Dear Parents and Carers
We have been delighted to welcome our local MP to school today. Simon Hoare MP was given a tour of the school and a Question and Answer session by the Eco Club, saw the children at work and play, had a discussion with the School Council and took part in a Forest School activity. It was a wonderful opportunity for the children to talk to someone with different experiences and they confidently asked him some very searching questions. As always, our children were a real credit to the school and our visitor was very impressed with them and the school as a whole. We have now had an invitation for some of our children to see him in the Houses of Parliament, a very exciting prospect which we hope to do soon.
Still with the Eco Club, their work has rapidly led to the school being presented with the Silver Eco Schools Award – a terrific achievement. The school is now recycling a wide range of packaging in addition to the termly Bags to School clothes collection. The Eco Club is now gathering the evidence to make us eligible for the Green Flag Award which involves a visit from an assessor, scrutiny of the work the school and the Eco Club does, and a report on how well we are doing. Their Newsletter should be coming home tonight.
School Progress
Astonishingly, we are almost at the halfway point in the school year. I have been very impressed with the way the children have been working and the progress they have made since September. Their enthusiasm for learning is obvious to everyone who visits the school and I am, as always, very proud of them. Congratulations, too, to the children who attend school every day, currently a third of th children in the school, helping overall attendance to stand at an excellent 97.5%.
Attached to this letter is the locally agreed response to pupils whose attendance is falling below 95%. I will be sending out the letters to the families before half term if attendance remains lower than this figure, while the Local Authority Attendance Officer is also monitoring pupils whose attendance is less than 93%. So you can gauge your own child’s percentage, we are sending home a current attendance sheet. If you would like to discuss any matters relating to your children’s attendance or punctuality, please do not hesitate to contact me. 95% is an average of a day off a month, 90% a day off every fortnight, each one of which has a huge effect on how the children settle, progress, and gain a good work-ethic.
Rotary Club Christmas Draw
Thank you for your support of this draw which took place just before Christmas. We sold a splendid £78 of tickets and received an extra 5% back on top. For the chance of ticket holders winning a great prize, the school is now £81.90 better off.
Sporting News
Our footballers have been in action twice this week, firstly in a foggy match in Yetminster on Tuesday and again in a cold Sherborne on Thursday. Despite meeting some very strong teams from the larger schools, our children played valiantly, kept their spirits up and finished with a win! Well done to all of the children and many thanks to Mr Beeson and Mrs Cross who coached and organised the teams.
This weekend is the Big Garden Birdwatch event organised by the RSPB. With the wonderful amount of wildlife around here, I hope the children will get involved. Details are on https://www.rspb.org.uk/get-involved/activities/birdwatch
With best wishes
James Stanford