News - 10th October 2024

Dear Parents/Carers,

As we embrace the vibrant and wet autumn season, I'm delighted to share with you the wonderful happenings at our school. The past few weeks have been filled with inspiring moments, showcasing the incredible talents and resilience of our pupils.

Last week, our Year 1 and 2 pupils led the Harvest Service at the church, demonstrating remarkable courage and poise. Standing before a large audience, they read and sang beautifully, filling the church with their angelic voices and heartfelt words. Their performance was a testament to their growing confidence and the nurturing environment we strive to provide at St Mary's.

This week, we've turned our attention to an equally important aspect of our pupils' development – their emotional well-being. As part of Feeling Good Week, culminating in World Mental Health Day, our children have been engaging in thoughtful discussions about maintaining good emotional health. We've emphasised the importance of open communication, reminding our pupils that it's always good to talk about their feelings. At St Mary's, we're fortunate to have a dedicated team ready to lend an ear, including our trained ELSA, HSLW, class teachers, and teaching assistants. We want our children to know that no worry is too big or too small to share.

It's been a pleasure this week to show prospective parents around our school alongside Mrs Evans. Our pupils, as always, have been exemplary ambassadors for St Mary's, eagerly sharing their learning experiences, reading their exceptional stories, and performing songs with enthusiasm. Their natural ability to showcase all that our school has to offer never fails to impress our visitors and fills us with immense pride.

This morning, we were treated to a moving assembly by our Year 6 pupils, focusing on their World War 1 topic. Their performance was both beautiful and poignant, blending magnificent singing with thoughtful reflections on this significant period in history. Well done, Year 6, for setting such a high standard for our assembly season!

While we celebrate these achievements, I must also address a few important notices. Firstly, I kindly ask that parents refrain from parking on School Lane, as this obstructs access points for both the school and local residents. Additionally, please be mindful of private driveways and avoid using these to turn your vehicles.

Regarding our Breakfast Club, I'd like to remind everyone that the starting time is 7:50 am. For safety reasons, please ensure that children do not arrive before this time, as adult supervision is not available until then.

Lastly, I'd like to address some queries about our new attendance policy. This is a government initiative that all schools are required to implement. As part of this policy, we are obliged to send letters about potential fines when children are taken out of school during term time for holidays. It's important to note that these fines are issued by the local authority, not the school, and any money paid goes directly to the local authority, not to St Mary's.

Thank you for your continued support and partnership in nurturing our children's growth and development.
Have a wonderful weekend.

With very best wishes,
Mrs Buckley
Headteacher

STARTING SCHOOL

Secondary School

You need to apply online for a secondary school place by 31st October 2024.

If you live in Surrey, you can find out all you need to know about school admissions and apply online at surreycc.gov.uk/admissions or you can call on 0300 200 1004

Starting School – Reception:

If your child was born between 1 September 2020 and 31 August 2021 you will need to apply for a school place. You can apply between 4 November 2024 and 15 January 2025.
If you live in Surrey, you can find out all you need to know about school admissions and apply online at surreycc.gov.uk/admissions or you can call on 0300 200 1004

PARKING
Parents should not be using School Lane or residential drives for drop off and/or pick up, inclusive of breakfast club.
There continues to be issues with parking on School Lane and access for residents. Staff at school are also having issues parking on arrival.

Please park either at the Catholic Church or the back of the school and walk to the school gates.
Please do not, under any circumstances, park across the gates which access the school or on the corner of School Lane as this causes traffic on the Petworth Road and obstruction.

Thank you for your cooperation

SCHOOL FUND
On a termly basis, we ask for a small contribution per family in order to support some of the extended opportunities that we provide. This may be used for additional resources for specific resources i.e. Art or a piece of equipment to be used by pupils on the school site.
In today’s economic climate, I am aware that parents are concerned about requests for financial support from schools. However, the reality of the situation is that, like all schools, in our latest budget we have had to make significant savings, which reflect reduction in our funding allocation from central government. It is only through continued careful management of resources that we have been able to afford to do this and protect the core curriculum resources.

With this in mind, your on-going support for the school fund would help us to continue to support these additional resources. For the academic year 2024 – 2025, we would like to ask each family to contribute £25 per term; however, anything you can contribute would be gratefully received.

BREAKFAST CLUB
Please note that Breakfast Club starts at 7:50am. Please do not drop children off prior to this time due to staff cover.

PARENTS EVENING
Parents Evening is taking place on Wednesday 16th October and Thursday 17th October 2024. You will need to book parents evening via the Arbor Parent Portal App.

If you have not already made a booking for parents evening, please book via the Arbor Parent Portal App or contact the school office.

CHRISTMAS CARDS
Christmas card forms will be coming home. Please ensure that these are completed and sent back to school by the 16th December.

ARBOR PARENT PORTAL
Please note that you can review your children’s attendance on the parent portal. You can also update contact details, children’s details as and when required.

P.E FOR KS2
Please send in a spare pair of shoes for days that your child is participating in outdoor PE.
Children may wish to bring in a spare change of clothes as well due to the wet weather/mud.

Following Government guidelines, schools are no longer allowed to authorise requests for children to be taken out of school for a holiday during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances. If you take your child out of school, you may face a penalty notice.

WEEK COMMENCING 30TH SEPTEMBER 2024
Reception - 98.1%
Year 1 – 94.6%
Year 2 – 95.6%
Year 3 – 97.8%
Year 4 – 94.6%
Year 5 – 99.5%
Year 6 – 96.5%

We want to remind you that there are new Department for Education regulations in place regarding children’s absences. These took effect from 19th August 2024 which affect penalty notices issued for unauthorised absence from school.

If you would like any further information regarding these changes and penalty charges, full details can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/working-together-to-improve-school-attendance

You can also refer to the Good Shepherd Trust Attendance Policy which can be found:
https://www.stmaryschidd.org/key-information/parent-information/school-attendance/

ST. MARY’S SCHOOL VISION

Wisdom

Wisdom is a core Christian value in our school because we believe through wisdom good choices are made, that it encourages us to learn from our mistakes and encourages us to live our lives wisely for the benefit of all. "And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.’’ John 8:32

Hope

Hope is a core Christian value in our school because hope gives us energy and supports us through difficult times. "Be happy because of the hope you have. Be patient when you have troubles. Pray all the time.’’ Romans 12:12 To act with hope is to aspire to greater things, to promote positivity and courageous advocacy.

Respect

Respect is a core Christian value in our school because we believe that all life is precious within the image of God and deserves to be valued. "Do to others as you would have them do unto you." Luke 6:31 Our Christian value of respect means living up to the image of God with our school, our community and ourselves.

Community

Community is a core Christian value in our school because we know that together we are stronger and can achieve more. "Live together in peace with each other. Don’t be proud, but be willing to be friends with people who are not important to others. Don’t think of yourself as smarter than everyone else.’’ Romans 12:16

Everyone in our school, local and global community are needed and valued.