Whitehouse Weekly Bulletin

Friday 19th December 2025

A Message from Miss Siddall: 

Well done to all 139 children who have had 100% attendance this term - you have shown great commitment to your learning. Thank you also to all the parents and carers who have been able to support by attending one of the many events we have had in school - the CET Christmas concert, parents' evenings, open sessions, nativity plays and the project showcases. A huge thank you to all the staff for making these events possible. I hope you enjoyed being able to share in your child's learning. Finally, have a wonderful Christmas break. School starts again for the children on Tuesday 6^th January 2026. We look forward to seeing you in the new year.

Attendance for the previous week:

Classes with the best attendance: Toucans (98.26%)

Assemblies

The theme of our assemblies this week was Self Esteem: What is it and how does this affect our emotions?  (UNRC: Article 24: I have a right to the best health possible and to medical care and to information that will help me to stay well).  Why not ask your child what they have learnt about building self-esteem and share some positive things you've noticed about them this week?

Parking

As you will be aware parking can be a challenge outside the school at drop off and pick up times and we would continue where possible to encourage families to leave the car at home and walk, cycle or scoot in to school each day.  Although the school car park is for staff members, we do allow parents/carers who have a blue disabled badge to also use this when coming to school.  Can we please remind you that if this is the case, you do need to have your blue badge on display.  We would also ask that you take particular care as you enter and leave due to the number of pedestrians including children who walk into the school office or across the entrance.  Thank you for your co-operation.

Staffing Update

As we move towards the Spring Term we will be seeing a few changes in staffing at Whitehouse.  We will be saying goodbye to Mrs Zantboer, who has been with the school for twelve years as a Teaching Assistant and then as our Attendance Officer.  We wish her well in her new endeavours.  We will also be saying goodbye to Miss Anderson, who joined us for a short time as a Teaching Assistant before she goes on her travels, where she will have some exciting adventures.  We will also shortly be saying goodbye to Miss Swansborough as she embarks on her maternity leave and welcome Mrs Padbury who will be teaching the Owls class.  We look forward to welcoming a new baby into the Whitehouse family and know that Mrs Padbury will be made very welcome.

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.

EYFS:

Key Stage 1:

Lower Key Stage 2:

Upper Key Stage 2:

Nut Free School

A reminder to all parents/carers that Whitehouse is a nut-free school and we do not allow any child to bring nuts or a nut product into school. We have a number of children and staff with severe allergies and this could cause a severe reaction.  Please note this also includes Nutella and other similar nut based chocolate spreads.

Free Parent/Carer Workshops

The NHS run a number of free workshops for parents/carers.  If you would be interested you can find out more at http://nsft.uk/Workshops.  They are also running one specifically for Childhood Neurodivergence, which you access by looking at https://www.suffolklocaloffer.org.uk/health-and-wellbeing/autism-adhd-and-neurodevelopment/neurodiversity-online-parentcarer-workshops

Accelerated Reader

A big well done to all the children below who have recently received certificates for their reading.  

WARNING: “Humphrey’s” Books

Please note we have been alerted to an issue with a weblink on the Humphrey’s Tiny Tales and some of the other Humphrey books by Betty G Birney.  Some of the books contain a weblink at the back of the books which used to take you a page where you could access more information about the books.  Please note this weblink is no longer safe for children, as it is taking readers to a site containing inappropriate and unsafe material, including pornographic material and has no age restriction on the site.  Please ensure you remove the weblinks so these can no longer be accessed.  Please be reassured we have removed these for use by the children within our school libraries.  

Attendance: Duck Race Winners

Well done to the winners of our Duck Races last week:

Attendance Matters: A Message from our Attendance Officer

As the term ends and the children head off to enjoy a well-earned Christmas break, it feels like a good moment to reflect on the importance of regular school attendance.  This winter term has brought the usual seasonal challenges, with many pupils affected by colds, flu, and cases of D&V.  We completely understand how difficult this can be for families and we thank you for keeping children at home when they are genuinely unwell.  At the same time, consistent attendance, whenever children are well enough, plays a vital role in supporting learning, routines, friendships and overall wellbeing.

Every day in school matters.  Even towards the end of term, pupils continue to learn, build confidence, and take part in special activities that help create positive memories.  Being in school as much as possible helps children feel connected and ready to move forward into the next term.

As we look ahead to the New Year, we encourage families to enjoy the break, take time to rest and recover and return refreshed and ready for a strong start to the spring term.

On a personal note, this will be my final contribution to the school newsletter.  It has been a privilege to work with the children, families and staff of Whitehouse.  Thank you for your continued support, and I wish you all a happy, healthy and restful Christmas.

Holiday Activity and Food (HAF) Programme

The HAF programme is now open for booking activities over the Christmas holiday.  For those families whose children are eligible for Free School Meals many of these activities are provided free of charge.  Bookings can be made at this link: https://eequ.org/suffolkhaf.

There is also some availability for children with SEND who are not eligible for Free School Meals.  To speak to the team further on this or if you have any questions please contact them directly on HAFenquiries@suffolk.gov.uk.

Key Stage 1: Story Club

This half term in Key Stage 1 Story Club, the children have been enjoying reading a range of different stories as well as making different crafts related to these stories.  They even made their own bookmarks!  Have a look below at the stories they have enjoyed and some of the creations they made.  Well done to all the children involved.

U11 Christmas Cracker Event

Last Thursday Mr Jordan and Mrs Welham took ten of our KS2 pupils to take part in the U11 Christmas Cracker event, which was held at Inspire Suffolk. The Christmas Cracker event is an inclusive event, which involved the pupils rotating around a carousel of fun and inclusive sports activities. The activities included, circus skills, Panathlon activities, cricket skills, pickleball and archery to name just a few. The final activity the pupils took part in was a dance workshop in which each learnt and choreographed their own Christmas dance which was performed by each school at the end of the of the event. To fully get into the Christmas spirit each school, including staff, attended the event wearing Christmas jumpers. The event was lots of fun and the pupils really enjoyed completing each of the activities. Well done to everyone that took part. What a fantastic and fun way to start the Christmas period! 

House Point Competition

The House Captains are excited to announce the winners of the house point competition for this half-term as follows:

In fourth place was Diamond with 683 points

In third place was Sapphire with 847 points

In second place was Ruby with 850 points

In first place was Emerald with 996 points

Well done Emerald House.  You have won a non-uniform day on Friday 9^th January 2026.

Dates for the Diary

Monday 22^nd December 2025 to Friday 2^nd January 2026 – Christmas Holiday

Monday 5^th January 2026 – PD Day (School closed to Children)

Tuesday 6^th January 2026 – First day back for the children

Friday 9^th January 2026 – Non-uniform day for Emerald House

Monday 19^th January 2026 – Year 3 DT Parent/Carer Session – 2.15pm

Thursday 22^nd January 2026 – Year 6 Mummification Parent/Carer Session – 9.05am

Monday 16^th February 2026 to Friday 20^th February 2026 – Half Term Holiday

Friday 27^th March 2026 – Last day in school before Easter

Monday 30^th March 2026 to Friday 10^th April 2026 – Easter Holiday

Monday 25^th May 2026 to Friday 29^th May 2026 – Half Term Holiday

Friday 22^nd May 2026 – PD Day (School closed to Children)

Monday 22^nd June to Tuesday 23^rd June 2026 – Year 6 Residential Trip to Mersea