Issue 29 - Friday 29th April 2022
Headteacher's Welcome
Dear Parents and Carers,
Kindness is the Parkfield Characteristic that we're going to be focussing on over this next half term and it was introduced during an exciting assembly earlier on this week from Mrs Gooding. Being kind is something that comes natural to many of our Parkfielders and if you would like to share something from home that demonstrates this quality , please email the school office and we will happily celebrate this on our Twitter feed and on our 'Proud' school display.
This week we welcomed Miss Howard and Miss Bradley to the staff team. Miss Howard is the new Y6 teacher and will be working alongside Mrs Whalen over the next few weeks as our Y6 prepare for their SATS. Miss Bradley will teach in Y4 whilst Mrs Taylor is on her maternity leave.
Finally, please remember that school is only open for 3 days next week to pupils due to bank holiday and polling day. Have a wonderful, long weekend and thanks for your continued support.
Mr Kemp
LATEST NEWS
POLLING DAY CLOSURE
A final reminder that the school will be used as a polling station on Thursday 5th May and as a result the school will be closed to all pupils. Sorry for the inconvenience caused.
WATER BOTTLES
If your child doesn't have a Parkfield water bottle, please purchase one from the school office for £1. This is cheaper than most water bottles you can purchase in the shops. Other water bottles aren't allowed in school because many spill or break easily or don't fit into the storage baskets or under our water machines. Thanks for your support with this.
GOOD LUCK MRS TAYLOR
Today is Mrs Taylor's final day at Parkfield before she finishes for maternity. I'm sure the whole school community will join me in wishing Mrs Taylor and her husband all the best with the new and exciting addition to their family.
PUNCTUALITY
A reminder that every minute counts! Our mornings are structured so that pupils are learning as soon as they walk into the classroom and being a few minutes late can mean that they miss some vital instructions or don't have the time to complete any early morning tasks set. This can cause additional stress for your child that can be easily avoided, so please do ensure that your child is ready to line up on the yard at 8.45am. If your child is persistently late we will contact you to find out if there is anything we can do as a school to support.
ED START HOLIDAY CLUB
The EdStart Holiday club held at Easter proved a great success with many of our Parkfielders attending. We've agreed for EdStart to run the club for the three days during May half term and will advertise how you can book on in the coming weeks.
NETBALL TEAM
Well done to our netball team that played in their first game against Hollin earlier on this week. Although we lost the game 6-3 the team showed great promise and are now looking forward to future games.
MUSIC EXPERIENCE
Y5 began their whole class music project this week where they are learning to play a brass instrument. Each year, this provides our Parkfielders with an opportunity to learn to play a musical instrument whilst at primary school. We hope that it promotes a love of music and gives that little bit of inspiration to some of our pupils to go and continue playing out of school.
COVID UPDATES
Schools are no longer recommending pupils to be tested for covid even if they have symptoms. As a result children will be asked to stay off if they are poorly and return to school when they are well enough. If a child does test positive for covid the national guidance is stating that children should stay off school for a minimum of 3 days as this is the period in which they are most infectious. Children can return after this period if they are well enough. There is now no need to re-test to see if they are still positive.
YEAR 6 BREAKFAST BOOSTER
For the last few weeks before SATS I would highly recommend all pupils to access our free breakfast booster club. The club runs every morning at 8.15am and is completely free. We are seeing some great results from those attending the session on a daily basis and hope that more are able to join.
SAFEGUARDING INFORMATION
Mrs Whalen is our Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) supported by Mr Kemp and Miss Steele (Deputy DSL). If you have any concerns about the needs or welfare of a pupil, please don't hesitate to contact the school. We all share a responsibility to our pupils safety and wellbeing.
As a school our promise is: We will listen, we will support and we will take action.
ATTENDANCE and PUNCTUALITY
As you are all aware, school attendance and punctuality is one of Parkfields priorities and I have been thrilled with the support that parents have been giving with regards to improving their children’s attendance.
Our school target is 96%. We are currently below this target and we need your continued support to ensure that we meet this mark.
Persistent Absence
Persistent absence is defined by the Government as attendance below 90%. This equates to 19 days or more of absence a year or 100+ lessons missed. If a child’s attendance drops below 90% this could lead to them becoming a safeguarding concern. This could also result in the authority taking legal action against parents, resulting in a fine or court appearance. Over the next few weeks I will be making contact by letter with the families of children whose attendance is below 90% to invite you into school for a discussion about how we can support you to improve your child’s attendance.
Thank you so much to all the families who have been working hard to ensure children’s attendance and punctuality is high. Establishing early good habits really will make a positive difference to their lives. The link between attendance and achievement cannot be over stated. Your child will achieve better if they are in school every day. Only in very exceptional circumstances should a child be absent from school.
Punctuality
Please get your child to school on time. Poor punctuality can lead to your child…
Feeling embarrassed in front of their friends
Missing the beginning of vital lessons making them fall behind
Missing important instructions for the rest of the school day
At Parkfield children are to line up before school and doors open at 8.45am. They close at 8.50am.
If you arrive after 8.50am you will have to come through the school office.
HEALTH AND SAFETY
Dogs are not permitted in the school playground.
If driving, park further away from the school and walk to reduce congestion and the possiblity of any serious accidents.
Unfortunately, Parents and Carers are not allowed to drop off and pick up from the school car park at any time.
Children are not allowed on the play equipment before and after school. Please keep them off.
