Cranbrook Education Campus News

What a magical week it has been!

The entire campus came alive with festive spirit on Wednesday as everyone gathered for a delicious holiday lunch. Huge cheers to our incredible kitchen team, who outdid themselves with a feast that had everyone smiling—even the sprouts were a hit with some of the children!

The PTA brought their #crantastic creativity to life, filling the day with festive fun as the children crafted the most colourful and cheerful crowns to wear.

Our amazing Business Support and Site Team sprinkled even more holiday magic by decking the halls and keeping the jolly tunes flowing while all staff members were invited to join the children at the tables, sharing laughs, stories, and plenty of holiday cheer over a truly special meal. Even Aurora was treated to her own special lunch!

It was a spectacular celebration, brimming with joy, laughter, and the true spirit of the season!

• Monday, 6th January 2025 – Secondary pupils return at 08:25 (Primary non-teaching day)

• Tuesday, 7th January 2025 – All CEC pupils, including Nursery and Primary, return to school.

Thank you for your continued support throughout the year. We wish you a joyous Christmas break filled with family, fun, and relaxation. We look forward to welcoming everyone back in January for another exciting year at CEC.

Dear CEC Families,

As we approach the end of another year, it’s the perfect time to reflect on the many achievements and milestones we have celebrated together as a school. It has been a year of learning, community, and opportunities and I am proud of the dedication and hard work of our staff, pupils, and families.

On behalf of the Governing Board, I would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to the teachers and support staff for their unwavering commitment to providing the best possible education and care for our children. To the pupils, your enthusiasm and creativity inspire us all, and we are so proud of everything you’ve accomplished this year.

A special thank you also goes to our families for your ongoing support and involvement. Whether it’s helping with homework, attending events, or volunteering your time, your contributions play a vital role in making our school such a vibrant and supportive place.

As we celebrate this festive season, I hope you all find time to rest, recharge, and spend quality moments with loved ones. May the holiday season bring joy, peace, and hope to each and every one of you.

We look forward to welcoming you back in the New Year, ready to continue transforming lives, strengthening our communities and making the world a better place.

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and a happy, #Crantastic New Year.

Warm regards,

Les Bayliss

Chair of Governors

An absolutely HUGE well done to some year 3-7 pupils who performed in our winter showcase last night. 30 performers took to the stage to share what they have been up to in their extra curricular clubs this term. Being an all-through school gives us unique and special #opportunities to share with children across a wide age range and we are so #proud of their hard work. The pupils showed the utmost respect and #kindness towards each other tonight and the showcase was a real testament to the Cranbrook #community that we so love. Well done again to all those involved. What a wonderful evening!

Poetry By Heart is a competition aimed at getting students involved in literature.

Do you like expressing yourself?

Do you like the setting yourself new challenges to overcome?

Do you want a chance to perform in front of the world?

Then enter Poetry By Heart.

1. Select a poem from the poetry by heart website that fits your age range. The entries can range anywhere from 7+ to 16+.
2. Learn the poem by hear. Make sure to put as much emphasis or emotion into the poem as you see fit
3. Record the poem as you perform it and send it in to the judging panel.
4. If you're one of the lucky finalists, you could be on a trip to London to perform at the Globe Theatre!

We have noticed an increase in instances where children are reluctant to eat the meals ordered for them. This can be distressing for the children and contributes to unnecessary food waste.

To help ensure your child enjoys their lunch and to minimize waste, we kindly ask that you take a few minutes each week to review their meal preferences with them. If there are items they do not enjoy, please update their lunch orders accordingly.

Your support in this matter will make a big difference in creating a positive lunchtime experience for the children and in reducing food waste. Thank you for your cooperation and understanding

We work closely with our catering provider Dolce to ensure students are provided with healthy and nutritious meals. If you have any comments or feedback you wish to share about the food, we welcome you contacting us by emailing reception@cranbrook.education

We would like to remind you of the importance of ensuring that your child has their necessary medication, such as inhalers, antihistamines, or EpiPens, available at school if they have a medical condition that requires it. It is vital that we have a set of medication handed to the main office and, ideally for inhalers, another set for the classroom.

If your child has been prescribed any medication, please ensure it is brought into school as soon as possible to help ensure their safety and well-being throughout the school day.

Thank you for your cooperation and collaboration as we work together to keep our pupils safe.

We have a number of staff and students who have a severe allergic reaction to nuts and peanuts and it is important that we keep them safe. In this regard, we ask that students, staff and visitors do not bring products containing nuts and peanuts into school.

Products that should not be brought into school include:

· Peanuts and nuts and products containing peanuts or nuts

· Peanut butter and peanut based chocolate snacks (snickers / reece’s pieces, Nutella etc)

· Items where peanuts or nuts are listed as main ingredients

· Nut or peanut based oils or products

Products that are allowed:

· Items that “may contain nuts” and “may contain traces of nuts” or “made in factories that use nuts”. These present a low risk and are not direct ingredients in the products

· All other non nut-based snacks and food stuff.

If you wish to check your child’s eligibility for Free School Meals, please use the Devon Citizens Portal This is the quickest and easiest way to apply and will result in you getting an instant decision.

Alternatively, call the Education Helpline on 0345 155 1019 who will check eligibility, answer questions and help with your application.

Its that time of year when there are lots of bugs being passed around. Sometimes it’s difficult to know whether your child should come to school or not. The poster below gives a bit more guidance

If you are ever unsure or would like further advice, please speak to one of our attendance team. You can contact them on attendance@cranbrook.education

Please note: We are also able to keep and administer medication in school if the correct form is filled in. Please speak to our Reception Team to arrange this

Handwashing is really important this time of year, please encourage your child to do this regularly to avoid the spread of germs.

Absences need to be reported no later than 8.30am. To make this process as easy as possible for you, there are various ways that you can do this:

1. The School Number – 01404 823293 (Please leave a message)
2. Via email - attendance@cranbrook.education
3. Via MCAS or the link on the website home page

For all options please state your child’s full name, class and reason for absence. If you do not contact the school your child will be given an automatic unauthorised absence, these remain on their school records.

All of the above options are checked every morning. While we are unable to reply to all messages, please rest assured they will be recorded.

A polite reminder to families that cycle or scoot to school that these should not be ridden anywhere on site. We ask please for you to dismount from your bike / scooter at the school gates and use the shelters provided. It is essential that bikes and scooters left on site are secured using bike locks!

We have a small car park at the campus that is intended for use by blue badge visitors and staff who live outside of Cranbrook only. Please walk to the campus where possible and if you do need to drive to the campus, there is plenty of on road parking available. Please remember to park sensibly and safely for our neighbours.

Thank you

Year 1 have had a fantastic final week of term, on Tuesday we participated in a science experiment where we had to use our sense of taste: We mixed some salt in water and then sugar in water and tasted a tiny a little bit to see what we enjoyed and why it is useful to have a sense of taste. On Thursday, we became inventors for the day and created our very own roly poly toys! Thank you to everyone who contributed and brought in toilet rolls for the classes. On a final note, last Friday Year 1 had a very special visit from Santa! Thank you all for an amazing start to Year 1, and have a wonderful Christmas break from Mr Poslett, Miss Mylles and the rest of the Year 1 team.

This week year 3 have been really carefully writing up their story based on Mimi and The Mountain Dragon. They have been showing they are PROUD of their work by ensuring their presentation is #CRANTASTIC! In maths, we have been continuing our multiplication and have been multiplying two digit by one digit numbers. To help us with this we have been using related multiplication facts. We have also started using some new sentence stems to support our oracy in maths too. This week we have been reading ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas in guided reading to get us excited for Christmas and have been discussing the vocabulary in depth. There are no spellings this week but please do log all your reading on BoomReader for your tickets! Have a lovely relaxing Christmas and we will see you all in January ready for a #Crantastic New Year! Merry Christmas from the Year 3 Team.

We're thrilled to announce the launch of our Make and Munch cooking sessions at EX5Alive, Cranbrook Education Campus, to kick off the new year!

Starting on Wednesday, January 15th, and running for six weeks, these sessions are a fantastic opportunity for you and your little one to cook a delicious lunch together and take home plenty of goodies.

Designed especially for parents and carers of pre-school children, these sessions aim to tackle dinner-time dramas, picky eaters, and the everyday challenges of feeding our kids.

Interested? Simply scan the QR code on the poster or click this link to register.

https://forms.office.com/e/6EpjR2iijX

We'll reach out in the new year to confirm your spot and provide all the details you need.

Please take a moment to review the Key Dates and mark your calendars accordingly. This will help you stay informed and ensure you’re up-to-date with all the key activities such as Trips and PTA Events. This includes the exciting news of a Winter Showcase on 19th December with Primary Dance and Choir clubs. More information to follow soon.

If you have any questions or need further details please email reception@cranbrook.education

Please note that details of our Privacy Policy can be found here