Weekly Newsletter 16th September 2022
Dear Parents,
Niki and I would like to thank everyone for the support that we have received following the announcement of my retirement. It has been very humbling to have received the many messages and comments from parents and staff and also exciting to share our embryonic plans of what we will be doing from next September. After 34 years of planning for a return to school, it will be somewhat different to be planning a special trip to explore the Italian cities, countryside, lakes and coastlines!
Thank you, too, for understanding the need to move the Welcome Back Barbecue to Saturday 24th and for the changes to the triathlon and the programme for the open classrooms that will allow you to catch up informally with form teachers. I have heard that a number of staff and families will be heading to London to pay their respects to the Queen and Royal Family over the extended weekend.
The week has provided the opportunity for happier times, too, and the first fixtures of the year, not forgetting match teas, have been a great success. There were wins, draws and losses, but the most important aspect was that there were lots of well exercised and happy children who animatedly informed me as to how their matches had panned out.
Another first was the BHCC meeting on Thursday morning. Our new chair, Lauren Brown, was delighted with the turn out and enthusiasm expressed for contributing to the social and charity events planned and suggested for the year ahead. More information will be communicated over the coming weeks. If you were unable to make the meeting, but would like to contribute to the running of any events please contact Lauren directly or via the School Office.
And finally, it was fabulous to see the Bacon Buttie stall back in full swing, as ever manned by our superb volunteers. It was a great start to the day and set us up nicely for Year 8’s assembly on leadership. I have it on good authority that more bacon and croissants are being ordered for next week due to the high demand!
Please remember that we are honouring the Queen’s funeral on Monday so I look forward to seeing everyone on Tuesday morning with our flag at full mast as we acknowledge our new King, HRH Charles III.
Best wishes
Philip Oldroyd
Head
Pre-Prep
Pre-PrepDear Parents
It has been fantastic to hear such positive reports from all the teachers as to how the children are settling back into school at the end of the first full week of the autumn term. Thank you for making sure all items are named and that correct kit is in school too; it really helps with the flow of the day!
Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 behaved beautifully in our Pre-Prep assembly on Wednesday. Birthdays were celebrated and certificates were given out for some super holiday diaries from Year 2. Reception teachers also awarded some ‘special mention’ certificates to children who they felt had really shown bravery and excellent attitude this week. The children have learnt how to listen carefully to a chime which is rung at the beginning of assembly and which will also begin each PSHE lesson, until the sound fades and they can hear it no more. This allows for a moment of quiet reflection and calm. This week, I discussed how our hands as well as our words have the power for kindness and unkindness.
It was lovely to see parents in our assembly and at the Reception information session. We look forward to welcoming you into Pre-Prep on Tuesday and Wednesday after school for our open classroom sessions. You are warmly invited to another open classroom and also an Awards Assembly on Wednesday 12th October before the half term break.
Wishing you a peaceful weekend and a time for reflection to mourn the passing of HRH Queen Elizabeth II and reflect on her life and legacy.
Mrs Rachel E Harris
Head of Pre-Prep
Weekly News
Awards
Coming soon
Can you help?
I just wanted to say hello as the new Chair of the BHCC. For those of you that don’t know me I have Kit in Year 4 and Beau in Reception so will be around at both sides of the school. Please feel free to stop and chat if you would like to help out or find out more information or email ljibrown@outlook.com.
Further information about the BHCC is available here.
Lauren
Cake Sales
14th October 2022: Nursery, Kindy and Year 8
9th December 2022: Reception and Year 5
10th February 2023: Year 1 and Year 6
17th March 2023: Year 2 and Year 3
26th May 2023: Year 4 and Year 7
Bacon Butties
Welcome back! It was a great start to the year, you munched butties and croissants and enjoyed hot coffee, raising £244.10 this morning.
Class Reps 2022-23
Nursery: Sarah Dickinson
Kindy: Jacqui Roycroft
Reception: Alex Jenkin, Charlotte Reynolds
Year 1: Rebecca Reed, Alex Muir Wood,
Year 2: Beth Atakan, Maddy Chenery
Year 3: Julianne French, Laura Steele
Year 4: Simone Green, Gabrielle Shaw
Year 5: Rosemary Cresswell, Emmah Klein
Year 6: Jenny Dunlop, Becky Foxall
Year 7: Anthony & Lisa Tugwell, Lucy Barbour
Year 8: Liz Hughes, Marja van Ravenstein
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It’s a really easy way to raise money for us – you just use the easyfundraising site to shop online with more than 3,500 well known online stores. Please visit our easyfundraising page here and click ‘support us’.
School Notices
Barrow Hills Charity Christmas Cards
It’s that time of year again… this fantastic BHCC initiative is underway. Most children will complete the card template in class at school; however if a template has been brought home please ensure it is back in school no later than Wednesday 21st September. Thank you.
Food and Drink in Chapel
We kindly ask that you do not bring food or drink into Chapel, thank you.
Engines Off Please!
Did you know that an idling vehicle produces almost twice the emissions as a moving vehicle? Prioritise children’s health and the health of our planet over the comfort of drivers who repeatedly keep their vehicle engine running when parked. Please turn your engine off when waiting in the school car park.
Mobiles and Watches
Ideally children should not bring expensive items like watches and fitbits in to school or on residentials but if they do, please ensure these are named clearly. If your child needs to bring a telephone in to school this MUST be handed to Mr Shreeve on arrival at school and collected only on departure from school and should be turned off please.
Cancellation of Fixtures
If fixtures are cancelled due to adverse weather, please be assured that we will notify you as soon as we are aware of the change.
Term Dates
Term dates can be found on the school website https://www.barrowhills.org/news-events/term-dates/
Absences on match afternoons
Please notify games staff of any absences on a match afternoon in advance when possible.
Absence Request Form
This Absence Request Form must be completed for any reason that a child is not in school, other than illness. These are also found on the Parent Portal. Thank you.
Portal
Please can we remind you that the majority of the communications are sent via the parent portal on a Tuesday. Communications will vary for each child dependent on a variety of factors e.g. class, gender, sets. The Prep team sheet can be changed at any time therefore we encourage you to check the portal on a regular basis.
Posters Below
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Families Surrey West magazine can be found here.
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