Start of Year Update

Hello everyone and welcome back!

I hope that you and your family have all had a great summer.

BLOGS

We have been working hard over the holidays to make sure that we are all ready for the start of term and another successful year. This year we have introduced year group blogs, rather than class blogs. These are all being finished off as we speak. Please have a look at your child(ren)’s year group blog and sign up for updates. If you enter your email address on the ‘follow this blog’ button on each blog, you will receive an email update every time something is posted onto that blog.

BUILDING WORKS: HEAVERS FARM

At Heavers Farm we have just finished work on the two, temporary, Year 5 classrooms. They are brand new, and very spacious. They are based on the edge of the field, just outside Year 1. We expect these classrooms to stay in place for the next two years whilst we wait for the permanent extension to be built. You might notice that the installation of these two classes has caused some damage to our field. We have already put plans in place to re-turf the most damaged areas so that we can have the field back in use as soon as possible.

BUILDING WORKS: SELSDON PRIMARY

At Selsdon Primary, we have replaced the floors in both Year 1 and Reception. We have also finished renovating the toilets in both of these year groups. We are now ordering new furniture for these classrooms and are hoping that FoSP are going to fund new outdoor equipment for Nursery, Reception, Year 1 and Year 2.

BEHAVIOUR POLICY

Following feedback from you on our recent parent questionnaires, we have taken away detentions for a number of things. We will be posting up the new Behaviour Policy in the next couple of days. All staff have undertaken training in our updated Behaviour Policy to ensure consistency across the schools.

LEADERSHIP TEAM

We have made a number of changes to the leadership team across the Federation. Jo Read is now the Deputy Executive Headteacher and will be working with me to provide strategic leadership of both of our schools. We have a new Head of School at each school. Dan McCormack is the Head of School at Heavers Farm and Shelley Parker the Head of School at Selsdon. Our Heads of School are responsible for the day to day leadership of each school. Many of you know them both already as they have both been working at our schools for some time. They will both be out and about both before and after school so that you can get to know them.

At Selsdon Primary we have a new Deputy Headteacher, Lynsey Barnett. She joins Kate Jenkins, Deputy Headteacher and SENCo. Kate Jenkins has very kindly offered to delay her retirement and stay with us for another year. She will be working with us for two days a week.

At Heavers we have two Deputy Headteachers, Rachel Evans and Rodney Reid. We also have two Assistant Headteachers, Sarah Faulding and Cathy Ferri, who is also our SENCo.

FEDERATION STAFF

We now have a number of staff who are employed to work across the Federation and who are based at both schools. Rachel Henry is our Acting Federation Extended Schools Manager. She is responsible for managing all club provision for the Federation. Attie Copeman-Papas is our Federation Data Manager. She is responsible for the analysis of all data, PPA provision, timetabling and sports provision. Les Persaud, Senior IT Manager, manages all IT provision. Scott Greenbrook, Senior Site Manager, co-ordinates and manages both school sites. Erica Ruse-Whalley is our School Counsellor, she provides counselling and therepeutic support to children at both schools.

PARENT QUESTIONNAIRES

Thank you everyone who took the time to complete these. We have put the results to these in Feedback menu above. We have summarised what we are doing in response to the issues that your raised. You can click here for the Heavers survey results and here for the Selsdon survey results.

We are really looking forward to the year ahead and to seeing you all again tomorrow.

Ms. Papas