No. 311 - 22 September
Dear Parents and Carers,
Our assembly series is well underway for the term. Each week we will be using the Mr Men stories to work out wise ways to live. We also look at the life of an Old Testament character and find some wise words from the book of Proverbs. This week, introducing the children to “Mr Slow” in assembly provided a perfect start to the busy time ahead! The story reminded all of us to live each day carefully, noticing our world, making time for the important things and not rushing so much that we aren’t there for each other. Then we marvelled at Abraham’s patience in waiting for God to fulfil His promise. An interesting contrast to our hectic world.
It was lovely to meet all of our infant parents at this week’s “Meet the team” at Pewley. Thank you to all of you for your enthusiastic involvement in your children’s learning. We really appreciate you!
If you are able to volunteer in school at either site, I’d love to meet with you to speak about how we work as a committed team to enable the children to flourish. This important training forms a vital part of our culture of safeguarding. I’ll be running a session at Pewley on Tuesday 26th at 2pm, and another on Wednesday 27th at HT, also at 2pm. You would be very welcome at either session.
Over the summer, we have been excited to purchase new football and netball kits at the juniors. This is thanks to the generous support from Glowmade (a local company, run by one of our parents), our 2023 Y6 leavers fundraising team, and a local business, Kit Kabin. If your child takes part in any sporting competitions, please do ensure this kit is washed and returned promptly to Laura S so that we can make use of this smart new strip for years to come. Please check that it doesn’t languish in the bottom of your child’s PE bag!
If ever you are able to contribute even a small donation to school funds, we now have a card reader to make it easy! Just ask at the office. This money makes such a difference to the children’s learning as it funds important equipment and resources, it also means that we can keep the building in a good state and we can ensure that no child misses out on any additional school trips or activities because of financial hardship. We’re so grateful to the generosity of our school community – it’s remarkable how well we’re able to weather the storm of shortfalls in government funding. Thank you so much!
Have a great weekend!
With love,
Clare
Thought of the week: Mr. Slow – “Choose understanding, not gold or silver” Prov 16, v16 Be still and enjoy the moment.
If your child attends after-school clubs, please check the notices below by clicking on the junior or infant section.
Whole School
School October Closures
- Wednesday 18 October – Early Finish PD pick-up at 12:00, HT pick-up at 12:15
- Thursday 19 and Friday 20 October – INSET days
- Monday 23 – Friday 27 October – Half term holidays
- Monday 30 October – Children back to school
Kidical Mass ride in Guildford on 24 September - car-free day and bike ride
Please do take a read about this important initiative that’s being organised by a group of local parents, many of whom are part of HTPD, later in the term:
The ride will be a slow-paced, marshalled, short route around central Guildford, suitable for all ages and abilities. We will be meeting at 10.45 on the green outside G Live, and the ride will finish up in Allen House Grounds, where the council is providing extra bike parking in the tennis courts for those that wish to lock their bikes up and go into town on foot to enjoy all that Car Free Day has to offer. We are riding to show that we want and need much safer roads in Guildford so that kids can cycle and walk safely. This would reduce the number of cars on the road, improve air quality and get children moving more. More information here:
- Full details on G-BUG Guildford Bike User Group
- Join the Facebook event for updates - Kidical Mass Ride on Guildford Car Free Day
Holy Trinity Church Choristers - see Other Notices below for details.
Infant
Flu vaccination
You should have received a ParentMail on Tuesday from the Child and Family Health Surrey immunisation team about flu vaccinations. The deadline for completing the e-consent form is 4pm on Friday 10 November.
Lost
Xander Macmillan has lost his named Keller sweatshirt, aged 7-8. Please have a little check to ensure your child hasn’t mistakenly taken the wrong sweatshirt home.
Menu: week 1 beginning 25 September.
FOPS News
FOPS is the parent teacher community who supports the school by fundraising and putting on events to help build the school community.
Events that we have held in the past have included playground bake sales, quiz events and Christmas and summer fairs – as well as ground force days when we help with gardening the school grounds. These events are great for getting to know each other and especially fun for the children!
A few things we have planned are:
- Friday 27 September - bake and uniform sale in the playground at pick-up
- Friday 13 October (5-6.30PM) - GLOW disco
- Early December (date tbc) - Christmas wreath making – at Holy Trinity school
- Early December, possibly Saturday 9th – CHRISTMAS FAIR
Year group socials
Through our FOPs fundraising last year we were able to donate a whopping £22,000 to the school. This has gone into funding the rainbow room upgrade for all of our reception children, air conditioning in our year 2 classrooms so our children can work comfortably through the summer, as well as more iPads and other equipment to support their learning journey, to name just a few.
We are incredibly thankful to all of our parents, our previous FOPs committee and everyone who volunteered and supported events. We cannot wait to see what we can achieve this year!
We are especially looking for 2 or 3 more parent reps in Y2 please. If you do want to get involved in any way, please email debbiesmith@post.com or Viccimassey@gmail.com
Junior
Dates for the diary
- Tuesday 3 October – Y3 Marwell Zoo, please see ParentMail for details.
Sports Updates and Fixtures:
Tuesday 26 September
- Y6 matches v Boxgrove & Burpham - AWAY at Boxgrove
- The teams have been sent out on ParentMail
- Y5&6 Football is STILL ON - taken by Paul
Wednesday 27 September
- Y6 netball matches v QE
- The teams have been sent out on ParentMail
Further Information about HT Swim Club
HT Swim Club runs on Fridays, 4-5pm & 5-6pm at St Catherine's school in Bramley.
The club will suit children who enjoy their swimming lessons and would like to swim more hours a week, or are reaching a point where they would like to join a swimming club. The club is open to swimmers in Y4, Y5 & Y6 who are able to swim at least 25m and are at Stage 5 in their swimming lessons.
The club is run by ex-pupil, Sissy Gasson, who is a Level 2 ASA Swim Coach and a Level 2 ASA Swim Teacher and also an ASA British Open Water Coach.
If you are interested in your child joining the club, please email Laura Sutton. Please note there are limited spaces available. The club will open up to Y3 children in the Summer term, so email Laura if you would like to add your child's name to the Y3 list to try-out in the Spring term.
The current cost is £150.00 for 10 weeks. Please note that as the club is off site, parents are responsible for taking their child to the club and are required to stay on site throughout the lesson.
Lunch – Week 1 commencing 25 September.
HTSC News
The HTSC Committee are pleased to announce that last year (2022/23) we raised a whopping £19,000 for the school. This has gone into funding laptops for all school years, an upgrade of the Year 6 classrooms as well as essential sports and reading materials to support our children's learning journey. We are incredibly thankful to all of our parents, our previous HTSC committee and everyone who volunteered and supported events. We cannot wait to see what we can achieve this year!
The first HTSC event this year is the Family Bingo and Fish & Chips evening on Friday 6 October, from 5.30-8pm. Tickets are £15 for adults and £7 for children. Everyone welcome! Please bring a small, wrapped gift for the prize table… BINGO! Tickets can be purchased at: https://www.pta-events.co.uk/htsc/index.cfm?event=event&eventId=67364.
The Year Three social is on Friday 13 October from 7.30pm, at the brand new Boathouse. All Year Three parents and carers are welcome.
Year Six class reps - are you a parent of a child in 6D or 6J? We still need class reps! Please sign up here: https://chat.whatsapp.com/L4UJQqIiG3xEsKz4ShCZFq.
Do you have an idea for a brilliant community building event, or a unique and fun fundraiser? Would you love to hold an event? Big or small! We would love to hear from you. Please get in touch with your class rep or email us at htsc@htpd.surrey.sch.uk.
Thank you for your support! HTSC Team x
Other
Holy Trinity Church Choristers: On Sunday 8 October (for boys, 6-11) and Sunday 15 October (girls, 6-13), children are invited to join the choristers of Holy Trinity Guildford, for a special afternoon of musical fun. (See flyer below). The youngsters will get the opportunity to:
- Sing with the current choir
- Play singing and theory games
- Try on robes and medals
- Learn about the organ
- Perform for their friends and family in a special service of evensong at 6pm
The event is completely free to children, and places can be booked at HT-choristers-2023.eventbrite.co.uk. For more information, email music@holytrinityguildford.org.uk.
HT Church Harvest - see flyer below.