Whitehouse Weekly Bulletin 242

Friday 15th September 2023

Message from Miss Siddall

It has been a fantastic week in school and I have been very impressed with how well the children have settled back into the routine. I have seen the children working hard in their lessons and using the ‘Whitehouse Way’ to be successful learners.  If you would like the chance to see any of the work your child has already completed, there will be an opportunity next week during the ‘Meet the teacher’ sessions which take place straight after school.

A reminder that there is a slight change in the timings at school this year: KS2: 8.40am to 3.10pm. KS1: 8:45am to 3.15pm. Reception: 8.50am to 3.20pm.

Children who arrive at school after 8.55am will need to enter via the office as the gates will be closed promptly to allow teachers to begin lessons.

Attendance for the previous week:

Class with the best attendance: Owls (99.1%)

Assemblies

The theme of our assemblies for the week after half term will be: What is the importance of Yom Kippur in the Jewish religion? (UNRC Link: Article 30: If I come from a minority group, because of my race, religion or language, I have the right to enjoy my own culture, practise my own religion, and use my own religion).  Resources related to this assembly will soon be available on our website.  To access them, simply go to Learning and click on our Enquiry Based Assemblies.

School Photos

A reminder that we have the school photographer in on Monday 18^th September to take individual photos of our children.   Please remember to send your child in wearing their full uniform and looking their best.  If your child was due to have PE that day, please ensure they come into school in their school uniform instead.  PE lessons will go ahead in their school uniform instead.

Payment Reminders

Can we please remind parents/carers that payments for dinner money and for breakfast club should be made in advance so that no debt is incurred.  Where there is a debt please ensure this is paid urgently.  Any child who is owing over £10.00 will not be allowed to have a school dinner until the debt is cleared so will need to bring a packed lunch each day.  We understand that it can be a challenge to pay off a debt so would encourage you to make even a small payment of a few pounds each week to bring the debt down.  Please speak to our Business Manager, Miss Sara McCullum, if you wish to set up a payment plan.

Awards

As you may be aware the children are encouraged to follow ‘The Whitehouse Way’ in school to help them in their learning and in becoming good citizens. Our ‘Wonderful Week’ awards this year will be given as a recognition that the children have worked very hard in one of these areas:  Courage, Perseverance, Reflection or Responsibility.  This will be shown in the colour coded lists below.  We are so proud of our children at Whitehouse and their wonderful achievements.  Well done to you all.

Key Stage 1:

Lower Key Stage 2:

Upper Key Stage 2:

Meet the Teacher sessions

We are very excited to have our Meet the Teacher sessions coming up next week.  These take place after school and give parents/carers the opportunity to come into the classroom and have a chance to speak to the teachers.  Please collect all of your children and then attend the session as detailed below:

EYFS: Monday 18^th September 2023

Key Stage 1 (Years 1 and 2): Tuesday 19^th September 2023 (Lions and Giraffes only. We will advise a date for Elephants class shortly)

Lower Key Stage 2 (Years 3 and 4): Wednesday 20^th September 2023

Upper Key Stage 2 (Years 5 and 6): Thursday 21^st September 2023

Celebrating our Children

We love to celebrate the achievements of our children and this week want to share about Jessica in Year 6.   She loves to play golf and over the summer she achieved her England Golf official handicap, which means she can now compete officially.  Jessica has worked so hard to achieve this and plays golf at least twice a week!  This is amazing, Jessica we know you are going to go on and become a real superstar!

Year 6 Open Evenings

If you have a child in Year 6, please be aware that you need to apply for a High School place for your child by the deadline of 31^st October 2023. To assist you in choosing the right school for your child most schools hold open evenings where you can go along to visit the school, find out more and ask any questions you may have.  Please see below for the timings we have been made aware of so far:

Ipswich School (Private School) – Saturday 30^th September 2023 from 9.15am.

Ormiston Academy – Wednesday 20^th September 2023 5.00pm to 7.00pm.

St Albans Catholic High School – Wednesday 20^th September 2023 5.30pm to 7.30pm.

Westbourne Academy – Thursday 5^th October 2023 6.00pm to 8.00pm.

Requests for Information

We receive a number of requests for various documents and information, including reports, specific details for DLA forms and requests for confirmation that children attend Whitehouse CP School.  Can we please remind parents/carers that although we are always willing to help with these requests, the first step is for parents/carers to complete a Subject Access Request form. This form can be collected from the School office and should be completed to request any information.  Please specify on the form exactly what information you require.  This is then passed to the Business Manager who will liaise with the relevant members of staff to gather this information.   Please be aware that school requires one calendar month to provide the information requested.

**Job Vacancies in School***

We are pleased to let you know we currently have job vacancies for lunchtime assistants.

Full details of the vacancies along with application forms are available on our

website: https://www.whcps.org/vacancies.  In addition, application forms can be collected from

the school office. 

The closing date for applications is 10.00am on Wednesday 27^th September 2023

  Duties will involve:

• Work under the direction of the Lunchtime Leader
• Engage with and support the children while they eating and engaging in safe and positive play outside
• Contribute to the management of behaviour
• Undertake first aid responsibilities
• Working Hours: 1.25 hours a day working term time only

Summer Reading Challenge

Each year the Summer Reading Challenge, taking place in Suffolk Libraries, motivates over 700,000 children to keep reading over the summer holidays.  The challenge this year was ‘Ready, Set, Read’ and it aimed to keep children’s minds and bodies active during the summer break. Participating children were given the opportunity to join a superstar team and their marvellous mascots as they navigated a fictional obstacle course brought to life with illustrations by Loretta Schauer. The children were rewarded with a certificate and a collection of free incentives.

In our assembly today, we celebrated six of our children who each completed the challenge.  Many congratulations to Henley and Harper in Cobras, Seth in Squirrels, Maddie and Blake in Hedgehogs and Vina in Lizards, we are very proud of your achievements!   Seth told us ‘It was great fun and I really want to do it again next summer.’

School Trips and Parent/Carer Sessions

As a school we love to enrich the children’s learning with school trips and sessions where our parents and carers can come into school and work alongside the children.  Please do keep an eye on the newsletter ‘Dates for your Diaries’ section as all of these will be included on the list.

The first sessions / trips coming up are:

Friday 29^th September – Year 4 Local Walk

Wednesday 4^th October – Year 2 Christchurch Park visit

Tuesday 10^th October – Year 4 Parent/Carer Session

More will be advertised very soon so please look out for the letters coming home!

Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation: Free Courses

Some free courses are again being offered by the local NHS Foundation for any parent/carer who may be interested in how to better support their child’s mental health.  Topics include, Childhood Neurodiversity, Supporting our Young People with Anxiety, Supporting your Child to Regulate their Feelings and Supporting our Young People Manage Big Feelings.  If you are interested, please visit www.eventbrite.co.uk and search for Psychology in School Teams – NSFT to view the full list and to book a space.

Let’s Talk Babies

Do you have a baby or a toddler and would enjoy spending time with other parents and their young children?  A ‘Let’s Talk Babies’ group is starting each Wednesday from 1.00pm to 3.00pm at Whitehouse Baptist Church on Waterford Road, which is free to anyone from the Whitehouse, Whitton and Castle Hill areas.  It is a wonderful opportunity to make new friends, and enjoy sensory play with your child. In addition, there is a Baby Bank available, where clothes, equipment, food and toys can be collected.  The group starts on Wednesday 20^th September 2023 and if you would like any further information please email info@letstalkreading.org.uk.

Dates for the Diary

Monday 18^th September 2023 – School Photos (School uniform to be worn)

Monday 18^th September 2023 – Meet the Parents EYFS – 3.20pm

Tuesday 19^th September 2023 – Meet the Parents KS1 – 3.15pm

Wednesday 20^th September 2023 – Meet the Parents LKS2 – 3.10pm

Thursday 20^th September 2023 – Meet the Parents UKS2 – 3.10pm

Thursday 28^th September 2023 – Flu Immunisations

Friday 29^th September 2023 – Year 4 Local Walk

Monday 23^rd October 2023 to Friday 27^th October 2023 – Half Term Holiday

Wednesday 4^th October 2023 – Year 2 Christchurch Park Trip

Tuesday 10^th October 2023 – Year 4 Parent/Carer Session - 2.00pm

Friday 3^rd November 2023 – Whole School SMSC Day: Healthy Eating

Wednesday 29^th November 2023 – Autumn Term Reports home to parents/carers

Thursday 30^th November 2023 – Online Parents/Carers Evening

Friday 1^st December 2023 – Travelling Book Fair

Wednesday 6^th December 2023 – Online Parents/Carers Evening

Thursday 7^th December 2023 – Flu Immunisations follow up session

Friday 8^th December 2023 – Nursery Nativity Play

Monday 11^th December 2023 – Reception Nativity Play

Thursday 21^st December 2023 to Wednesday 3^rd January 2024 – Christmas Holiday

Thursday 4^th January 2024 – PD Day (Children not in school)