 children for all the wonderful achievements this year.  WOMAD was an amazing experience and I am sure tonight’s performance of Romeo and Juliet will be magical.  Although we will miss these delightful children, we know that they are ready to move onto Secondary School and these schools will be very lucky to have such talented and mature students join them! 

The results for this year were also fantastic and are due to the immense amount of hard work from the children and adults who work in Class 7.  Well done to all of you!

 Reading:        Level 4 and above:    97%

                        Level 5:                       76%

Writing:           Level 4 and above:     94%

                        Level 5:                       42%

Maths:             Level 4 and above:    94%

                        Level 5:                       58%

 An enormous thank you to Claire Dancer, from everyone here, for all her wonderful creative teaching, commitment and enthusiasm.   The children in Claire’s care have benefitted so much from her talent and nurture and we are all very sorry to see her go!  We wish Claire all our love and best wishes for her new job and home and will be keeping in touch!

 Parent questionnaires: Thank you to all of you who have so kindly taken the time to complete and send back the parent questionnaire in time for teachers to organize meetings.  With the help of Governors, we will gather the data and comments from the questionnaires so that we can feed back to you all.  Any themes/general issues and questions will also be considered and discussed.  Wherever appropriate we will involve everyone in the discussion, as already begun in the recent PVG meeting, when ideas for future Sports Days and mid-year methods of sharing children’s progress were discussed.   Thank you as well, for attending the Parent Meetings over the last two weeks which we hope you all found informative and interesting with many lovely things to celebrate!  Thank you to all the teachers for their hard work and commitment to ensuring each child’s report was totally individual and personal.

 School Clothes Code:  I hope that you have all had the chance to read last week’s letter about school clothes and footwear.  Several parents have asked for clarification about whether it is appropriate to send children to school in plain navy, cotton tracksuit bottoms.  Most of the stores do stock tracksuit bottoms as part of the uniform range so they are easily available and a good option for children – especially when it gets chilly in the autumn!

 Building News:  I hope that you have all received the information about parking restrictions in Northend on Tuesday 3 August, so that the temporary classrooms can be brought in.  If not, please do look on the website for information.  We will be developing a ‘Building Project’ page on the website so that you will be able to see and read about the different stages as they happen. 

 We would like to say thank you!

Barbecue News: What an amazing success!  A huge thank you to all the staff and parent volunteers with a special mention to Sheena Tavendale for co-ordinating this fun family event.   Thank you too, Sian and the choir; Claire and all the children who bravely and wonderfully took to the stage for the Talent Show, and Sally for our charming Country Dancers.  We raised a wonderful £1079 which will help towards our ongoing need to change and upgrade the interactive whiteboards in the classrooms and has helped us to buy software that will mean, from next school year, children will be able to access school IT work from home.  Thank you to everyone for your support at this lovely event!

 New Website on the way! Thank you so much to Daniel Plowright for all his skillful advice and hard work in helping us to create a new and improved website.  Once it is up and running we hope that you will find it easy to use and full of interesting information and photos.

 Cherry and Ice Cream Sale:  Thank you to the Creeds and Scarterfields for all the effort of picking, sorting and selling the gorgeous cherries in aid of School Fund.  The children raised a fabulous £37.   Thank you to the Batemans and friends for the delicious fundraising Ice Cream Sale which helped raise funds for Class 7’s end of term party. 

 Thank you Mary!  Although Mary will still be cooking for us out of Bathford Primary’s new kitchen, we will be saying ‘au revoir’ because we won’t be seeing her every day.  We are looking for ways to make sure we still have plenty of contact but her cheerful and friendly presence will be sorely missed at Batheaston!  We will continue to find ways to send Mary our school-grown produce so that we can still enjoy the veggies that the children have planted. 

 Thank you and goodbye to Cara Frayling and Cristina Romero who are leaving school this week and we send lots of love and good wishes for the future.  Cristina will still be leading her wonderful Spanish lessons next year so we’ll see her often.  Goodbye and good luck too, to George Suenson-Luke in Class 2, and Ruby and Fraser Dunn who are moving and changing schools after the holiday.  We shall be so sad to say goodbye but know that 3 such gorgeous children will be a real joy for the staff and pupils in their new schools!

 GOODBYE HALL AND TOP BLOCK!  We shan’t be sad to say goodbye to our old buildings!  They are scheduled to be demolished at some point before the start of the next school term and so school will look rather different when you return in September.

 IF YOUR CHILD/REN WILL BE IN CLASS 6 OR 7 NEXT YEAR, PLEASE LOOK OUT FOR A LETTER ABOUT DROPPING OFF AND PICKING UP ARRANGEMENTS WHICH WILL BE WITH YOU TOMORROW.  IF FOR SOME REASON YOU DON’T GET A COPY, WE WILL PUT THE INFORMATION ON OUR WEBSITE, TOO.

 Have a wonderful holiday together and thank you so much to you all for your interest and support,

 Very best wishes,

 

Sarah

SCHOOL CLOTHES  from September 2010

Please do read these guidelines and clarification of our uniform code

Dear Parents,

 I am very grateful to those parents who have always sent their children into school looking smart in navy and red, however we feel it is now time to strengthen our school uniform policy.  Indeed, parent feedback from the recent questionnaires provided me with further evidence that parents need clearer guidelines, and sometimes struggle to get their child to wear school colours when others are wearing different colours, or branded clothes.  The children also frequently check what is and is not appropriate, as there is currently such a variety of clothing on display in the playground!  While the majority of children come to school looking smart, there are a significant number whose clothing is inappropriate (e.g. ripped jeans/skull and crossbones logos on T-shirts/football shirts etc.) and this frequently attracts negative comments from visitors and other parents.

 We felt the fairest solution was therefore to set out standard and consistent expectations for all involved.   We wanted to do this now as we know so many of you will be making purchases over the summer ready for the new school year. 

 We believe having a clearer school uniform code will benefit the whole school community because it:

    promotes a sense of pride in the school;

    engenders a sense of community and belonging towards the school;

    is practical and smart while allowing for some choice and individuality;

    identifies the children with the school;

    prevents children from coming to school in fashion clothes that could be distracting in class;

    makes children feel equal to their peers in terms of appearance;

    is regarded as suitable wear for school and good value for money by most parents;

    is designed with health and safety in mind.

 Our current policy of inviting children to wear navy and/or red was developed in the days when it was difficult to kit out your child in school uniform for less than £50, and was therefore designed to allow for families to look for cheap alternatives and to have some freedom of choice.  I am sure you are aware that it is a very different situation now, and excellent value school uniform can be found in many stores and is a very cost-effective way to dress children for school.   As you will see below, we have avoided being as proscriptive about uniform as many other schools, and have worked hard to ensure that this code still allows for choice and individuality of style.

 From September our school clothes code will be as follows, and if children do come into school in clothes that don’t fit the code, e.g. ripped denim or a T-shirt with a slogan, we will send a reminder note home.  

 Our core colours will still be navy and red

 Michael Hope will continue as our supplier of navy and red tops with the school logo.  You can order on line, through our website, or fill in an order form from the office.   tp://schools.michaelhope.co.uk

We request that girls’ trousers/dresses/skirts and pinafores are purchased from a uniform range and should be NAVY.  For summer, the traditional gingham dresses are a lovely and practical addition to the uniform range.  Socks and tights could be red, navy or white but plain.

All boys’ trousers and shorts should be bought from a uniform range and should be NAVY. 

 Our research shows that there is a massive choice, both online with free delivery and in store, from shops including Marks and Spencer, Sainsburys, Tesco, Woolworths and Asda, at amazing prices too, e.g. a school skirt for £4 and 2 sweatshirts for  £8:-//direct.asda.com/george/kid-s-clothing/schoolwear/0305,default,sc.html

http://www.marksandspencer.com/Value-Uniform-School-Uniform-Kids/b/227277031

http://www.clothingattesco.com/Back-to-School/icat/catgbacktoschool

www.Sainsburys.co.uk/BackToSchool 

FROM SEPTEMBER, DENIM WILL NOT BE INCLUDED IN THE LIST OF APPROPRIATE SCHOOL CLOTHES for boys or girls. 

 Polo shirts, T-shirts, fleeces, jumpers, cardigans and sweatshirts need to be either plain RED or plain NAVY.   Tops of all kinds should have no logos other than our school one, and should be the one complete block colour without any pattern or decoration, e.g. a red top but which has a big yellow star on the front would not be part of the code.  Again, there is a wide and cheap choice from many stores including packs of 3 polo shirts for £6. 

 YEAR 6 ONLY: We would like to continue to give our Year 6 children the choice to wear either RED/NAVY or BLACK tops.  Year 6 children can wear a black/navy/red PLAIN top.  Michael Hope will continue to stock black tops with school logos.  Skirts, pinafores, trousers and shorts should be BLACK or NAVY and bought from a uniform range as all other year groups.

 Eco Monitors should continue to wear logoed green tops provided by school as they do now, i.e. when representing the school.

 SHOES AND BOOTS:  For the whole of next school year, we will all be using the Church Hall for assemblies, PE and school lunches and we’ll also be using the Church Field for some playtimes.  Therefore, all children will be moving around the 2 school sites every day in all weathers, so for health and safety reasons, we need for every child to be wearing robust shoes.  As we go into winter we will review what footwear is needed, e.g. wellies and waterproof shoes, but in the meantime please ensure that your child is in shoes that are comfortable and practical.   Crocs, any heels and ballet pumps will not be appropriate.

 TO SUMMARISE OUR SCHOOL UNIFORM CODE from September:

1.      All tops should be plain red or navy.  Tops with school logos are available from Michael Hope.

2.      All trousers, pinafores, shorts and skirts should be navy and be bought from a uniform range available in many large stores and on line.   Summer dresses for girls should be either the school uniform gingham type or could be a navy pinafore with a red or navy T-shirt underneath.

3.      Shoes and boots should be robust enough to ensure all children are appropriately kitted out for walking to the Church Hall daily and suitable for an active outdoor curriculum.

4.      We appreciate your support in supplying a PE kit in red and/or navy when you can.

 In the past, parents have organised a Uniform Shop where good quality second hand items are sold on inexpensively in the playground.  If any parents would like to volunteer to co-ordinate this next term, we would be happy to discuss this after the holidays.

 I hope that these clear guidelines will make it easier for parents and children to know what school expects and will make dressing in the morning less of an issue for many families!  I hope that you will all support this code and let me know if I can help/clarify anything.  I will be in London with Year 5 on Friday but available in the playground on Monday and Tuesday if you want to clarify any of the points above.    Thank you.

 

Sarah

 

Join us for a wonderful evening with WOMAD on

Tuesday 13^th July from 6.30pm

(in the school grounds if dry, and the Church if wet!)

 

This amazing day is the school’s leaving gift for the Year 6 children.  They will spend the day with Mim Suleiman and Juldeh Camara, musicians from Zanzibar, to learn dances and percussion.  In the evening, the group and the children will be putting on a dazzling display for you. If previous WOMAD evenings are anything to go by, we will all be up dancing for this very special evening.  

 

Everyone welcome – bring the family, a rug to sit on and enjoy the performance. 

There will be a bar available from 6.15pm.

Dear Parents,

 

As part of our Great Fire of London work, Classes 2 and 3 are planning to reconstruct the scene of London using cardboard boxes.  The houses will be constructed on Tuesday and we would be very grateful if the children could bring in their own boxes (shoebox or cereal box size would be perfect.)  If anyone has more than one box we would appreciate any extras just in case! 

 

The fire brigade are coming to visit the classes on Thursday to give a fire safety talk.  At the moment we have not had confirmation, but we are hoping that they will also be able to set fire to our reconstruction so that the children have the chance to fully experience how the fire spread. 

 

Many thanks

 

George & Claire

Dear Parents,

To whet your appetites, we thought you would appreciate a copy of the timetable for Saturday, so here are some timings for your information:

 12.00pm                 Gate opens (tickets available on the gate)

12.00 – 2.00pm      BBQ food available (puddings, bar, tea and coffee continue all afternoon)

12.30pm                 Country Dancing

12.50pm                 Choir

1.10pm                    Country Dancing

1.30pm                   Choir

2.00pm                  Talent Show begins!

3.30pm                  Raffle drawn and Talent Show prizes awarded.

 A final plea!  Do you have anything you can donate towards our raffle?  If so, please drop it into the office before Saturday.  All contributions greatly appreciated!

 Many thanks,

Claire

29th June, 2010

Dear Parents,

We are sure you will be as delighted as we are to hear that the building work is on schedule to start at the end of this term.  At this busy time, we would greatly appreciate parental support in the following ways:

a)  Settling up all outstanding payments (dinner money, trips, Wednesday Workshops etc.) by Friday, 16th July, please.  The office will be closing at the end of term to get ready for moving over the summer.

b)  Removing all your children's belongings prior to the end of term, including the contents of their drawers, PE kit, artwork, wellies, lost property, bikes/scooters, water bottles, cake tins etc. 

As you can imagine, with half the school needing to be emptied, this will be the perfect time for a major clear-out!

We also very much hope to see you and your family at the BBQ and Talent Show on Saturday - tickets will be available on the gate, and cost £2.50 for children; £4.00 for adults and £13.00 for a family, to include a delicious burger/sausage; baked potato and salad.  A bar will be available, and we hope you will come and spend a lovely family afternoon and enjoy watching our highly-talented children!

Thank you to everyone who has already taken the time to consider their child's year and complete and return the Questionnaires - the deadline for their return is this Friday 2nd July.  Teachers are doing their best to co-ordinate appointments - please notify us in good time if you have any difficulties with keeping the appointment time given. 

With very many thanks,


Sarah

29^th June, 2010

Dear Year 5 parents,

The children have told me that they had a great time at Corsham Secondary School last week.   I thought you would  like to know that they all made a very positive impression on the staff at Corsham!  I wrote to the Headteacher to say thank you for welcoming us to the school and he said..

“Thank you for writing to me.  I am so pleased everybody enjoyed themselves.   I bumped into the children several times and was struck by how interested in everything they appeared to be and so well behaved. 

Best wishes, Martin Williams”

 
Well done Class 6 - you have made us all proud!

Sarah

Batheaston CEVC Primary School

News Bulletin - 23 June 2010

 NEWS AND INFORMATION

 Staffing news:  Huge congratulations to Claire Dancer who has got a new teaching job near where she will be living!  We all knew she would be successful and all send our very best wishes with her. 

 Building news:  We have our planning permission for the new hall, kitchen and classrooms which is very exciting, and quite an amazing feat to have been successful first time!  Mealings will be appointed as our builders which is particularly good news as the school has a long and happy working relationship with the firm, and no contractor is better placed to understand our local community.  A programme of works is being developed now and details of dates and work will follow as soon as possible.  We will be ensuring that the children and parents in next year’s Classes 6 and 7 will receive extra information as needed because these children will be affected by the decant to temporary accommodation. 

 We really want to thank our wonderful project manager, Mike Gray, Glen and Neil from Mealings for working extremely hard to try and ensure the children’s daily routine is as uninterrupted as possible.  Everyone is working together to plan for a school year that ends with no change on the school site and a new year that begins with all the temporary accommodation in place, the offices moved and demolition at least started.  The summer holidays will be a whirl of activity for builders and staff alike!   

 Planning permission has also been given for the contractor access from Coalpit Road.  The football pitch will be used as the contractor’s depot/compound, and a temporary bridge will ensure that all their vehicles enter the school site at an entrance by the Lapa.   No lorries will access school through Northend except for the day when the temporary classrooms will be brought in ready to be placed in the field.   There will be notice as early as possible about which date this will happen so that our close neighbours can plan to park cars elsewhere for the day - apologies in advance for the inconvenience of this.  

 School Dinners next year:  I could never imagine our school life without Mary and Julie’s gorgeous school meals, so we have been committed from the outset to ensure Batheaston children would not miss out during the year of the build!  More ingenuity from the team has ensured that we will still be able to provide hot school dinners at the Church Hall.  Mary will cook out of Bathford Primary School’s brand new kitchen and then Julie, (with a support kitchen assistant), will bring and serve the food to the children every day.  There will be a few changes to how we organize lunch arrangements and admin., (details to follow)  but this will all be worth it when the usual alternative is to stop the hot food provision during these building projects.

 PARKING AND DROPPING OFF/PICKING UP:  As a school we work hard to encourage children to scoot, walk or bike to and from school both for good health reasons and as a way to help everyone to think about how we can reduce our carbon footprint.  We do understand that some families do have to arrive by car, but we would strongly request that everyone is considerate about where and how they park.  I have been dismayed by reports from our neighbours who feel fed up with the inconvenience of having their driveways blocked and occasional unpleasant conversations with parents when asked to move.   PLEASE PARK CAREFULLY AND AVOID PARKING ON THE SPEED BUMP AT THE TOP OF SCHOOL LANE.

 Low Carbon Day, Thursday 24 June: Lots of activities and lessons are planned for today in every class including an afternoon of low energy use.  Class 1, for example, has been collecting data on how we get to school; Class 2 is focusing on recycling and Class 6 is re-using materials to build Egyptian tombs.  We will all be purposefully looking at how to reduce our electricity use in all parts of the school and will be monitoring to see what impact we have made.  Information gathered and any conclusions may then impact on our everyday school routines.  Well done and thank you to the Eco Monitors who have helped to plan the day and enthuse adults and children alike.   Many children may be completing the ‘Kids’ Carbon Calculator’ on Schools’ Low Carbon website: www.lowcarbonday.com.  This is an excellent website if you would like to share with your child and you can also calculate your own carbon footprint (on the homepage).

 Coming up soon:

Friday 25 June: Class 6 spend the day at Corsham Secondary School
Saturday 26 June: Village Fete
Monday 28 June: Sports Day at 1.15 in the Church Field – everyone welcome
Tuesday 29 June: Children’s Parliament – a big thank you to Ruben Cleghorn and Fleur Horstmann Bliss who will be our school’s representatives at the event, involving most BANES primary schools
Tuesday 29 June: Book Day, so children are welcome to come dressed up as a character from a book of their choice.  Last day to return nominations for Parent Governor
Wednesday 30 June: 9.15 for Sports Day if Monday is ‘rained off’
Thursday 1 July: Children starting in Class 1 in September visit; Parents’ Voice Group Meeting 2pm
Friday 2 July: Triball event at St Mark’s - Year 5 in the morning; Year 6 in the afternoon. 
Last day to return Parent Questionnaires 
Saturday 3 July: Talent Show & BBQ at school, from 12.00 to 4.00pm – all welcome!

DINNER MONEY PAYMENTS:  Please note that we will need to receive and bank all this term’s dinner money by
FRIDAY 16^th July.  We would most grateful for you co-operation in paying up to the end of term and clearing any arrears by that date. 

Please also ensure that outstanding trip/music etc. payments are settled by this date, too, please. Thank you.

 We would like to say thank you!

Jumble Sale news: What an amazing success!  A huge thank you to all the parent volunteers with a special mention for Kerry Parker-Booth and Kerry Bagnall who committed so much time and remained so positive about the planning and preparation throughout a particularly busy time for them.  Kerry and Kerry say: 

 “A HUGE thank you!

This weekend, along with many other football and summer events on, we had the Batheaston School Jumble Sale.  So far we have raised a fantastic £500 with more to come this week from recycling the left over clothes through third world charities.  We would simply like to thank everyone who made this event so successful...

Firstly to everybody who donated their unwanted clothes, toys and many other items, there was a wonderful selection which people were happy to part with their cash for!

Secondly, to all our cake bakers who spent hours making an amazing selection of cakes and biscuits which were enjoyed by all and raised a significant percentage of the total!

And finally to the kind and generous staff and helpers who gave up their Friday night and sunny Saturday to help sell jumble and so raise money for the school to fund various activities that all our children will enjoy and benefit from!  Well done and thanks to all.

The two Kerrys   (Class 2 and 3)”

 The Wilkinson family:  A huge thank you to Sarah and Nathan’s family for kindly supporting school by sorting and counting at least 9700 Sainsbury vouchers.  It must have been a long and tedious job but will result in new and much needed resources for school so we are all very grateful to them, and to you all for collecting the vouchers!

 Very best wishes,

 Sarah

Book Day & the Book Fair

 I am very excited to announce that our annual Book Fair will begin tomorrow, 22^nd June.  A huge and varied selection of Scholastic books will be for sale in the school hall at the end of every day from tomorrow until Monday 28^th June.  Due to our great success over the past few years the school will be receiving a fantastic 100% commission this year on everything you spend once we reach a £400 target.  We have always exceeded this amount and so I feel very confident we can achieve this goal.  The money raised on our last book fair was used this year to improve the book areas in each of the classrooms, as well as updating our collection of thesaurus’, dictionaries and atlases.

 As this is such a wonderful opportunity to inspire the children into the magical world of books the school will be holding its annual ‘Book Day’ on Tuesday 29^th June.    During the day the children will be completing a range of activities in their classrooms which will focus on all of the different elements of books, book writing and illustration. 

 If any of the children would like to come to school dressed as their favourite character from a book then there will be a fancy dress parade in the morning and prizes given to the best costumes. 

 Many thanks,

 
George

21 June, 2010

 

  Dear Parent/Carer

 Batheaston CEVC Primary School - PARENT GOVERNOR ELECTIONS

 The Governing Body must include Parent Governors who are elected by parents/carers of pupils at the school.   Due to Parent Governors reaching the end of their four-year term of office, we have vacancies for 3 of Parent Governors.

 You have the right to stand as a candidate and to propose candidates. Candidates should be proposed and seconded by parents of pupils currently on role at this school.  (Please note that Parents who work at the school for more 500 or more hours in an academic year are not eligible to be Parent Governors.  However they are entitled to stand as staff governor subject to available posts).

 Nominations should be made on the enclosed form, see below, and returned to the Returning Officer, Sarah Weber, by Tuesday 29^th June 2010.  You may, if you wish, include a brief personal statement, not exceeding 50 words, with the nomination form. The personal statement will be circulated to parents with the voting slips should an election be necessary.

 If there are more nominations than vacancies, an election will be necessary on 20^th July 2010, and you will be provided with a voting slip and details of how and when you may vote.

 Thank you for your support.

 Yours,

 

Sarah Weber

Headteacher

 

Batheaston CEVC  Primary School

PARENT GOVERNOR ELECTION

Tuesday 20^th July 2010

 Nomination Form

 

Candidate:

Full Name:

Address:

 
 

Are you paid to work at the school?       YES            NO           (Please tick or circle as appropriate)

 

If ‘yes’ how many hours per week?

 

Child (ren) at school:

Name(s):                                                                                Class:

  

Proposer:

Name:

Address:

 
 

Child (ren) at school:

Name(s):                                                                                Class

  

Seconded By:

Name:

Address:

 

Child (ren) at school:

Name(s):                                                                                Class

  

Please return to Sarah Weber, Batheaston Primary School, School Lane, Northend, Batheaston, Bath BA1 7EP by
Tuesday 29^th June 2010 and enclose a short personal statement of 50 words or less to be sent to parents.

Batheaston CEVC Primary School

News Bulletin - 9 June 2010

I hope you all had a lovely half term break and are looking forward to a very busy Term 6.  We hear the weather will improve by the weekend!  This term is full of exciting end of year events and performances, workshops and sporting activities, and is also a busy time for staff as we plan to pack and move ready for the building project to start.  We shall share dates and information just as soon as we have confirmed dates for the start of the building work.

NEWS AND INFORMATION

 Staffing news:  I am sorry to have to tell you that Claire Dancer, (Class 3 teacher), will be leaving Batheaston at the end of this school year.  Claire is moving away from the area to be closer to family and also because Claire’s partner has a new job promotion.  We all understand and support Claire’s reason for leaving Batheaston, and I am sure you will all want to join me in wishing her all the best of luck for her move and her career.    We will miss Claire very much indeed;  she is a dedicated and talented teacher who has already contributed so much to our school and has developed excellent relationships with the children, parents and staff.  I would like to say a huge thank you to Claire for all her hard work and commitment to her class and the school.   We’re all convinced it won’t take long for Claire to find a new job and the school she joins will be very lucky indeed! 

Fortunately for Batheaston, we have the wonderful news that Jackie Taylor joins our staff team as a permanent teacher and will be Class 3’s teacher from September.  The children in next year’s Class 3 have benefited enormously from Jackie’s skillful and creative teaching both this year and last, during maternity leaves, and I am sure all parents will be thrilled to know that Jackie will now be the permanent Year 2 teacher.   The Governors, staff and I are all delighted by this appointment! 

Jon Stevenson will once again join Jackie to teach the class on Fridays, and Jenny Bates will join Nikki to teach Class 1 on a Monday.  We are very grateful to Jon and Jenny who are both looking forward to September. 

Parentmail information: Thank you to everyone who has now registered to receive school communications via email.  We are now sending ALL school letters via Parentmail and request that you check your inbox regularly and let us know if you are not receiving emails from us (we send approximately one a week).  PLEASE DO CHECK REGULARLY SO THAT YOU DON’T MISS OUT ON ANY INFORMATION OR OPPORTUNITIES FOR YOUR CHILD/REN.  For example, trip letters containing vital detail and information will be sent to you by email.  If you haven’t yet registered but would like to do so, please call in at reception to complete a form.  

Newsletters are also posted on the School Website on www.batheastonprimary.co.uk so please do check this (under “Newsletters”) regularly, too.   It is also a good idea to refer to the calendar of activities under “Dates and Events”, as although we do our very best to give parents plenty of notice, there are inevitably occasions in such a busy school when dates have to change. 

You may like to know that we are hoping to update the website in the near future, to make it even more accessible and improve areas such as the Wednesday Workshops forms, which we appreciate have caused some families a few difficulties in the past.

FREE LAPTOPS STILL AVAILABLE: The scheme to give families a laptop plus one year’s free internet access is still in place but will probably not exist after March 2011 at the latest.  If you qualify for FREE SCHOOL MEALS and your child is in KS2, you could get a free laptop under this scheme as several of our families have already done.  Please do let us know if you need more information – the take-up has been fantastic but the latest news is that the scheme will end.  If your child is in Year 2, we will contact you in September in the hope that the scheme is still running and your child will qualify as a new Key Stage 2 pupil.

 Congratulations to all the children in Year 5 and 6 for all their tremendous achievements during the residential trip to Bude just before half term.  Thank you too, to Claire, Sian, Jon, Sheena and Sarah Finch for supporting the children during the trip – they have been fantastic!

 Coming up soon –

Jumble Sale on Saturday 12 June, 2.00 to 3.30pm, in the School Hall

Do come along and snap up a bargain before relaxing with a delicious cup of tea!

Enrichment Day for all children on Tuesday 15 June: As part of our School of Creativity work, our theme for this next Enrichment Day is ‘Look what we can achieve when we work hard together’.  We aim to encourage children to have a go even when faced with a real challenge, but this is also a wonderful day-long opportunity for each child to choose an exciting workshop from a wide range of possibilities.  As usual, the children will be asked to choose options which they know they will thoroughly enjoy/will be successful at.  This time, the workshops have been designed around the requests the children have made.  I would like to take this opportunity to thank staff and volunteers for so creatively planning workshops in response to many of the popular wishes made by our children.  A special thank you to Jon for working so hard to co-ordinate the day! 

 Request for help: We still are in need of parent volunteers to help record what is happening during the Enrichment Day and would really appreciate your support.  You would be asked to join one workshop for the day and follow what the children are engaged in.  There will be focus questions to ask the children and cameras available so that we can collect evidence of all their wonderful achievements.  If you would like to know more, please ask Jon or let the office know.  I am usually in the playground before and after school, too, if you’d like to find out more or volunteer. 

 We would like to say ‘Thank you’!

* To Alison Fry for inviting everyone to the church for a fascinating and entertaining assembly to celebrate Pentecost.

* To Sian and Nikki for planning and leading memorable day trips to Slimbridge and Bristol Zoo.

*To Julia Butler and Sophie Shenstone for kindly joining the planning group for the development of our outside learning environment in Mike’s Meadow.  We are getting very excited about the future possibilities!

* To all the parents who volunteered to help at CLASS 2’s CAKE SALE.  Over £150 was raised which will go towards something exciting for the children – more information to follow!

 
Very best wishes, 

Sarah

TOP SECRET!

 
Dear Class 2 and 3 parents,

 We are extremely excited to inform you that we have arranged a final trip this year to celebrate all of the children’s hard work and enthusiasm.  After the recent huge success of Class 1’s secret trip to the zoo, which the children knew absolutely nothing about until the morning they left, we have also decided to keep this trip a secret from the children.  They will be told closer to the time that we are having a picnic in the Church Hall Field so that they all know to bring their packed lunches.

 We will be taking the children to visit @Bristol on Monday 12^th July.  The children will have an opportunity to explore @Bristol during the morning, and in the afternoon will receive a special talk in the Planetarium.

 To ensure the cost of this trip has been kept to a minimum, both classes have donated the cake sale money recently raised.  So many thanks again for your generosity and support which made both so successful!  This has meant that we are asking for a £4.80 contribution to cover the cost of the entry fees. We hope you will agree this is an amazing price for such a fun and informative day.

 The children will all need to wear their school uniform and comfortable shoes.  They will all need a snack, a packed lunch and a drink (no chocolate or fizzy drinks please.)  The children will not need to bring any extra money with them as there will be no time to visit the shop.

 The coach will be leaving school just after 9:00am, therefore the children will need to be at school by 8:50.  We will be returning before the end of the school day.  If anybody is interested in coming along please speak to your child’s class teacher, discreetly!!

 Many thanks,

 George & Claire

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

 I give permission for____________________ in Class_____ to attend the school trip to @Bristol on Monday 12^th July

 I enclose a contribution of £4:80 to cover the costs of @Bristol.

CLASS 7 NEWS!

10^th June, 2010

 
Dear Parents,

 I hope you have all had a relaxing half-term break in the sunshine!  I would imagine most of you had very tired children at least for the first couple of days after their exertions in Bude.  The week I spent with them all, though tiring, was truly amazing and I know they will have memories and experiences that will stay with them for a long time.  I know I will.  There were lots of fears conquered, barriers pushed through and plenty of laughter along the way.  The staff at the centre were keen to say to us that the children from Batheaston are always a delight to work with and have skills in supporting each other which are second to none.

 I would also like to say how very hard all of the children worked in the week of SATs and in the time building up to them.  I have now had my external moderation meeting with the other primary schools and will be ready to share the results with the children and yourselves within the next two weeks.  We will then have parent meetings as usual at the end of term to discuss your child’s progress and achievements this year.  It has been a privilege to see them develop academically as well as personally over this time and give everything they could to these assessments.  Further details will follow but I look forward to sharing their successes with you and with them, of course.

 So, contrary to what is known by others as ‘Year 6 wind-down time’ we now whirl into a very busy final term packed, as you will see, with wonderful opportunities and celebrations.  I have tried to detail below as many of them as possible and hope to see you at as many of the events as you can make.

 MONDAY 14^th JUNE – Theatre Studies Day    

Thanks to the School of Creativity funding, we have managed to secure an additional opportunity for Class 7 this year.  Next Monday they will spend the day working with 4 actors from a local theatre group, Next Stage Bath.  The children will learn new drama games and techniques before working on a short performance based on the tradition of pantomime.  This intense day will finish with a short performance at 3pm for our special friends in Class 1 and Class 2.  You are obviously more than welcome to come along if you are able to.  We will be performing in the amphitheatre if dry and the hall if wet. 

THURSDAY 24^th JUNE – Leavers’ Trip to Legoland

As you will know, the tradition is for Class 7 to go on a final leavers’ trip to Legoland in the Summer term.  We have managed to book this exciting day earlier than usual to ensure all the children are able to come and to avoid a total rush of events in the last week! 

 The coach will depart from the garages at 8am and we are due to return at 6pm.  The children will need a packed lunch, lots to drink (no fizzy drinks please or chocolate) and will need to wear sensible, comfortable clothes, hat, sun cream, etc. depending on the weather. They can also bring a small amount of spending money if you wish, no more than £5 please.  Please fill in the permission slip attached to this letter.  I am sure you will understand that I am keen to take with us as many adults who work with the class as possible therefore I am unable to take parent volunteers on this occasion.  Thanks to our cake sale earlier in the year, the price of this trip has been reduced from £24 to £20.  We would be grateful if you could send a cheque for this amount made payable to Batheaston Primary School by Monday 21^st June.

 MONDAY 28^th JUNE @ 1.30pm – Sports Day

(Wednesday 30^th June @ 9.30am if Monday is wet)

The children’s final sports day with a World Cup theme!  I look forward to seeing you there.

 THURSDAY 1^st JULY – ‘Invasion day’ for BANES secondary schools.  (If your child is going to Corsham, they should come to school as usual, please.)

 FRIDAY 2^nd JULY afternoon – Triball tournament @ St Marks

We will be taking part in a triball tournament for the afternoon.  Although I cannot offer places on the coach, it would be lovely to see you on the Astroturf at St Marks for a 1.00pm start.  We will back in time for normal end-of-school.

 SATURDAY 3^rd JULY – School Barbeque and Talent Show 12pm onwards

Fingers crossed for sunshine!  I really hope many of the Class 7 children take up their last opportunity to shine in the talent show.

TUESDAY 6^th JULY – ‘Invasion day’ for Corsham School.  Children going to B&NES secondary schools should come to school as usual, please. 

 TUESDAY 13^th JULY – WOMAD workshop day and evening performance

This amazing day is the school’s leaving gift for the children.  They will spend the day with Mim Suleiman and Juldeh Camara, musicians from Zanzibar, to learn dances and percussion.  In the evening, the group and the children will be putting on a dazzling display for you. If previous WOMAD evenings are anything to go by, we will all be up dancing for this very special evening.  We ask that the children are back at school for 6pm ready for a performance starting at 6.30pm.  Due to weather and building arrangements, I will confirm the venue nearer the time!

 THURSDAY 15^th JULY – Special Friends Picnic

Can we ask that you send your child with a packed lunch this day as we plan to take both classes to Alice Park over lunch to enjoy some time together.

 MONDAY 19^th JULY – A performance of Romeo and Juliet

As you will no doubt have heard, we are bravely tackling this tragic love story for our Leavers’ Play.  Combined with the music of West Side Story, the evening is sure to bring a tear (or two!) to your eye.  I would ask that the children are back in school at 5.45pm and the performance will begin at 6.30pm.  Again, I will confirm venues nearer the time.

 TUESDAY 20^th JULY – Leavers’ Disco

I know plans are in action for the disco after school on the last day.  Please talk to Sharon Bateman (Elena) or Anne Plaskitt (Nat) for more information if you need it.

 Can you help?

So, as you can see, these few weeks will whizz by in a flash!  In between all of these, we will be busy producing our yearbook and completing our topics.  A huge thank you to Tabitha, India’s mum, who worked on the Christmas cushions with the class and has volunteered much of her time this term to creating a fabric hanging which will be part of Class 7’s legacy to the new building.  It would be lovely if you have any time to offer us this term, either with Tabitha’s project, costumes/props for the play, or a spot of Egyptian cookery even!  Let me know if you can spare an afternoon or two!

 Anyway, I have now met with most of the secondary transition teachers and have enjoyed telling them all about your wonderful children.  Whilst it feels strange to be ‘handing them over’, I have said at all the meetings how much the children will enrich their new schools and how very proud of them we all are.

 
Best wishes,

  

Claire

 28^th May 2010          

 Class 6 TRIP TO LONDON – Friday, 16^th July!

 Dear Parents,

 I am delighted to inform you that we have managed to book a one-night residential trip for class 6 to London on Friday July 16^th.  This will be a wonderful, positive way to end their year in class 6 as well as a fantastic opportunity for the children to have their first experience of a night away together.

 London has many exciting opportunities to offer and so we have many different ideas for how to spend our time there. The itinerary and details will be confirmed with you nearer the time however, to give you a taster of what is to come, I can confirm that we have booked to spend time in the Egyptian galleries of the British museum. This will allow the children to finish off their exciting Egyptian topic by to viewing many impressive artifacts including the real Rosetta stone!

 We will be leaving Batheaston on a coach at 8am on Friday 16^th July and will be returning early evening on Saturday 17^th July.  Our accommodation for the night will be Thameside Youth Hostel where class 7 stayed in November.

 As our class Cake Sale is coming up in Term 6, all money raised will be put towards this trip, ensuring that we can keep the cost as low as possible whilst still providing the children with a very memorable experience. As we do not yet know how much money will be raised, we are unable to give an exact price of the trip, however my estimation of the maximum cost is £55 per child.  If there is any change to this price, the difference will be reimbursed to you.  We are happy for you to pay in installments, starting straight away, so long as the total is paid up by the date of the trip; post-dated cheques, made out to B&NES, please,  would be fine.  (If you think you might have any difficulties with the payment, please let us know).

 Best wishes,

 
Jo

Batheaston CEVC Primary School

News Bulletin - 25 May 2010

 
NEWS AND INFORMATION:

·        Plans to create a new outdoor learning environment on ‘Mike’s Meadow’ are in full swing with very helpful input from parents, children and staff.  By the time you read this bulletin you may have already joined me this afternoon at the field and had the opportunity to have a good look round.  There is a suggestion book in the reception if you would like to add any thoughts and ideas.  We have thoroughly enjoyed taking the children to Mike’s Meadow which has provided the opportunity for them to share their views.                                                  

 
·        Our best wishes and thoughts go with our Year 6 and 5 children who are enjoying their residential trip at the Adventure International Centre in Bude.  What incredible weather!  Claire tells us that everyone is in fantastic spirits and every child is very positive about the wide range of activities and challenges.

 ·        Enrichment Day, Tuesday 15 June:  We are planning another exciting Enrichment Day which has been designed around the children’s requests for particular workshops.  We are now matching adults/booking creative practitioners to the list of the most popular choices and the whole day will have the theme of ‘Look what we can achieve when we try hard’.  Can you help out?  Past Enrichment Days have been successful due to the level of adult support.  By observing what the children are doing and saying, we are learning more about how they learn and also how to plan what we can do to further motivate and challenge each child.   If you would like to help out on the day, particularly if you are happy to volunteer as a documenter, please let Nikki, Jon or me know.  If you can’t find one of us, please tell your child’s teacher.  As usual, all volunteers need a current CRB certificate.  If you would like to find out more about how you can help, Nikki and Penny Hay invite you to a short Parents’ Meeting on Monday 7 June, at 3.30, in Class 1.

 ·        Sainsbury vouchers: Thank you to everyone who has been posting the vouchers into the box in reception.  The last date for collection will be this Friday, so please could we ask you to check your purses/wallets one last time?  We also would really appreciate some help with counting out the vouchers into bundles ready to cash in for valuable PE and playtime equipment.  We plan to start the counting up this Friday and are very grateful to Carol Wilkinson for her kind offer to help with this! 

 ·        Dogs in School Lane:  There seems to be no easy solution to where/how to leave your dog while dropping children off at school.  We would like to thank parents who are kindly avoiding tying up their dogs in School Lane and we have been trying to problem-solve a long term and useful solution.  Now that leaving them at the Church Hall is not possible, (and will be part of the school site from September so not appropriate anyway), a solution seems problematic.  At the moment we suggest you tie your dog to the railing by the little gate, (next to the brook), behind the blue car which is usually parked there.  The car will then form a barrier for children and adults who are nervous about dogs.  Otherwise, maybe you could organise a system/rota where one parent looks after a couple of dogs while the others take all the children into school.  Thoughts and suggestions appreciated!

Coming up soon:

Friday 28 May –             Last day of Term 5 and CLASS 2 CAKE SALE

Monday 7 June –            Welcome back to the first day of Term 6

Thursday 10 June –        Disability Workshops (Just Different), for all KS1

Saturday 12 June –        Jumble Sale, 2.00 – 3.30pm

Tuesday 15 June –         Enrichment Day

Thursday 17 June -        Disability Workshops (Just Different), for all KS2

Friday 18 June –            Music workshops for Year 2 and 3

Friday 18 June –            CLASS 6 CAKE SALE

 
We would like to say thank you!  We have all been so impressed with Alex Loretz in Class 2!  At aged only 6, Alex planned, trained and confidently tackled a triathlon in order to raise money for the charity Class 2 has supported for over a year.  This charity, PLAN, raises money to sponsor Kenyan children so that they can attend school and this class has been fundraising to support one particular little girl.  Alex has raised an amazing £260 which will make an enormous difference to the lives of children.  We are so very proud of Alex – what an achievement!  As soon as we know more information about what this amazing fundraising has made possible for the charity, we will let you all know.  We have been overwhelmed by the empathy, enthusiasm and skill of all the children within the school who have taken it on themselves to raise money, principally for Haiti.  Well done to all of you!

 Congratulations to the parents of Class 3 for their highly successful cake sale, raising a wonderful £144, and to Class 5 parents for raising an equally brilliant £136.   Very many thanks indeed for all your efforts, and delicious cakes!

 Very best wishes and enjoy all the lovely weather!

 

Sarah

BATHEASTON C.E.V.C. PRIMARY SCHOOL

BULLETIN - 16 May 2010

 
NEWS AND INFORMATION:

·        Well done to all our Year 6 children who impressed us so much last week with their calm, confident and positive attitude to the tests.  We hope you had a fabulous and relaxing party in the park on Friday!  When Martin Williams, the headteacher from The Corsham Secondary School, visited us last week, he told me that Batheaston pupils have an excellent reputation for being confident, independent, empathetic and principled.   Our current Year 6 children will most definitely live up to this expectation in whichever lucky secondary school they move to in September!  

 ·       PLEASE CAN YOU ENSURE YOU HAVE READ THIS REQUEST, REPEATED FROM LAST WEEK’S BULLETIN:  Thank you to all the parents who ensure their child/ren come to school in navy and red every day.  When the majority of the children are in school colours (for Class Photo day, for example) we really do notice the difference.  We have explained to all the children that we ask them to wear navy and red, and black for Year 6, so that we have a sense of belonging to our school family.  It is also a fair system and children who are always in school colours can find it hard when others seem allowed to wear different clothes.  In a parent consultation a couple of years ago, most people stated that the idea of school colours is a really good compromise – an opportunity to have some choice, but within a theme.  It also means you can pick up T shirts, for example for £2, from a wide range of supermarkets if you don’t want to buy the official ones with logos.  On-line ordering through Michael Hope on our website also makes it simple to buy new items with forms in the office if that is more convenient:  www.batheastonprimary.co.uk

·       While I am on the subject of what to wear to school, please could I remind everyone that crocs and flimsy sandals are really discouraged for everyday school wear.   With an active curriculum, eg a trip to the Lapa area to build dens, we need all the children in tough and sensible shoes. 

·       TALENT SHOW AND BARBECUE NEWS – SATURDAY 3 JULY, 12.00 TO 4.00PM AT SCHOOL:  We are determined to continue in our tradition of the School Summer Barbecue as it is such a relaxed, fun community event.  This year we have made a few changes for two reasons:

1.     We need to confirm the date for everyone’s diary before we have the details of exactly when the contractors can start on the school site.  It is possible that a good part of the grounds could be boarded off by this date.

2.     We will be relying on our wonderful staff to prepare/pack/move and generally work their socks off during these summer months, so I would like to make sure that they do not have to work as hard as usual on Barbecue day.

Therefore we plan to provide:

     The usual popular barbecue for very reasonable prices - £4 per adult, £2.50 per child, with a family ticket (2 adults + 3 or more children) for £13

     The wonderful Talent Show

   Ice creams and ice pops

    A Raffle and Auction with enticing prizes

    Country Dancing  and School Choir

      Bathford Plants

      The sandpit and football cage will be open for play

  Infant bouncy castle (thank you Phil and Hannah!)

Parents and community members are very welcome to run their own stalls, eg we already have a jewelry stall booked.  So please do let Sheena or the office know if you would like to do so.  We hope that you would be happy to make a donation to school. 

We would also really appreciate your help to find excellent, high quality prizes so that the Raffle and Auction will be a significant fundraiser.  We have to replace projectors and whiteboards throughout the school on a rolling programme.  These are invaluable but expensive resources, so raised funds will really help to replace the aging IT.  We were one of the first schools in BANES to have projectors and whiteboards in every classroom, but now several of them are on their last legs!

So, do you work with a company who could donate a prize, or maybe one of your family or friends does?  For example, donations of a restaurant voucher; a week or weekend in a holiday home; theatre tickets or a lovely bottle of wine would all be much appreciated!! Eve White would also love to hear from parents willing to donate a variety of salads – thanks so much for this contribution!

• Dinner Money Payments:  Please be aware that reminders of outstanding dinner money payments will now be made on Parentmail.   This will hopefully reduce the considerable amount of admin time spent in chasing payments for dinners/trips etc.  Your support in paying promptly is always much appreciated, and means office time can be spent on more valuable support for parents, staff and children.  Thank you.
• We would like to say thank you!

To the parents who joined me on the field behind Jack and Jill’s Playgroup, (Mike’s Meadow), last Thursday.  I really appreciated all their great suggestions and enthusiasm, and you will see our ‘blue sky’ designs on the A-frame.  If you are interested and couldn’t make this date, I will be happy to meet parents at the gate at 2.30pm on Tuesday, 25^th May.

 
Coming up soon:

Thursday 20 May: Class 5 trip to Slimbridge

Friday 21 May:  Pentecost Assembly at the St Johns, led by Alison Fry.  Everyone welcome at 10.00am

Sunday 23 May: Departure to Bude for Year 6/5

Tuesday 25 May, 2.30pm:  Parent Meeting at Mike’s Meadow

Message from Louisa Kile re. Wednesday Workshops - 

the school's popular and highly successful extra-curricular programme - is looking for volunteers to run workshops next term and/or in the autumn.  

Do you have an interest you'd like to share with the children for a few weeks?  Do you have a skill or sport your own kids enjoy learning?  Would you like to run a workshop but could use some ideas on what to do?  Can you cook, play chess, make things, play games...? 

Wednesday Workshops depends on volunteers for its continuing success.  The ways in which you could help are flexible: 

Can you spare 6 Wednesday afternoons to run an activity? 

Would you like to run a workshop with a friend and split the term so you each do only 3 Wednesdays?

Are you only free from 2pm to 3pm?

Would you like to help out but not run a workshop? 

Whatever your interests, we can find a way to fit you in. 

Workshop leaders can specify what age-group their workshop is for and how many children they can take at a time.  We can help you with ideas, resources and other tips for success.  (You will need to have a current CRB check; if you do not already have one, we will be happy to help you complete this, which may take 3-4 weeks.) 

We are currently looking for someone to run the Cookery workshop next term since Annie Penny, who has run it this year, has taken a new job. 

 If you are at all interested, please contact me - Louisa - via email on louisakile@yahoo.com <mailto:louisakile@yahoo.com> . 

 Thank you!

BATHEASTON BULLETIN - 10th MAY, 2010

NEWS AND INFORMATION:

·        All our very best wishes go to Year 6 who are about to start their Assessment Week.  They have all worked hard and Claire is very proud of their readiness and confidence as well as the progress each child has made over the year. 

·        You will know how excited we are about the chance to develop the field behind Jack and Jill’s Playgroup into a flexible, challenging and fun learning environment.  Would you like to join me on Thursday 13 May at 9.15am in the field to see what ideas staff and children are developing and add your own thoughts?  To access the field, called ‘Mike’s Meadow’, use the gate by Jack and Jill’s but do wear long trousers and wellies.

·         Thank you to all the parents who ensure their child/ren come to school in navy and red every day.  When the majority of the children are in school colours, (for Class Photo day for example), we really do notice the difference.  We have explained to all the children that we ask them to wear navy and red, and black for Year 6, so that we have a sense of belonging to our school family.  It is also a fair system and children who are always in school colours can find it hard that others seem to be allowed to wear different clothes.  In parent consultations a couple of years ago, most people stated that the idea of school colours is a really good compromise – an opportunity to have some choice but within a theme.  It also means you can pick up T shirts, for example for about  £2  from a wide range of supermarkets if you don’t want to buy the official ones with logos.  On-line ordering through Michael Hope via our website also makes it simple to buy new items with forms in the office if that is more convenient. 

·         While I am on the subject of what to wear to school, please could I remind everyone that crocs and flimsy sandals are really discouraged for everyday school wear.   With an active curriculum, eg a trip to the Lapa area to build dens, we need all the children in tough and sensible shoes. 

·        An enormous thank you to Edwina Bridgeman who has just finished as Artist in Residence with the KS1 children.  I hope you were able to come in to the Creative Space and admire the children’s work in Friday afternoon’s exhibition.  As ever, Edwina, and her work, was an inspiration for the children and I suspect you might have heard lots about it at home!  Thank you as well to all the parents who supported the children at the Victoria Art Gallery and back at school.  Special appreciation for Penny Hay who dedicated her entire week to working with all the children which helped make the experience so wonderful for them all. 

Coming up soon:

Tuesday 11 May: Meeting in the Cl. 7 for all parents of children going to Bude, at 3.30

Friday 13 May:  Parent Visit and Consultation in the Mike’s Meadow, at 9.15am

Friday 21 May, 10am:  Pentecost Assembly at St John’s Church , led by Alison Fry.  Everyone welcome!

Thursday 20 May: Class 5 trip to Slimbridge

Sunday 23 May: Departure to Bude for Year 6/5

 
We would like to say thank you!

Thank you to all the parents who cooked gorgeous cakes and volunteered behind the stall on Friday, raising a fabulous £135 for Class 5.  Sian is thrilled because this extra funding will really help with the costs of the exciting trip to Slimbridge.  Best wishes, Sarah

BULLETIN - 5th MAY 2010

NEWS & INFORMATION:  

We are trialing changing our newsletter format to a bulletin so that you can keep up to date at a glance.

·        Edwina Bridgeman is working with all KS1 children during this week and you are all invited to view their work at the EXHIBITION in the Creative Space on Friday 7 May after school. 

·        During the Exhibition, we will be showing a draft of our School film made by 5x5x5=creativity film maker Andy Kemp.  Come along and watch your children enjoying our recent Enrichment Day and the staff working together during our INSET day in the Egg Theatre.   The film is about 10 minutes long and we will show it more than once so please do take time to enjoy the Exhibition too. 

·        You will know how excited we are about the chance to develop the field behind Jack and Jill’s into a flexible, challenging and fun learning environment.  Would you like to join me on Thursday 13 May at 9.15am in the field to see what ideas staff and children are developing and add your own thoughts?  To access the field, called ‘Mike’s Meadow’, use the gate by Jack and Jill’s but do wear long trousers and wellies.

Coming up soon:

Friday 7 May:  KS1 5x5x5=creativity Exhibition in the Creative Space from 3.00pm

Friday 7 May:  Class 5 Cake Sale, 3.15pm

Thursday 13 May:  Parent Visit and Consultation in the field, at 9.15am

Friday 21 May:  Pentecost Assembly at the St John’s Church, led by Rev’d. Alison Fry.  Everyone welcome!

We would like to say thank you!

·         Thank you Derek Redding and Jamie Lengyel for donating £100 to school for sports equipment.  Derek and Jamie worked hard as marshals at the Bath Half Marathon and have kindly donated their fee to school. 

·        Thank you so much to all our children who continue to raise money for the people of Haiti.  We have been so impressed by their compassion and independent organisational skills.

4^th May, 2010

Dear parents,

 KS2 SATs

 Many of you will have been following the press and media coverage of the National Association of Headteachers/NUT ballot and subsequent decision to boycott the 2010 End of Key Stage 2 SATs.

 In accordance with this majority ballot I will not be conducting the 2010 SATs this year at Batheaston.  Our Year 6 children are a priority, and I want to assure you that the children will still be tested and assessed in the following way (a process planned with other Bath primary schools):

 * Although the 2010 papers will not be administered, I believe that the children and staff have worked incredibly hard to prepare for the tests and it would be wrong for them not to have that experience.  I am proud of how staff and parents skilfully prepare for SATs so that our children are calm and positive, and many see the tests as a chance to show how clever they have become.  At Batheaston, we think assessments are important and it is a vital life skill to be able to learn how to manage examinations.  Therefore, all our Year 6 children will sit all the papers during the week beginning 10 May and under precisely the same conditions as they would have if the 2010 SATs had gone ahead.  The difference is only that they will be sitting a set of past papers which we have not used in their preparations this year.

 * The results of the examination process for your child will combine with the teacher assessments to give a very clear and accurate result which will be reported to you, your child and their secondary school.  Teacher assessments and test results will be reported separately.  The data will also be available for Governors and staff in the usual way, so that our normal rigorous process of tracking and monitoring individual children’s progress continues as normal.  This will eliminate the possibility of your child receiving inaccurate results because of circumstances on the day.  (A very real and recent example of a child’s SATs results not representing her true ability was a Year 6 girl who chose to bravely struggle on through her test despite repeatedly having to leave to be sick.) 

 * We will mark the papers and then send them for checking and moderation to another primary school in Bath.  A third school will send us their papers for the same moderation process, so that we have further evidence of our robust and accurate marking and assessment.   Many of the other primary schools who are boycotting the SATs will be following exactly the same procedures as we are planning.  Some Headteachers will not be able to take action because they are not in a union or belong to another one which has not balloted its members.  A letter received from our Local Authority, on Friday, recommends that schools working together to moderate the children’s work is ‘highly effective assessment practice’.

 It is very important that I can reassure you that we have support from Bath Secondary schools and from Corsham.  At a recent meeting, the Bath secondary heads unanimously passed this motion: “BASCL (the secondary schools’ group) supports primary colleagues in the action they are taking regarding KS2 SATs: BASCL supports the credibility and reliability or KS2 teacher assessments, and BASCL supports the principle of taking action against the misuse of assessment data.”   Martin Williams, the Headteacher from Corsham, has had a telephone conversation with us and he stated that he was happy with the alternative arrangements, too.

 This year, as is usual practice, Claire will meet tutors/heads of year of each of the secondary schools to talk about your child, and these conversations really help towards a smooth transition to the next school.  Claire will be sharing each child’s academic levels and test results with the relevant secondary school as well as important information about their individual characters and friendships. 

 The big difference is that no data will be sent off to the government to contribute to the construction of league tables.  Our school consistently does very well in these league tables, but that isn’t the same for all schools and all children.  Data and the construction of comparative league tables does place pressure on schools and families, and this information can be potentially misleading and distressing.  I am sure you have all heard that the curriculum for Year 6 children elsewhere can be very narrow as schools under pressure try to prepare for successful SATs results.  Here we are so privileged to have staff who are skilfully balancing out the need to prepare children for tests with a broad and personalised curriculum.   Last Thursday, the PVG reps were keen to recognise this, and held a thoughtful discussion where many shared stories of children they know in other contexts who are showing signs of distress and anxiety about the SATs process.  I am sure your class rep. would be happy to summarise this discussion for you if this is helpful.

 I have taken time to consider my decision to boycott this year’s set of papers. There has been lots of discussion with staff, other primary heads and Governors and this is a reluctant last step to try to change a long- standing state of affairs which many professionals and educationalists agree is wrong. 

 I hope this letter is helpful and explains the reasons for my decision.  Many other local Year 6 parents will have received a very similar letter over the last few days!  I am out of school attending a course on Thursday but am otherwise at school if you would like to contact me about this letter.

 Best wishes,

 

Sarah

Dear Parents,

Fundraising News!

We have been incredibly impressed by the fundraising efforts recently, which have been really inspiring.  A huge “Well done!” to all the children who have taken it upon themselves to raise funds for Haiti, through events such as sponsored runs; slidathons; sale of snowdrops, cake and toy sales and much more!  Donations are still coming in but already a wonderful £320 has been raised.   We are extremely proud of the children’s empathy and consideration for the victims of this disastrous earthquake.

The scheduled fundraising for Lepra has also been enormously successful, as well as being fun and healthy for the children; over £900 has been donated to this worthy cause.

You will remember that due to the children’s enthusiasm we were also persuaded to become involved in some last-minute, low-key  fundraising for Sport Relief, which has resulted in a very worthwhile £175.  Again, our thanks to all the parents and children who supported this.

And last but not least, a fantastic £205 was raised at the Class 1 Cake Sale which will go towards resources/opportunities for the Reception children.  Thank you to everyone involved for all the baking and organisation that went into this.

Finally, we would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a very happy and relaxing Easter break, and we look forward to seeing you all again on Monday, 19^th April. 

 Best wishes,

 Sarah and the staff

THE PROPOSED PLANS FOR THE ALTERNATIVE ACCESS

TO THE CONSTRUCTION SITE FOR THE BUILDING WORKS VIA COALPIT ROAD AND THE 

FOOTBALL FIELD

HAVE NOW BEEN REGISTERED

WITH B&NES PLANNING DEPARTMENT. 

 

They can be viewed on the B&NES Website as follows:

www.bathnes.gov.uk

quick link to: ‘PLANNING’

 then ‘VIEW PLANNING APPLICATIONS’

 then ‘SPECIFIC APPLICATIONS’

 Enter Application Reference No:   10/01181/FUL

 

Tuesday 23^rd March 2010

Dear Class 7  Parents,

 As you will have read on my previous letters, Class 7 will be sitting their Key Stage 2 SAT assessments during the week beginning 10^th May.

 I thought it might be helpful to have a short meeting for you to clarify exactly which tests children sit, offer you examples of the types and levels of questions and suggest ways you can help to support and prepare your child.  The meeting will be on Monday 29^th March in Class 7 from 3.30pm. 

 There will be opportunity to ask questions of course, but if you have any queries relating specifically to your individual child, I am happy to arrange a separate meeting with you.  The children are welcome to stay at school but the meeting is for you as parents.

 To finish, let me say how very, very proud of the children I am.  They are working with a real drive and commitment whilst having lots of fun and extra opportunities as always. 

 Best wishes,

Claire

 

Dear Parents,

SPORT RELIEF

As you are no doubt aware, this weekend, 19^th-21^st March, is Sport Relief.   The charity raises money for people in the UK, and in other parts of the world, who are less fortunate than we are.  We know that you have been incredibly supportive of our fundraising efforts recently, both for Haiti and for Lepra and we, therefore, planned to miss Sport Relief.  However, many of the children have asked their teachers if we can do something as a school and clearly feel that it is an important cause they would like to support.  We want to recognise this, and hope that we have come up with a good compromise.

 On Monday, 22^nd March, and again on Tuesday, 23rd March,  we will be celebrating Sport Relief.  Teachers will share the excellent resources provided by the charity, including photopacks and stories.  Children are encouraged to wear ‘sporty clothes’ to school on those days for a voluntary donation.  There is no suggested or minimum donation and we want to be very clear that there is no expectation for the children to bring money in.  Teachers will explain to children that parents may have supported charities in many other ways this term and may not feel able to contribute through the school on this occasion.  During those days, children will have supervised access to sports equipment at playtimes and lunchtime.  All classes will have extra P.E. provision on Monday or Tuesday – the older children are going to try to run a mile! 

 We hope that this will not cause any inconvenience to you whilst being a simple way to recognise and develop the global empathy which is such an amazing feature of our children.

 Many thanks for your support!

***

10th March, 2010

Dear Parents/Carers

5x5x5=creativity

5x5x5=creativity is a research project working with groups of 5 schools, artists and cultural centres to support children’s creative development. Artist Edwina Bridgeman is working with all the children in the school soon alongside colleagues from Bath Festivals. KS2 children will work with Ed next week (15-19 March) and KS1 children in after Easter (30 April-7 May).

We are taking Classes 4,5,6 and 7 to visit Ed’s exhibition at the Victoria Art Gallery next Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday mornings 10-11.30am (15,16,18,19 March) as part of 5x5x5=creativity. Ed will introduce the children to the exhibition and we will work in sketchbooks to develop their ideas. Ed will be working with each class of children back in school in the afternoon.

We would love to invite you to come along as a parent documenter at any stage during the week, but especially on the trip! On one of the days Andy Kemp, international film maker and 5x5x5 artist will be filming for our DVD! Please let me know if you are free.

We will have an exhibition in progress for KS2 next Friday 19 March from 3pm in the Creative Space.

Best wishes

Penny
Parent Governor

FFI see www5x5x5creativity.org.uk

.................................................................................................................................

 The week's Itinerary:

Monday – Class 5
Tuesday -  Class 6                      The coach will pick up from school at 9.30
Thursday – Class 7                     and will drop the children off at school in 
Friday – Class 4                          time for lunch at 12.00pm.

 Please get in touch with the school if you do not give permission for your child to participate.  There is no cost to parents as this excursion is covered by CCE funding.

Batheaston CEVC Primary School

Newsletter – 8th  March 2010

 
Dear Parents, 

At last it feels like spring may be on the way!  As usual, it is a busy and productive time at school with lots of news and thanks to share.

Building Project News: Everyone here is feeling very excited and positive about the new buildings but we are also working hard, with BANES Major Projects Team,  to ensure disruption to normal school life and the locality is minimised as much as is possible.  As you know, the plans have been registered and we are waiting to find out what the Planning Department concludes about the hall and classroom designs, as well as deciding how the contractors should access this very difficult site.  The following information is a summary of the current position:

 The contractors will be appointed within the next couple of months and work will hopefully start in June, which is later than we originally anticipated.   The intention is that work on the school site itself will start in the summer holidays.  All the furniture and resources from Classes 6 and 7 will be moved into the temporary classrooms over the summer ready for the new academic year.  This now means that our current Class 7 will NOT be moved out of the old class before they leave Batheaston.  

1.  From September, the Year 6 and 5 temporary classrooms will be sited on the Church Field near the Church Hall.  Until the contractors have been appointed and put together a building programme, we can’t confirm how long the children will be housed in temporary accom-modation, but it could be as long as the school year.  Many plans are being developed to make sure that the children and staff are comfortably settled into the temporary classrooms (e.g. an all-weather path across the field; a gate in the wall near school; toilets between the rooms, ICT provision etc).  We are very grateful to the PCC for their kind hospitality and for allowing us to site the classrooms on the field and to use the Church Hall during the whole building process.  As specific detail becomes available, I will ensure that the parents and children who are due to ‘decant’, (move), will be fully informed and involved.  

2. There will be two separate access options for the Planners to investigate and they may conclude that either is possible or just the one option.  We are very grateful that creative planning by the B&NES Project Team means that we will not have to face the practical problems of construction vehicles having to share School Lane with the children!  Neighbours who live near either potential access route (Coalpit Road or the old allotment area behind the Lapa), have been informed and consulted with.  We are expecting the Planning Department to decide which is best using a variety of criteria, and we will inform you all as soon as we know.  We have plans of both access routes in the office if you need to know more at this point.

3. We are at the very beginning of discussions about the interior designs for the new building, which is very exciting and inspiring!  Next, we shall be consulting with the children and then will display the designs for parents. 

4. Once the building work is complete we have the extra, and unexpected, wonderful opportunity to develop our school grounds.  The soil from beneath the current hall and old classrooms will be moved to the old allotment area, (right of the Lapa), and will help create a new outdoor space for the children which is bigger than the current school site.  We are full of thoughts about planting trees; creating glades; keeping more goats; another outdoor classroom and many more ideas!  There are no plans to build permanent school buildings on the site but I am sure you can imagine how a larger outdoor learning space, which we have the unique opportunity to develop, will enhance the already rich school environment.  I know that several parents have already expressed an interest in becoming involved in planning how to develop the space – currently known as Mike’s Meadow – and I will be in touch soon.  
   

5.    There is a Neighbours’ Meeting for anyone who would like to know more about the proposed alternative access plans via Coalpit Road and the football field TONIGHT (08/03/10) from 6.00 to 7.00pm at the school in Class 1.

 I know that you will all appreciate that firm starting dates and other details of this project may have to change, and that new/different information may need to be communicated to everyone.  However, I am also sure that we all believe that the enormous improvement to our school is very much worth the need for lots of creative problem-solving.
 
Shakespeare at ‘the egg’:  A huge WELL DONE to all of our Class 6 children who worked so hard together to perform the first half of “Romeo and Juliet” at the egg theatre last week.  I felt very privileged to be part of an enthusiastic audience which watched our Year 5 children intelligently and sensitively perform this play in the original Shakespearian English.  Congratulations too, to the Year 6 class from Southdown Junior School who worked together to conclude the play.   Hannah and Lucy from the egg worked with Class 6 over the space of several weeks and they were both impressed by the talents and work ethic of our children.  Looking forward to seeing them all again in our next production!
 
School of Creativity News:  So many exciting curriculum developments have begun and we are very enthusiastic about how much we have achieved already; the new developments are having such a positive impact on the breadth and variety of opportunities for children.  We are very grateful to CCE, (Creativity, Culture and Education), for their support and funding which has enabled us to develop this work:

Ø      We are starting to create part of the curriculum with the children (co-construct), which is giving us all the opportunity to improve and update our Values Curriculum (Empathy; Race; Disability; Gender; Poverty & Privilege and Age).  With the children we have focused on the area of ‘Gender’ this term, alongside a planned emphasis on communication skills.

Ø      We are beginning to look at how we create and maintain display spaces around the school and investigating ways in which the children can be better involved and have greater responsibility.

Ø      Our INSET day, at the beginning of this term, was planned to give the adults at school the time to reflect on what we mean by creativity.  We had an inspiring and challenging day at ‘the egg’, listening to Andrea Sully,  Learning Research & Development Adviser, at North Somerset Council, and taking part in workshops like dance, music and creative play.

Ø      The following Thursday was Enrichment Day for the whole school, and some of the creative practitioners who had led workshops with us came in to do the same activities with the children.  The theme for the day was ‘Gender’ and a wide variety of workshops were on offer for everyone, including ‘Strong Enough for Gym’,  ‘Walk on the Wild Side’ and ‘Maths and the Movies’.  We are very grateful to all the parents and staff whose hard work made the day so memorable for us all.  A particular thanks to the team of dedicated parents and staff who documented learning in all workshops, and then spent a busy afternoon collating all the evidence.  A special thanks to Penny, 5x5x5 and egg staff for making these two days possible.

Ø      Edwina Bridgeman, our wonderful 5x5x5=creativity artist, is beginning a new residency at school for KS2 next week.   We are hoping to organise for all the juniors to visit Edwina’s exhibition at the Victoria Art Gallery as an inspiring start to their own work.  We hope you have the chance to visit the exhibition too, which runs until 6^th May.

Ø      Nikki, Claire, Penny and I were asked to lead a workshop on Family Engagement in school at the CCE Conference for Schools in Birmingham.  We had a fascinating day last week, meeting a few of the 400 delegates, attending a wide range of sessions and thoroughly enjoyed sharing and celebrating some of the work we are proud to have achieved together at Batheaston

Ø      As part of the documentation of what we are doing, and for our Birmingham Conference, we have had a short film made of our INSET day and the Enrichment Day.  Once we have edited it a little more, we shall be inviting you all to a drop-in ‘premiere’ so that you see adults and children working hard and enjoying themselves!

Ø      Class 7 will be joined by a poet, Chrissy Gittings, this Thursday through the Bath Festivals Trust and sponsored by Mr. B’s Bookshop, and they will spend the best part of the day creating poetry with her, again round the theme of gender.  

These are the ‘headlines’ of what is happening with our ‘School of Creativity’ agenda at the moment.  We will be reporting in detail on different aspects as we go along. 

Other News in Brief:

• Please do help us by ensuring your toddlers and pre-schoolers understand that they are not allowed to scoot or cycle in the bottom playground at the beginning or end of the school day.  We will continue to remind the school-aged children of this important rule for everyone’s safety.
• Thank you to everyone for your support for our Cake Sales.  Two more very successful sales mean that the classes can purchase some new resources and/or subsidise the cost of a school trip.  Well done to Class 4 who raised £158.44  and Class 7 who raised £115.03! 

• General fundraising this year will be focussed on helping to replace the out-of-date Interactive Whiteboards and projectors in some of the classes.  We will, of course, be directing any available funds from the school budget towards this ‘refreshment cycle’, but with your kind support for fundraising we can replace more in a shorter time scale.  With the completion of the new buildings the whole school will benefit from investment in ICT as part of the PCP scheme, and this will bring us new possibilities.  However, we do have some hardware that urgently needs replacing – we were one of the first schools to have Interactive Whiteboards in each classroom and so now they are coming to the end of their lives! 

• Thank you to the Year 4 children who have volunteered to work in the library as Librarians, but we are also in urgent need of some adults to support the children and help out on a regular basis.  It could be for 10 minutes a day once you have dropped your child off to class in the morning or a longer session once a week, for instance.  If you think you can help at all then George, Class 2’s teacher, would be thrilled to hear from you. 

• As a secure way of dealing with your payments/letters etc., and to help the smooth running of the office, we would be most grateful if parents would make full use of the letterbox beside the reception window.  This leads to a locked box which is frequently checked, providing a safer method of posting important items than leaving them on the desk, and also avoids frequent interruptions.  Thank you. 

• Thanks to all who continue to park considerately at the beginning and end of the school day; your help with this is much appreciated by the school and its neighbours. 

• Please note that there is an outbreak of chickenpox in Class 1, and there also appears to be a sickness bug doing the rounds.  We would ask that children not be returned to school within 48 hours of sickness to help avoid spreading this to others, and we will also be re-iterating the importance of handwashing to the children.

 With best wishes,

 Sarah Weber

Dear Neighbour,

 School Building Project – Alternative Access Plans

 As you may know, the school has been granted funds from central government to replace the school hall and two classrooms which are no longer fit for purpose.   These exciting plans have been developed with B&NES Project Management Team and in consultation with our parents, children, Governors and members of the local community.  Great care has been taken to design first-class accommodation for the pupils which will be sympathetic with our village setting as well as being environmentally innovative.

 The building plans have been submitted for Planning Approval, and are available for you to see on the B&NES website:

www.bathnes.gov.uk

quick link to “Planning”;   “View Planning Applications”,

 “Specific Applications”;    Enter Application Reference No:   09/04919/REG03

where there will be the opportunity to leave a comment or objection.  Batheaston Parish Council will be considering the plans on 9^th March at 2.00pm in the Reg Rhymes Pavilion, and they will be available at B&NES Planning Services, Trimbridge House, Trim Street, Bath (01225 394041) to view in person.

 Recently, additional plans for an alternative access to the school site via Coalpit Road and the football field have been developed, which you will see from the attached sheet.

Our priorities will be to minimise disruption for the children’s education and also for the local community during the construction period, within the constraints posed by the restricted school site.   The alternative access to the site has only recently been developed, and we would like to invite you to a Neighbourhood Meeting to discuss these arrangements (e.g. construction site; lorry movement etc.).   This meeting will take place on:

 Monday, 8^th March from  6.00pm to 7.00pm

In Class 1 at the school

We do hope you will be able to take advantage of this opportunity to hear how the management of this project is being planned with consideration for our neighbours in mind.  If you are unable to attend and wish to contact the Project Management Team, please email: hayley_james@bathnes.gov.uk. 

 With best wishes,

 Sarah Weber and the Governors

For the attention of Class 2 an 3 parents:

Dear Class 2 and 3 parents,

To conclude our ‘At the Seaside’ topic we are delighted to tell you that classes two and three have organised a trip together to Weston Super Mare. The trip will be on Friday  26^th March, the last Friday before the Easter holiday.

 When we arrive in Weston Super Mare we will begin our visit at the Seaquarium.  During the morning each class will have an opportunity to explore the aquarium with their group adult, as well as having a presentation about some of the sea creatures in the centre.

 In the afternoon we will spend some time on the beach having a sandcastle competition.

 The children will all need to wear sensible shoes, and could they also please bring a light coat or rain mac as the British weather can never be relied on at the moment!  They will all need a packed lunch and a drink (no chocolate or fizzy drinks please.) 

 We have worked extremely hard to keep the price of this visit as low as possible and will be asking for a contribution of £12 to cover the costs of the Seaquarium and the coaches.  We do appreciate that this is still a lot of money, and have therefore ensured that this is our only expensive trip this year.  We will ask for payment by Wednesday 24^th March.  The Seaquarium has a shop and the children are free to bring up to £2 to spend there.

 As Weston Super Mare is quite a distance away and the first presentation will begin at 10.30 we will be leaving school at 9:00.  All of the children will need to be at school by 8:50.  If anybody is interested in coming along please speak to your child’s class teacher.

 Many thanks

 
George & Claire

23rd February, 2010

Dear Parents,  We thought you would like a reminder about the important E-SAFETY MEETING FOR PARENTS being held tonight (Tuesday, 23^rd February) at St. Mark’s School Hall at 7.30pm.  We would urge you to attend this meeting to find out how children may be using the internet and how parents can help to keep them safe. 

Parent volunteers are very welcome to join us for our exciting Enrichment Day, when children will be choosing from a variety of stimulating workshops being run by specialists in different creative activities such as:

 Maths and the Movies * Creative Play * Seriously Science * Music & Rhythm * Where The Wild Things Are

 
Please do contact the school if you are able to support a group of children or act as a documenter (taking notes/quotes/photos) on this day - enjoy watching the children’s involvement in these fantastic opportunities which are a central part of our new project work supported and funded by our School of Creativity status.  

www.bathnesgov.uk

then quick link to:  ‘PLANNING’
then:  ‘VIEW PLANNING APPLICATIONS’
then:  ‘SPECIFIC APPLICATIONS’
Enter Application Reference No:   09/04919/REG03

 Please feel free to write or email them with your support and enthusiasm for this project, as this feedback is valuable to the decision-making process.  We are sure there are lots of supportive parents out there whose positive comments deserve to be heard! 

As part of their ongoing involvement with this building project, many of the children will be writing letters outlining the aspects of the designs they are most excited about, e.g. all the possibilities created by the increased size of the hall; the brown roof and ‘eco’ elements; the IT improvements for the whole school; light, airy classrooms with integrated outside space; the chance to further enhance the outdoor learning around the school site, etc. etc!

Enrichment Day – Thursday 25th February 

 

  

 ***

North Bath Extended Services Presents:

STAYING SAFE ON-LINE

“Do you know where your children are tonight?”

Come to a meeting that will inform you about:

·       Helping to keep your children safe online

·       Knowing the types of things they do when on-line

·       Solutions for safeguarding children and young people

The meeting will be held in the Main Hall at 
St. Mark’s Secondary School on Tuesday 23^rd February from 7.00pm to 8.00pm

 
***

Message for Class 6 Parents re. the egg – 

Please return reply slip on hard copy given to children on Friday 5/2/10, or call the office with your permission

Dear Class 6 Parents

 I would like to take this opportunity to provide you with an update on our exciting Romeo and Juliet production.

 The children have now had several sessions with Hannah from ‘the egg’ theatre. All children are now starting to get a real understanding of the story and language involved in the play and are responding to the challenge really well. It is wonderful to watch so many of them putting such a lot of effort and enthusiasm into making the most of this fantastic opportunity.

 As part of the project we have been paired with a class from Southdown Junior School who will be rehearsing and performing the second half of the play whilst we are responsible for the first. As we are only performing half of the play, the children will be on stage for approximately 30 mins. Although this means the majority of speaking parts do not seem large, Hannah is ensuring that the children get as much time on stage as possible throughout the performance. In addition to the speaking parts, the children have already started building up their acting parts for the prologue and will soon be working on the fight and ball scenes. ‘The egg’ theatre will be providing all costumes and props.

 Next Thursday (11^th February) we have been invited to spend the morning at ‘the egg’ theatre between 9:30 and 11:30. This will be to meet our partner class and find out more about the production. Children will need to be in our classroom early on this day (by 8:40am) as the coach will be leaving at 8:50am. We will be back in time for a normal lunch so children can still choose dinners or sandwiches. There will be no charge to you for any of our trips to ‘the egg’.

 The dates for our evening performances at ‘the egg’ have now been confirmed as Monday 1^st March and Tuesday 2^nd March. The start time is 7:30pm and it is anticipated to last approx. 1 hour. Tickets will be available from ‘the egg’ ticket office nearer the time, there will be a small charge for tickets. I will let you know more information about these performances as soon as I have it. We will be spending the day at the theatre on the Monday of the performance in order to be involved in the technical side of preparations as well as dress rehearsals. It is likely that the children will be at ‘the egg’ from 9:30am until the start of the performance at 7:30pm taking part in various activities as well as lots of breaks! I should hopefully be receiving more information next Thursday which I shall pass on to you.

 Thank you for your continued support.

    Jo 

Dear parents,

 As you know we try to give as much notice as possible of INSET days, and so we are letting you know now that the school will be closed on THURSDAY 1^st April, meaning that the last day of Term 4 will be WEDNESDAY, 31^st March at 3.15pm (if your child stays to Wednesday Workshops, which WILL be running that day). 

 Just to remind you, Monday 22^nd February is also an INSET day and the school will be closed.

 Please also note that you are invited to a School of Creativity Parents’ Evening on Wednesday, 27^th January at 6.00pm in Class 1, when we will be talking to you about the exciting work we have planned over the next two years or so.  Everyone is welcome, as this will be a chance for us to explain the opportunities available to your children, and to discuss how you may wish to get involved.  

Your child will be coming home today with a Transport Questionnaire, which we would be extremely grateful if you could complete and return to us by Friday 22nd January.  This information is being requested and collated by B&NES to help plan to minimise any disruption during the school building project.  They are very keen for a 100% response to this home/school transport survey, to ensure the best possible plans can be put in place.

 Our new building plans have now been submitted for planning permission, and once these have been registered they will be available to everyone on line;  meanwhile you may wish to see the press release on the Local News page of the BBC website under 'Somerset'.

 Thank you to everyone who supported our highly successful and enjoyable Eco-Week, which culminated in the wonderful Dress as a Fruit or Vegetable Friday!  We all agreed that the money raised on Friday would be donated to the Haitian relief fund, and we will be raising funds for our food composter at a later date.

I would like to take the opportunity to say how impressed we were with the Eco-Team, who helped to plan and implement such successful events throughout the week.

 Best wishes,

 Sarah

***

Dear parents,

 

As you know we try to give as much notice as possible of INSET days, and so we are letting you know now that the school will be closed on THURSDAY 1^st April, meaning that the last day of Term 4 will be WEDNESDAY, 31^st March at 3.15pm (if your child stays to Wednesday Workshops, which WILL be running that day). 

 

Just to remind you, Monday 22^nd February is also an INSET day and the school will be closed.

 

Please also note that you are invited to a School of Creativity Parents’ Evening on Wednesday, 27^th January at 6.00pm in Class 1, when we will be talking to you about the exciting work we have planned over the next two years or so.  Everyone is welcome, as this will be a chance for us to explain the opportunities available to your children, and to discuss how you may wish to get involved. 

 

Your child will be coming home today with a Transport Questionnaire, which we would be extremely grateful if you could complete and return to us by Friday 22^nd January.  This information is being requested and collated by B&NES to help plan to minimise any disruption during the school building project.  They are very keen for a 100% response to this home/school transport survey, to ensure the best possible plans can be put in place.

 

Our new building plans have now been submitted for planning permission, and once these have been registered they will be available to everyone on line;  meanwhile you may wish to see the press release on the Local News page of the BBC website: www.bbc.co.uk under ‘Somerset’.

 

Thank you to everyone who supported our highly successful and enjoyable Eco-Week, which culminated in the wonderful Dress as a Fruit or Vegetable Friday!  We all agreed that the money raised on Friday would be donated to the Haitian relief fund, and we will be raising funds for our food composter at a later date.

I would like to take the opportunity to say how impressed we were with the Eco-Team, who helped to plan and implement such successful events throughout the week.

 

Best wishes,

 

 

Sarah

w.bbc.co.u

* * *

                                                                                                15/01/10

Dear Parents,

I hope this is the last time I will be bothering you all with snow related information!! Looks like this period of severe weather is now coming to an end.

We wanted to say a special thank you to all the generous parents who helped shovel snow and ice yesterday.  It made a significant difference to the safety of the school site and all the lanes and paths.  Thank you to staff, too, who were also all busy clearing the snow.

The Bath Chronicle was so impressed to hear that parents were so supportive and pro-active that they sent a photographer and reporter to school yesterday.  They got a few details wrong but I was really pleased to be able to say a public thank you to all the volunteers!

Best wishes,

Sarah

* * *  

E-Safety Meeting for Parents tonight (11^th January) CANCELLED

 Unfortunately we have been advised that tonight's E-safety Meeting for Parents at Bathampton Primary School has had to be postponed.  We will advise you of the re-scheduled date as soon as possible.

Please also note that due to delivery difficulties last week, this week's schools meals menus may be subject to change, although there will continue to be two options, one of which will be vegetarian.

We anticipate that the school will remain open over the coming week unless there is a severe deterioration in the weather.  Please keep listening to local radio, or check the B&NES website on:

www.bathnes.gov.uk/BathNES/educationandlearning/Schoolsandcolleges/SchoolsClosures

Thank you.

* * *

SEVERE WEATHER WARNING……

 THE LATEST INFORMATION IS THAT THERE COULD BE SIGNIFICANT SNOWFALL THIS EVENING. 

 B&NES HAVE ADVISED US THAT WE SHOULD PREPARE FOR SCHOOL CLOSURE, WHICH WE WILL AVOID, IF POSSIBLE.  HOWEVER, IF THERE ARE NOT ENOUGH STAFF ABLE TO GET TO SCHOOL TO SAFELY SUPERVISE YOUR CHILDREN, THE FOLLOWING PROCEDURE WILL APPLY:

*If you have registered with Parentmail and the school is closed, we will be using this system to send a text message as soon as the decision is made.  An email will also be sent. 

*If you are not registered with Parentmail yet, or are in any doubt, please listen to local radio stations e.g. HEART and BATH FM.

 *Alternatively, you can log onto:

.gv.ukand go to the “SCHOOLS & COLLEGES” page
then click on “SCHOOLS – Closures” to
see the message about Batheaston.

***

NEW INSET DATE:  Please note that the school will be closed for staff training on
        MONDAY, 22nd  FEBRUARY, 2010

***

ECO-WEEK!

January 11^th – 15^th, 2010

Dear Parents/Carers,

We are writing to you to inform you of the ECO-WEEK, which will be taking place throughout next week and will
involve whole-school and class based activities.  Here is our timetable:-
 

Monday 11th	THEME:  WATER Please bring in any spare coppers to contribute to our ‘WaterAid’  campaign.
Tuesday 12th	THEME: ENERGY We will be trying to ensure that we use as little energy as possible during the day.
Wednesday 13th	THEME: WASTE Please try to make sure your child’s lunchboxes contain only recyclable packaging.  Thank you!
Thursday 14th	THEME: FOOD MILES We will be walking up to the farm shop to look at the local produce and think about where our food is sourced from.  Could you please make sure your child wears suitable shoes for the occasion.
Friday  15th	FUNDRAISING For Friday, could you please dress up as a fruit or vegetable (or in one colour).  Could you please try to bring in a minimum of 20p to help raise money for a food composter, which will enable us to solve our food waste issues and create compost for our gardens.

 We hope your child(ren) enjoy and contribute to our Eco-Week!

 Best wishes,

 
Lucy, Evie and The Eco-Team

***

INTERNET SAFETY INFORMATION EVENING

FOR PARENTS!

 

MONDAY, 11^TH JANUARY, 2010

from 7.00 – 8.30pm

at

Bathampton Primary School

 

*  Do you want to know more about how your children can use the internet?

*    Do you want to find out more about Networking sites like Bebo and Facebook?

*    Do you want to help prevent your children from inadvertently accessing inappropriate material on the web?

 

We have joined together with other local schools to arrange an information-sharing event run by the South West Grid for Learning and the local Police, to help parents and provide them with methods and approaches to protect children while using the internet.   Come along and find out more about this important subject.

 
Please put this date in your diary.  We will be sending out a further letter next term with a reply slip to give us an idea of the numbers of parents planning to attend.

***

Newsletter – 15th December 2009

 In this newsletter:
Parentmail; Fundraising thanks you’s; Website; Eco-Week;
Free Computers for KS2; Parking; Staffing; E-safety Evening for Parents 11/01/10

  Dear Parents,

 Please note that this is the final newsletter before Parentmail goes live!  This time, we will again send a hard copy as well as an email via Parentmail, but as from January ALL notices will be sent in email format, if you signed up for this.  Please make sure you keep us, and Parentmail, up-to-date with any email/mobile number changes. Thank you; we do hope this system of communication proves helpful to you.

 As we are near the end of a very busy and successful term, I’d like to take the opportunity to thank all parents for your support and say a huge well done to the staff for all the hard work, commitment and enthusiasm!  I’m sure you’ll agree with me that the Christmas Performances were truly magical, memorable and again reinforced the belief that our school is packed with talented children!  Please see the display of lovely photos for you to order in the Creative Space.

 Successful Fundraising – Thank you!

• Thank you to Louise Ashley and her team of helpers for organising the incredibly successful Jumble Sale which raised over £482 for school funds.  We really appreciate this donation as, added to the money raised at the Christmas Fair and some School of Creativity funding, we have now purchased a new camera and video camera for each class.  These will be used by staff and children which will enhance our ICT facilities and also provide further opportunities to document teaching and learning.
• We had a thoroughly enjoyable Children in Need day and were thrilled to raise £227.  Through your kind donations after the recent performances, we have also been able to share £400 between St. John’s Church and Genesis.  Thank you!
• Our Christmas Fair was also a successful and fun afternoon which raised £780.  Thank you to all the staff and parent helpers who supported the children in the creation of such a variety of lovely products.

 Website: We hope that you get the opportunity to look at the school website.  Newsletters are uploaded onto it which gives everyone useful back-up if the paper one goes missing.  We have many more plans to improve and add to the website and are very grateful to Andrew Soltau, (Amadea’s father), for the hours of time and effort he has so generously given us so that we can make these changes.  With Andrew’s support, we are busily upgrading the website so please keep having the occasional look!

 Eco Week:  Early notice that Eco Week will be starting on Monday 11 January.  The week’s activities are being planned by our Eco Team and we shall be in touch again shortly.

E-Safety Meeting for Parents:  Local primary schools have joined together to run an information evening with South West Grid for Learning, to help parents support their children’s safe use of the internet.  More details about this important event will follow, but the proposed date is Monday, January 11^th at Bathampton Primary School, at 7.00pm.

 Important information for families of KS2 children, (Classes 4 to 7), who are registered for Free School Meals – FREE COMPUTER FOR HOME USE TO SUPPORT CHILDREN’S WORK AND LEARNING:  We are waiting for confirmation and information, but we have had the exciting news that families will be given the funding by the Government so they can go and buy a computer for home use.  There will also be funded internet access for at least the first year.   We will hear more, hopefully before the end of this school term, and will contact you directly if your family is eligible.   Even if your child has sandwiches, it is therefore very worthwhile applying for Free Schools Meals if you are eligible (if you receive Income Support; Child Tax Credit (not Working Tax Credit); Employment Support Allowance and/or Jobseeker’s Allowance - income based only).  Do ask Nicky in the office for further information or an application form.

 Parking: We appreciate that we all have to deal with trying to park in the narrow roads around school and we are grateful that parents try to avoid driving down School Lane.  However, even with regular requests about safe and considerate parking, we are still receiving reports of cars parked on the ‘hump’ and the triangle at the top of School Lane, as well as across neighbours’ gates and driveways.  Please do think carefully about where you park your car – we’d rather your children were a few minutes late than have anyone’s safety put at risk or have our neighbour’s access compromised.  Thank you for your co-operation. 

 Staff news:  Welcome back to George, (Georgina Wilson), who returns to work this week after her maternity leave.  George will be teaching Class 2 after the Christmas holidays and I know is really looking forward to working with the children and getting to know parents.  She is planning to have a ‘Tea and Talk’ early on in January.

 I would like to take this opportunity to say a huge and heartfelt thank you to Jackie and Jon for their commitment and nurture of all the children.  The teachers will be working hard together to ensure there is a smooth transition for the children and, luckily for all of us, Jackie and Jon continue to work within the school in different roles and will keep in close touch with Class 2.  Thank you too, to Sarah Gregory who has been teaching Class 1 on Fridays while Jackie has been teaching Class 2.  Sarah will hopefully continue to be involved in school, working on supply, and we are very grateful to her for her involvement and dedication over the last 2 terms.

 Have a wonderful Christmas and a relaxing holiday!  We’re planning more fun and busy-ness in 2010 and look forward to seeing you all on Monday 4 January!

 Best wishes,

Sarah

 

BATHEASTON CEVC PRIMARY SCHOOL

Christmas Events!

Dear Parents,

 Our Christmas events are now well underway so we thought we would write a quick reminder about the details for upcoming performances.

 Firstly, a huge thank you for your support for our Christmas Fair on Friday.  It was busy and successful, leaving everyone feeling very festive.  We are busy totalling up and we will let you know in the next few days how much we have raised towards new digital cameras and camcorders for the classrooms. 

Thursday 3^rd December   -  6.30pm 

Class 1 Nativity and Whole school Carol concert in the Church

Just to confirm, as this is a WHOLE SCHOOL carol concert, ALL children from Classes 2 – 7 are required back at school by 6.10pm.  As noted on the previous letter, we would like them to wear school colours for this performance.  Class 1 children change at the church and will need to be there by 6.00pm where Nikki and the team will greet them.

 There are no tickets required for this event, however, the first few rows of seats will be understandably reserved for Class 1 parents.  Class 1 children can be collected from the church after the performance.  All other children will return to school with their teacher and be collected from their classrooms.  We anticipate the performance will last about one hour.  It will be a lovely evening full of Christmas spirit!

Monday 7^th December     -  10am

Wizard of Oz dress rehearsal for playgroup and pre-school children

Monday 7^th December     - 6.30pm 

Wizard of Oz production Class 2-7 in the Church

Tuesday 8^th December    -  3.00pm 

Wizard of Oz production Class 2-7 in the Church

 We ask that pre-school children attend the dress rehearsal on Monday morning.  On Monday night, children in classes 2 to 6 will need to be back at school by 5.45pm.  Class 7 will need to be back by 5.30pm.  You should now have received your child’s class costume letters and we are asking for costumes to be sent in named carrier bags, in school by Thursday.  Class 1 are not required to come back to school on Monday evening although if they wish to see the performance they are more than welcome.  All children will return to school with their teacher and be collected from their classrooms after the performance.

 For the Tuesday afternoon performance children will be taken to the church directly from school.  There are no tickets required for this event, however, the first few rows of seats will be understandably reserved for Class 7 parents.  Class one children can be collected early that day to attend this performance or can collected as usual at 3.15pm. 

 
Best wishes,

  

Claire and all the staff

A HUGE THANK YOU TO LOUISE TOWNSEND AND HER TEAM OF HELPERS FOR THEIR
FANTASTIC JUMBLE SALE, WHICH RAISED AN AMAZING

£482

FOR SCHOOL FUNDS.  WE ARE SO GRATEFUL TO EVERYONE WHO SUPPORTED
THIS HUGELY SUCCESSFUL EVENT!


Your kind donations for Children in Need made a wonderful total of

£227.50

The children looked fantastic in their costumes and thoroughly enjoyed their day!

CHRISTMAS FAIR FRIDAY 27TH NOVEMBER FROM 1.30PM

Dear Parents,

Our exciting Christmas events are just around the corner and we thought you might appreciate some further details of how you can enjoy and contribute at this busy time.

Friday 27th November - Christmas Fair Stalls open at 1.30pm.

FATHER AND MOTHER CHRISTMAS: This is such a very popular attraction and although we work hard to avoid long waits, it is inevitable that some families don’t see our special visitors until later in the afternoon. For parents who are new to the school, there is a system where you can buy tickets for Santa’s Grotto in the bottom playground in advance from 1.15pm onwards (from 12.45pm for Class 1 parents) at £1 each. We will display in the playground the number we are up to (akin to the Asda deli counter!) so that, while you are waiting, you can look around the stalls or wait in Class 4, where there will be a video showing and festive face painting.

CLASS 1 AND PRE-SCHOOL CHILDREN: Like for the last couple of years, we will have a system where for the 45 minutes before the fair starts (from 12.45pm to 1.30pm) Class 1 parents can bring their children (together with their pre-school or older brothers and sisters) to see Father and Mother Christmas. Hopefully, this additional 45 minutes will reduce the waiting time for everybody later in the afternoon.

CHILDREN’S CRAFTS FOR SALE: The Christmas Fair is partly about celebrating this time of year and marking the beginning of the Christmas activities, but it is also an important fundraiser for the school. This year, we are planning to put the money raised towards new digital cameras and video cameras for the classes. Schools often ask for donations towards materials involved in special technology activities (we used to ask for £2.50 per term) but now we try to combine these sorts of activities with the Christmas crafts the children make and then sell. Hopefully, these crafts can make lovely gifts for Christmas all the more valuable for having been made by the children themselves. We also recognise, however, that this time of year can be very expensive, so, if you have any difficulty in paying for your child’s craft, please speak with your child’s teacher.

COLLECTING YOUR CHILDREN: If you are coming to the beginning of the Christmas Fair, please collect your children from their classes at 1.30pm. As usual, everyone on the staff will be working to run the stalls and so it is very important that you supervise your children. The children of parents who are unable to go to the fair will go to Classes 6 and 7, where there will be activities for them to do. Members of staff will then take groups of the children around all the stalls and activities. If you arrive part way through the afternoon, please collect your child(ren) from Class 6 and 7 (Jo and Claire’s classrooms in the buildings behind the hall). We realise that it can be hard to keep your children with you, but children playing unsupervised in the playground could lead to accidents, so please help us to avoid this. Thank you. A map showing the layout of the stalls will be available when you arrive. The raffle will be drawn in the hall at around 3.00pm.

HOW CAN YOU HELP?

There are lots of ways in which you can help us to make the Christmas Fair as smooth and successful as possible. If everyone could contribute in one of these ways, it would make a huge difference to the funds we raise and the fun we will have.

1. Helping hands on a stall: If you are available to help for part or all of the afternoon, please let Caroline, Sheena or Claire know.

2. Bake a cake (or ten!): One of the most popular stall is always the cake stall but without your donations, it would be impossible to run. Last year we were eaten out of house and home! If you can bake something for us and send it in on the day of the fair, we would be really grateful.

3. Donations to die for: Do you have any items you could donate for the raffle hamper? These could be dropped off in the office with Sue or Nicky. There is also a mug tombola, so if you have any old mugs which you could fill with an item, then Nikki in Class 1 would be most grateful to receive them!

MONDAY 30TH NOVEMBER - ADVENT ASSEMBLY

Alison has kindly invited all of the children to an Advent Assembly at 10am at St John’s church. It will last about 40 minutes and explain to the children the special meaning behind this time of year. You are more than welcome to join us at the church.

THURSDAY 3RD DECEMBER - 6.30PM CLASS 1 NATIVITY AND WHOLE SCHOOL CAROL CONCERT IN THE CHURCH

This year, the Class 1 nativity will take place separately to the whole school production. It will be combined with a whole school carol concert, featuring our new choir and all of the classes singing festive favourites. All children will be required back at school by 6.10pm and we would like them to wear school colours for this performance. Class 1 children change at the church and will need to be there by 6.00pm where Nikki and the team will greet them. There are no tickets required for this event, however, the first few rows of seats will be understandably reserved for Class 1 parents. Class 1 children can be collected from the church after the performance. All other children will return to school with their teacher and be collected from their classrooms.

Monday 7th December, in the Church:

- 10am Wizard of Oz dress rehearsal for playgroup and pre-school children

- 6.30pm Wizard of Oz production Class 2-7<

Tuesday 8th December, in the Church:

- 3.00pm Wizard of Oz production Class 2-7

Our wonderful Christmas production of the Wizard of Oz will be performed three times. We ask that pre-school children attend the dress rehearsal on Monday morning. On Monday night children in classes 2 to 6 will need to be back at school by 5.45pm. Class 7 will need to be back by 5.30pm. Letters about costumes will follow in the next few days. Class 1 are not required to come back to school on Monday evening although if they wish to see the performance they are more than welcome. All children will return to school with their teacher and be collected from their classrooms after the performance.

For the Tuesday afternoon performance children will be taken to the church directly from school. There are no tickets required for this event, however, the first few rows of seats will be understandably reserved for Class 7 parents. Class one children can be collected early that day to attend this performance or can collected as usual at 3.15pm.

Tuesday 15th December - pm Class Christmas parties and discos

(A further note to follow but no changes to normal school time)

Thursday 17th December - Christmas Lunch

(Details available from the office about this delicious way for your children to celebrate Christmas!)

Friday 18th December - End of Term 2

Monday 4th January - Start of Term 3

This time of year always feels so frenetic and busy, but it is also our favourite time of the year. It is such a privilege to live through Christmas in a primary school and we thank you for all of your support with these many events and look forward to seeing you at many of them over the coming weeks.

Best wishes,

Claire and all the staff

NEWSLETTER 1, Term 2

10th November, 2009

SEVERE NUT ALLERGIES: Please could all parents, particularly those in Class 2, be aware that we now have several children with severe NUT ALLERGIES. We would be most grateful if nuts or products containing nuts could be avoided at school if at all possible, to reduce the risk of these vulnerable children coming into contact with them and suffering a reaction. Thank you.

A MESSAGE FROM BATHEASTON LEISURE ASSOCIATION: “As a volunteer organisation, the Batheaston Leisure Association is always keen to welcome new members to share the workload and keep it in touch with the community. This particularly applies to parents of children who use the playground and sports facilities and people keen to see competitive football in the village once again. Anyone interested please come along to the AGM or contact Rob Mimmack on 859708 or robert.mimmack@sky.com. The Annual General Meeting will take place at 7.30 pm on Wednesday November 18th at the Rhymes Pavilion in Coalpit Road. So why not go along and find out what is happening with the football pitch and children's playground, and perhaps have your say!”

THANK YOU! A huge thank you to Patrick and Lucy Woodroffe, who have thrilled us all by donating a stunning electronic piano! This will really enhance the music provision at Batheaston, and is especially welcome at the start of Sian’s new choir. We do hope the children will all take advantage of this, together with the lessons available on piano, recorder, violin, guitar, ukulele and of course, Roger’s fantastic Steel Pans!

BAILBROOK LANE: We thought you might like to know that there is due to be monitoring of the use of Bailbrook Lane and police will be enforcing the ‘No Access’ restriction on its use as a ‘rat run’. It is possible that fines may be imposed.

NO DOGS TO BE TIED NEAR GATE, PLEASE: We would be really grateful if parents could avoid tying dogs up near the school gates. Unfortunately there has already been one incident with a child, and we know that many others do find it intimidating (even if YOU know your dog is gentle, young children don’t always feel the same way!) We do understand it can be difficult to drop children off and supervise a dog, but we are sure you appreciate that the safety of the children must come first. Thank you.

CONGRATULATIONS TO NOAH HICKMAN-RIDING: Many of you may have seen and/or heard Noah (Class 7) on TV and radio, cutting the ribbon at the opening of the new Southgate Centre in Bath. We are so proud of Noah, who was the overall winner of the BIBs Firework Poster Competition, and as one of his many prizes was lucky enough to be nominated to open the shopping centre. Well done, Noah!

BUILDING PROJECT: We do hope you have all had a chance to look at the latest designs which are due to go to planning soon, and which have incorporated a lot of the suggestions and ideas made by you and the children. We are all really excited at how these plans are progressing, and will be keeping you informed about exciting innovations such as the ‘brown’ roof (like a green roof, but also providing habitats for local birds, insects etc.) Please keep watching the A-Frames.

ILLNESS/SWINE FLU: We would be most grateful if parents could report their child’s illness to us promptly by calling 858555 and letting us know the symptoms they are suffering from. As well as recording their absence, this will also help us to monitor any cases of swine flu over the winter months, so that we can keep parents informed.

PARENTMAIL: Thanks to all those parents who returned their Parentmail Contact Forms – if you forgot, do please ask for a form in the office, as it would be wonderful to have 100% of parents signing up, if possible. We are planning to start using this email system at the beginning of Term 3 (January 4th 2010), so don’t forget to periodically check the email account you provided us with for messages (texting will only be used for emergencies).

JUMBLE SALE – Saturday, 14th November from 2.00 to 3.30pm . A huge thank you to the Fundraising Team who are organising this term’s jumble sale next Saturday. Your donations of clothes, books, toys, cakes and raffle prizes are all much appreciated. Thank you!

CHRISTMAS FAIR – Friday, 27th November - 1:30pm Stalls open (12:45pm – Grotto open for Class 1 and Pre-school children). We do hope you are all planning to attend the Christmas Fair on Friday 27th November. Mother and Father Christmas are looking forward to meeting the children; tea, cakes and mulled wine will be available, and you will be able to buy the lovely gifts the children have made. A separate note will be going out next week with further details. Your DONATIONS of items for the wonderful Chrismas hamper that Nicky Benjamin makes up would be most welcome – please drop them into the office at any time, and don’t forget to buy your raffle tickets for a chance to win! Donations of cakes and biscuits are also very much appreciated, and can be brought in on that Friday morning. Thank you for your support! We look forward to seeing you there.

DATES:

Anti-Bullying Week	Monday 16 November
Christmas Fair!	Friday 27 November - 1.30pm Stalls open; (12:45pm – Grotto open for Class 1 and Pre-school children)
Class 7 Cake Sale	Friday 20 November
Advent Assembly in Church	Monday 30 November 10.00am – all welcome!
Class 1 Nativity & Carols in Church	Thursday 3 December, 6.30pm
End of Term Performance	Monday 7 December, 6.30pm Classes 2-7 in Wizard of Oz
End of Term Performance	Tuesday 8 December, 3.30pm Classes 2-7 in Wizard of Oz
Class 5 Cake Sale	Friday 11 December
Christmas Lunch	Thursday 17 December
End of Term 2:	Friday 18 December
TERM 3, Start:	Monday 4 January, 2010
Class 4 Cake Sale	Friday 12 February
Finish:	Friday 12 February
TERM 4, Start:	Monday 22 February
Class 1 Cake Sale	Friday 13 March
Class 3 Cake Sale	Friday 1 April
Finish:	Thursday 1 April
TERM 5, Start:	Monday 19 April
Bank Holiday:	Monday 3 May
Class 2 Cake Sale	Friday 28 May
Finish:	Friday 28 May
TERM 6, Start:	Monday 7 June
Class 6 Cake Sale	Friday 19 June
Finish:	Thursday 22 July
TERM 1, Start:	Thursday 2 September

UPDATE ON BUILDING DESIGNS! Everybody Welcome!

Come and see how our exciting building plans have progressed! The updated design will be on display in the Creative Space from Thursday 15th October until Tuesday 21st October, from 3.30 to 4.30pm daily, prior to the plans going to the Planning Department. Once again, you will have the opportunity to write your comments in the Building Project Suggestions book for consideration

.

Additionally, Sarah and Claire will make themselves available in the Creative Space from 2.00 to 4.00pm on Thursday 15th October, so do take advantage of this opportunity to pop in then, and see how the school might look in 2011!

N.B. PLEASE REMEMBER THAT SCHOOL FINISHES AT 1.00pm on WEDNESDAY, 21st OCTOBER!

We thought you would all like to see this message from Paul Collard of CCE (Creativity Culture & Education), following his and Sarah Burn’s visit last Friday. Thank you to all the children, staff and parents who met with them and helped to give such a good impression!

“Many thanks to you for hosting such a great visit. Yours is clearly an exceptional school, providing an extraordinarily fulfilling and stimulating environment for children, staff and parents. The quality of conversation was high, the enthusiasm and engagement of the children wonderful, and the focus and ability of all who work with you a joy.

We very much look forward to working with you as a School of Creativity.

Best regards, Paul“

Batheaston CEVC Primary School Newsletter

11th September, 2009

PLEASE READ! In this newsletter:

Uniform; CCE Visit; Building Project; Dinner Money; Politeness Week;

Admissions for 2010; Creativity Fair; Dates

Dear Parents,

Welcome to the new school year! We hope you all had some lovely family times together and we’re so pleased to see the children back and ready for the new term. Everyone is settling in beautifully with a special mention for our new Class 1 children who have done an amazing job of starting school with confidence and enthusiasm. I would like to take this opportunity to say a huge thank you to all the staff who have worked so hard during the holidays, to ensure that the school is welcoming, attractive and ready for the children to begin their work and play.

School colours: Thank you for supporting the school’s policy which asks that children come to school dressed in clothes which are navy and/or red and appropriate for an active curriculum they all enjoy. The children look very smart and it does help with the feeling that we belong together in our school community. You can order school uniform with our logo from our supplier Michael Hope either online (www.michaelhope.co.uk) or by picking up a form from the office, and you can also find excellent value items from the bigger supermarkets. For example, I managed to pick up a really perfect plain navy zipped sweatshirt for £4 in Sainsbury for this bit of the year before the children need a fleece.

Welcome to the Director and Schools Programme Manager, from the CCE (Creativity, Culture and Education) visiting on Friday 18 September: We shared with you the exciting news, in July, that we have been selected at a School of Creativity, one of only 26 schools nationally. This is what we said:

“We are delighted by this news and feel very privileged to have been selected as a School of Creativity. At Batheaston, we have a long established culture of creative teaching and learning for children and adults which encourages high aspirations and motivation. Now, thanks to this support from the CCE, we will be able to sustain the happy and productive partnerships we already have and develop new links within the community too. The children will benefit enormously from all the further opportunities to develop life long learning skills and enjoy challenging new experiences." The CCE Press release states: “The school will gain £20,000 per year for two years plus its own dedicated education consultant to help develop and promote revolutionary creative learning programmes. The whole school community will benefit from the new School of Creativity status as Creative Partnerships is proven to raise educational standards and develop in pupils the skills that employers say they need such as the ability to question, make connections, innovate, problem solve and reflect critically. The programme fosters innovative long-term partnerships between schools and creative professionals, including artists, performers, architects, multimedia developers and scientists. These partnerships inspire young people, teachers and creative professionals to challenge how they work and experiment with new ideas.” We are delighted to host a visit from Paul Collard and Sarah Burns, next week. They are flying in from Newcastle to spend the day with us after they heard lots of complimentary feedback from the judges about the school and the work of 5x5x5=creativity, (www.5x5x5creativity.org.uk). Pictures of Edwina working with Class 1 can be seen on the Class 1 page of our website (www.batheastonprimary.co.uk).

Building project - replacement hall and classroom block: For a very long time to we have been working towards being able to provide first-class accommodation to replace the current hall and top block of classrooms. While very excited about the project, we are obviously keenly aware that the priority during the building works is the safety and well-being of the children and the maintenance of a calm learning environment. From the beginning, we have been involved in detailed planning for this ‘decant’, and are extremely grateful to the P.C.C and Diocese for their offer of use of the Church Hall and Field. The details are currently being confirmed, however we thought you would like to be reassured at an early stage that the plan is for the Y5 & Y6 children to be taught there in high-quality, purpose-designed portable classrooms with toilet block and ICT connection. Use of the Church Hall will mean we can continue to provide for the children’s everyday needs, e.g. Assembly, PE, and dining space. As all the detailed plans develop, we intend to keep you closely informed – please watch the A-frame in the playground for updates.

Dinner money: Just a reminder that these now cost £1.90 – still excellent value for Mary’s delicious, healthy lunches, which often include ingredients grown by the children themselves! We REALLY appreciate your co-operation in settling your dinner money payments in advance - to help you, the calculations are as follows:

1 lunch per week = £1.90

2 “ “ = £3.80

3 “ “ = £5.70

4 “ “ = £7.60

5 “ “ = £9.50

From Thursday, 03/09/09 to Wednesday, 21/10/09 (Term 1): 37 lunches = £70.30

Politeness week: We are all looking forward to Politeness Week, starting on Monday, 14th September. Staff and children will be focusing on why it is important to develop good manners and politeness, and there are many activities planned to provide children with practical strategies to reinforce how much other people appreciate this thoughtfulness. The week will culminate in a sharing assembly for the children which will give us the opportunity to celebrate their raised awareness of the importance of always behaving politely.

IF YOU OR SOMEONE YOU KNOW HAS A CHILD DUE TO START SCHOOL IN SEPTEMBER 2010, PLEASE DON’T FORGET TO APPLY FOR A PLACE (EVEN IF THEY ALREADY HAVE SIBLINGS AT SCHOOL) BY 23 OCTOBER BY VISITING THE WEBSITE - www.bathnes.gov.uk.

Creativity Fair – Saturday 19th September. We hope you have all managed to return your Workshop Forms due in today. A huge thank you to Penny and the team of parent volunteers for all the hard work in organising such exciting and varied opportunities for the children next Saturday – it’s always a highly successful and enjoyable event.

Class Welcome Meeting: Thank you to all the parents who have come to the Class Welcome Meetings this week. Can we take this opportunity to remind you that the other meetings are at 3.30pm as follows, and we hope to see you there!

Friday 11th September Class 4

Monday 14th September Class 5

Thursday 17th September Class 6

Friday 18th September Class 3

Batheaston CEVC Primary School

Swine Flu Update...

You may have heard that there are some cases of Swine Flu in Bath, and we have now been advised that there is a case within a family here at Batheaston. The family has been given preventative anti-viral drugs and are currently quarantined, however it is important to note that the children were NOT symptomatic while at school, and therefore the virus is unlikely to have been passed on here. As you know, we always like to keep you informed, and so thought this was a good opportunity to give you the latest available update on this issue. We have sought advice and information from the Health Protection Unit (HPA) and from B&NES council, and this is as follows:

• We do urge parents not to be unduly concerned, as no specific action is necessary at this point. Your help in keeping all the children calm and un-worried about this news will be invaluable.

• In the vast majority of cases, swine flu is a mild illness and those affected make a full and quick recovery – we have been told it can feel like seasonal flu or a heavy cold.

• On the expert advice of the HPA, the school is remaining open and is operating as normal.

• Unless you or your child(ren) have flu-like symptoms and/or are being tested for swine flu, there is no need to stop your normal everyday activities, such as coming to school.

• The single most effective action that people can take to protect themselves and others from infection is correct respiratory and hand hygiene practice. This will have a major role to play in slowing the spread of any strain of influenza. So please encourage your children to use and dispose of tissues carefully, and wash their hands thoroughly – we will continue to reiterate this at school.

• Parents and pupils showing specific flu-like symptoms are advised to phone a doctor for advice, keep your child at home, and to please call us and let us know.

• It is very important that the school has up-to-date emergency contact numbers on file in case we need to get in touch with you – please ensure we have your latest mobile numbers, etc.

• Symptoms to be aware of include fever, lethargy, lack of appetite, and coughing, while runny nose, sore throat, nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea have also been reported.

• For more information on swine flu and how to prevent it, visit www.nhs.uk, or call the Swine Flu Information Line on 08001 513513.

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