News Blog

Dear Families

Wow! What a week and what a term it has been! I cannot believe that we are already at the end of the Autumn term and the Christmas holidays are upon us.

As I wrote in a previous newsletter, we are sadly saying goodbye to Laura Verrall in January, Lisa Kelly is retiring (but returning for 2 days a week - hurrah) and Caroline Adams who is leaving us to work for Mencap. We are going to miss them all very much and wish them well in their new and exciting adventures.

In January, Mrs Leanne Atkinson will be returning from maternity leave to teach in Orange Class 2½ days a week with Mrs Forrestal teaching the other 2 ½ days.

What have we been up to?

This week has been Christmas Crazy but absolutely wonderful – I still believe that there is no better place to work at Christmas than a school as it is such a joyous privilege!

On Monday, we had the beautiful nativity led by our gorgeous Reception children. They did so well learning their lines, songs and dances. The words I used to describe the performance were: Magical, uplifting, heart-warming, high standards (to name but a few)! The children in our Reception cohort have already grown up so much since the start of term and we are unbelievably proud of each and every one of them. It really was the best nativity in the land! Well done everyone!

On Tuesday, Year 1 performed their fantastic Carols by Twinklelight concert which was also beautifully performed. It was amazing to see the children sing their songs so confidently and each and every child should be incredibly proud of their performance. Congratulations Year 1!

Tuesday, was also our legendary Christmas party day – where we donned our Christmas jumpers, danced to our disco and ate a yummy Christmas dinner. Tuesday was a very happy day!

On Wednesday, Year 6 had an afternoon of Carols and Christmas crafts with family members (we like to do a little something like this as we are aware that this will be our Year 6 children’s last Christmas in a Primary School!) and it was wonderful to see the children make, create and talk to their friends and family. #

A massive thank you to all of the staff involved in the performances – all of whom help the children see and reach their brilliant potential.

Also on Wednesday, we held our termly Celebration Assembly. This is such a highlight of the term – celebrating children achieving their Proud Points, outside school trophies but also acknowledging who has won the prestigious Class Community Cup. The cup is awarded to children who have gone above and beyond showing the school values and have been recognised by their peers and teachers.

Well done to our Class Community Cup winners for this term: 

Oh no they didn’t!

Then today, the children were treated to a special surprise panto – Cinderella and The Seven Dwarfs! The surprise was that the staff were cast and crew!! The laughter, cheers and joy made every second worthwhile. I cannot thank my staff enough for all they give to your children – the extra hours they put in and the extra miles they go to make sure that they not only learn a lot but they also laugh a lot!

Finally, we ended the day with a festive sing-a-long in our Houses which was wonderful and a great way to end the busy week and term.

All that is left now is to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a peaceful holiday with your friends and families. A final thank you to my truly brilliant staff for all of their efforts and hard work and to say “Well Done” to our children for working hard, being kind and believing in themselves and others.

I look forward to welcoming you all back on 6th January 2025 (please note that there isn’t a training day) for more learning and adventures as we launch the new term with an exciting literacy project… watch this space!

Merry Christmas everyone – see you in 2025!

Mrs Pennington