Newsletter – 19-Jul-24

Dear Parents and Carers,

Well done to Falcon house for winning the House Cup again this year!

Falcon – 11,468

Hawk – 11,456

Kestrel – 11,411

The sun came out for us on the last day of the school year! The last day for pupils is Friday 19th July, and school will resume on Wednesday 4th September 2024. Monday 22nd and Tuesday 23rd July are INSET days for staff. 

There has been so much going on over the last weeks of the year that I think everyone is going to collapse in a heap after the last day! We have had Move Up Morning, SATs results in, Healthy Me workshops, an open-air Rocksteady concert, a drum recital, a leavers’ assembly, a leavers party, and 2 large productions! 

Well done to Year 3-4 for a lovely collaborative performance of ‘Jill & Fred’s Hysterical Historical Adventure’, and to Year 5-6 for a great ‘Aladdin’ pantomime! 

This year we have worked on improving many areas including

Increasing performance in statutory assessments – we have achieved well in all of the statutory assessments this year: Early Years Foundation Stage Profile, Year 1 Phonics Screening Test, Year 4 Multiplication Tables Check, Y6 SATs. From what has already been released by the Department for Education, our school has achieved above national averages in many areas and at national averages in others. This success is a team effort between the teaching team, the pupils and parents, so well done all!

Road safety – Although there have been few material improvements outside the school, we have been working hard in the background with the Hampshire Travel team and the Highways Agency to create plans and raise funds to make the road outside school safer. 

Pupil and staff wellbeing – Closer tracking of first aid incidents;  more detailed tracking and reporting of safeguarding (including tracking of internet activity); in-house wellbeing activities and events (see below)

More community events – As well as PTA fairs, we have had weekly stay and plays, coffee afternoons, Christmas performances and larger-scale productions to enjoy

Curriculum review – As a school we have been reviewing the curriculum we offer and making changes to improve the progression of the curriculum. Next academic year will include a consultation with parents on the Priory curriculum.

More sports opportunities – A vast increase in the number of sports events and tournaments that we have sent teams to. 

Attendance & Punctuality

School attendance is of big importance nationally. Attendance at The Priory is above national averages, 2hich is fantastic. Thank you parents for getting your children into school as regularly as possible, getting in on time and avoiding taking holidays during term time. Government guidance on school attendance is being updated in the coming months. We will update parents via the school newsletter. 

Art Installation votes counting 

In the 21st June newsletter parents were informed about the whole school vote on the art installation (to tie in with the general election). 

The images below show the votes being counted and the winning design (that our art installation will be based on). 

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.

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

Star of Wonder Awards

No awards this week