Whitehouse Weekly Bulletin 356

Friday 10th July 2026

A Message from Miss Siddall:   

We hope that you will enjoy reading your child’s annual report and that you find the information about your child’s successes, as well as what they need to do next, useful. We are extremely proud of all the children and how hard they have worked to achieve their very best this year so thank you for your support. If you would like to speak to a member of staff about your child’s progress, please don’t hesitate to contact the school.

Today is the final day of after-school clubs for this academic year and I’d like to take the opportunity to thank all the staff who have run clubs throughout the year as well as to the children for attending. They are a fantastic opportunity for the children. Thank you for your continued support.

Attendance: Top 3 classes with the best attendance for week ending 26^th June 2026

                                          Hedgehogs (96%)  Foxes (96%) Toucans (96%)  

             Whole School Attendance: 94%

IMPORTANT: Free School Meals / Dinner Prices

Are you in receipt of Universal Credit?  If so, from September, your child is likely to be eligible for Free School Meals (FSM).  However they will only receive these if you have completed the form and passed this back to the office. 

Is your child currently eligible for FSMs?  Please note due to the new governmental rules, your child now has to be rechecked for eligibility every year.  Please ensure that you have completed the form and returned this to the office.  If no application is made, it is highly likely that your child will no longer receive free meals.  Please ensure you action this as a matter of urgency.

Please note that even if your child is receiving Univeral Free School Meals (Reception, Year 1 and Year 2), it is still very important that you complete the form as it provides the school with additional funding which is used to support your child’s learning.

We also must inform you that the cost of school meals will be increasing by 10p from September 2026, and will rise to £2.72 (£13.60 a week). 

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. Well done to you all.

Key Stage 1:

EYFS:

Key Stage 1:

Lower Key Stage 2:

Upper Key Stage 2:

Dinner and Breakfast Club Debt

A reminder that we have a number of children who have debt for dinner money or breakfast club.  Please be aware that all debt MUST be cleared by the end of the summer term.  Please make prompt payment to the office or via Arbor.  If you are not sure what you owe, please speak to a member of the Office Team.

Safeguarding: Summer Holiday

During the school holidays, the school safeguarding team only monitors their email address (parents@whcps.org) daily in the morning.  If a child is in immediate danger, call 999.  For other serious or urgent issues, contact Suffolk’s Customer First directly on 0808 800 4005, rather than waiting for a reply from the school. 

Children and young people can contact Childline free and confidentially on 0800 1111.

Parents and Carers can contact the NSPCC helpline on 0800 800 5000.

Additionally, if a child or young person is struggling with their mental health they can text YM to 85258 for free for 24/7 crisis support.  Parents/Carers wanting advice can contact the YoungMinds parents helpline on 0808 802 5544.

Year 5: Tudor Walk

On Monday 6^th July, Year 5 went on a very interesting history trip to see the wonderfully fascinating Tudor history of Ipswich.  They started by looking at Christchurch Mansion and Mr Trimmer and Mrs Moore, as tour guides, shared some information at each of the stops.  The children learned about Henry VIII and the impact he had on Ipswich as well as our very famous local historical figure Thomas Wolsey.  The group stopped at the Ancient House, the Thomas Wolsey statue and had a look at the Wolsey Gate, continuing by looking at Ipswich Blackfriars before finishing back at the park.  Along the way the children completed activity booklets and got to answer all sorts of questions about Tudor Ipswich, completing drawings and other historical challenges.  It was a fun and educational trip and the children were able to take what they have been learning in the classroom and see it in the real world in our home town.  Well done Year 5 on a fantastic trip!

Year 1 DT Workshop

Last week Year 1 welcomed parents/carers into their classrooms to make their Punch and Judy inspired puppets.  A big thank you to all adults who were able to come along and help.  The children were very lucky to have so much help to make their creations. Firstly, the children created their designs on fabric, then with the help of the adults used a running stitch to sew the two pieces of fabric together. Everyone found threading the needles a bit tricky but with a bit of perseverance and some trusty needle threaders everyone was successful!  The group all had a wonderful time making the puppets, we hope you like how they turned out!

Online Safety: Children’s Images Online

With the increase in the use of AI in society, worryingly it is now being used to turn ordinary photos of children into sexual abuse material. The National Crime Agency and Internet Watch Foundation have issued new guidance to help parents/carers make informed choices about sharing images of their children online.  It covers reviewing your privacy settings, revisiting consent with your child as they grow and what to do if you are worried.   This new guidance can be found on the following link:

https://www.iwf.org.uk/resources/ai-child-abuse-imagery-parent-guide/

Attendance: Duck Race Winners

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

Attendance News

Kiosk:  This week, the children are continuing to spend the stamps they have collected throughout the year, ready for a fresh start in September!

Let’s Finish the Year Strong: Please remember that school remains open and learning continues until the end of term. We encourage all pupils to attend every day during the final week to ensure they don't miss important learning, celebrations, and time with their classmates. The final week of school is an important time for celebrating success, reflecting on achievements, and enjoying special end-of-year activities. Thank you for helping us end the year on a high!

Year 3: Deben Trip

This week another of our Year 3 classes enjoyed their trip this week to track the River Deben. The children loved learning about where the river starts its journey and following along its path.  As they reached the end of the river at Bawdsey, the children enjoyed making their own rivers.  They were particularly excited to find a starfish along the way!

Accelerated Reader

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

Nursery Stay, Play and Sing

Mrs Whittaker and the Nursery Team were very happy to welcome so many families to the Nursery ‘Stay, play and sing session’ this week.  Parents/Carers were able to play alongside their children and experience the fun activities that they enjoy in Dolphins class.  The children sang songs and played with the music sticks. Everyone joined in and had a fantastic time.  The Nursery staff would like to thank the parents/carers for coming, there was a lovely atmosphere and fun was had by all!

News from the House Captains

The House Captains are excited to announce the winners of the final House Point competition of the year. 

In fourth place with 457 points was Emerald HoHous

In third place with 528 points was Diamond

In second place with 554 points was Sapphire

And in first place with 568 points was Ruby.

Well done Ruby!  You have won a non-uniform day on the second Friday back (11^th September 2026).  Have a wonderful summer!

Dates for the Diary

Monday 13^th July 2026 - Family Breakfast 8.00am

Tuesday 14th July 2026 – Year 6 Production- 9.30am and 6.00pm (ticketed event)

Wednesday 15^th July 2026 – Y5 Art Parent/Carer Session (Tudor Portraits) – 9.10am to 9.50am

Thursday 16^th July 2026 - Helping Hands (pm)

Thursday 16^th July 2026 – Year 6 Leavers BBQ – 4.00pm to 5.15pm

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

Friday 17^th July 2026 – Reports home to parents/carers (Year 6)

Friday 17^th July 2026 – Last day of the Summer Term for the children

Monday 20^th July 2006 – PD Day (School closed to the children)

Tuesday 1^st September 2026 – PD Day (School closed to the children)

Wednesday 2^nd September 2026 – PD Day (School closed to the children)

Thursday 3^rd September 2026 – First day of Autumn Term for the children

Friday 11^th September 2026 – Non-Uniform Day for Ruby House

Monday 26^th October 2026 to Friday 30^th October 2026 – Half Term Holiday

Friday 18^th December 2026 – Last day of the Autumn Term