Welcome to 2023!
Head Teacher Newsletter - 10th January 2023
New is the year, new are the hopes, new is the resolution, new are the spirits, and new are our warm wishes. Have a promising and fulfilling New Year!
Florence starts the new year with some excellent independent writing.
Noah's crab - investigating area in maths
Welcome back!
It's good to be back in school without the illnesses that seemed to plague us at the end of last term. Watching the children greet each other with new year wishes and tales of Christmas excitement was incredibly heartwarming and definitely made up for the shockingly early alarm call and lack of chocolate for breakfast!
It's hard to believe that the Spring Term has arrived and that we will shortly be halfway through the academic year. Teachers love the Spring Term, as it's often the term where we see the children's learning accelerate rapidly. We have lots of exciting learning opportunities planned, which Class teachers will outline, via Dojo, to let you know how you can support learning at home. We're looking forward to inviting you into school, towards the end of term, to share your children's achievements.
Encouraging good attendance
Our whole school attendance dropped considerably in December due to all the coughs and colds. We are now at 95% and this compares with an average across the UK of 93.2%. So, although we are better than average, we could be doing better!
Please ensure you work with us to maximise your child(ren)'s attendance. Please see this guide from Attendance Alliance Action for more information and our Attendance Policy here. We work closely with the local authority's Educational Welfare Officer, Sue Palmer, and will meet with her this month to update her on our attendance. If needed, we can arrange a support meeting with Sue to discuss how to alleviate persistent absence issues with specific families.
Good Luck Mrs Box!
After School Clubs
Our wraparound care (Breakfast and After School Clubs) are running again and we'd encourage you to book in if you can, particularly to After School Club where we'd really like to see an improvement in numbers attending. At only £2 per session we are offering great value for money.
Our instructors spoke with the children this week in order to come up with activities that the children have said they'd like to do.
All sessions will give the children an opportunity for OPAL/free play at the start and for the participants to help decide what games to play. There will also be opportunities for children to take part in art activities or Lego if they'd prefer.
Monday - music, fitness, dance
Tuesday - football
Wednesday - ball sports, e.g. balloon volleyball
Thursday - dodgeball
Is My Child Too Ill for School? - NHS advice
We are very keen to have children attending school if they are well enough. Please have a look at this NHS advice if you are unsure.
Absence reporting process - including current NHS COVID isolation guidance
If your child is absent from school please ring into the school office giving the reason for the absence ('unwell' is not sufficient), please do not email for absence. If you need to, leave a voicemail.
The School must be notified by the parent/carer of the absent pupil on the first day of absence AND on every day of absence thereafter, before the register is closed. If a telephone call is not received, the school will contact parents/carers directly.
Please see the Attendance Policy for more information.
If you suspect or know that your child has COVID, the NHS guidance for children now states:
"If a child or young person aged 18 or under tests positive for COVID-19, they should try to stay at home and avoid contact with other people for 3 days. This starts from the day after they did the test.
Children and young people tend to be infectious to others for less time than adults. If they’re well and do not have a temperature after 3 days, there’s a much lower risk that they’ll pass on COVID-19 to others."
Diary reminders
Church every Thursday 1.10 - 1.30 pm. Please join us if you are able.
Sunday 15th January - deadline for applications for a Reception year school place for September 2023. Further information from Suffolk County Council Admissions Team.
Tuesday 17th January - U11s Sportshall Athletics event, all Ash Class pupils invited. Please confirm attendance via 'Trips' on your child's Arbor account.
Thursday 19th January - Census Day lunch change. To encourage takeup of free school meals (which positively impacts our funding) today's lunch will be hot dogs (vegetarian available) and potato wedges, followed by iced sponge with sprinkles.
Tuesday 31st January - U9s Sportshall Athletics event, all Wild Cherry and Maple Class pupils invited. Please confirm attendance via 'Trips' on your child's Arbor account.
Sportshall Athletics events - U11s and U9s
Parents/carers of Wild Cherry, Maple and Ash Classes have recently received emails inviting their child to represent the school at events. These take place on 17th January at Thurston Community College (U11s - Ash Class) and 31st January at Stowmarket Leisure Centre (U9s - Wild Cherry and Maple Classes).
Please ensure you complete the 'Trips' section on Arbor by the date indicated in the email, in order to confirm your child's attendance.
Spectators cannot be accommodated at Thurston unfortunately due to lack of space, but are welcome at Stowmarket. For all other details, please see the email.
We need a minimum number of pupils for each team and we really want to take part. So, please encourage your child to attend.
Go Team Bardwell!
Let's Talk with 5-11s course
Mrs Watson, our SENDCo, has asked that this course information be shared with all parents and carers.
Let's Talk with 5-11s
A VIRTUAL, practical course which helps parents and carers to develop and enhance children’s understanding and talking.
Suffolk’s Specialist Education Services are pleased to be able to offer this popular course. The eight 2 hour sessions will enable you to learn how to develop your children’s understanding and talking.
THE AIMS ARE
• To learn why some children find it challenging to understand what is said to them
and to talk.
• To give you practical ideas to help children learn to listen, understand and speak.
• To help you develop children’s talking so that they do better in school.
• To share ideas with other parents and carers.
Friday lunch change
The menu can be found here or navigate to it via the school website - Parents & Carers>School Meals.
Please let Mrs Allman or Miss Egmore know if you would like a printed copy to have at home.
We'd like to remind you (or make you aware) that at Bardwell the cook also offers sausages with chips, for children that do not like fish or the vegetarian option. If you would like your child to have sausages on Fridays, let the office staff know and this will be put onto their Arbor record as a dietary preference.
PTA news
Thank you to all who bought raffle tickets at the Nativity performances in December, it raised £247. Congratulations to the lucky winners of the chocolate & sweet hampers!
What's on in Bardwell Church - January 2023
For further information about the Church and this month's services, please go to www.bardwellchurch.org/
Allergy Awareness
We are an allergy aware school and would like to remind all families that there may be pupils in school with a peanut allergy. If a child with a peanut allergy comes into contact with peanuts, or with a pupil who has eaten peanuts, then this could lead to an anaphylactic reaction. Anaphylaxis is a severe and potentially life-threatening reaction to a trigger such as an allergy.
Because of this the school cannot accept products containing peanuts to be provided in lunch boxes or for eating at other times.
SCC information for Cost of Living Support
Suffolk County Council has asked us to share with families their updated 'Cost Of Living Support' information.
Free School Meals - could you be eligible?
Your child may be eligible for free school meals throughout primary school. This could save you approximately £437 per year.
To check or apply online, visit: https://www.suffolk.gov.uk/children-families-and-learning/schools/school-meals-uniforms-and-trips/apply-for-free-school-meals/
Check if you're eligible
Your child will get free school meals if you receive any of the following:
Income Support
Income-based Job Seeker’s Allowance
Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
Guarantee element of State Pension Credit
Child Tax Credit but no element of Working Tax Credit and have an annual income (as assessed by HM Revenues & Customs) that does not exceed £16,190
If you are supported under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
Working Tax Credit during the four-week period immediately after your employment finishes or after you start to work fewer hours per week
Universal Credit (provided you have an annual net earned income of no more than £7,400 (£616.67 per month), as assessed by earnings from up to three of your most recent assessment periods).
To check if your child is eligible, apply online for an immediate response or call 01473 260989.
We encourage you to apply, because the school receives additional funding (Pupil Premium) for all children on income-related Free School Meals.
Online Safety Newsletter - January 2023
Minecraft is rated by PEGI as 7+ or 12+ depending on which game version you are playing. The App store rates it as 9+ and the Google Play store rates it as 10+.
About Us
Email: bardwell@tilian.org.uk
Website: https://www.bardwell.org.uk/
Location: School Lane, Bardwell, Bury Saint Edmunds IP31 1AD, UK
Phone: 01359 250854
Twitter: @BardwellPrimary