Friday 8th September

GreatOuseburnCommunityPrimarySchool,MainStreet,GreatOuseburn, YorkYO269RG

Telephone:01423330296 Email:

HeadteacherNickOswald Email:

Dear Parents,

Welcome back! Everyone has done brilliantly, looking very smart and with no tears. The children have done well too!

Staffing

With the many changes to school staffing at the end of last year, I thought it would be a good idea to clarify who the school staff are and what their roles are!

Name / Job / Name / Job
Mrs O’Neill / Dragon Class Teacher / Mrs Stringer / Midday Supervisor
DEN Playworker
Mr Caswell / Unicorn Class Teacher / Mrs Bucknole / Midday Supervisor
DEN Playworker
Miss Roberts / Phoenix Class Teacher / Mrs Scarisbrick / Office Manager
Miss Cartwright / Griffin Class Teacher / Mrs Scott / Caretaker
Mrs Jones / Teaching Assistant / Mrs Humphreys / Cook
Mrs Caine / Teaching Assistant / Mrs Gardiner / Cleaner
Mrs Alexander / Teaching Assistant / Mr Oswald / Headteacher
Miss Mitchell / Teaching Assistant
DEN Playleader

You’ll notice Mrs Stringer has returned! She just couldn’t stay away!

Nursery Provision at Great Ouseburn Primary School

We were delighted to welcome George as the first ever Nursery child at Great Ouseburn Primary School. We have several more starting over the next few weeks. We still have flexible vacancies for up to 30 hours a week, plus access to The Den, so please let anyone who might be interested know.

What Can We Learn From The Great Outdoors?

You should have received a letter yesterday (please check book bags if not!) regarding an exciting new approach to the curriculum. We are keen to engage parents as much as possible, so if you can make it to the launch events, you are very welcome. We appreciate this is very short notice this time, but in the future we will be able to give more warning.

Indoor Shoes

Just a reminder that, in the interests of reducing the spread of germs, we ask children in Early Years and KS1 to bring a pair of slippers or plimsolls to wear indoors.

Uniform

Embroidered uniform is now available from Tesco at as well as the usual uniform shops. Unfortunately there are two versions of the jumper and cardigan. One is out of stock for our sizes but Tesco have been unable to remove it! The other is identical and in stock. Feedback so far has been that the quality is as good or better and the clothes are much cheaper.

After School Clubs

Confirmed clubs so far are:

Day / Club / Who for?
Monday / Game of Actual Life / All
Tuesday / Lego / All
Thursday / Gardening / All
Friday / Deconstruction Club
Football / All
All
  • Game of Actual Life (GOAL) will be explained to children in assembly, but it is an interactive activity based around life skills and raising confidence and aspiration.
  • Lego Club will present children with a different challenge every week, to be solved using Lego
  • Deconstruction Club involves learning how to take real life objects apart using a range of tools and investigating what is inside. Reassembling them is not essential!If anyone is keen to volunteer to help with this, that help would be very gratefully received!
  • Gardening will initially focus on our vegetable beds and fruit trees, but will look at lots of different types of gardening over the year. If anyone is keen to volunteer to help with this, that help would be very gratefully received!
  • There will also be a sports club running on Wednesdays, I am just confirming the details!

All clubs run from 3.20pm until 4.30pm and start next week (week beginning 11th September).

The cost for all clubs is £3 per session, payable in advance (on Parent Pay please) for the half term. This would be £18 for this half term.

Where clubs are oversubscribed, places will be given on a first come-first served basis on when payment is received. If we cannot fit everyone in, anyone who missed out will be guaranteed a place after half term.

The DEN

We are finalising a programme of events in The DEN and will share these shortly. If you wish to use The DEN, it is vital that parents book their children in for every session so that we can be properly resourced and can guarantee that we have spaces available. We still have many sessions where children turn up without being booked in and it makes organisation very difficult. We want to be flexible to deal with emergencies that may crop up, but it is increasingly tricky to manage the number of attendees who have not been booked in. Please also bring your child into The DEN and sign them in if you are dropping them off in the morning.

School Dinners

At the end of last year we received a new menu from North Yorkshire County Caterers which looked fine in general, but included several meals that we know are not very popular with the children. So instead, we asked the children which were their favourite meals and have devised a two week, themed menu instead. We have liaised with the caterers to ensure there is a balanced diet across the week. I have attached the new menu.

We have also dispensed with the old food trays and replaced them with smart plates and bowls. Children are now seated at the start of lunchtime and served food at the table, rather than queuing. They are allowed to choose who to sit next to. So far this has resulted in quieter, more orderly lunchtimes and the children are outside playing much earlier than previously.

Signing in and out

From September we will have a signing in and out book for children who arrive after the register or leave before the end of the day. Please make sure that you sign your children in and out. Thank you.

FOGOS – Great Ouseburn Beer Festival – Saturday 7 October at Gt Ouseburn Village Hall

We are fast approaching the eighth annual beer festival and it is a great social event for the village. FOGOS, on behalf of the school is very lucky to be one of the local charities that benefits from the money raised, so please do come along and try one of the 20 local ales (other drinks also served!). We would also be hugely grateful for one hour of your time between 5 and 8.00 p.m., serving pints! We need 10 volunteers for each hour. Please email if you are able to help.

Dates for the diary

5th September – Children return to school

11th September –Woodland Adventure for Y5/6 (am) and Y1/2 (pm)

15th September –Woodland Adventure for Early Years (am) and Y3/4 (pm)

15th September– Welcome Drinks and FOGOS AGM (see attached poster for full information)

7th October– Great Ouseburn Annual Beer Festival

Attendance for week ending 8 September

Dragons 100%

Unicorns89.2%

Phoenix100%

Griffins100%

Whole School95.8%

Pride of Great Ouseburn Certificates

DragonsGeorge C

UnicornsMagdalene C

PhoenixFrankie M and Jacob S

GriffinsHarrison V

All of Griffins Class

GreatOuseburnCommunityPrimarySchool,MainStreet,GreatOuseburn, YorkYO269RG

Telephone:01423330296 Email:

HeadteacherNickOswald Email: