Issue 36 - 11th July 2025
Dear Families,
Arrangements for the last day of term
The final day of the academic year is fast approaching. School will finish at 12.30pm on this day – Tuesday 22nd July. We understand Letchmore do not finish until the Wednesday.
As always, I do not want to put unnecessary pressure on families with children in both schools so we will finish early as planned on Tuesday (12.30pm) but for those parents who really need it, school will remain open until 3.15pm. Children will be invited to watch a film in the hall and will be supervised by support staff.
Please note, this is not expected to be a ‘staggered finish’. We would expect children to either be collected at 12.30pm or 3.15pm.
We have requested consent to leave early on Arbor. Please log in to the parent portal and let us know if your child is allowed to leave early on the last day of term.
If you decline or do not respond, your child will be expected to stay until 3.15pm unless they are collected by a parent.
This is for all year groups, including Years 5 and 6, who can normally leave independently as it is an earlier finish. Safety is always my priority so I will not allow any child to leave without parental consent.
Emma Fordham,
Headteacher
Kindness of the week: say thank you when someone does something kind for you
Key Messages
Is your child moving to a new school in September?
We hope to see you all back with us in September but we know some people do in year transfers during the summer due to house moves etc. Please let us know as soon as possible us if your child will be moving to another school in September so we can arrange for the necessary paperwork to be completed.
If your child is in Year 6, we would appreciate if any monies owed could be cleared before the end of term.
Kindness Ambassador School
I am incredibly proud to tell parents that because of the hard work from Mrs Bond (Physical and Mental Well-Being Lead), our school kindness ambassadors and the rest of the school, we have been accredited as a kindness ambassador school.
School Games Mark - GOLD!!
We are delighted to announce that we, Almond Hill, have achieved the School Games GOLD Mark Award for the 2024/25 academic year.
The School Games Mark is a Government-led award scheme launched in 2012, facilitated by the Youth Sport Trust to reward schools for their commitment to the development of competition across their school and into the community, and we are delighted to have been recognised for our success.
As part of our application, we were asked to fulfil criteria in the areas of participation, competition, workforce and clubs, and we are pleased that the hard work of everyone at our school has been rewarded this year.
A special thanks to Mrs Bond our Mental and Physical Wellbeing Lead for all her hard work organising sporting activities and events for the children.
We look forward to applying once again in 2026!
Sports Day
I do hope parents and children enjoyed the recent sports days. A lot of time and effort goes into planning these events and watching the children having fun makes it all worth it.
I am pleased to announce the winners...
The winners of the upper school sports day and earning themselves 25 house points are BLUE! Well done green team. The JOINT winners of the lower school sports day and earning themselves 25 house points each are RED and GREEN! Well done!
Diary Dates
Click the months below to open our calendar.
Did you know, you can subscribe to our calendar to keep up to date with the events going on within the school?
Follow the link below, select 'subscribe' and follow the instructions for your device.
UPCOMING EVENTS
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11/07/2025 - All DayYear 6 LEGOLAND
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11/07/2025 - 2:30pm – 3:30pmFOAH Ice Cream Friday
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14/07/2025 - 2:00pm – 4:00pm6S Graduation
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14/07/2025 - 2:30pm – 3:15pmY6 Ice Lolly
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15/07/2025 - 2:00pm – 4:00pm6B Graduation
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16/07/2025 - 2:00pm – 4:00pm6C Graduation
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18/07/2025 - 9:00am – 1:30pmY6 trip to Fairlands and shirt signing
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18/07/2025 - 2:30pm – 3:30pmFOAH Ice Cream Friday
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22/07/2025 - All DayLast day of term - 12.30pm
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23/07/2025 - All DayINSET Day
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24/07/2025 – 02/09/2025 - All DaySummer Holidays
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03/09/2025 - 6:00pm – 6:30pmINSET Day
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04/09/2025 - All DayFirst Day Back to School
Uniform and Book Sales
Our monthly preloved sales will recommence in the next academic year.
We would be grateful for any donations of coats, uniform (especially fleeces), shoes, swimming costumes and Christmas jumpers.
Parent Forum.
I am sure parents were off enjoying the sunshine or watching the football on Wednesday and so were unable to attend the parent forum meeting. Please keep a look out for the dates for upcoming parents forums for the autumn term.
Clubs
|
|
Club |
Lead |
Year group |
Location |
Collection point |
Monday
|
Year 3 and 4 football CANCELLED ON 14TH JULY |
Will Bryson |
3 and 4 |
Field |
St Nicholas Church gate |
Tuesday
|
Year 5 and 6 football FINISHES ON 15TH JULY |
Will Bryson |
5 and 6 |
Field |
St Nicholas Church gate |
Please remember, all other clubs have now finished.
Cheerleading and Street Dance
Spaces are now available to book for September. There are very popular clubs so please do book if you would like your child to join. To book, please use the following link: https://www.lindseypollarddance.com/classtimetable/childrensclasses
Attendance
Year 3 96.39%
Year 4 96.22%
Year 5 96.02%
Year 6 95.39%
All Students 96%
Class Winners
4C 98.33%
5P 97.67%
Almond Hill Achievements
Click the button below to see all the wonderful things our children have achieved outside of school. ACHIEVEMENTS
We are incredibly proud of all the achievements that are going on inside and outside of school. Please do keep them coming in! Previously, we have asked parents to email these in but please can we ask that if you would like to submit an achievement for our newsletter, you complete the form on our website: https://www.almondhill.herts.sch.uk/form/?pid=130&form=483
House Points
Unfortunately, it is very hot in the office and an error was made when counting the house points this week. This was not picked up until after celebration assembly (where the points are announced) which took place in the morning today! So I do apologise if the children are muddled about the winners but the points have been checked and verified and I can confirm these are the correct numbers for this week.
FOAH Update...
Frozen Fridays are back!
FOAH will be hosting Frozen Fridays every Friday in July! Children can enjoy a cool treat for £1 each (one per child).
You can pre-order on Arbor school shop now– the deadline each week is Monday at 9:00am to give us time to buy the lollies. Cash will also be accepted on the day but pre-ordering is really helpful. This is always a big hit (especially when it’s hot!) but if we have any extras, we’ll be selling them after school in the Quadrant.
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Friday 18th July (deadline 9.00am Monday 14th July)
Lots of orders have already been placed so thank you! Please note, if you want your child to have an ice lolly each week, you need to purchase one for each day. Please note, you can only purchase for your own child/ren. So as much as it is a lovely idea, please don't bring cash in for others.
In Other News...
Break the Rules Day
Our school government, the Cold Capybaras, have organised BREAK THE RULES DAY on Monday 21st July.
You can break the rules on this day by doing any of the following:
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Come to school in non-uniform/pyjamas
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Have temporary dyed hair
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Pokémon cards (or other trading cards) are allowed in school
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Fizzy drinks and juice are allowed (no cans – only bottles) and you can have snacks in class (one only)
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You can wear jewellery (not hooped earrings)
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Have 30 minute break with lunchtime equipment during the morning
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Bringing toys to school (no phones or electronics)
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Hats and sunglasses allowed inside
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Wear make-up and face paint
This is set up on Arbor in the school shop. You pay 50p for each rule your child wishes to break for the day. Please add the quantity to your basket (based on how many rules are being broken) and then make your payment.
As always. if your child is bringing snacks to school they must be NUT FREE. This is to protect children in school with severe nut allergies.
If your child would like to bring trading cards to school (or any items from home, this is at their own risk, The school cannot take responsibility for them.
We are raising money for Stevenage Community Trust. Arbor will only allow you to add 9 ‘payments’ to the basket at one time so if you would like to give more to this charity, you will need to do a separate transaction for anything more than £4.50.
Year 4 Regeneration Tour
Year 4 enjoyed their tour of the exciting 'Regeneration Stevenage' project happening currently in their town. They learnt about the history of Stevenage Town Centre and were interested to know that Stevenage was the very first new town in 1946 - opened by the Queen! They identified and explored various landmarks in Stevenage…
Year 5 Science at Barclay Academy
On Monday 30th June year 5 went to Barclay and did science there. The first thing we did was discussing the rules. These rules included wearing safety goggles, keeping your hair tied up, no eating, no running and there has to be a teacher in the room. After that, we got water, golden syrup, sunflower oil, baby oil and detergent. Firs…
Underpass Unveiling
I am so proud of all the children who took part in the Underpass art competition and it was lovely to see your work on display today. Well done to Nilashini and James who were fantastic representatives of our school. We heard speeches from different representatives of Stevenage Even Better who were all blown away by the tal…
Additional Information for Families
Help shape the future of Children's Social Care in Hertfordshire
We're inviting families across Hertfordshire to help shape the future of children's social care by completing a short questionnaire, you can share your experiences ideas and hopes for a system that truly supports every child and family. This is your chance to co-design services that reflect your community's needs, because no one understands what works better than you. Whether you're a parent, carer or young person your insights are invaluable. Let's build a brighter, more supportive future together. 🏠💖 Please use the QR code or link below to complete a short questionnaire
https://forms.office.com/e/wvHbv3t7qt
Stevenage Borough Council Summer Competition
We’re excited to launch a fun and creative summer competition – and we want your pupils to get involved!
Stevenage Borough Council is inviting all school-aged children living in Stevenage to design their very own eco-superhero – a character who will help us reduce, reuse, and recycle waste in our town.
More information can be found in the attachments on the bottom of this newsletter.