Dear Parents / Carers,

Coats

Please can I ask that you send your child in with a waterproof coat.  We try to get outside as much as possible as the children love a run around at playtimes.  After lots of hard work, they need it too.

Attendance at school

As you all know, attendance at school is vital to ensure your child learns as much as possible so that they are prepared for the next stage of their life, whether this is moving to another year group in our school or moving onto another school.

Children who have regular time off school, fall behind with their learning very quickly which not only impacts on their academic learning but can negatively impact on their social skills and their behaviour as they recognise that their friends can do it and they struggle. 

We want all children to achieve their best.  To do this, they need to be in school and ready to learn.

If you have any concerns about your child’s attendance, please contact myself or Mrs Dean.

If we have any concerns about your child’s attendance, we will make an appointment so that we can discuss ways forward.

Swimming

Swimming starts next week for Years 3 and 5.  We have got a lot of excited children and a few very nervous children too.  Please try not to worry.  We have many years experience of teaching swimming, supporting nervous children to make those first steps.  It won’t be long before they’re swimming independently and having lots of fun.

National Fitness Day

On Wednesday, 20th September, all children need to come to school in their PE kits so that we can all take part in fitness activities throughout the day.

Small & Tall Holiday Club

Unfortunately, due to low numbers of children during the holidays, we will be closing the Small & Tall club during all school holidays.  We’re aware that some of you rely on this club but due to financial implications we are unable to continue.  We’re very sorry for any inconvenience this may cause. 

Have a lovely weekend everyone

Take care and stay safe

Mrs Wilmer

Dear Parents/Carers,

It’s certainly been an eventful school year with so much to celebrate including a really positive Ofsted inspection and achieving the Quality Mark in Career’s Related Learning.  All year, the children have been learning about skills needed for various careers along with learning about a wide range of careers too.  We will continue with this next year as this really has helped to raise aspirations as well as helping the children to think about and recognise their own talents and skills.

Today we say goodbye to our Year 6 children, many of whom have been with us for 7 or 8 years.  We have watched them grow, develop and flourish into the amazing people they are today.  They take with them a wealth of knowledge and understanding not just academic but social and personal too.  We wish them continued success on their learning journey throughout high school and beyond.  They certainly have the foundations to achieve all of their dreams.  

As well as saying goodbye to the Year 6 children we also have to say goodbye to some of their families who have been part of the school for many years.  Thank you for your support over the years.  Without this support, the children wouldn’t have become who they are and we wouldn’t have had such lovely relationships and enjoyed so many successful events together.

We say goodbye to Mrs Mahmud and Mrs O’Hara who have been our supply teachers in Year 2 and Year 3.  Thank you to them for supporting the children, helping them continue with their learning and becoming part of the Friarswood family.

I have some good news to share, Mrs Rafferty had a baby boy at the weekend.  He looks beautiful!  We can’t wait to meet him.  

Year 2 – about to be Year 3

This week the children have been learning about where they will be coming into school from September onwards.  They will be coming in by the library door and they’ll go to the Year 3 classroom by themselves.  They are very excited about this.  I’ll be on duty as usual so if parents are unsure, follow your child or just come over to me.  The children definitely know what to do and where to go.

Safeguarding

A reminder of what to do should you have concerns about a child over the holidays.

If a child’s life is at immediate risk, call 999 immediately.

If there is a potential risk of harm to a child, call Staffordshire Children’s Support and Advice Service as soon as possible on this number  0300 111 8007

Thank you to everyone from the staff for the many cards with such lovely words in and for the gifts.  It’s so thoughtful of you – thank you.

I wish you all a fantastic summer holiday.  I hope the weather improves! 

I look forward to welcoming you all back to school on Tuesday 5th September (remember 8:45 for early years and 8:40 – 8:50 for KS1 & 2).

Take care and stay safe.

Mrs Wilmer and the Friarswood Team

Dear Parents / Carers,

I have to start our newsletter with an enormous amount of praise and congratulations to our KS2 children and team.  Their performances of Mary Poppins have been incredible.  Such amazing acting and singing from everyone.  The confidence and bravery of the children who stood on the stage and acted out their parts, some of whom had many, many lines, was outstanding.

From the fabulous voice of Layla-Rose to the clear cockney tones of Emma and Thomas; all of the children really gave their all.

A huge thank you to the staff who have spent hours and hours getting the props ready, leading rehearsals, going through lines with children, practising the singing and organising all of the music.  They really have done us all proud.

A huge thank you to the parents who got the children kitted out with such amazing outfits.

What a success!

KS2 SATs

Well done to our Year 6 children who achieved lots of success in their SATs.  They worked so hard, not just this year but throughout their time at Friarswood.  To all the parents who have supported and to all of the staff who have taught these children – a massive thank you for helping them to achieve so much, not just academically but personally and socially too.  What a superstar class!

Food Bank Donations & Support

The summer holidays are just around the corner and we know that this can be a particularly challenging time for some families who may already be struggling.

With this in mind, if at all possible we would like to invite our pupils and staff to donate items which we will deliver to The Alice Charity Food Pantry, these donations can then be used to support families in our local community through a tricky time over the six week break. Donations can be sent into school from Monday 17^th July to Friday 21st July 2023. There will be food donation drop off boxes on the entrances and exits of our school or donations can be handed in by the children to their class teachers.  Thank you for ay support you can offer with this.

If you find that you need help for your family during the holidays, The Alice Charity is there for everybody and they can support without a referral. If you’d like further information, contact; info@alicecharity.org or call 01782 614838

Dear Parents / Carers,
Years 5 & 6 

Last Friday, Years 5 and 6 had such an exciting day at Keele University.  They took part in a range of activities in the science labs including using microscopes to look at daphnia and shrimp.  They made and tested rocket cars.  Looked to see what was actually in owl pellets – some children loved finding the skulls and bones of the owl’s tea!  And they learnt about animal and flower cells.  We even had the chance to look at 3 week old bats which had fallen from the tree.  One of the scientists is qualified to look after the baby bats until they can be returned back to their roost so we were really lucky for this rare opportunity.

Our Year 5 and 6 children had a fantastic opportunity to take part in our very own careers fair on Friday afternoon. This was a great chance to see what kind of jobs there are to aspire to. The children showed a great interest in many career paths and asked a lot of questions to find out more! This was the first careers event we have held and it was such a success! We can’t wait to hold the next event, it was amazing to see the children light up with the thought of the many choices that they could take in their adult lives. A huge thank you to everyone who came in to school to inspire the next generation. #SucceedTogether #BeYourselfAlways