Over St. John's CE Primary SchoolHead Teacher Blog: Friday 17th December 2021
Date: 17th Dec 2021 @ 10:21am
We have reached the end of another busy term and whilst COVID has continued all around us, we have managed to keep moving forward as a school with the children’s education and welfare at the forefront of all our decisions and actions. Once again, it has not been an easy term but all credit to everyone involved in our children’s education, both at home and in school, for working together so well to ensure that our children accept challenges, develop confidence and be inspired to learn.
Carol Service
Thank you so much to everyone involved in making Tuesday’s Carol Service such a special occasion. It was a pure delight to welcome you into church, for the first time in two years, to share in the joy of Christmas as celebrated by our wonderful children. Thank you to everyone for following our COVID risk assessment so well and I am sure that those that were there could appreciate how we had to stick to one ticket per family when they saw the people in attendance. I have to say, they were the best behaved audience we have ever had!
Cine Window Film
A few weeks ago, all the children decorated stars to be a part of this years Cine Window Film in Winsford town centre. The annual Christmas film is now complete and on display in the Cine Window. ‘Winsford Winter Stars’ includes over 800 stars from local school children – please go and see the film in the Cine Window - it will be on display until mid-January in the Winsford Cross shopping centre, just next to Greggs.
‘Winsford Winter Stars’ is part of a Christmas show reel that includes a specially commissioned Christmas Card by local artist Lynn Haffenden and a beautiful film called ’The Longest Night’ by artist Angie Pickman. If you can’t get up to the shopping centre, you can see the Christmas show reel here: Winsford Winter Stars
#WakeUpWednesday
It’s an inconvenient truth of modern life that it can often be hard to persuade younger family members to put away their phone or switch off their games console in favour of some shared activity. Adults can feel this especially acutely at Christmas: usually a time of togetherness, but all too often a losing battle against the likes of Minecraft, TikTok or YouTube.
Christmas is a time of miracles, however. There are ways to incorporate children’s beloved devices into the festivities, so adults still get to enjoy some quality family moments and young ones don’t start to feel short-changed in terms of screen time. This week’s #WakeUpWednesday guide has National Online Safety’s collection of top tips for making the most of the online world this Christmas. Download your guide below.
Updated Covid Guidance
From Tuesday 14th December, adults who are fully vaccinated and all children and young people aged between 5 to 18 years and 6 months identified as a close contact of someone with COVID-19, are strongly advised to take a lateral flow device (LFD) test every day for 7 days and continue to attend their setting as normal, unless they have a positive test result.
The Department for Education advises that daily testing of close contacts of COVID-19 will help make education and childcare settings safer and help keep children and young people in face-to-face education.
Free Training to Support Parents with Children with Anxiety
New Images have a new project starting in January 2022 - they will be running a 7 week course for parents of children experiencing anxiety. The course will consist of the following:
- a 7 week group intervention in which parents and carers are supported to learn ways to support children who are experiencing moderate anxiety;
- psychoeducation around anxiety in children, learning how to apply cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) principles to help children learn independence and overcome fears and worries, developing ways to help children test out their anxious worries and setting up tasks to complete between sessions.
Developed by Professor Cathy Creswell, the intervention has a strong evidence base and good success rates for parent/ carers and their children.
Each session will run on a Wednesday evening with a small group of parent/carers and will be facilitated by an experienced Child and Adolescent CBT Therapist and Children’s Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner.
The course will start on 19th January for 7 weeks from 6.30pm - 8pm. Places are limited and will require a completed referral form from the parent, which can either be sent via email or dropped off at their Nixon Drive office. The referral form is attached below with the e mail address to send the completed form to on it.
Applying for Primary School Places for September 2022
If you have a child who is turning 4 years old between now and 31st August 2022, or know of a child who is, then the application round is open to apply for their Reception place for which you have until 15th January 2022. Before making your application, it is important you view the Starting School booklet. Results are available from 16th April 2022. To apply, you will need to create an account or log in if you have an existing online account.
School Dinners
School dinners cost £2.34 per day, £11.70 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 school 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.
Absence During Term Time
Please may I remind you that schools are not allowed to authorise pupil holidays in term time. Any child going on holiday in term time will receive an unauthorised absence. Our registers are regularly checked by the Education Welfare Service and parents may be issued with a fine from the Local Authority for unauthorised absence, which is currently £60 per child, per parent and this rises to £120 if paid after 21 days but within 28 days.
Confirmed Dates for the Autumn Term 2021 – new dates highlighted
Friday 17th December: School closes at 2pm
Friday 24th December: St. John’s Church Street Nativity 2pm – 4pm
Spring Term 2022
Tuesday 4th January 2022: School re-opens at the usual time
I would like to thank you all for your continued support with your children and the school over this last year and wish you all a very merry Christmas.
Take care,
Mrs E Snowdon