Welcome back letter from the Headteacher - Spring 2 2023

Dear Parents and Carers of Glade Hill,

I hope you all had a nice half-term break. It has been so lovely to see all of the children back in school and ready to continue their learning.

Following the success of our updated clubs programme last half term, we have now started a new set of clubs. This is in response to an area of development from our successful OFSTED report. I know everyone who attended last half-term had a great time, with a selection of clubs offered to KS1 and KS2 children in lots of different areas from sport to Lego to knitting! Nearly all of the clubs for this half-term are now full, as we prioritised children who did not get to attend last time, but if any children missed the letter please contact the office to be put on the waiting list.

We also have lots of exciting curriculum activities planned this half-term, so make sure you check the MarvellousMe app for updates, reminders and messages. This is our main communication tool so if you do not yet have the app, or you are experiencing problems, please speak to a member of our Office team who will be able to help you. Several year groups have trips and visits coming up, and we also have a number of sports events in which children are selected to represent Glade Hill. For further details and news, check out the website.

Our Year 5s went to their first swimming lesson this week and impressed everyone with their resilience and enthusiasm. The staff at Southglade Leisure Centre were very complementary about the children’s attitude and behaviour as well. Well done Year 5, I really enjoyed coming to watch, keep up the good work!

As you know improving attendance remains very important to our school and is one of the key priorities on our School Development Plan. Your child coming to school as much as possible is an important way that you can support their learning and achievement. We will be presenting children with 100% attendance for the Spring term with BRONZE star badges to mark this achievement. If any children achieved 100% in the Autumn and Spring terms then they will receive a SILVER star badge! We have also been continuing to announce which classes have the best attendance each week in assemblies, which is still proving to be very motivating. The winning classes earn extra outside time and the phase attendance trophy for the week!

Mrs Davies, our School Attendance Officer and Office Manager, will be continuing to closely monitor attendance and ensure we act following our policy. This is available on the school website and follows guidance from the Local Authority and the Government on how we can ensure good attendance for all. This includes us not authorising holidays in term-time unless there are exceptional circumstances, and also meeting with parents where the attendance of children is of concern. Mrs Davies is also working with our Education Welfare Officer and other Attendance Officers in our local area to look at how to support attendance moving forwards. Please continue to ensure your child is in school as much as possible so they can get the best out of the great learning we have on offer.

Thank you for taking the time to read this letter and I look forward to seeing you all very soon.

Kindest regards,

Mrs Anna Stapleton

Headteacher