Headteacher Newsletter Issue 3
FORTNIGHTLY NEWSLETTER ISSUE 3: 9.10.20
The weeks are flying by and the children continue to enjoy their learning, which is a delight to see. We would like to welcome a few new families to the school – The Griffiths family to year 1, The Tychus family to year 2, the Sell family to years 2 and Reception and the Byrne-Brown family to year 3.
Class 6 Walk
On Tuesday 29th September, Class 6 went on our class walk as part of the Healthy School Programme. Luckily, though the day started off wet and windy by the afternoon it had brightened up and we had a very pleasant (though muddy!) walk across the fields and footpaths around Clavering.
House Captains
This week we have been voting for our House Captains and Vice Captains. Every day, through Teams assemblies, Year 6 members of each House have taken turns to give a speech to the rest of the school saying why they would be a good house captain. Children from each House have then secretly voted. The results were announced at Sharing Assembly on Friday. Well done to everyone in Year 6, all of whom made excellent speeches!
Year 6 Sports Ambassador Training
On Wednesday 30th September five members of Class 6 (one from each House) took part with virtual training for Sports Ambassadors with Jackie Coleman and Lisa Dunlop, as part of our sports partnership. They joined children from other local primary schools to discuss how to involve more children in sports in their schools and to share ideas. The group came back with lots of good ideas which they will be implementing in school.
School Council
Following the free and fair electoral process, I am pleased to announce our school councillors for the autumn term.
Year 1: Harry B & Esmee B
Year 2: Frankie P & Greta G
Year 3: Florence D & Elliot B
Year 4: Aaron A & Robin D
Year 5: Oskar P & Miley W
Year 6: Max K & Rose C
Children will receive a school council badge to wear throughout the term and will be helping me to plan some fund‑raising events.
Miss Morton
FOC AGM
The Friends of Clavering Annual General Meeting took place recently to review the year and organise events for the next term. FOC raised approximately £11,015 between the start of the year in September 2019 and the last event before the COVID lockdown which was the Valentine’s disco. (£5,000 of this was received from the Stansted Airport Passenger Fund.) This is an amazing achievement and an excellent source of funding for the school. Last year FOC purchased the final two screens for the classrooms, paid for a forest school leader’s exam and helped with the costs for the reception outdoor area.
On behalf of the school I would like to thank the Friends of Clavering and the parents that have contributed to this amount.
A special thank you to Andrea Vaughan who was the Chair of Friends and recently stood down from this position. We are very grateful for the time and support she has given to the school over the years. We would like to welcome Anna Gawthorpe and Tracy Pemberton who have officially taken over this role.
COVID updates –
Sadly the infection rate in our locality is rising rapidly, Uttlesford is the highest area in Essex, therefore it is very important we follow our protective measures as rigorously as we can so that we can ensure that the school stays safe, open for as long as possible and staff remain healthy to teach.
Please can we therefore remind you:
- to avoid meeting with staff at pick up or drop off. Please email or phone instead.
- for any adults (or teenagers) dropping off or collecting children to wear a face covering when on the school site, including at the bottom of the drive where staff are working and members of the school community are walking passed.
- 2m social distancing at all times including at the bottom of the drive.
- to keep to your drop off and pick up times to avoid congestion at key times
- to get a COVID test if you have any of the three symptoms (below). It is vital that we all do this:
COVID symptoms and ACTION, a reminder
To confirm, children are to stay off school if they are unwell with any virus, unless mild. If they or a household member develops or has symptoms of a high temperature, persistent cough or loss of taste/smell then they must have a COVID test. Whilst waiting for the test results, household members must isolate. The class bubble does not have to at this stage but siblings in school do. Please keep the school informed if any of your household has any of the three symptoms and of any test results. It is vital we all work together on this to keep everyone safe.
Proactive Information for Parents – What Happens in the Event of a Positive Case within an Education Setting
The Local Authority has received some feedback from schools that some parents aren’t sure what would happen in the event of a confirmed case of COVID-19 in an education setting and so they have provided some useful links: what happens if a child or someone they live with develops symptoms and one on what happens if there’s a case in the child’s bubble.
NHS Covid 19 App
As most of you will be aware, the NHS have now launched their Covid 19 App, as part of their track and trace programme. This a key tool in the national response to the virus. You can find further details about the App and how to download it at:
Letter from ECC re schools
Please find below the link to a letter from Essex County Council about the re-opening of schools in the area.
https://www.essex.gov.uk/news/essex-county-council-open-letter-to-parents-and-carers
Letter from Public Health England and the NHS regarding Test and Trace
The NHS and Public Health England have published this letter regarding NHS Test and Trace specifically for parents and guardians of school aged children and young people as a reminder of the principles around symptoms and testing. You may wish to share this resource with your parent community.
Returning to the UK after travelling
The Department for Health and Social Care have updated their guidance on ‘how to self-isolate when you travel to the UK’. It contains a useful diagram for your information.
COVID Symptoms parent support tool
The Local Authority understand that schools continue to receive queries on how to interpret children’s symptoms and support parents to make decisions about when it’s safe to send their children to school. Therefore we wanted to share with you a resource that West Essex CCG has developed to help parents in making decisions around managing covid/cold-like symptoms and supporting school attendance where it is safe to do so. This tool has been developed by the Associate Chief Medical Officer and Clinical Lead for Children and Young people at West Essex CCG with input also from ECC Public Health team.
Please see ‘Covid-19 symptom parental support tool September 2020’ document, which accompanies this letter.
Filming in School
Over the next few weeks we will be filming around our school to create a Virtual Open Day tour for our prospective Reception 2021 parents. The film will be available on our website. Please can you email by Wednesday 14th October if you do not wish for your child to be involved. Thank you.
School Admissions – Primary and Secondary – Apply Now!!
To apply quickly and easily for primary and secondary school places go online to https://www.essex.gov.uk/admissions-to-essex-schools-for-the-next-school-year
Secondary school places for September 2021
From 11 September 2020 you can apply online for your child’s school place https://www.essex.gov.uk/apply-for-a-secondary-school-place
You must submit an application by the national closing date of 31 October 2020. Applications received after this date will be considered late and you may reduce your chance of being offered a place at your preferred school.
Primary and junior school places for September 2021
From 9 November 2020 you can apply online for your child’s school place https://www.essex.gov.uk/apply-for-a-primary-school-place
You must submit an application by the national closing date of 15 January 2021. Applications received after this date are considered late and will reduce your chance of being offered a place at your preferred schools.
Uniform
Please can we make sure that children are wearing school uniform at all times. We have seen a variation of PE clothing, trainers instead of school shoes and bright coloured socks. http://www.clavering.essex.sch.uk/school-uniform/
Lost Property
Can parents please make sure jumpers and coats are named as we cannot keep lost property during this climate.
Mobile Phones
This is a gentle reminder not to use mobile phones whilst on the school site. This is part of our safe guarding policy for all of our children.
Free School Meals Funding
You can register for Free Schools Meals Funding if you meet the criteria below.
https://www.gov.uk/apply-free-school-meals
DATES FOR YOUR DIARY
6th October Meet the Teacher – Reception class
15th October Flu Vaccine
12th – 23rd October Fun Run
20th October Bag2School
23rd October INSET day – school closed to pupils
4th November Deadline for FOC pumpkin pictures
18th December End of term
4th January INSET day – school closed to pupils
5th January Spring term begins
INSET Dates for the academic year 2021 – 2022
Schools allocate five non-pupil days for staff training:
Wednesday 1st September 2021
Friday 22nd October 2021
Tuesday 4th January 2022
Tuesday 19th April 2022
Monday 6th June 2022
ACHIEVEMENTS
STAR OF THE WEEK
Week ending September 25th
Reception Jacob – for his fabulous manners and wonderful skipping
Year One Alfie – for working hard in Phonics and choosing the right sounds to spell a word
Year Two Jude – for always trying hard and being a good friend
Year Three Morgan – for his fantastic effort in Maths this week
Year Four Samuel – for a great positive attitude
Year Five Alex – for using figurative language in his strong writing
Year Six Harry – for his use of similes in his excellent description of a mythical beast
Week ending October 2nd
Reception Isobel – for her great enthusiasm and super ideas for the class
Year One BeeBee – for her super focus and listening skills during learning time. She is always keen to learn.
Year Two Carrie – for putting in great effort with her work, particularly trying hard to share her ideas in class discussions
Year Three Harry – for fantastic story writing
Year Four William – for great understanding and effort in Maths
Year Five Jake – for good listening and fantastic letter writing
Year Six Darragh – for his imaginative and descriptive Greek myth.
Have a good weekend and thank you for your support.
Rosalind Allsop
Headteacher
