Whitehouse Weekly Bulletin 342

Friday 13th March 2026

A Message from Miss Siddall:  

I hope that you found the short report sent home this week useful to help you to understand your child's effort and progress. Thank you to everyone who attended the first of our two parents’/carers' evenings yesterday. There is another face to face parents' evening next week (Tuesday 17^th March 2025 at 3:30pm - 6:30pm) where the teachers will be able to discuss the report and share examples of your child’s current work. If you have been unable to make an appointment but would like the opportunity to discuss your child’s report, please contact the office and they will be able to help you.

Attendance: Top 3 classes with the best attendance for week ending 27^th Feb 2026

                     Hedgehogs 98.7%   Chameleons 98.1%     Ocelots 98.1%

Whole School Attendance last week was 95%

Be an Attendance Hero!  Help achieve our 96% target!

Next week the Attendance Kiosk is back!  Your passport to success! ✈️

Every single week you come to school, you are not just learning new things and seeing your friends, you are also earning a stamp in your passport.  What do stamps mean?  Prizes!

Whether you are saving up for something big or spending as you go, your attendance stamps are your ticket to a world of goodies.  Keep collecting those stamps and see what exciting rewards you can unlock.  Come to school, every day, on time, to earn more stamps!

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:

Comic Relief – Friday 20^th March

Don’t forget it is Comic Relief next Friday and as a school we would like to celebrate this by having a non-uniform day.  We will be collecting a small donation (suggested amount £1.00) which will be donated to the charity to help fund their many good works.

Celebrating our Children

This week we are pleased to celebrate Callum, in Year 6, who took part in the Wolsey District Cubs tenpin bowling competition at the weekend. He was in a team of six competing against 40 other children and Callum’s team won the competition!  Callum also managed to get the highest score overall, with a huge 126 and the most spares in the game.  That is amazing Callum, well done!

We love to celebrate the achievements of our children so do let us know if your child has done something amazing so we can share it with everyone!

Drinks in School

We have had a few parents/carers asking recently about whether children are able to bring squash into school to drink or have refills during the day. To clarify, we do ask that children only bring water to school in their water bottles. This is in line with school food standards, which encourage water as the healthiest drink choice for children throughout the day.  There are a few reasons for this:

• Sticky Spills – squash can create sticky messes on tables, floors and in bags, which are difficult to clean and can attract insects
• Health – water is the best choice for keeping children hydrated without added sugar
• Fairness – keeping it simple means all children have the same drink available

We know that some children prefer squash at home, but we would really appreciate your support in sending water only for school.  Water fountains and refill stations are available throughout the day for children to top up their bottles.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation with this matter.

Attendance: Duck Race Winners

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

PE News

It has been another busy week of sporting fixtures and events, in which a number of our pupils have been provided the opportunity to represent our school.

Year 5/6 Girls Cup Football

Last week the Year 5/6 girls football team hosted Bramford Primary School in their second round IPSSA cup match. Having received a bye through the first round, the match was actually the girls’ first game, not only in the cup competition, but also in a competitive fixture against another school.  The game was a very entertaining match with both teams giving their all to close down and win back the ball for their team. As a result, both teams enjoyed good spells of possession with the ball and created a number of chances to score throughout the game. Despite being their first match as a team, the girls worked incredibly hard to implement the skills they have been working on and developing with Mr Jordan during their football after-school club. As a result, the girls showed some fantastic passing and link up play to move the ball quickly up the pitch. As a result of their hard work, the girls were rewarded with a well taken goal by Shola. The girls almost made it two goals with a great strike from Millie which unfortunately hit the post.  Despite the girls increased confidence and pressure during the second half, the match unfortunately finished with a win to Bramford. Mr Jordan was extremely impressed with the performance and effort of each and every one of the girls. As result, Mr Jordan’s ‘Player of the Match’ went to the entire team! Well done girls.

U10 Girls’ Football Festival

At the start of this week, Mr Jordan took eight of our Year 5 pupils to attend the U10 Girls’ Football Festival, which was held at Ipswich Hockey Club. As before, the event was very well attended with 33 teams taking part from 31 different Suffolk primary schools! The aim of the festival was to provide the players the opportunity to play football with minimal coaching from the sidelines, and no referees! Instead, both teams worked together to implement the rules of the game and most importantly, simply enjoy playing football! The festival also provided the opportunity for the girls to play a number of 4v4 football matches against different teams throughout the afternoon. The girls showed excellent teamwork, effort and football skills during each match. Mr Jordan split the children into two sperate teams, which took it in turns (three game each) to play the six matches against Heath, Dale Hall, Sidegate, The Oaks, Hillside and Pipers Vale Primary School. As a result of the girls hard work, they managed to win one, draw two and narrowly lose three of their matches. The girls thoroughly enjoyed the festival and played each match with big smiles on their faces! A great effort, well done girls!

Year 5/6 Boys Football

On Tuesday, the Year 5/6 boys football team played Heath Primary School in their first league match of the year. Eager to continue to build on their confidence and developing their understanding of playing together as a team, the boys were extremely excited to take to the pitch. As expected, with previous matches against Heath, the game was a very competitive affair. Heath began the game the brighter of the two teams playing with a high press and created a number of attacking opportunities in front of goal. The boys soon settled into the match and showed some excellent defensive work to breakdown Heath’s attacks and win back the ball in key areas of the pitch. Despite creating some of attacking opportunities of their own, the boys came in at half time two goals behind. Throughout the second half, the boys played with an increased confidence and began to link up with increased success and purpose. As a result, the boys were able to create a number of their own shooting opportunities at the Heath goal. Logan came closest to scoring for the team but was unlucky to see his shot hit the outside of the post. Shots from Muhamad, Jason and Callum also narrowly missed the target. The boys continued to work hard right up the final whistle, but unfortunately finished the match with a 3-0 loss. Mr Jordan was full of praise for the boys’ effort and perseverance throughout the match, and was very proud of the boys’ second half performance. Well done to Logan for picking up Mr Jordan’s ‘Player of the Match’.

Year 6 Mixed Netball

This week, our Year 6 netball team took to the court for an exciting match against Broke Hall and what a fantastic game it was!  From the first whistle, the team showed brilliant teamwork, fantastic passing and strong defending across the court.  It was clear to see how much the players had been developing their skills in their after-school club.  After a competitive first quarter, Broke Hall took the lead and we were 3-2 down and in the second quarter they took the lead to 5-3, but our team remained confident and determined to keep going.  The third quarter saw an incredible turnaround.

With excellent passing and movement into space along with superb shooting, the team pulled ahead to lead 6-7. The match was full of excitement as both teams battled for every ball.  The match finished 8-8, ending in a draw.  Miss Last was extremely proud of the team.  Well done to Lacie, Muhammed, Leo, Akorede, Mia, Idunnu and Lona - it was a brilliant performance!

Easter Egg Hunt!

Next week, our House Captains will be setting up an Easter Egg Hunt so remind your children to have a look out for pictures of Easter eggs hidden around the playgrounds.  Weather permitting, we plan to run the hunt at lunchtime on Tuesday (for KS2) and Wednesday (for KS1).  Everyone who participates will get a house point, so taking part could make a big difference for your house!  The House Captains are very excited and hope you all enjoy taking part!

Year 3: Roman Trip

On Wednesday, the Year 3 children had a trip to Colchester to experience the impact that the Romans left on Great Britain.  The children took part in a guided tour around Colchester, examining the remains of Roman buildings, including the remains of a Roman theatre.  They then spent some time at the only remaining Roman circus in the UK, where they learnt what a circus was and what happened there.  The children were extremely well behaved and were a credit to the school: we received some amazing feedback.  Well done Year 3.

Year 1: The Great Fire of London

In Year 1, their enquiry question this half term is ‘Why was London on fire in 1666?’  As part of their history learning, the children have been exploring the events of the Great Fire of London and discovering what life was like at that time.  The children were very excited to look through a range of artefacts linked to the fire.  The classes discussed the purpose of each artefact and thought carefully about how people in 1666 might have used them.  After exploring the artefacts, the children compared them with similar items we use today. The classes showed fantastic curiosity and asked lots of thoughtful questions.  It was wonderful to see their enthusiasm for learning about history.

Assemblies

The theme of our assemblies this week was Holi: The Hindu Festival of Colour (UNRC: 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 language). Why not have a look and see where this is being celebrated locally and go along and join in the fun!

Community Events

As part of the HAF (Holiday Activity and Food Programme) led by Suffolk County Council, Ipswich Town Foundation will be holding a one-day Soccer School in the Easter Holidays, for children aged 6 to 12.  This will be held at Westbourne and free places are available for those children who are eligible for free school meals.  See the poster for more details and how to book a space.  Also please note Whitton Baptist Church are holding their Easter ‘Messy Church’ on Saturday 21^st March where families can go along and enjoy some crafts, fun and food.  This is free to all.  Please see the poster below for more details.

Dates for the Diary

Monday 9^th March 2026 - Family Breakfast – 8.00am

Wednesday 11^th March 2026 – Year 3 Colchester Roman Experience Day

Wednesday 11^th March 2026 – Reports Home to Parents

Thursday 12^th March 2026 – Parents/Carers Evening – 3.30pm to 5.30pm

Monday 16^th March 2026 - Family Breakfast – 8.00am

Monday 16^th March 2026 – KS1 Fire Engine Visit

Tuesday 17^th March 2026 – Parents/Carers Evening – 3.30pm to 6.30pm

Wednesday 18^th March 2026 – Year 1 Art Parent/Carer Session – 2.15pm

Thursday 19^th March 2026 – Year 5 Felixstowe Trip (Groups 1 and 2)

Friday 20^th March 2026 – Comic Relief: Red Nose Day

Monday 23^rd March 2026 - Family Breakfast – 8.00am

Thursday 26^th March 2026 – Year 3 Parent/Carer Reading Session – 2.30pm

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

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

Tuesday 21^st April 2026 – NHS Parent/Carer Workshop: Anxiety – 2.00pm to 3.00pm

Friday 24^th April 2026 – Year 1 Colchester Zoo Trip

Tuesday 28^th April 2026 – NHS Parent/Carer Workshop: Emotion Regulation – 2.00pm to 3.00pm

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

Tuesday 14th July 2026 – Year 6 Production- 9.30am and 6.00pm

Friday 17th July 2026 – Year 6 Leavers Picnic and Assembly – 1.50pm