Welcome to the first newsletter of the academic year! I hope that you had a wonderful summer and that the start of term has gone smoothly.  We look forward to welcoming our new Reception pupils on Monday.

I hope that everyone’s shoes have dried out after the huge downpour at pick-up time yesterday! Why does it always seem to rain at drop-off and pick-up times! Apologies for the speedy gate closures as we were trying to manage the localised flooding as the drains couldn’t cope with that amount of water in such a short space of time.  

Welcome Meetings
To kick the year off, next week, we will be starting our programme of welcome meetings for Years 1 to 6. These are an opportunity to meet the teaching team and find out about the curriculum, classroom routines and plans for the year ahead.  The Year 6 meeting will also provide information regarding the secondary school application process, end of KS2 SATs and the Year 6 school journey. I hope that you are able to attend.
Year 1 - Monday 9th September - 8:45 - New Hall
Year 2 - Tuesday 10th September - 8:45 - New Hall
Year 3 - Wednesday 11th September - 8:45 - New Hall
Year 4 - Thursday 12th September - 8:45 - New Hall
Year 5 - Monday 16th September - 8:45 - New Hall
Year 6 - Tuesday 10th September - 18:00 - Old Hall - please use main entrance.
 

Changes
The team have been very busy during the summer holiday with some changes to the school. Both the Year 1 classrooms have had new ceilings installed, this was a huge task and created a lot of mess.  The classrooms now look very bright and welcoming.  We have also managed to close down the grey demountable building in the KS2 playground.  The library has moved over to its new home in the LKS2 block and looks amazing - so much lighter and more inviting to choose a book from! The DT Room and Breakfast and After School Club are now located in the KS1 area.  The Seedlings classroom is now located in the EYFS section of the school.  Hopefully everyone is managing to find their way around with all the changes.

As you are already aware, we have some leadership changes from the start of term.  Miss Russ is now our Deputy Headteacher, Miss Fossey is Assistant Headteacher, KS1 and KS2 SENCO and in charge of KS1, Mrs Balendran is Assistant Headteacher, EYFS SENCO and EYFS Leader.  We also now have two Phase Leaders responsible for the top part of the school.  Miss Begum is the Phase Leader for Lower KS2 (Yrs 3 + 4) and Mrs Kwateng is the Phase Leader for Upper KS2 (Yrs 5 + 6).  After your class teacher, they should be your next line of contact for any issues affecting your child.

Uniform reminders
The start of the school year is always a good time for us to reset our uniform expectations.  Please can I remind everyone about our uniform policy.  If you have any problems with this, speak to your child’s class teacher first and if the matter cannot be resolved, please escalate this to your child’s Phase Leader. While we want to maintain our uniform standards, we are also understanding of other factors which may make this unachievable but please talk to us about any issues.
A reminder of the Yr 1 to 6 Uniform Rules

● White blouse, shirt or polo shirt 
● Green sweatshirt or cardigan 
● Dark grey pinafore/tunic/skirt/trousers/shorts (no leggings) / green gingham check dress in summer 
● White / grey / black socks or tights (no leggings) 
● Black flat shoes, not trainers 
● PE Kit: Plain black shorts, plain white t-shirt or polo shirt. Black jogging bottoms in winter if needed.

For our Uniform Policy, please click here.

Attention all ASDA shoppers!
Parentkind – the charity that supports school PTAs - have teamed up with Asda, who is making millions of pounds available to donate to primary schools across the UK through their ‘Cashpot for Schools’ initiative. All you have to do is, opt in through the Asda Rewards app, choose King's Oak Primary School and shop and scan in store or shop online at Asda.com, between 2nd September and 30th November 2024. Asda will donate 0.5% of the value of your shop to our PSA. Also, every time somebody opts in, Asda will give an additional £1 to the school cashpot. Plus, it doesn’t stop there – Asda are also giving £50 to every school to get them started.

Have a fantastic weekend, see you next week.

Ian Hutchings

Headteacher