Over St. John's CE Primary SchoolHead Teacher Blog: Friday 13th September 2024
Date: 13th Sep 2024 @ 10:09am
What a wet and miserable week we have had! However, that has not deterred the children in any way - they continue to show that they are ready, respectful and safe in school (our three ‘rules’) and are working well in class – a really positive start to the year!
Reading Logs
Please keep an eye on your messages next week for the link to your child’s new online reading log which we are moving to this year. All the information was sent home earlier this week via School Spider as we move away from the paper reading log to what we hope is a more effective way of recording and checking on the reading that has taken place both at home and at school.
Over St. John’s PTA
Our new PTA held their first meeting last week and have some really exciting plans in place for the term to raise much needed funds for the school.
Their first event is an ‘Express Yourself’ Day on Friday 27th September – please see the poster attached below for more information.
Details were sent home earlier this week about the new PTA’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) and everybody is welcome to come along at 3pm to the school hall on Monday 30th September. This meeting will be an opportunity for you to find out a little bit about the PTA and their plans after a vote has been carried out to formalise the members of the committee. Don’t worry – just because you come along doesn’t mean that you will have to be part of the committee and the team, you can be as involved as much or as little as you like, but the more the merrier!
I look forward to our ‘official’ new PTA being formed and working together with everyone for the benefit of all of our children.
Morning Routine - Reminder
The school gate opens each morning at the beginning of the day at 8.35am. The children are able to go straight to class and get on with the activities that are there for them. Our register is taken at 8:45am promptly and as such, if your child is not here at 8:45am, they will be marked late on the register. Please ensure that your child is in school a few minutes before 8:45am so that they are on time for the register as I close the gate a couple of minutes before this time. If you arrive before 8.35am, please remind your children that they should stay by your side as Delamere Street is a very busy road and traffic also turns into our car park – they should not be playing and running around outside whilst waiting.
The whole school goes in to Collective Worship each morning at 8:50am and if children are late, it can be unsettling for them to have to walk in to Collective Worship late in front of the whole school as well as distracting for the children that are already there. Your support with this would be greatly appreciated.
#WakeUpWednesday
One of the most valuable skills a child can carry into adulthood is conflict resolution. From simple playground spats to much more serious fights, handling these disagreements in a mature, constructive way can sometimes be uncomfortable and can also prove rather tricky. This is especially important to remember when it comes to children, who could be experiencing this kind of situation for the very first time.
Bringing effective, reasonable solutions to disputes is a difficult talent to learn and an even harder one to master. It's vital that parents and educators know how to support young people in developing this critical skill and this week’s free guide teaches you exactly that. This week, #WakeUpWednesday is covering how best to help children manage conflicts.
Junior Club
New Images Winsford Youth and Community Centre are starting a new Junior Club. The Junior Club is for primary school aged children on a Friday night to go and enjoy a few hours of sports, crafts and a huge variety of other activities. There is a £1 fee and the club runs from 7 - 9pm.
Please see the poster attached below for more details.
Absence During Term Time – Reminder
As shared towards the end of last term, there have been some changes to the way that Penalty Notices are issued for absences during term time. Penalty Notices are issued for irregular attendance, with days off here and there throughout the term including holidays.
The new National Framework for Penalty 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 (£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 2025
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 2024, 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 3rd March 2025. 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 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.
Saturday 14th September 10am-12pm Middlewich High School
Tuesday 17th September 4.30pm – 7pm Weaverham High School
Thursday 19th September 5pm – 7.30pm The County High School, Leftwich
Tuesday 24th September 5pm – 7pm Rudheath Senior Academy
Thursday 3rd October 4.30pm – 6.30pm The Winsford Academy
If I receive information from other secondary schools, I will share this with you.
Applying for Primary School Places for September 2025
If you have a child who is turning 4 years old between now and 31st August 2025, 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 2025, 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 2025. 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.
School Dinners
School dinners cost £3 per day, £15 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 2024 – new dates highlighted
Friday 27th September: PTA Express Yourself Day – Non Uniform for £1
Monday 30th September: PTA Annual General Meeting at 3pm in the school hall – all welcome
Thursday 3rd October: Whole School Nasal Flu Vaccines
Friday 11th October: Individual Photographs
Monday 21st October – Wednesday 23rd October: Chester Zoo workshops in school for Oakmere, Linmere and Blakemere
Tuesday 22nd October: Pupil Consultation Evening 4pm – 6pm
Thursday 24th October: Trip to Chester Zoo for Oakmere, Linmere and Blakemere
Thursday 24th October: School closes for half term at 3pm
Thursday 24th October: Pupil Consultation Evening 3:15pm – 5:15pm
Friday 25th October: INSET Day – School closed
Monday 4th November: School opens at 8:35am
Thursday 7th November: PTA Glow Walk – more details to follow
Friday 15th November: Children in Need Non Uniform Day
Thursday 12th December: Whole School Pantomime Trip
Friday 13th December: PTA Christmas Extravaganza
Friday 20th December: School closes at 2pm
Have a lovely weekend.
Take care,
Mrs E Snowdon