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5. Spring Term 2007 Newsletters

Dear Parents / Carers,

A very warm welcome to the new term and a Happy New Year from all the staff here at St Gregory's to every member of our school community. I hope that 2007 will be a good year for us all though no doubt it will bring its share of troubles as well as joy. As a community we hope to be there to support each other during the hard times and to share the good news together also as the year unfolds.

May I thank you on behalf of all the staff for the wonderful array of Christmas cards and gifts delivered by the children during the final week of term. Everyone was, as usual, overwhelmed by your generosity - your kindness is very much appreciated. Thank you very much indeed.

The children have returned in such good spirits - the extra time to play with their toys after Christmas has been useful as was the recovery period for most of us too!

My usual message in every first newsletter is to suggest that we have a busy term ahead and this is the case this time with Ofsted surely due to call (we are 20 months behind schedule - a bonus / penalty for being successful over past years, but the waiting has been, and is, unhelpful), and rehearsals for our Y5 / Y6 production in full swing, so without further ado a list of dates for your diaries:

W/E January 12th - Work to renew school gates / fence should begin (please take care entering / leaving school via the Main Entrance this week, Main admissions Meeting - Wednesday January 10th at 3pm. Parents who wish their child to commence school in September 2007 should by now, have applied through the usual channels. However, as, for the first time, we have a few places available, any parent / member of the local community not yet decided, should contact the school immediately;

W/B January 15th - RE Themed Week: Refugees - based around The Flight into Egypt (Non Uniform Day: Friday January 19th, 50p per child for CAFOD Refugee fund), Class Termly Forecasts - prior warning of trips etc;

Thursday January 25th: KS2 Performance of Shakespeare's, "The Tempest": 2 PM and 4PM - Tickets now on sale;

Friday February 16th - School In Service Training Day: School Closed for children followed immediately by the Half Term Break: Monday 19th Feb - Friday 23rd Feb;

W/B Monday March 19th - Open Evenings Week. Monday - Wednesday Evenings - Individual class teachers will contact you as usual re evening appointment times by W/B March 12;

Easter Holiday begins at close of school on Friday March 30th and school re-opens at the usual time, on Monday April 16th 2007;

Further ahead:
Thurston Y5: April 30 / May 4;
KS2 SATS week, May 14 - 18;
KS1 SATS take place throughout May.

Could I request parents / carers to re write the children's names inside items of uniform as a general New Year resolution - This would be so helpful and minimise the disruption caused by lost clothing - an ongoing problem throughout the school, particularly following after school sports sessions. Taking of this, our Extended School Programme will re commence from next Monday. Some sessions are already advertised and booked others will be circulated via Mr Peacock tomorrow. Ideas for after school sessions are sought regularly from the children but suggestions from parents are very welcome too - ideas to Mrs Rochford / Mr Peacock.

Unfortunately one of the school netball / basketball posts is being regularly vandalised - no sooner do we repair it and re position it we return to find it face down and damaged the next day. Only the one post is being targeted - can anyone throw any light on this? We are fortunate in having very little trouble with unwelcome visitors and we would like to keep it this way.

I look forward to seeing you as the new term progresses.

Best Wishes,

Yours Sincerely,

K.J. Smithson.
Head Teacher. Back to top

Spring Term Newsletter 2: Thursday January 11

Dear Parents / Carers,

As many of you will now be aware, works to replace the vehicular school gates and also to form a new pedestrian access following the line of the pavement, have begun at last. Every attempt had been made with the contractors to see the jobs completed during the school holidays to minimise disruption but two firm start dates have been and gone. The contractors have made their excuses and rather than wait until Half Term it seems better to manage the situation and proceed.

It is my understanding that the posts for the new gates will be erected today with the gates fitted tomorrow. Once fitted, the main gates may have to be kept in place and undisturbed for a period, but the pedestrian gate should be serviceable.

Given that temporary fencing is in situ in the yard and will be used to secure the site overnight and noting the inclement weather, I would ask parents to be extra careful if choosing to use the main school entrance over the next couple of days.
The East gate will be open as usual as an alternative.

With a bit of luck the new gates will be in place and serviceable from Monday.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Best Wishes.

Yours Sincerely,

K.J. Smithson.
Head Teacher.

PS:

Please note that the Non Uniform Day in aid of CAFOD is Friday January 19th - 50p per child. Many Thanks in anticipation. Back to top

Spring Term Newsletter 3: Tuesday January 23 2007

Dear Parents / Carers,

The result of the recent Election for Parent Governor saw 137 votes cast with the following result:

1. Mr Paul J Scott: 57;
2. Mr Stuart W White: 45;
3. Mr Christopher Gray 35.

Thus Mr Paul Scott is formally elected as a member of the Governing Body and will be eligible to serve for a period of 4 years. The Governors are delighted to welcome him aboard.

The school was very fortunate in having 3 excellent candidates who each attracted a healthy number of votes. I would like to thank the candidates for expressing an interest in helping our school community in what is a demanding role. The high level of interest is in stark contrast to some schools both in the region and further afield where often school's struggle to attract governors, with many schools operating at less than full strength.

The KS2 performance of the Tempest is imminent and something we can all look forward to as the children have worked hard and made every effort with the songs, dance and drama elements of this production. Parents / Carers have also played a very valuable role in helping the children in a number of ways, not least with the costumes. I look forward to seeing a good turn out at both the 2pm and 4pm performances on Thursday this week.

I would be grateful if parents / carers could assist the school by doing their best to ensure that:

? Dinner monies are always brought on a Monday - later payments cause unnecessary disruption as the week goes on;
? The "No Jewellery" rule is strictly adhered to - too many children are missing PE / Sport. This is a particular problem with some of our younger children.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Best Wishes,

Yours Sincerely,

K.J. Smithson.
Head Teacher. Back to top

Spring Term Newsletter 4: Friday February 2 2007

Dear Parents / Carers,

Well the Inspection is almost upon us at last. After 23 months of waiting, constantly thinking the call was about to come, we were beginning to think that we were somehow missed off the map but we are now, almost 6 years from the last inspection, "ready to go"!

In truth there have been more advantageous times to have had the inspectors arrive over the past 2 years as our staffing situation had been very settled until recently, however, this is very normal - in all schools, overtime there are fluctuations for any number of reasons. As a catholic school we certainly can't be seen to be grumbling over maternity leaves - that's for sure! And change is both a necessary and good thing to occur from time to time - it's always sad to see good staff leave but we want them to grow and develop, equally it?s great to have new staff with new ideas on board. I'm sure all our teachers and our diligent non teaching staff will rise to the occasion next week.

I have few concerns about the children - I think they will do us proud and help us to show the inspectors that we have so much to celebrate.

Talking of celebration, it was great to see such a big turnout for each of the two Y5 / Y6 performances of "The Tempest" last week. The children were fantastic and put on a tremendous show, full of energy, commitment and an abundance of skill. The children's self esteem has soared and everyone made a significant contribution. The whole team effort, parents / carers included is to be applauded. Special thanks to Miss Carrahar and Miss Watson - they certainly put in some hours.

We can now look forward to our Y3 / Y4 performance of Joseph later in the Summer term - Mrs McMullen will be back after Easter and will pick up the baton from Miss Simpson. Many thanks to the excellent turn out of parents / carers for the trip to the Empire last week. On a similar note, Mr Allon is looking for volunteers to accompany him on his trip to Newcastle / Gateshead and the 2 hour voyage up the Tyne - those with sea legs can apply.

Could I ask all parents / carers to assist us next week by ensuring that the children are?

-On Time (only a small number are late but even 1 is too many);
-Bring dinner monies on Monday Morning;
-Have all their PE kit on the correct days;
-Dispense with jewellery;
-Wear full uniform - especially footwear;
-Have their kit and are collected on time from After School Clubs, which will run as normal next week;

Thank you very much in anticipation of your support.

Regardless of preparation time, of which there is very little, the days leading up to and during the inspection will be stressful and demanding for every member of staff, myself included. Should any major issues arrive, I / staff generally, will only be too pleased to see you as normal. However, as Tuesday / Wednesday will be particularly busy, I would be grateful if smaller matters could be left until later in the week.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Have a good weekend.

Best Wishes,

K.J. Smithson.
Head Teacher.

PS: Thanks to Parents / Carers who have already returned their questionnaires - there is still time to get them in for Tuesday. Back to top

Spring Term Newsletter 5: Friday February 9 2007

Dear Parents / Carers,

What a busy week, no sooner do we see Ofsted here and gone before embarking on the preparation for the Diocesan RE Inspection which will follow hard on the heels - February 27th and 28th, with all documentation expected by Monday!

However we will continue the latest paper chase safe in the knowledge that our school has received so many accolades from the inspection team that visited school on Tuesday / Wednesday of this week and that our report, on publication, will be well worth reading. It would be premature to say too much at this stage as I want to be sure that the written version accurately reflects the verbal feedback and a draft copy should be with me next week.

What I have no hesitation in saying though is that the children were magnificent and I am very proud of them - they know what makes a good school and as a community of learning we have so much to celebrate. The staff, at all levels were fantastic too but the reality is that they just carried on with the things they are trying to do well every day of every term of every academic year.

The response from parents / carers too was tremendous with so many taking the trouble to return the questionnaires, a great percentage adding positive comments. Thank you so much for this - it is a big boost to all the staff to see such appreciation for their efforts.

I will send a full copy of the report to every family as soon as the final draft has been agreed with Ofsted - now we can get on with our work without being under the constant pressure of inspection - 23 months waiting for a telephone call is not the best, and when all is said and done, the team couldn?t point to any single thing that we were not already fully aware of.

Next week is the final week before Half Term (Feb 19 - 23 / Return to school Feb 26) and a reminder that the school will close for children at 3.30pm on Thursday evening, February 15, the following day is a Staff In Service Day.

A reminder to parents that the inclement weather can sometimes affect our after school sports clubs, however, if the children are appropriately dressed in their sports kit we will always look to go ahead. The school will make every effort to contact you if a club is cancelled - please make sure that we have up to date contact numbers, mobiles in particular seem to be regularly changed.

As a well deserved reward for the children we have scheduled a "Valentines / Mardi Gras" Disco, for Thursday February 15th, from 4.30 to 6pm. There will be no admission charge but children should bring their own spending money for hot dogs / refreshments etc. I?m sure we will enjoy a fun evening. SAPA request assistance prior to and during the event - any help is much appreciated.

I look forward to seeing you in the near future and thank you once again for your support and encouragement.

Best Wishes,
Yours Sincerely,

K.J. Smithson.
Head Teacher. Back to top

Spring Term Newsletter 6: Monday March 5 2007

Dear Parents / Carers,

At last we can say that the Inspection season is over!
Our RE Inspection went very well despite the Diocese changing the nature of it's input from what was once a celebratory visit to a more Ofsted based, business like approach, with a very clear focus upon the quality of the RE curriculum.

The entire school community worked very well together with the children and parents playing a very significant part. Many thanks to the number of parents who found the time to come and speak with the inspector, she was very interested in your views and this input was much appreciated.

The main Ofsted Report is public from today and we have already had a call from the "Gazette" looking to celebrate the good news. The report, accompanied by a photograph will be published one evening this week and is something to look forward to in sharing our success with the wider community. (I will try to notify you of the publication day via the children, but no doubt the "grapevine" will be busy).

Talking of photographs it is that time again with the school photographer scheduled to visit on Wednesday of this week. Parents / carers who would like to have younger siblings / babies photographed alongside older children should begin to assemble in the school hall from 8.30am. These and other family groups will be the first priority followed by the children in class age order: Reception - Y6.

Team photographs for the football and possibly hockey teams will be taken closer to lunchtime. Could all involved in the said teams please make sure that they have their official kit with them - some still have team strips from last year. This is especially important as team games will commence very soon and Miss Watson will be updating the children soon as regards forthcoming fixtures.

A reminder that our Open Evenings week is scheduled for week beginning March 19th (Monday19th - Wednesday 21st) with individual appointments nearer the date. It will be useful if parents / carers refresh their memories with the targets set at the autumn term evening as conversation can centre on the rate of progress against the range of targets touched upon then. The children are well aware of their targets and should be able to update parents / carers themselves, prior to the visit.

Monies for Thurston and Belgium are almost on track - many thanks for keeping up with the payments as the school has deadlines to meet with both the Local Authority and the travel company involved.

The school is hosting a hockey tournament today on our MUGA - up to 10 teams are expected, and this alongside our new March Saturday Morning Sports Club is clear testament to our extended schools agenda. Something that Ofsted was strongly impressed with and a factor in their judgement of the curriculum opportunities we offer as "Outstanding".

I look forward to seeing you all in the near future.
Many thanks for your support and encouragement.

Best Wishes,

Yours Sincerely,

K.J. Smithson.
Head Teacher. Back to top

Spring Term Newsletter 7: Thursday March 15 2007

Dear Parents / Carers,

Open Evenings are almost upon us and by now all parents / carers should be aware of their appointment times. To improve communication opportunities staff are now spreading the interviews further across the week with one or two classes utilising Thursday evening also. Teachers do make every effort to make the most of these opportunities and I would ask you to respect this, taking note of the time spent in conversation and looking to reschedule another appointment if this is absolutely necessary, rather than sabotaging the appointment system on the night. It is always a fine line to walk but we are getting better, thanks to the vast majority who take a more thoughtful approach and consider others who may be next in line.

As our extended schools agenda continues to grow, I'm sure many of our children in addition to other youngsters in the community, will have enjoyed the new free Saturday morning sessions led by Mr Peacock. We have funding for a further 3 sessions before investigating whether or not the scheme can be self financing. Either way, it has been good use of our facilities to encourage healthy activities that really can benefit many of the children in our local community.

Sitting alongside this is our evening portfolio of clubs and activities. Staff are working with an increasing number of in house and independent providers, the latter are usually reliable but occasionally we have been forced to cancel planned activities at short notice. Sometimes this is due to illness or other unforeseen occurrence, very occasionally a coach simply fails to turn up. We are working hard to reduce these instances to the bare minimum and hope that parents / carers will be sympathetic to the problems that may occur from time to time. School staff do their level best to keep up with events and whilst we are always looking to improve we do sometimes find ourselves with little room for manoeuvre.

Open evening week always presents an additional problem and I would like to say categorically that NO INDOOR courses will run on the Monday (19th) and Tuesday (20th), next week, EXCEPT FOR PYRAMID CLUB - Y3 CLASSROOM. Mr Peacock's football on Monday Evening will still be on. Additional sessions will replace any missed either later this term or early next.

From Wednesday we will attempt to run a full programme, except for Card and Computer club (staff involved in Open Evenings), though this may cause some relocation of classrooms / spaces where parent / teacher interviews are held. The hall for example will be out of action as the Karate club will be in situ - naturally we don't want to argue too much with them!
Tuesday as always, being Siblings night, will be the busiest of the evenings. Mrs Nickels will also be available that night in her "office" for consultation.
Should a parent / carer particularly want to see me then Monday and Thursday will be best as I have training commitments on Tuesday and Wednesday - of course, our "open Door" policy means that I always attempt to see parents as soon as possible, especially if there is a concern.

If there are to be any further changes to the Wed / Fri programme of after school activities and at this stage I am not anticipating any, then individual staff / secretary will communicate.

To aid this process and indeed communication generally, please ensure that your telephone details held at school are correct and up to date.

Along these lines, a question, "What do you think of On Line communication"? Is it feasible for the school to hold e mail addresses - something we may want to look to in the future?

Tomorrow is "Red Nose Day" and we will, as usual, be doing "our bit" to support the good causes. To keep it simple the children are invited to wear anything red for the day for a 50p fee, in essence a non uniform day with an emphasis on RED. Any dyed hair must be back to normal by Monday morning please!

The school football team is up and running again and parents / carers are thanked for their assistance with transport and of course, their support. Please remember the new child seat laws - it may affect the "B" team in particular.
We will be having an A team match next Tuesday 20th March at Marsden school. The Snowball Cup pits the team against St Bede's and Marsden and Father Cornforth will be taking a hand as a budding Sir Alex Ferguson as teaching staff are tied up with Open Evenings. Supporters should meet at the school at 3.30pm 'ish for a 4pm start.
The following week, the A team will again be in action in the Bishop Cunningham cup to be held at St Cuthbert?s, Kenton, Newcastle - this will be an early Kick Off - supporters / transport to meet at 1.50pm at our school (2.30pm start in Kenton).

I look forward to seeing everyone in the near future, also, our Ofsted report should feature in the Gazette soon - keep a look out.

Best Wishes.
Yours Sincerely,

K.J. Smithson
Head Teacher. Back to top

Spring Term Newsletter 8: Friday March 22 2007

Dear Parents / Carers,

Thank you for the excellent attendance throughout Open Week, again we had almost 100% attendance which would make us the envy of most schools - this data typifies the overall good relationships that exist throughout our learning community and can only be advantageous in developing a true partnership between home and school.

Overleaf is a copy of the RE Inspection summary and gives the "headline" findings as reported by the Diocesan Inspector following her two day visit earlier in February. A full copy of the report is available on the Diocesan Catholic Education Service website (later we hope to transfer this to our own school website) and hard copies will be placed in the newsletter file in the main entrance. As you can read the report is highly complimentary and I would like to thank Miss Smyth for her key role as RE Coordinator, both prior to and throughout the inspection.

Doubtless some will have seen the local press report on our full Ofsted Inspection, whilst this was very good in many respects, there were, I felt, some major omissions in the report - things that I stressed in my conversation with the reporter that for some reason, failed to be included in the article.

I was particularly disappointed that some staff were not mentioned by name, for although this was a team effort the work done by Miss Carrahar, both in Literacy and in Special Needs and Mrs Wilson in Numeracy and Assessment has been outstanding. Credit too to all the teaching team 5 of whom delivered "outstanding" lessons, to Mrs Coates for leading the ICT team and for contributing so much to display throughout the school.

Our new and temporary teachers have brought a new dimension to the school and our classroom assistants all, have grown into their roles and are an integral part of the school team both now and in the future. As I said to the reporter the cross school contribution, that of the children / parents / Admin / Cleaning staff was immense and all deserve thanks and appreciation.

We are very lucky with our children and how they all respond so well to the way we do things here at St Gregory's - I was watching them yesterday in the dining hall and I felt very proud of them. They are the reason we are prepared to walk the extra mile.

Next week is the last week of term as we close on Friday for the Easter holidays, returning on Monday 16th April. We look forward to welcoming Mrs McMullen back to Year 4 where she will job share with Miss Simpson during the Summer term - a good partnership in the making.

Best wishes for a blessed and peaceful Easter season.

Yours Sincerely,

K.J. Smithson.
Head Teacher. Back to top

Spring Term Newsletter 9: Friday March 30th 2007

Dear Parents / Carers,

A brief final note for the term to correct the holiday dates. As many have pointed out we do in fact reopen for the Summer Term on Monday April 16th and not the following week - wishful thinking!

Our Easter egg competition has been a great success with some fantastic entries across the school, as I write the cook is deliberating before making her final judgement - a very difficult task from what I've seen. Well done to the winners and to all entrants - great imagination - don't forget to take them home tonight.

School attendance has generally been very goods this past half term with our Y1 class proving to be the best attendees so far - they have enjoyed their extra reward sessions on the MUGA. Well Done Y1 - Brilliant!

Year 6 are lagging behind a little and I'm looking for a big improvement as we start the summer term, particularly as we have to accelerate our revision programme in the build up to the SATs. Every day does count.

The school A team progressed in some style to the semi final stage of the Bishop Cunningham Cup earlier this week, topping a 5 team group. The team are gelling well and beginning to understand the importance of the squad system in this type of competition. Support from parents has been excellent and we are all looking forward to the next round.

Enjoy the Easter Season with your children.

Best wishes.

Yours Sincerely,

K.J. Smithson.
Head Teacher. Back to top

5. Spring Term 2007 Newsletters

Spring Term Newsletter 1: January 8 2007

Spring Term Newsletter 2: Thursday January 11

Spring Term Newsletter 3: Tuesday January 23 2007

Spring Term Newsletter 4: Friday February 2 2007

Spring Term Newsletter 5: Friday February 9 2007

Spring Term Newsletter 6: Monday March 5 2007

Spring Term Newsletter 7: Thursday March 15 2007

Spring Term Newsletter 8: Friday March 22 2007

Spring Term Newsletter 9: Friday March 30th 2007

Spring Term Newsletter 1: January 8 2007

Spring Term Newsletter 2: Thursday January 11

Spring Term Newsletter 3: Tuesday January 23 2007

Spring Term Newsletter 4: Friday February 2 2007

Spring Term Newsletter 5: Friday February 9 2007

Spring Term Newsletter 6: Monday March 5 2007

Spring Term Newsletter 7: Thursday March 15 2007

Spring Term Newsletter 8: Friday March 22 2007

Spring Term Newsletter 9: Friday March 30th 2007