Dear Parents and Carers
We have now reached the end of a very long term and I am sure the children are ready for their holiday. As I mentioned last week, attendance this term has been superb overall, with 20 children not missing a session.
This has been a very busy term, too, and the children have risen brilliantly to every occasion. From their super responses to the Indian embroidery display right back in September, the Angel Festival at Todber Church, the Harvest Festival, the Shaftesbury and Gillingham Carnivals, our Family Lunch, the Year 5/6 residential to Bristol, the PTFA Film Night and Pumpkin Carving, raising money for Pudsey, taking part in the swimming gala, cross country running and tag rugby matches, welcoming the Fire Engine and crew, and then the recent Christmas events including the Christmas Tree Service, the Nativity, the trip to the pantomime, the Christmas Bazaar, Wednesday’s delightful Carol Service, and culminating in today’s splendid PTFA lunch, the children have always been totally engaged in the events, good humoured and impeccably behaved. A huge Well Done and Thank You to them all!
As you will see, this is an impressive, if not exhaustive, list of events, especially for a small school, and I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the members of staff who have worked so hard to make sure the children have these rich experiences, including the after school clubs, on top of the day to day learning. We are very lucky to have such a dedicated team whose members, you may also be interested to know, have all earned their 100% attendance certificates!
We are also fortunate to have such a supportive and growing band of volunteers, including parents, grandparents, members of the community and governors, who regularly come into help in school. Every week, either Revd Richard or Anthony come in for assembly, at least half a dozen extra adults come in to hear the children read and still more help with the clubs or run their own. On top of this, the work of the PTFA, organising many of the events listed above, help to generate much needed funds to provide the extras for the children which make such a difference to their time in school. The most recent of these, the Christmas Bazaar, raised a wonderful £561.79 at the Christmas Bazaar, including the raffle money. Thank you to everyone who has supported the events throughout the year.
So now we have two weeks for the children to have a rest, to recharge batteries, to remind themselves how to make their beds and clear the table, and be ready for the first day back in the New Year, Tuesday, 7th January 2020.
I hope you all have a very happy and relaxing Christmas, and I look forward to welcoming everyone back in the New Year.
With best wishes
James Stanford