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Issue 7 - 17th October 2025

 

Dear Families, 

This Week at Almond Hill 
Our Year 5 and 6 children were lucky enough to be invited to Barclay Academy to watch their fantastic production of Annie. A big thank you to Barclay for the invitation and well done to everyone involved in such a wonderful show! Some of our Year 6 children also took part in a Table Tennis competition on Wednesday, and this morning our Year 6s set off for their exciting trip to Grafham. 

Looking Ahead to Next Week 
All parents are invited to attend a Therapeutic Thinking Workshop to find out more about how we manage behaviour at Almond Hill. We’d love to see as many of you as possible at one of the two sessions – one in person and one online to make this as easy as possible. Please see below for more information. 

Children will have their school photos taken on Tuesday. A reminder to our Year 6 pupils that this one will be used for the Yearbook! Our monthly book sale will take place on Wednesday, with lots of great books to choose from at just 50p each – it’s definitely worth a look. Miss Simmons’ Parent Forum will also be held on Wednesday at 6pm via Microsoft Teams. This is a fantastic opportunity to share your views and help influence change at your child’s school, so please do come along if you can. 

Finally, the much-anticipated Halloween School Disco is nearly here! We can’t wait to see lots of brilliant costumes and smiling faces on Thursday. Please remember that children will only be admitted if they have a ticket (the deadline to purchase was Wednesday). A huge thank you in advance to the FOAH for organising what’s sure to be a lovely event for the children. 

Have a good weekend, 

Emma Fordham
Headteacher

Kindness of the week: If someone is hurt, help them. 

Dates to Remember After Half Term

CGP Books  

Please be reminded, the deadline to order the CGP books is 9.00am on Monday 3rd November. These are available to purchase on the Arbor School Shop.  

Diversity Day – Tuesday 4th November  

On Tuesday 4th November, Almond Hill will be having a Diversity Day! On this day, children will share and learn lots about all the different things that make them special and diverse and celebrate how wonderful this is. They will learn about many different parts of diversity and make a classroom display too. As part of this, we would love to invite parents/carers/family members of our children in to speak to their child's class about something special about them. We have already had a few volunteers for this so thank you very much! We would love more though! If you are unable to come in yourself, perhaps you could write a few notes for your child to share instead? We're really keen to hear from a diverse range of families. 

If you would be free to help us out, please contact the teachers in your child's year group using one of the following emails: 

Year3@almondhill.herts.sch.uk 
year4@almondhill.herts.sch.uk 
year5@almondhill.herts.sch.uk 
year6@almondhill.herts.sch.uk 

Thank you in advance! 

Outdoor Learning Day – Thursday 6th November 

On the 6th November, Almond Hill will be taking part in a nationwide Outside Classroom Day initiative. We believe that children should spend more time in the natural environment and use this space to enhance their knowledge and understanding. Children will be spending part of the day outside and will therefore need to be dressed appropriately as the weather turns colder and wetter.   

Reading Workshop for Parents – Friday 7th November 9.00-10.30am 

On Friday 7th November, we would like to invite you to a 'Reading Workshop' where we will outline our aims and expectations for reading at Almond Hill. During the workshop, we will share the ways in which we teach reading and comprehension, the additional provision that we provide to further develop the children and the information and resources that are available for you to support at home. 

The workshop is aimed at all parents of children in Year 3 and 4 and parents of children in Year 5 and 6 whose child is not yet at ‘age related’ in reading.  

The workshop will be held in the hall on Friday 7th November 9.00-10.30am and there will be an opportunity to visit some classrooms to see reading lessons in action.  

Open Evening – Thursday 13th November 5.30-7.00pm 

Our open evening for prospective parents will be on Thursday 13th November where we will welcome lots of families to look at our wonderful school. This is supported by Year 6 children who act as ambassadors for the school and show families round. We always receive positive feedback about this event and are really looking forward to this year’s open evening. Look out for more information in the coming weeks. 

Advance Notice - Christmas Events 

Click to expand

 

Key Messages

Applying for a Secondary School Place - Deadline: 31st October 2025

School open events and key dates for secondary transfer 
Moving on 2026 leaflet Information for parents with children in year 6 at primary/junior school. Further information about moving to secondary school in September 2026 will be available at www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/admissions 

The timetable below gives you an idea of what will happen over the next few months. 

September and October 

Secondary and upper schools hold their open events (Details available at www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/schoolsdirectory)  

31 October 2025 

Deadline for applications 

2 December 2025 

Last date to:  

• submit reasons for making a late application and for that application to be considered ‘on time’  

• notify us of a change of address and for that address to be taken into account for allocation day  

Please refer to the online admission pages for more detail about these processes. 

30 January 2026 

Last date to make a late application to be considered for allocation day. 

2 March 2026 

Allocation Day. School places are offered. 

 

Therapeutic Thinking Parent Workshops  

Mrs Burgess and Mrs Wright, our Pastoral Leads, will be running workshops for all parents on Therapeutic Thinking. This is an opportunity for parents to gain an insight into the school's behaviour management approach and how we consider what a child's behaviour might be trying to tell us.  They will be hosting 2 sessions.  

The first will take place online (via Microsoft Teams) at 6.00pm on Monday 20th October. 

Join the meeting now 

Meeting ID: 343 587 956 536 6 

Passcode: jn3rU6Vq 

The second session will be in the hall at 2.00pm on Tuesday 21st October. Both sessions will last approximately 1 hour. 

Please visit our website for more information on Therapeutic Thinking: https://www.almondhill.herts.sch.uk/page/?title=Behaviour&pid=177  

These are really useful sessions and I would urge parents to join us if they can. We hope to see as many parents there as possible.    
 

Thank you for your generosity

Thank you so much to those parents / carers who have generously donated items on our gift list for our outdoor relaxation space. Plans are afoot and we really appreciate your support.

School Photos 

Our photographers will be in school on Tuesday 21st October to take individual photos of the children. The photos taken of Year 6 will be used in the yearbook so please do your best to be here on the day. Almond Hill siblings will also have their photos taken on this day. Please ensure your child is in full uniform (ideally with jumper/cardigan). If your child’s class usually has PE on a Tuesday, please can they come to school in school uniform and bring their PE kit to change into.  

School Improvement Plan Parent Summary  

2024 - 2025 Summary of Objectives

Objectives 2024-25 based on school self- evaluation: July 2024 Yr3-6 assessment outcomes, evaluation of school improvement actions 23/24, consultation with staff and governors, feedback from pupils and parents, May 2021 Ofsted, Attendance data 2023-2024, External visits from HfL HIP and TLAs

Objective

Link to Ofsted RAG rated summary

1.

To support vulnerable learners/disadvantaged groups to ensure progress and achievement including those with SEND and in receipt of PPG with a focus on attendance and provision.

Leadership and Management/Overall Effectiveness

Achievement of targets related to attendance for vulnerable groups were extremely strong. Targets related to progress of pupils with SEND, inclusion of PPG and well being have also been achieved in the main.

 

2.

To develop and improve oracy and writing across the school to ensure children can articulate themselves effectively both verbally and in writing

Quality of Education/Leadership and Management

There has been progress in the development of oracy across the school; it is now seen as a subject and strategy featuring in the English profile and action plan objectives have been met. Although writing attainment remains the same the staff have developed a long term plan, sequence for learning and teaching and assessment frameworks for writing in each year group to ensure consistency. There has been some external support with this to check for coverage and heed has been taken of the writing framework released in July 2025 by government. Oracy and writing objectives will be extended into school improvement plan for next year.

3.

Continue to develop the foundation curriculum and subject leadership to ensure a broad, balanced, progressive, well planned, delivered and assessed curriculum that meets the needs of the pupils at our school 

Leadership and Management/Behaviour and Attitudes/Personal Development/Overall Effectiveness

Progress has been made towards targets related to knowledge organisers, retrieval and assessment practices. Diversity targets continue to be addressed and outdoor learning has been embedded into the well being accreditation action plan. All will continue to be extended into the school improvement plan for next year,  

2025-2026 Summary of Objectives

Objectives 2025-26 based on school self- evaluation: July 2025 Yr3-6 assessment outcomes, evaluation of school improvement actions 24/25, consultation with staff and governors, feedback from pupils and parents, May 2021 Ofsted, Attendance data 2024-2025, External visits from HfL SEA and TLAs.

Key Priority

Objectives

1.

To support vulnerable learners/disadvantaged groups to ensure progress and achievement including those with SEND and in receipt of PPG with a focus on attendance and provision.
  • To improve attendance with a focus on those pupils in receipt of PPG
  • Scaffolding for inclusion as part of a wider focus on metacognition
  • ‘Saplings’ alternative provision for children who are not yet ready for the Year 3 curriculum
  • Develop provision for older readers (upper school Years 5 and 6) for whom phonics has not worked
     

2.

To develop and improve oracy and writing across the school to ensure children can articulate themselves effectively both verbally and in writing
  • Develop ‘Oracy’ further as part of the planned and delivered curriculum  
  • To improve writing attainment across the school through the development and embedding of a rigorous and progressive bespoke scheme

 

3.

Focus on personal and social skills to ensure children have the skills and knowledge to access learning and develop personal skills for success and happiness and citizenship skills to contribute to their community
  • ‘Let’s grow’ project to develop independence and resilience 
  • To acquire the wellbeing accreditation and ensure full range of areas for development have been addressed
  • Outdoor learning to be embedded into planned curriculum and provisions 
  • Social time provision to ensure children enjoy and develop play and problem-solving skills and are ready to learn in lessons

 

4.

Continue to develop the foundation curriculum and subject leadership to ensure a broad, balanced, progressive, well planned, delivered and assessed curriculum that meets the needs of the pupils at our school 
  • Ensure curriculum is well planned and progressive
  • Ensure curriculum is remembered and transferable
  • Ensure curriculum is supplemented and enriched
  • Introduce and develop the use of AI to increase effectiveness of staff

 

Diary Dates

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. 

School Calendar 

Preloved Book Sales 

Our preloved book sales take place during the school day. Children can bring cash to school for these. Books cost 50p each. 

Wednesday 22nd October 
Wednesday 26th November  

Preloved Uniform Sales

These take place from 3.00-3.30pm in the school hall. Families can purchase preloved uniform for a suggested donation of 50p per item. 

Thursday 6th November  
Thursday 4th Decembe

SEND and Pastoral – Save the Dates  

Afternoon tea:  Monday 8th December at 2:30pm. 

We welcome all parents to attend (whether your child has a diagnosis or not) if they feel they would benefit from speaking to our SENCo and/or our pastoral team. In our experience, almost all children benefit from pastoral support during their journey at school. Examples of where this has been supportive in the past are when friendship issues arise, loss of a pet, online issues outside of school, family break up and bereavement. We are always delighted when more parents join us.  

Opportunities to Join our Parent Forum 

Each and every one of you is an expert in what it is like to be a parent at our school and would be welcome. Children thrive best when school and home work together.  

Miss Simmons plans half termly meetings to discuss an agenda jointly formed between the school leadership team and parent volunteers. The most important thing is that parents get involved. We would love approximately three parents per year group and with so many new families joining, we wanted to remind you of this opportunity. Please email admin@almondhill.herts.sch.uk FAO Miss Simmons if you would like to get involved, or even just find out more. This is a really exciting opportunity to further develop the home school partnership. 

The next meeting will be held on: Wednesday 22nd October 6.00-7.00pm (online)

Microsoft Teams Need help?
Join the meeting now
Meeting ID: 399 410 886 735 7
Passcode: iN62oH3Q

Attendance

Year 3 98.41% 
Year 4 93.21% 
Year 5 96.67% 
Year 6 95% 
All Students 95.82% 

Lower School Class Winner
3L - 100%

Upper School Class Winner 
5P - 97.3%

Class of the Week 

 

Almond Hill Achievements

We would love to hear from you! 
Click here to be taken to our achievements page. 

At Almond Hill, we love to share and celebrate your successes. If you would like your child featured in our weekly newsletter, please complete the form on our website: https://www.almondhill.herts.sch.uk/form/?pid=130&form=483

House Points

FOAH News...

Friends of Almond Hill Halloween Disco - 23rd October 

Please do not leave/bring your child if you have not purchased a ticket. Unfortunately we cannot allow entry without one and we would hate to cause any upset on the day.
Deadlines must be strictly followed. We are unable to make exceptions.
Children do not need a physical ticket - volunteers will have a list of those who have purchased a ’ticket’ to allow entry.  

 

Additional Information Regarding the Disco

Children in Year 3 can stay at school at 3.15pm and their teacher will escort them to the disco. If your child is staying here, please ensure they have their costume or change of clothes with them. They will have time to change in class before the disco starts.  In the past, we have had parents arrive at the end of the school day to dress their children in elaborate and intricate outfits which takes a lot of time and therefore children miss out on what is a relatively short time at the disco. Children can bring their costumes to school and teachers will give them plenty of time to get ready at the end of the day before the disco begins. Please allow them to bring their costume to school to enable them to do this and make the most of the disco. Please also note that as this is a silent disco, children will be wearing headphones so head pieces are not necessary and could get lost so you may want to leave those at home. Children will not be able to apply face paint before the disco as they often paint each other and some children are allergic but don't worry - the hall is dark so the children won't see! 

Children in Years 4-6 must be dropped to the hall doors by the main office via the main office gate which will be open. If your child is booked to go to Premier after school club, they can bring a change of clothes with them and will be taken to the disco by an adult. All children must be collected (from the quadrant) by an adult.  As it may be dark when your child is being collected, we will see the children out individually to ensure everybody’s safety. Please form an orderly queue! Please remember, staff and parents volunteer their time for these events so would appreciate a prompt collection at the end of the disco. Phones are not allowed at the disco so please make sure these are left at home.   

Clubs - We know that not every child wants to attend the disco, so if your child is due to attend Stop Frame Animation or Outdoor Activities, these clubs will still be on. 

FOAH Christmas Cards 

As some Christmas items are starting to appear in the shops, Friends of Almond Hill are also getting ready for the big day and this week teachers have sent home a template for your children to create Christmas cards and gifts from their designs - so please look out for these.  3B are doing theirs in class but if you would like a template to do at home, please let us know. 

Additional templates will be available if there is a change in artistic direction which can be collected from the office. Please can we ask that all artwork is clearly labelled and returned to your class teacher by Monday 20th October.

FOAH Meeting Minutes

September 2025
 

In Other News...

Table Tennis Tournament Success! 🏓

Table Tennis Tournament Success! 🏓 This week our table tennis teams took part in an exciting tournament, competing against lots of other schools. Both teams showed brilliant effort, determination and teamwork from start to finish. Every match was full of energy, encouragement and smiles and it was fantastic to see everyone cheering each other on throughout the day! We…

Table Tennis Tournament Success! 🏓
View Story

 

 

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