Over St. John's CE Primary SchoolHead Teacher Blog: Friday 12th September 2025
Date: 12th Sep 2025 @ 12:17pm
OSJ PTA
A message from our wonderful PTA:
‘Our PTA AGM takes place next Friday 19th September at 3pm in the school hall. Brews and Biscuits will be provided! Please pop along so we can get the formal stuff out of the way and crack on with all the fun stuff for the year. Vote in your reps, hear what we've been up to last year and see a sneak peak of plans for this year! Mrs Kelly has kindly agreed to keep little (and big) ones entertained. This is open to all.
If you are interested in becoming a trustee for a PTA please pop an email over to overstjohnspta@gmail.com to express your interest by Thursday 18th September.’
PTA Petting Zoo!
Wow! What a fabulous day we have had in school as the Petting Zoo arrived! All the children have had fascinating, up close experiences with a variet of animals from lizards, to tarantulas to a HUGE snake!. It was an absolutely memorable experience and I would like to express my thanks to the PTA for organising this for us. Experiences like this are something that the PTA is vital for so please do consider supporting and attending the AGM.
Head on over to the class blogs where I know that there will be some photographs when staff have opportunity to upload them!
Attendance
This year, we are going to continue our focus on attendance as we definitely made some improvements on the previous year, going from 94.1% to at the end of 2024 to 94.76% at the end of last year. This is a fantastic improvement on which I am sure we can build this year to get closer to our pre-COVID levels of around 96%
The magic number that we are aiming for is 96% and above and for the children who achieve this, we have some special rewards. At the end of each term there will be certificates for all children who have attendance at 96% or more and a special prize draw of a £15 Argos voucher for those children with 98% attendance or more. Each term will be a ‘new start’ so if someone didn’t manage to make the percentage in one term, there will be future chances.
Children understandably get ill from time to time and it can be easy to wonder whether they should be in school or not, so to help, please find some guidance from the NHS around Is my child too ill for school?
Child Development Level 1 Course
We have received some information regarding a Child Development course that some of you or someone you know may be interested in.
This 4-day course, every Monday for 4 weeks starting on Monday 15th September from 9.30am – 2.30pm, covers children’s social and emotional development. You will learn about meeting their needs and encouraging children to be positive about themselves. Understanding the importance of play, you will learn to plan activities for children at different levels of development. This course is both interesting and fun, with plenty of discussion and engaging activities that make learning enjoyable.
See the poster attached below.
Absence During Term Time – Government Regulations including Fines
Penalty Notices are issued for irregular attendance, not just holidays, with days off here and there throughout the term.
The National Framework for Penalties includes:
- A Penalty Notice must be considered for 10 sessions (5 days) of unauthorised absence within a rolling 10 school week period – these days do not have to be all at the same time, they can be a couple of days here and a couple of days there; they can be a combination of a couple of days holiday and a couple of days absence at other times too.
- An increase to the amount of a Penalty Notice is now £160 if paid within 28 days, and £80 if paid within 21 days. This fine is issued to each parent separately for each child, so both parents receive the £80 fine, meaning that for one child it equals £160 (e.g. £80 for Mum and £80 for Dad) if both parents take the child.
- A second Penalty Notice could be issued to the same parent for the same child within a rolling 3 year period being charged at a higher rate of £160 with no option for this second offence to be discharged at the lower rate of £80.
- A national limit of 2 penalty notices that can be issued to a parent for the same child within a rolling 3 year period, so at the 3rd (or subsequent) offence(s) another tool will need to be considered (such as prosecution or one of the other attendance legal interventions).
Applying for Secondary School Places for September 2026
If you have a child in Year 6, the application round has now opened for you to apply for a secondary school place. It is very important that you do this before the deadline, which is 31st October 2025, otherwise your application will be classed as a late application and could have a severe impact on your preferred school choice. Results are available from 12.30am on 2nd March 2026. To apply, you will need to create an account or log in on this link. Before making your application, it is important you view the chrome- Transferring to Secondary School Guide to help you with your choices.
As a school, we are a partner primary with both The Winsford Academy and Hartford CE High School which means that applications for children from our school are considered above some other categories, should the school be oversubscribed. However, you have the option to apply for 3 secondary schools of your choice. Further details with regards to this can be found in the ‘Transferring to Secondary School’ information booklet in the link above.
Currently, I am aware of the following secondary school Open Evenings:
Tuesday 16th September 4pm to 7.30pm Weaverham High School
Thursday 18th September contact the school Middlewich High School
Thursday 18th September 5pm – 7.30pm The County High School, Leftwich
If I receive information from other secondary schools, I will share this with you.
Applying for Primary School Places for September 2026
If you have a child who is turning 4 years old between now and 31st August 2026, or know of a child who is, then the application round is also open for them to apply for their Reception place. The timescale is slightly different for this and you have until 15th January 2026, but like the secondary school place, before making your application, it is important you view the Starting Primary School Booklet. Results are available from 16th April 2026. To apply, you will need to create an account or log in on this link.
If you would like to visit Over St. John’s with a view to a Reception place next September or know of someone else who would, please do just ring the office and we will arrange a time to suit yourselves and us. We do not hold an open morning as I prefer people to see us as we are on a daily basis and have more personal time during a look around with me to ask any questions that they may have.
#WakeUpWednesday
Is the truth really out there? Not when it comes to conspiracy theories, now firmly recognised as safeguarding risks posing potential harm to children in the latest update to ‘Keeping Children Safe in Education.’ Unfortunately, young people may struggle to tell fact from fiction, especially online. This week’s #WakeUpWednesday guide explains how conspiracies can affect children’s mental health, critical thinking and even make them vulnerable to radicalisation.
With tips on safe conversations, spotting red flags, and promoting reliable sources, our guide is a must-read for any parent or educator keen to support young minds in thinking clearly and confidently about the world around them.
School Dinners
School dinners cost £3.10 per day, £15.50 per week. Children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 receive free meals as part of the government’s Universal Infant Free School Meals (UIFSM) scheme. Dinner money must be paid in advance via School Spider.
If you are in receipt of benefits and think that you may be entitled to free school meals, please click here for more information and support and how to apply. It is very important to apply for free schools meals whatever year your child is in, even if you receive the UIFSM in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2, as the school receives a sum of extra money to further help support your child and their education.
Confirmed Dates for the Autumn Term 2025 – new dates highlighted
Friday 19th September: PTA Annual General Meeting 3pm
Friday 3rd October: Individual photographs
Tuesday 21st October: Pupil Consultation Evening 3.15pm – 5.15pm
Thursday 23rd October: Pupil Consultation Evening 3.15pm – 5.30pm
Thursday 23rd October: School finishes at 3pm for half term
Friday 24th October: INSET Day – school closed
Monday 3rd November: School opens at 8.35am
Monday 3rd November: PTA Meeting at The Gate at 7pm – all welcome
Wednesday 17th December: Carol Service in St. John’s church at 1.30pm Pick up from church
Thursday 18th December: Whole School Pantomime trip
Friday 19th December: School closes for Christmas at 2pm
Have a lovely weekend.
Take care,
Mrs E Snowdon