Photograph Permission

Dear Parents/Carers

From time to time your child may be filmed, featured in a video or photographed by staff in school, press or TV. Photographs may also appear in the school prospectus, on the school website or on the school computer network. We shall try to inform you in advance if this happens, but on occasions opportunities arise at very short notice. The school's policy is to state first names of pupils only.

We would like to obtain your permission to take photographs throughout the year and would therefore be grateful if you would complete the permission slip below.

Many thanks

Yours sincerely

Mr J Croker
Headteacher

Harvest Festival

Dear Parents/Carers

Our Harvest Festival will be held on Friday 5^th October at St John’s Church at 9.30am. Unfortunately as this is a whole school event, there will be insufficient space to invite parents on this occasion.

The lower school pupils will be taken to the church by coach and the upper school pupils will be walking.

I would be grateful if you would complete and return the permission slip below by Wednesday 3^rdOctober. Please note that if we do not receive permission, we will be unable to take your child off site.

Many thanks

Yours sincerely

Mr J Croker
Headteacher

NEWSLETTER Issue: 2.04

HEAD'S VIEW
Please find attached to this newsletter our policy on Homework and relevant parts from our Attendance policy. They are both aspects of school life where we think we can do better!

In last term's parental questionnaire, homework was one of the main issues, particularly as regards an inconsistent approach throughout the school. In truth I have never known a school where all parents (and even staff) agree about homework. A few want homework for their children every night all year, a few do not want any homework whatsoever and the rest lie somewhere in between. We believe homework is a good thing for the reasons outlined in the policy but we also realise that it can be a source of unnecessary friction. We have therefore been clear about what you can expect, when to expect it and by when it has to be completed. This new policy comes into effect for Years 3 to 6 next Friday and for Reception to Year 2 immediately after half term. This year we are carrying out a full curriculum review and it will include homework so this policy may well be amended in the not too distant future. We would welcome any comments you have.

As regards the Attendance policy, this has been drawn up in line with Local Authority guidance. Our overall attendance levels could be better and we will be monitoring the attendance of children closely. The taking of holidays during term has become something of a habit in some cases and, while I want to work with families and recognise that a family holiday is exactly what is needed on some occasions, I am concerned that the amount of time taken out of school is undermining the education of a significant number of children. Research tells us that even 90% attendance will, year on year, lessen the life chances of a child. With this in mind this policy has been drawn up. Thank you for your support in ensuring that your child comes to school regularly and on time.

I would like to thank all our Year 6 tour guides who excelled on Open Day – our visitors were most impressed with their courtesy, enthusiasm and incredible knowledge of the school! CONGRATULATIONS too to all of us on reaching £24500 in our ReNewbridge efforts – a fantastic effort. This is also a chance to remind everyone that tomorrow is an INSET day and the school is closed. I hope all of our girls and boys have an excellent long weekend! Sadly, we say farewell to Sankha (2RB) whose family is moving to Loughborough. Our very best wishes for the future go with this delightful boy and his family.

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY:
Friday 28/09/07 – (Tomorrow) INSET Day (the school is closed)
Thursday 04/10/07 –
1H Assembly – 2.45pm
Kilve Meeting for Year 5 – 7.00pm
Friday 05/10/07 –
Whole School Harvest

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE FOLLOWING 'STARS OF THE WEEK'
Years 1 and 2
Ethan
Jasmin
Hannah
Ralph
Indigo
Years 3 and 4
Ollie
Nathan
Maya
Katie
Years 5 and 6
Tiffani
Brandon
Katherine
Jacob
Ben
Darcy
PPA Music
Jacob
PPA Art
Emily
Julian
PPA PE
Will
Kian

WANTED
Boys over 8 years old to join the Boys' Breakdancing Club at Oldfield Girls' School on Thursdays at 4.30pm. If you are interested please contact Oldfield Girls' School direct on 01225 423592.

YEAR 5 RESIDENTIAL TRIP TO KILVE COURT 2008
Please note that there is a meeting on Thursday 4th October at 7.00pm to give you details of this proposed trip.
The meeting will be held in Class 8 in the Upper School.
We look forward to seeing you.

SUNDAY FUN FACTORY
7TH October 2007 from 4.00pm – 5.30pm at Emmanuel Church in Apsley Road.
Entertainer Jon Bonner – songs, magic, puppets, fun and tea.
Everything is free!

NEWSLETTER Issue: 2.03

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY w/b 24/09/07:
Monday 24/09/07 –

Clubs start
NPSA AGM – 7.30pm
Friday 28/09/07 –
INSET Day

RENEWBRIDGE
The total as of this week is approximately £24,500.00.

NEWBRIDGE PRIMARY SCHOOL ASSOCIATION INVITES PARENTS AND CARERS TO JOIN US AT OUR ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING AND TERM 1 COMMITTEE MEETING
Monday 24th September 2007 at 7.30pm in the Lower School Hall
Why come?
To meet other parents
To find out more about your child’s school
To get involved in fundraising
To have a say in how we spend the money
To have a glass of wine!!
How did we raise money last year?
Christmas and Summer Fairs
Football tournament
Sponsored events
Quiz night for parents
Discos and Fashion Show
Cake sales & Farmers Market
How did we spend it?
Christmas presents for each classroom
Digital cameras for use in class
Plants and seeds and equipment for gardening club
Book at Bedtime
Trophies for football tournament
School trips
Storybox Theatre
What will we do next year?
Come along to find out and give us your ideas!!

FLOPPY DISCS
The school has a stock of floppy discs that are surplus to requirements. If you or your child can use them, please contact the School Office.

EXTRA-CURRICULAR CLUBS
Owing to the current building work and the loss of communal spaces, it is necessary that several clubs run on the same day. Unfortunately, we are unable to accommodate children who wish to alternate clubs. We would therefore ask that they make a choice and commit to that one club for the term. Thank you for your co-operation.

PIANIST WANTED
We are looking for a kind hearted pianist to accompany our gorgeous singing for the whole school Harvest Celebration on the morning of Monday 5th October at St John's Church.
Please let the School Office know as soon as possible if you are available and able to help.
Thank you.

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE FOLLOWING 'STARS OF THE WEEK'

Years 1 and 2
Sankha
James
Joshua
Alice
Rafferty
Years 3 and 4
Joshua
Theo
Martha
Wilf
Years 5 and 6
Elliot
Sydney
Harrison
Fynn
Ella
Danny

HARVEST FESTIVAL
We will be holding a whole school Harvest Festival on the morning of Friday 5th October at St John's Church. Unfortunately, owing to the lack of space, we will be unable to accommodate parents and friends of the school at this event. We will provide more details in the next Newsletter.

NEWSLETTER Issue: 2.02

HEAD'S VIEW
As we settle into a new term and year, we are delighted with the way our children have started, showing such a positive attitude towards their learning and those around them. Well done girls and boys – onwards and upwards!
Sadly, today is the last day at Newbridge for Hannah Loveday (5C) as her family is emigrating to New Zealand. We wish Hannah and her family all the very best in their exciting new venture. Keep in touch, Hannah.
There have been a number of changes and a continuing development of policies and procedures over the summer. I will bring you up to date with these over the next few weeks.
We have changed our PPA provision. As you may know, it is statutory that all teachers must have 10% of their timetable free from teaching so that they can plan, prepare and carry out assessments. At Newbridge all teachers in a year are released at the same time so that they can plan and prepare together and liaise with their teaching assistants. In the past, the staff who have come in to teach in the place of the teachers during that PPA time have taught a variety of subjects. From this year, we have specialist teachers concentrating on particular subjects so that our children benefit from their expertise. From Year 2 to Year 6, Mrs Bartlett is teaching PE, Mr Baigent is teaching art & drama and Mrs Rutland is teaching mostly music. In Reception and Year 1, for the sake of continuity at such a young age these sessions are being taught by early years specialists, Mrs Day and Mrs Poole. Our PPA team have loved their first week and are positively skipping around the school!
In last week's newsletter, I did not welcome Mrs O’Gara who is teaching with Mrs Hansard in Year 1 (1HO). Strictly speaking Mrs O’Gara is not a new member of staff but she has been away from us for a while on successive maternity leaves, bringing her lovely children, Kitty and Ted, into the world. She returns to us for one and a half days per week and we are delighted to have her back with us.
Please find below, class names and staff for this year. As you can see we have used teacher initials to identify the class throughout the school, apart from Reception which remains as Elm and Willow.
On a final note, the money keeps pouring in for ReNewbridge. The amount you see opposite is already out of date as a cheque has just been put on my desk as I write this! This whole venture has been exemplified by the Audley Avenue families who held a street party over the summer and raised £750 which was then matched by a local business, bringing the sum to £1500! Well done to the Audley Avenue stars and to EVERYONE who has done so much. In essence we are now approaching the £20000 mark with an additional £20000 grant which we received at the end of last term to match the ReNewbridge money. This has been such a fabulous effort that when the venture finishes with the Auction of Promises (details to follow soon), I would like a special book made containing all our evidence sheets, photos etc. It is therefore essential that you ensure your activity/venture has a completed evidence sheet in the marked folder. Please check this folder which is found by the ReNewbridge display board in Reception. I would expect that this book will be made during the Christmas holidays to ensure everyone is included. Please keep an eye out too for news about the party to celebrate our efforts. When we have a definite handover date for the hall, I will come back to you.

DATES FOR THE DIARY W/B 17/09/07

Thursday 20/09/07– 2GB Assembly – 2.45pm
Friday 21/09/07 – Open Day

RENEWBRIDGE
The running total as of this week is a whopping £18,829.64. Thank you to everyone who has contributed to this fantastic amount.

NPSA ASSOCIATION
The AGM will be held in the Lower School Hall on Monday 24th September at 7.30pm. All are welcome. Wine will be available.

OPEN DAY
We would like to invite you to join us and have a look around the school on Friday 21st September 2007 from 9.30 - 10.30 am (followed by Coffee) and 1.30 - 2.30pm.

SCHOOL ARRIVAL TIME
Staff have noticed that unsupervised children are arriving at the upper school too early. Please note that children are only supervised on the playground from 8.40am and therefore we cannot ensure children's safety before this time. We understand that for working parents this can be a problem, however, we do ask that you please make other arrangements. Thank you for your co-operation in this matter.

LETTER FROM SENCo

Dear Parents/Carers
Thank you for such a warm welcome to Newbridge Primary School. Ali Bartlett has officially handed over the SENCo reins and I have a lot to live up to! I am in school on Tuesdays and Wednesdays all day and Thursday mornings.
If you have any concerns/issues regarding SEN I will be available to meet every Tuesday from 3.00 – 4.00pm. I look forward to meeting you at Parents’ Evening.
Many thanks.

Beth Skinner, SENCo

CLASSES FOR YEAR 2007/2008
Lower School
Elm – Mrs Harrison
Willow – Ms Rhodes
1HO – Mrs Hansard/Mrs O’Gara
1H – Miss Higginbotham
2GB – Miss Barratt
2RB – Mrs Bradley
2S – Miss Slee
Upper School
3C – Ms Card
3H – Mr Hempleman
4A – Miss Amies
4P – Mrs Phillips
5C – Mr Cumpson (Mrs Walsh)
5D – Miss Donnelly
5W – Miss Wells
6B – Mrs Boyle
6N – Miss Newton
6S – Miss Simpson

NEWSLETTER Issue: 2.01

HEAD'S VIEW
On Tuesday we enjoyed a very auspicious start to our year with a whole school assembly on the lower school playground. In glorious sunshine set in a clear blue sky we welcomed back our children and staff after their summer holidays. The occasion was even graced by a family of wasps (Newbridge types of course) and a local cat, neither of whom wanted to miss out on such an event. We heard some interesting stories about holiday happenings and we also congratulated Miss Skyner, now Mrs Boyle, on her marriage over the summer. We gave a big welcome to our new children Hannah Powell, Thomas Tafireyi, William King, Oliver Lifely and Tom Parfitt while we look forward to the opportunity to do the same to our new Reception children who have started this week in some style. We also welcome five new members of staff: Miss Roanna Newton joins us from her previous post in Gillingham, Dorset and will be teaching in Year 6. Miss Carolyn Donnelly, previously teaching in North Yorkshire, will be taking a Year 5 class while Miss Palmer is away on maternity leave. Mrs Beth Skinner, who has taught here at the Junior School from 2000 to 2002, returns as SEN Coordinator. Mrs Ruth Poole is teaching Reception as PPA cover for one day a week and Mrs Jill Rutland will be teaching mostly music from Year 2 to Year 6, again as PPA cover, for one and a half days a week. We are also delighted to see Mrs Hilary Walsh return to full time teaching with us, albeit for one term, as cover for Mr Cumpson while he is away on sabbatical. I know I speak on behalf of the whole Newbridge community when I extend my very best wishes to all our newcomers.

I hope you all had an excellent summerbreak with your family and friends and that everyone is looking forward to an exciting year ahead of us. I have much to tell you about in the coming weeks but for now I will bring you up to date with what has happened over the summer. The painters have now finished redecorating the exterior of the upper school, some interior areas and rooms, as well as the windows in the lower school. Our building contractors, Biggs, have made very impressive progress in six weeks as regards the new build. What was the junior dining hall has been refurbished and is now ready to use as a multi-purpose area. The kitchens have been transformed to a learning resource centre which will house both ICT suite and library. We expect the ICT suite to be up and running in days while the library will take longer with the need to plan and buy furnishings, audit our existing book stocks, purchase more books and generally set things up. We plan to open our new library at the beginning of January at the latest. The contractors are currently working feverishly on the hall extension. We hope to use our new hall for the first time in mid November. The kitchen for the whole school is based in the lower school and this has been refurbished with new equipment. Our new lunchtime arrangements have started this week in a very positive fashion. As for the planned link building, we are currently in negotiations with Biggs who will be building it, and we hope that work will start on this shortly. I will, of course, keep you up to date with what is happening. In the meantime, your understanding and patience regarding the disruption on site is much appreciated.

In this newsletter, you will find a calendar of events for this year. We will keep you updated of any changes as they happen. I would ask you to take particular note of holidays and INSET days over the year.

CLUBS
Please note that clubs will not start until the week beginning Monday 24th September.

STAFF VACANCY
We have a vacancy for an SMSA (School Meals Supervisory Assistant) in the Upper School.
Hours: 12.10pm – 1.25pm five days a week.
Pay: £5.93 per hour.
Duties: To include playground and dining hall supervision.
A knowledge of First Aid would be useful but not essential.
Application forms available from the School Office.
Closing date Friday 14th September.

PARENT/CARER HELPERS
If there are any parents/carers who would like to help in the School over the next academic year, could you please obtain a CRB form from the School Office before the end of September. Thank you.

ABSENCES
If your child is going to be absent from school could you please notify the School Office on the day by telephone no later than 9.30am.
Many thanks.

Please see Calendar for Provisional Dates for the Year.