Newsletter – 19-Apr-24

Dear Parents and Carers

Stay & Play

Over the next few weeks, we will be trialling some stay and play sessions. In these sessions classes of children and their siblings will be allowed to play on the adventure trail equipment after school and there will be tasty treats on sale and also hot drinks for the grown ups. 

The main aim of this activity is community-based: to give parents and children a place to chat and play. 

It is also a fundraising opportunity for the school.

The adventure trail will not be staffed by school staff so parents will take full responsibility for the safety of their children as they would at a public park. However, there is some equipment that is recommended for older children only, so sign

s will be displayed to show which equipment is suitable for ‘Juniors only’.

For safety reasons, we will restrict the trial stay and plays by year groups. 

The first stay and play will start at 3.20pm next Friday (26th April) and will be for Year R, Year 1 and Year 2 and any siblings. There is no sign-up sheet, families can just stay and play. 

Refreshments will be on sale and proceeds from this will go directly to the school. 

If any parents are able to volunteer to help sell refreshments it would be appreciated. Please contact the school office if you are interested. 

Summer Clubs

Please note that there will be two new summer camps running at The Priory this summer and The Oaks will continue to run their summer club at Mortimer St Mary’s.

• 22nd – 26th July:  Summer Camp with Mrs Enticknap

  (a Priory parent and qualified teacher) . Please click here for full details and then click here for the booking form and email to zoe@hillyardmail.com

• 29th July – 16th August: Curveball Summer Camp with Coach Zack

  Please click here for more information and click here to book

• 5th – 23rd August:  The Oaks at Mortimer St. Mary’s

  Please click here for details or email office@theoakschildcare.co.uk for more details.

Times Tables Rockstars

You may have heard that we have subscribed to the popular maths app, Times Tables Rockstars. Mr Cripps, the Priory Maths Lead, led an assembly informing the pupils about the programme and motivating them to achieve well.  At present, we are getting the pupils logged in and familiar, then we will inform parents about how this programme can be used to increase maths attainment.  It’s a brilliant piece of software and the pupils are very excited to start using it in earnest.

HOUSE POINTS

Well done to Falcon House, who were the Term 2 winners with the highest running total of 8444 house points!

Finally it has stopped raining just in time for a summer of outdoor sports at The Priory!  The track lines will soon make an appearance on the field, as most classes begin athletics in one of their PE slots.  What better time to start talking about our brand new Festival of Sports which will take place throughout the month of June. There will be plenty of fun and inspirational activities for all the children to enjoy. We aim to entice even the most reluctant sportsperson to have a go by focusing on a range of activities not usually undertaken in school.  This will include Archery, Fencing and Quidditch (paid for by the sports premium funding), as well as interesting assemblies and talks from people in our community (and former Priory students!) working or participating in sports at a competitive or professional level.

Can You help?

We would love to widen our range of sports taster lessons during June if we can. Perhaps you know an individual or maybe an organisation that already runs a sports club who might be willing to offer lessons in exchange for publicity within school?  We would really like to focus on sports not already heavily featured in school, like dance or martial arts for example.

Do you know anyone either competing at a high level or involved in sports in some way that you think would be interested in coming to speak at an assembly or to a group of classes?

Please do get in touch if you can help, by emailing the school office at office@priory.hants.sch.uk

Star of Wonder Awards

YEAR R: Tobias, Rosie and Elliott

YEAR 1: Matilda, Remi, Caleb and Sabela

YEAR 2: Jay Jay, Rosie, Thomas and Isla

YEAR 3: Grace, Dhyanam and Ella

YEAR 4: Isla, Oscar and Esmae

YEAR 5: Fearne, Henri and Chloe

YEAR 6: Olive and Charlotte

Safeguarding and Wellbeing

Welcome back to the Summer term 2024!

National Updates 

During our staff INSET this week, online safety updates were shared with staff around new offences that have come into effect with the new online safety legislation – Just this week in the news it has been announced that sharing ‘deepfake’ pornography (pornography that’s been created by artificial intelligence (AI) without someone’s permission) which was introduced as a criminal offence in the Act, has now come into effect as a crime.  The other offences are listed below.

Physical Chastisement of a child…

Also in the press this week has been coverage around the growing pressures to make smacking a child an offence in England and Northern Ireland as it already is in Wales (2022) and Scotland (2020)and several other countries.

Calls have come to address the issue following  a report from the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) which found current laws in Northern Ireland and England are “unjust and dangerously vague”.  The report from the RCPCH warned children suffer lasting mental and physical effects from being struck.

Whilst this remains a divisive issue, the current law as it stands can be found at the link below

https://childlawadvice.org.uk/information-pages/the-law-on-smacking-children/

The report from the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health can be seen here in full.

https://www.rcpch.ac.uk/key-topics/child-protection

Reporting concerns

Key actions to take if you have a concern that a child is in danger, may suffer harm and maltreatment…

MAKE A REPORT IF…

• If you fear that a child is in immediate danger CALL 999 and report the concern
• IF YOU HAVE CONCERNS AND YOU ARE NOT SURE WHAT YOU SHOULD DO – report your concerns to the DSL and team at school

Alternative options – as a member of the public you can report a concern to Hampshire’s Child Protection Services directly – information about the services is available here – this site provides useful information and learning about a range of abuse as well as what will happen when concerns are reported –

https://www.hants.gov.uk/socialcareandhealth/childrenandfamilies/safeguardingchildren/childprotection

If you are a member of the public and wish to report any welfare/safeguarding concerns DIRECTLY TO CHILDREN’S SERVICES:- you can complete Hampshire’s online form here: online enquiry form

You can report a concern over the telephone and via email –

Phone 0300 555 1384   
Monday to Thursday 8.30am to 5pm
Friday 8.30am to 4.30pm

Email childrens.services@hants.gov.uk     Please note: Emails are dealt with during normal office hours Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm. At other times phone our out of hours number.      

Out of hours – Out of hours contact telephone number for Children’s Services Phone 0300 555 1373 

REMEMBER – SAFEGUARDING IS  EVERYONE’S RESPONSIBILITY