Dear Parents and Carers, 

It’s been another busy week, and the lead‑up to the Easter break is set to be full of events and fun! 

Easter Church Services – Important Update 

I’m sad to share that, due to a recent fire inspection at Holy Trinity Church which has resulted in reduced capacity, we are no longer able to hold a single whole‑school Easter service for infants, juniors, staff and parents/carers together. 

Instead, we will now hold two separate services on Thursday 26th March: 

• Junior Service: 9:30am 

• Infant Service: 10:45am 

Parents and carers are warmly invited to join us. If you are able to help with walking the children to the church, please let your class teacher know—your support is greatly appreciated. 

Year 1 Castle Trip 

Year 1 have been making the most of our wonderful location and enjoyed a glorious day for their Geography trip to Guildford Castle on Wednesday. The children used maps to navigate the grounds and climbed all the way to the top of the tower. From the viewpoint they were able to spot the Cathedral, Holy Trinity Church, passing trains, fluttering flags and—even more excitingly for some—their own homes! 

Sport 

Our Year 5 netball team played brilliantly at their tournament at George Abbot on Monday, winning four out of five matches. Spirits were high, and they are already planning their route to victory next time! 

Eight children from Years 3 and 4 visited George Abbot on Wednesday for a Panathlon alongside five other schools. Led by enthusiastic Year 9 students, the children took part in a variety of fun activities including Parachute Popcorn, Kurling and Boccia Blast. Everyone had a fantastic morning and proudly came away with 4th place medals! 

Despite the wind and rain, Thursday’s Year 6 football tournament was a great success as we welcomed five other schools to join us. The children threw themselves into the matches with enthusiasm, representing the school with pride and demonstrating outstanding teamwork. 

Attendance 

We work really hard to ensure school is a place children want to be every day—a place where they feel they belong, can experience joy and fun, and, of course, engage in meaningful learning. This week we held our termly meeting with our Attendance and Inclusion Officer from Surrey County Council. Our overall attendance remains strong; however, many of the individual cases discussed relate to term‑time holidays or extended overseas trips to visit family. As you know, these absences cannot be authorised. They are disruptive to children’s learning and make it challenging for teachers to support catch‑up on return. Additionally, our enrichment opportunities and whole‑school events—often held towards the end of term—play an important role in children’s enjoyment of school and sense of community. 

We have had a number of absence requests for days either side of the Easter break. While we absolutely understand the significant price differences between term‑time and holiday‑time travel (teachers experience this too!), school holiday dates are published well in advance. Please ensure that trips are booked within these dates: https://www.htpd.surrey.sch.uk/page/?title=Term+Dates&pid=50 

Red Nose Day 

As chosen by our School Council, we will once again be supporting Comic Relief by celebrating Red Nose Day on Friday 20th March. Children at both the infants and juniors are invited to come to school wearing something red, something funny, or their pyjamas—or even red pyjamas! 

We kindly ask for a £1 donation (or more if you are able) via ParentMail or as cash brought into school. Children can also enter our “Design Yer Nose” competition, held in each class on the day, with the chance to win a red nose. We’re looking forward to a day filled with fun outfits, creativity and hopefully a fantastic fundraising total for this wonderful cause. 

House Bake Off 

We are delighted to announce the return of one of our most-loved house events: the House Bake Off! 

On Wednesday 25th March, children at the juniors are invited to bring in an individually decorated cake or biscuit with an Easter theme. Please ensure entries are single items —cupcake or individual biscuit size. A reminder that we are a nut-free school, so please avoid nuts in any form, including marzipan (made from almonds).  

The bakes will be judged by an expert panel of hungry staff members and our house captains. If your child is taking part, please send their creation in a named container. We’re very excited for what is always a delicious highlight of the year! 

Your Child’s Online World – Coffee Sessions 

Following the success of our first coffee morning about online safety, we would like to offer some other dates and times for those who wanted to come along but were unable to on the day. The coffee morning is designed to give you time to get together with other parents and carers to hear useful updates and advice as well as having an honest dialogue in a judgement-free environment. This essential part of every child's upbringing deserves our attention and we hope that many of you will be able to join us. It is suitable for parents and carers of all aged children from both infant and junior.  

Please fill in the form by clicking this link if you would like to join a meeting. We're offering multiple dates and times across mornings, afternoons and evenings, so please let us know if you can join. Please note we will only run sessions that have enough uptake.  

Your Child's Online World  – Fill in form 

Have a wonderful weekend! 

Best wishes 

Vicky 

Thought of the week:

Melon – patience and hope. “Grow well” How well are you growing up?