Issue 1 3rd September 2015
Dear Parents,
Welcome back to the start of our academic year. I hope you all had an enjoyable summer and are ready for the year ahead. Many thanks for the lovely cards, gifts, emails and good wishes which were sent in at the end of last term; they were very much appreciated.
On Monday 24th August St Stephen’s day-care were inspected by OFSTED. The team were able to showcase the excellent work and provision that day-care deliver each day. I would like to thank the day-care team for their continued hard work, positivity and dedication. As soon as the outcome has been confirmed I will send out the report.
A particularly warm welcome to the families of the children at St Stephen’s Schools and Children’s Centre.
This is the first of our half termly newsletters which we send out. The newsletter is generally our main source of communication and being a big school, life is always busy here with lots of exciting events already planned for the year ahead.
Our new Reception children joined us and are in school all day today. Next week and the following week, each year group will be holding a meet the teacher session where you will learn about the curriculum being delivered, trips and all other information which is relevant to your child's year group. The list of dates in the newsletter hopefully gives enough notice for events which may require further planning. I am sure the children will soon settle back into school and already look fantastic in their uniforms, my thanks to parents for supporting the school’s high standards regarding uniform.
As always, if you have any other queries or questions, please speak to your child’s class teacher or to our friendly office staff who will do their very best to be of help and assistance. My door is always open so please feel free to contact me.We regularly update school news on the website so please look there for new information.
Ms. Neena Lall
Headteacher
AUTUMN TERM DATES 2015
SEPTEMBER
Thursday 3rdSeptember / School restarts at 8:55 am
Friday 4th September / Meet the teacher Open afternoon for Year 3 at 3.30pm
Tuesday 8thSeptember / Meet the teacher Open afternoon for Year 1 at 3.30pm
Wednesday 9thSeptember / Maintained Nursery School opens
Meet the teacher Open afternoon for Year 2 at 3.30pm
Thursday 10thSeptember / Meet the teacher Open afternoon for Year 4 at 3.30pm
Friday 11th September / Meet the teacher Open afternoon for Year 5 at 3.30pm
Tuesday 15th September / Meet the teacher Open afternoon/ secondary school transition meeting for Year 6
OCTOBER
Thursday 8thOctober / Reception Classes Consultation day
Monday 12th October / Maintained Nursery closure-staff training
Wednesday 14th October / Reception Classes Parent Workshop
Friday 23rd October / SEN Parent Forum
Friday 23rdOctober / Half Term holiday – School closes at 3:15 pm Children’s Centre and Day Care will remain open.
Monday 26th October / Day care closure-staff training
Monday 9thNovember–Primary School restarts at 8:55 am
Nursery School 9am/12.30pm
I will inform you of any additional dates and events that may be set during the term.
HOLIDAYS IN TERM TIME
Please note that the school keeps strictly to the National and Newham Policies regarding extended holidays:
- Parents need to apply to the school for any leave
- The school will only permit leave under exceptional circumstances
- The pupil’s place will be closed if the above steps are not taken and may incur a fine from the Local Authority
- Parents should not request leave for pupils in Year 6
ATTENDANCE AND PUNCTUALITY
Pupils are expected to attend school each day unless ill. If your child is absent due to illness you need to inform the school office immediately. Your child will also need a letter from you on his/her return confirming the reason for his/her absence.
Please note:
The Primary School times are 8.55 a.m. – 3.15 p.m.
There are staff in the Primary playground at 8.30am.
The school rules apply as soon as the children enter the school grounds.
The Nursery School times are morning -9am-12 noon and afternoon 12.30pm-3.30pm.
It is important that your child arrives at school and is collected on time.
All parents will be asked to leave the playgrounds at 8.45am.
SCHOOL DINNERS
We encourage that all children remain at school during lunchtime where we provide them with a balanced and nutritious school meal. However, if you would like your child to go home for their lunch it is important for their safety and well-being that the school is made aware of this. We therefore ask that parents to let the school know that their child is going home for their dinner.
If a child has not been collected, a member of the office staff will phone home to see if someone is on their way. If there is no reply, a school dinner will be provided for them.
STAFFING
Primary
- We welcome Tom Newnham and Esther Williams as permanent newly qualified teachers.
- We have four students for the whole year, Rebekah Finlay, Jasveen Sehmi, Alistair Pleasant and Michael Fink who are working throughout the school.
- We welcome Tanita Bahia, Rama Kerai and Misbah Dar who will be supporting children across the school.
- We welcome Rosie Chissick as the red room teacher.
- We welcome Katie Munro and Toni Gibbons as Nursery Nurses
- We are delighted to inform you that have appointed two deputy day care managers, Harsha Mesuria and Claudina Allen.
- We have appointed Mandeep Nota as a new Nursery Officer.
- We are delighted to inform you that wehave appointed Rebecca Ross and Farzana Raman as new Outreach workers.
AWARDS 2014-2015
Pupil of the year
- Reception- Areebah Ali
- Year 1- Sulaiman Jeeva
- Year 2- Rutvi Patel
- Year 3- Naeema Noor
- Year 4- Zoha Ahmed
- Year 5- Umema Ismail
- Year 6- Mohammad Ridwan Hossain
JOY CUP
‘THE JOY CUP’ is awarded to a member of each class each term. The joy cup is awarded to those children who have a joy for coming to school and embrace all that St Stephen’s has to offer.
I would like to congratulate the joy cup winners for the Summer Term 2015.
RZ- Umar Mohamed Rahamathullah
RE- EeshaGangam
RS- Huzaifa Rahman / 1L-Aisha Moosa
1S-Kinza Chowdhury / 2D- Sakib Khan
2H -Prisha Patel / 3L- RasikanManogaran
3S-Maryam Jeeva / 4K –King Kimbugwe
4S –RahmahSohel / 5S- Zara Master
5A- Al Hamza Ali
5M-Jannath Chowdhury / 6D –Zainab Ahmed
6J-Mohamed Hussain Maknojya
SAFEGUARDING- Supervision
Playing on the street – It has come to my attention that some families are allowing their children to play, unsupervised, on the roads surrounding the school. I have recently met with a local policeman, who has informed me of some of the crime (including drinking, drugs and theft) which is taking place in our local area. Please make sure that your children are safe and playing in your eye-sight.
Computer games – At school, we are continuing to deal with issues arising from pupils being allowed to play video games rated above their age. I strongly advise that you keep all computers, Ipads and games consoles in rooms where you can supervise the games they are playing. These problems are often arising when children are left with older siblings or are playing unsupervised in their bedroom.
Seat Belts – Some children have been arriving to school by car where they have been travelling without a seatbelt. By UK law, we must wear a seat belt and children must be in the appropriate car seat until the age of 12. For more information on this, please visit the website below.
UNICEF
I am delighted to announce that St. Stephen’s has been awarded a Recognition of Commitment as we work towards assessment for the UNICEF Rights Respecting Schools Award. This is an acknowledgement of the hard work all pupils, staff, parents and governors have put in to place the Convention of the Rights of the Child at the heart of all our work. The St. Stephen’s Rights and Responsibilities are:
Rights / Responsibilities
Wellbeing / To be safe, happy and healthy.
Expression / To share our views and listen to others.
Courtesy / To be polite and courteous at all times.
Aspiration / To aspire and achieve to our potential and beyond.
Respect / To be respected, respect others, ourselves and our environment.
Equality / To treat all people equally.
WRAPAROUND CARE
I am delighted to inform you that St Stephen’s will be offering ‘Wrap Around Care’, before and after school child care provision from September 2015. This provides children with a safe and happy environment beyond school hours. The sessions are structured and supported with trained staff who provide opportunities to play, support, listen, talk with the children.
This will be a paid for provision that parents need to apply for and the cost of it will be as follows:
Breakfast Club
7.45 – 8.30 / Daily cost
£2.50 / Weekly cost
£12.50
After School Club
3.15-5.45pm / Daily cost
£5.00 / Weekly cost
£25.00
If you are interested in Wrap Around Care for your child, please read our information booklet, which can be obtained from main school office or the school website.
To secure a place, please complete and return the registration forms and pay a £30.00 deposit to the main school office as soon as possible. Places will be allocated on a first come, first serve basis.
Further Information
For further information please contact Jash Halai/Alex Dias/Mark Little by telephoning 0208 472 7575 or by email at .
PARENT SURVEY
You may be aware at the end of last term we asked you to complete a questionnaire about various aspects of school life. I would like to thank you for returning the survey and will inform you of the results and actions taken in the next newsletter.
At St Stephen’s we feel that education is a partnership between the child, you as parents and the school. We believe that children achieve more, are happier and thrive when schools and parents work together. Your views are very important and will be taken into consideration for any planning that takes place about future developments in the school.
PRIMARY SCHOOL INFORMATION
The school is required to keep up to date records and signed consent forms. The following documents will be given to your child in the next few days. Please would you ensure these are completed, signed and dated and returned to school by Friday 11thSeptember.
- Personal information update/Data protection agreement/ Local visits consent form
- Home school agreement
CONTACT US
St Stephen’s Schools and Children’s Centre, Whitfield Road, London E6 1AS
Head teacher: Ms Neena Lall
PRIMARY
Deputy Head Teacher
Mrs Fozia Ramzan
/ PRIMARY
Deputy Head Teacher
Mr Adam Bennett
/ NURSERY AND CHILDREN’S CENTRE
Deputy Head Teacher
Mrs Janet Mantey
Tel: 020 8472 7575
Email:
Website: / Tel 020 8471 1366
Email:
Website:
This newsletter is also available on the school website.