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October 2023

Archive

  • Issue 8 - 1st November 2023

    Published 19/10/23

    Dear Parents/Carers,

    Welcome back! I hope you enjoyed a restful half term break.

    This half term, we will be having a real focus on well-being for pupils with some really exciting activities planned. Today, some filming has taken place with some of the children with consent as part of a town wide film being made about positive mental health. We are really excited to be part of this and are proud that our school has been involved.

    On Wednesday 8th November, the whole school will take part in Kindness workshops which leads us nicely into 'Feeling Good Week' during the week of 13th November. Children will take part in daily activities regarding physical and mental wellbeing ending with a performance from musician Natalie Shay which has been funded by school. 

    Please visit our website if you need any resources or support for yours or your child's mental health and wellbeing https://www.almondhill.herts.sch.uk/news/?pid=22&nid=25

    Have a good week.

    Emma Fordham,
    Headteacher

    Key Messages

    Parent Survey Feedback
    Please tell us your views on the school's ethos 'It's all about the climb'. What do you understand of it?

    Last year, we began introducing ‘The Climb’ as our new school ethos. Previously, we had the ‘Almond Hill Pyramid’ but felt the climb, with children striving to be top of the ‘Hill’, was more fitting for our school. I agree with the feedback that this had not been communicated in the best way to families but hope that now we have had our year group parent information evenings (where the video was shown), this has been covered in enough detail for parents. For those who were unable to attend the evenings or for anyone who would like a refresh, you can watch the video below.

    ‘The Climb’ helps to build on our expectations for good behaviour and self-ownership. The Climb is about the lessons you learn along the journey and not the end result.

    Premier After School Club (wrap around care)

    Please be aware that as our numbers are steadily increasing, so are the number of children booked on to after school club with Premier. If you would like your child to attend after school club, please book in advance. We cannot guarantee there will be spaces on the day.

    Seesaw has Rebranded

    Governor Update 

    You may not be aware, but our chair of governors, Andrew Boakes, left us at the end of the last term.  As a result, we now have a reformed team of non-staff governors with Claire Lanni and Stephen Fuller as Co-Chairs. Heidi Nash takes the place of Vice Chair.  Debbie Furness and Lisa Leonard remain as Co-Opted governors and we welcome Kanwal Rizvi to our team as a new parent governor.  See link below for detailed biographies for our governors. 

    https://www.almondhill.herts.sch.uk/page/?title=Governors&pid=35

    We have been working together to produce a governor development plan and are excited to continue to work closely with staff to maintain high standards at our school and to shape future developments.  

    We are building a great team of people, but we need more governors to bring new skills, interests, and ideas to our team. You do not need any qualifications to be a governor, just an interest in education and the ability to give some of your time.  If you think there is a possibility you would be interested, please talk to Mrs Fordham to find out more about the role without making any commitments.  Or alternatively if you would like to forward any questions to the governors, please email admin@almondhill.herts.sch.uk  

    Read More

  • Issue 7 - 18th October 2023

    Published 18/10/23

    Issue number:  7                                                                                                                              Date: 18th October 2023

    Dear Parents/Carers,

    This week, we hosted the last of our parent lunches for Year 3. I hope families enjoyed this opportunity to come in to school. It was lovely to see you all!

    Many children in Year 6 will be setting off for their residential trip to Grafham on Friday. We hope the children thoroughly enjoy themselves and make lots of memories with their friends. A big thank you must be given to Mrs Patterson for organising the trip and to all the members of staff who are accompanying the children this weekend. Have fun!

    We have lots to look forward to when we return from half term including our Open Evening on the 9th November for new parents where we are hoping Year 6 pupils will continue the tradition as acting as tour guides (letters will be sent out in due course), Feeling Good Week, a Year 5 trip to the Space Centre and the Year 4 and 5 DT afternoon. Keep a look out for more information on our newsletters.

    Have a good week.

    Emma Fordham,
    Headteacher

    Key Messages

    Parent Survey Feedback

    Each year, the SLT and Governors develop the School Improvement Plan, what would you hope to see on it?

    Some parents told us they would like regular updates about the School Improvement Plan (SIP) and how this is implemented. I agree that this has not been very regular and will endevour to keep parents updated termly regarding the SIP and how this is moving forward. The summary for this year will be shared with parents soon. A small number of you also said you would like better communication between your child’s class teacher and home aside from the use of Seesaw. Parents are offered two PTIs per year and are given an end of year report. As well as this, parents are really welcome to utilise the year group email boxes to arrange adhoc meetings with the class teacher if needed in between. We aim to keep the channels of communication open and strive for engagement with families.

    Some parents commented on our offering of after school clubs and have suggested a wider selection. We completely understand why parents would want this to happen but must stress that many of our clubs are run by staff who volunteer their time and skills to run these clubs. As a school, we have started funding clubs from Premier but as I am sure you will appreciate, we have budgets we must adhere to. Therefore, although we would love to offer even more clubs, we are limited by cost and time. We would welcome parent volunteers to run after school clubs so If there are any parents with specific skills who wish to offer their time to run a club, we would be delighted!

    Arbor Parent Portal

    The portal has now been opened to all families across the year groups. I am really pleased that over 75% of parents have logged on at least once. If you are struggling with this, please pop into the office where the team will be happy to help you. When you first log on, you will need to use a web browser (i.e. Chrome/Edge) to set up your account – not through the app itself.

    Diary Dates

    For our full calendar, please click the 'button' link below.

    School Calendar

    Click Here for Upcoming Events

    Read More

  • Issue 6 - 11th October 2023

    Published 11/10/23

    Dear Parents/Carers,

    It has been lovely to see so many Year 3 families join us for lunch. We hope you have enjoyed it as much as the children have! We are looking forward to welcoming families from 3W next Wednesday. Please remember, the deadline to order lunch for next week is today.

    Next week, FOAH are hosting our Halloween (silent) disco! Please note, there will be NO clubs after school on this day. This does not impact Premier our wrap around care provider.

    The times for the disco are as follow:

    Year 3 - 3.30-4.30pm       Year 4 - 4.15-5.15pm
    Year 5 - 5.00-6.00pm       Year 6 - 5.45-6.45pm
    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 at 3.30pm. 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.

    Have a good week.

    Emma Fordham

    Headteacher

    Key Messages

    Parent Survey Feedback

    Do you feel that the school promotes and informs you about up to date online safety matters?

    Many parents feel that although we provide information about online safety, this is an area they would like further support with. We currently have an online safety group with pupils, staff and governor representation headed up with Mrs Lyons. In November, like many schools across the town, we will be holding a 'Feeling Good Week' and we have decided to focus in on online safety and how technology can help or hinder our wellbeing. We are hoping to end that week with an exciting visitor... more news to follow! I am also currently investigating booking a speaker for parents about this very important topic. This is likely to be in the spring term.

    Autumn Parents’ Evenings

    Yesterday was the first of our parents’ evenings and as requested by you, we have been trialling a new way of offering appointments. I hope it has worked well for families and will look to gather feedback once the final evening has been held in November. Please make sure you have read the email (sent 09/10/23) from the office before attending as this details everything you need to know on the night.

    How do parents join the video call?

    A link should automatically be sent to parents via the system 1 hour before their video call but we understand that this may not have happened for all parents on Tuesday. Please check your spam/junk box in case this has been sent here but parents simply access the system on the day of their appointments and press the Join Video Appointments button at the top of their screen. There's also a link sent to parents in the email confirmation to join the video call.

    https://almondhill.schoolcloud.co.uk/

    Booster and Tutoring

    We will soon be inviting some children in Year 4, 5 and 6 to attend different booster/tutoring sessions. In the past, we have had parents query why their children have not been asked to attend. These sessions are built to meet the needs of particular individuals with specific support requirements. If your child has not been invited, it may be that these sessions are not beneficial to them. If you feel your child needs additional support, please speak to their class teacher.

    Secondary School Applications

    Please be reminded that the deadline for secondary school applications is on Tuesday 31st October.

    If you haven't already done so, please follow the link below to apply for your child's place. 

    www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/admissions

    Read More

  • Issue 5 - 4th October 2023

    Published 04/10/23

     

    Dear Parents/Carers,

    As well as different sporting activities, we have lots of events booked in this term and opportunities for parents to come into school. This month, Year 3 parents are invited to have lunch with their child, Year 5 children have been invited to Barclay to watch a performance of ‘Oliver’ and we finish the month with our FOAH Halloween (silent) disco. In November, we have planned trips to the cinema for all year groups (free of charge!) and parents of children in Years 4 and 5 will be invited to a fun DT afternoon. In the run up to Christmas, Year 3 will perform their nativity to parents and children in Year 6 will attend the church (with the school choir) to sing Christmas carols with families invited too. We will also be hosting a Rocksteady Concert for ‘band members’!

    In response to parent feedback, we have planned parent events for all year groups across different weeks to make it more accessible for all. We also know that Letchmore have lots of events planned and have tried to liaise with them as best as possible to avoid any conflict of dates. We would also really welcome help from parent volunteers on school trips wherever possible as staffing can sometimes be a barrier to engaging in more external events. Please email your child’s year group if this is something you may be able to do (on an adhoc basis). If you are a keen gardener, we are also looking for volunteers to help maintain our allotment. Please email the year 4 group if you would be interesting in helping in the allotment.

    In addition to our monthly values, we will be having a whole school focus on the concept of empathy this year. The definition of empathy shared with children is: the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. Empathy is the ability to emotionally understand what other people feel, see things from their point of view, and imagine yourself in their place. Essentially, it is putting yourself in someone else's position and feeling what they are feeling. Empathy enables people to get on with others, whether it be a loved one, peer, friend or complete stranger. Ultimately, it is essential for developing good relationships, both at school and at home and throughout our life. Last year, we focused on gratitude and saw a real positive shift in mind set. Please speak to children about empathy and what this means to them over the coming weeks.

    Have a good week.

    Emma Fordham,
    Headteacher

    Key Messages

    Parent Survey Feedback

    Question 2 on our survey related to our website. We asked if parents look at the website and what they would like to see added. I am pleased to see that the vast majority of parents answered yes, they do look at the website and there were some suggestions on areas that you would like us to improve which I will address here. Some parents suggested more photos of the staff would be useful. The website already has photos of all staff members but I appreciate this may not be found easily so photos of all members of Almond Hill staff are now on our staff page.

    It was requested that up to date plans for each subject were available. Our long term and medium term plans are on the website and these are regularly reviewed. However, curriculum is ever changing as we seek to improve and adapt e.g. we have been reviewing the PSHE content to ensure we are meeting the needs of the pupils so sometimes, documents may be changed after publication. They can be found here: Year group pages

    Some parents would like to see more photos of events. Each class now has an iPod which they use to upload photos to Seesaw. These are also taken with staff on events to take photos where consent allows. These are then added to our website here: Photo Gallery

    There were some comments regarding our website calendar. Last week, we spoke about adding clubs to the calendar which has been done. Our admin team have made a start on ‘splitting’ the calendar. This has been done before and unfortunately wasn’t as effective as some would have hoped so please let us know on our next survey if this does not work. The categories have been split into school events, term dates, clubs, lower school and upper school so you can select which you would like to view. We would suggest always having ‘school events’ ticked as well as your child’s tier to avoid missing events.  Don’t forget, 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

    Autumn Parents’ Evenings

    Don’t forget to book your appointment. The booking system will close at 9.00am on Friday 6th October.  Should you wish to make any changes after this date, please contact the school office.

    The system we use for booking these meetings is the same as we recently used for clubs.  Please visit https://almondhill.parentseveningsystem.co.uk to book your appointment.  Please log in with the following information: your child’s first name, surname and date of birth.

    Parent Forum

    All parents are welcome to attend the first forum of the year with our parent volunteers and Miss Simmons. This will take place in school on Monday 16th October 5:30 - 6:30pm. Please email admin@almondhill.herts.sch.uk (FAO Miss Simmons) if you would like to attend.

    Year 5 trip to Barclay - Request for Volunteers

    The students of Barclay Academy have invited students in Year 5 to a matinee performance of their production of Oliver Jr by Lionel Bart - a story based on the novel Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens. This takes place at the same time as swimming lessons so non-swimmers will be going. With members of staff attending swimming and escorting children to Barclay, we would really appreciate some support from parents. If you are free and able to attend the production at Barclay, please contact the year group email: year5@almondhill.herts.sch.uk The performance is on Tuesday 17th October 1.30pm - 2.45pm and parents would be walking to and from the production with us.

    Traffic Wardens

    In the recent visit to our school, a traffic warden reported being verbally abused/threatened by an individual visiting our school. I was disappointed to hear about this incident and would like to remind parents that traffic wardens are just doing their job which ultimately mean safer roads for our children. We have received numerous complaints regarding dangerous parking/driving around our school site and their role is to help prevent accidents from happening – something we can all agree we want.

     

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October 2023

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