Issue 35 - Friday 17th June 2022
Headteacher's Welcome
Dear Parents and Carers,
Thirty brave and talented Parkfielders took part in one of three Parkfield Spelling Bees over the course of the past week. Taking part in such an event with a large number of friends and parents watching is an amazing achievement and demonstrates great positivity and resilience. The Parkfield staff and I were proud of their achievements and I want to say a huge congratulations also to the three overall winners!
Our new Reception pupils join us next week for their induction day. We are looking forward to meeting our new pupils for September and Mrs Iqbal is looking forward to meeting her new class. Each pupil will join us either in the morning or afternoon. Class move up day for the rest of the school will take place on Tuesday 5th July.
A reminder that our busy calendar continues to be updated - please ensure you visit it regularly to see what events are due to take place in the coming weeks. We have class assemblies, maths passport championships, school trips, choir competitions, residentials, sports days, summer fair, Parkfield's Got Talent, leavers' party and a leavers' service all to fit into the last 6 weeks.
Next week's newsletter may come a little later than usual as I will be attending the three-day Blackpool Residential with a class of very excited Y6 Parkfielders - I'm certain it will be a huge success - although a little tiring for the staff involved!
Thanks for your continued support - have a wonderful weekend.
Mr Kemp
LATEST NEWS
PARENTS AND CARERS OBSERVING AFTER SCHOOL CLUBS
Following a review of our safeguarding practices we have decided that it would be better for both pupils and staff if parents and carers no longer observed the after school extra curricular clubs. One reason is that we can easily dismiss all pupils at the same time from the main entrance. Also, we have found the behaviour of some pupils to deteriorate when other adults are around which has lead to a less enjoyable experience for those involved. We appreciate this may cause some inconvenience but hope you understand the reasoning behind this decision. Parents and carers will still be more than welcome to attend matches as your support at these events is very much appreciated.
ROBINWOOD 2023
A letter was sent earlier this week to our current Y3 parents about the Robinwood Residential that will take place at the beginning of Year 5, in September 2023. We hope the advanced notice gives you plenty of time to spread the cost of the trip. It truly is a once-in-a-lifetime experience for our Parkfielders. You can view photos of the current Y5s here, and watch a video of children persuading you to go here.
EARLY BIRDS AND BUSY BEES - SEPTEMBER BOOKINGS
You will soon receive an email with information regarding booking for Early Birds and Busy Bees for September onwards. You'll be pleased to know that the governors have agreed to simplify the pricing structure and reduce the cost of Early Birds to £1.50 per session for all pupils (7.30am - 8.45am). Busy Bees will continue to cost £8 per session (3.15 - 5.30pm).
SHOW OFF YOUR TALENTS
Please keep sending in emails with your child's achievements out of school. We love sharing these on our Twitter feed and displaying them on our display in the school entrance.
REMINDER - ASPIRATIONAL CAREERS DAY - WEDS 29TH JUNE - WE NEED YOUR HELP
Thanks to those that have already put their names forward for our career day. A reminder that you can still sign up - we would welcome ex-pupils that are currently at college/university. The morning will include our Year 6's interviewing our volunteers about their jobs (or college/university) and how they got to where they are today. The aim of the day is for our pupils to realise that there are many different employment opportunities and through hard work, a good education and training they can achieve great things.
Please complete this form if you are able to spend up to 30 minutes in the morning speaking to our Y6s about your role, how you got to where you are today and don't mind answering questions. Hopefully, you'll inspire one of our pupils to follow in your footsteps!
YEAR 5 & 6 BREAKFAST BOOSTER
What a great response we have had to our breakfast club - thank you. Pupils can attend for FREE from 8.15am and in addition to breakfast, they will be accessing a range of online resources to support their learning in maths and reading. The club will help prepare our Y6's for high school and our Y5's for the Y6 curriculum. However, next week due to our year 6 residential, the club will not run on Wednesday, Thursday & Friday.
SUMMER IS HERE! Please ensure you apply sun cream in the morning and send your child in with a bottle of cream to top up at break times. Water bottles are available from the office at a cost of £1.00.
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. Please ring the school office no later than 8.30am to report an absence.
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.
