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6^th October 2017

 

Dear Parents and Carers

Thank you so much for your understanding about the need for the children to be in school before registration at 8.55 am and also about the need for the gates to close shortly after this time so that Mr Monger or I can be in to start Assembly at 9.00 am. I have no wish to make things difficult for you but the school day is very short and it is vital that we use every minute for delivering the curriculum to the children.

Parent Governor

I am delighted that we have received nominations for four parents who are interested in this role. This now means that there has to be a vote. The Clerk to the Governors will be writing to you about the opportunity to vote for your preferred candidate. So it’s time to go canvassing to gain the highest number of votes!

WWYL Day

Your very generous donations to the Mrs Higgins’ Everest Base Camp trek charity fund resulted in £434.33 being raised. Thank you for this great effort. We are thinking of her as she takes on this challenge - walking for 11 hours of each day.

Parents’ Evening Meetings

If you have not already sent in your reply slip to book your meeting, please do so as this meeting provides an excellent opportunity for you to chat with your child’s teacher and find out how well they are doing and how you can help them make further progress.

Harvest Festival – 9.30 am Friday 20^th October

This is a Year 5 celebration with their parents being invited to come in and watch. The whole school however are asked to donate an item to give to the Hereford Food Bank. They are particularly in need of: tinned meat (stews, casseroles, ham), Tinned vegetables, Smash, UHT/Dried Milk, Sugar, Tinned fruit, Rice pudding, Custard, Coffee, Toothpaste, Soap & Toilet rolls.

 

Volunteers wanted!

A couple of weeks ago, the school needed some clearing and maintenance work carried out outside. The cost to the school was £450. It occurred to me that there might be members of our school community who would be happy to give up some time to come and help us carry out some maintenance work thus saving the school money – money that can then be spent on the children.

 

The next job is to carry out some painting in the children’s cloakrooms and toilets. What we are really after is anyone with decorating expertise who could organise the work then a few parents who would be happy to make up a ‘working party’ so that we could brighten up these areas. Coffee, tea and biscuits will be in plentiful supply! This would maybe take place on a Saturday that is convenient to those who volunteer. Please let me know at the gate or ring/email the office to express an interest. I was hoping we could fit in one Saturday before Christmas and one in Jan-Feb. If you do not like the idea of this sort of work but would be happier volunteering to help with children’s reading, please also let me know in the same ways. Any voluntary help is most welcome and can make a real difference to children’s learning. Very rewarding too – Nans and Grandads welcome!

Removal of wooden ‘train’ in playground

One of the jobs included in the work carried out was the removal of this play equipment. At the school’s annual inspection of outdoor structures, unfortunately this was ‘condemned’ as a safety hazard due to rotten wood causing splinters and being in danger of collapsing. The children seem to have adjusted very quickly to its absence.

Change to morning play-times

This week saw a slight change to morning playtimes: Years 1 and 2 still go out to play from 10.25am to 10.40 am, but Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 now go from 10.40 am to 10.55 am. This is to allow the children more space to run around and will hopefully reduce the number of bumps and falls that take place during playtime when 600 pupils are in the playground at the same time.

Linked to this we are looking to provide some equipment for the children to play with during play-times. If you have any old dressing-up clothes or items like construction, small world play that you think might be good for a ‘Quiet Area’, please send them into school. Mr Monger is also appealing for any jigsaw puzzles for his after school club.

Social media and school website

I know many of you would like to know more about what goes on at school. If you do not have any objections to your child being photographed and appearing on facebook or twitter, please return the photographic permissions letter back so that we can record this. Another reason is that it is important for our school that our website reflects the great work going on here. Take time to look at neighbouring school sites (Holmer and Lord Scudamore) and you will see that visitors to their sites see all the exciting learning taking place. This is happening here too! If you do not want your child’s photo on any social media site, please say so on the form.

 

PTFA DISCO – Friday 3^rd November

Tickets will be on sale in the playground on:-

 

Tuesday, 17^th October – before school

Wednesday, 18^th October – after school

Thursday, 19^th October – before school

 

Tickets will be sold on a first come, first served basis. There are only 160 available for each disco.

 

Year 1, 2 & 3 Disco – 6.00pm to 7.00pm - £2.50

Years 4, 5 & 6 Disco – 7.30pm to 9.00pm - £3.00

 

Pound Coins

We will no longer be able to accept the old pound coins after next Thursday, 12^th October as they are no longer legal tender with effect from Sunday, 15^th October. If you have any yourself at home we advise you take them to your bank to change before this date.

 

 

22^nd September 2017

 

Dear Parents and Carers

All of the children have made a fantastic start to the new term and are working well in class. Our youngest children in Reception are realising that they now have to come to school EVERY day but they are doing really well and are enjoying their new learning.

Roald Dahl Day

The children had a really great day last week when their class lessons were centred around this author and his many works. Revolting rhymes and recipes were the order of the day in some classes while others enjoyed some of the humorous descriptions within his texts. Next year we will encourage the children (and staff!) to dress up to celebrate this day but it was felt that we had not given you enough notice in this instance.

Parent Governor Elections

Please remember that the closing date for a new parent governor is Monday 2^nd October.

Pirate Pizza Day

On Thursday 5^th October we will be holding a Lunch Taster Day. All children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 are invited to have a free lunch on this day. The menu is our children’s favourite! Pirate Pizza with jelly fish jelly and ice-cream for dessert! Please encourage your child to have lunch with their friends. If you wish to send a packed lunch as well, that will be fine.

Wear What You Like Day

Please remember that Friday 29^th September will be a Wear What You Like day to raise money for Mrs Higgins’ Everest Base Camp Trek in aid of house-building in Nepal (following the earthquake tragedy) and holidays for service families where a serving parent has suffered in action.

Phonics Afternoon

Parents of children in Receptions classes are invited to learn more about the way the children learn to read sounds at a Phonics Workshop on Wednesday 4^th October. There will be a session at 9.30am and this will be repeated at 2.00pm the same day.

Maths Workshops for Parents

The methods used to teach maths change from one generation to another. If you would like to learn more about what and how your child learns in this vital subject, please come along to our Maths Workshops this term. Parents/Carers of Years 1 and 2 children are invited to a meeting on Tuesday, 14^th November. Parents/carers of children in Year 3, 4, 5 and 6 are invited to attend on Thursday, 16^th November. Both meetings will be in the school hall at 6.00 pm.

SUSTRANS

This week all children have been taking part in a SUSTRANS (Sustainable Transport) Scheme encouraging them to walk, scoot or cycle to school. This follows an assembly last week when a member of the Hereford SUSTRANS team came to talk to the children. Each day the total number of children walking, cycling and scooting to school has been totalled up and there will be prizes from SUSTRANS for the top 3 classes. Prizes will be awarded next week and we will announce the classes who have won in the next newsletter.

PTFA AGM

Thank you to everyone that attended the PTFA AGM on Tuesday, 19^th September.

Dates for the Diary (subject to change)

1. ^rd November 2017 Autumn Disco 6pm-7pm (Y1, 2 & ) 7.30pm-9pm (Y 4,5 & 6)

2^nd December 2017 Family Puppet Show

1. ^th February 2018 Spring Disco 6pm-7pm (Reception Y1 & 2) 7.30pm-pm (Y 3, 4, 5 & 6)

2^nd March 2018 World Book Day

23^rd March 2018 Easter Bingo

22^nd June 2018 Summer Fete

More details of all events to follow, we would really appreciate some parent helpers

at all events.

Start of school day

Please remember that school officially starts at 8.55am when your child should be in the class and ready for the register to be taken. Mr Monger or I take assembly on most days and need to be in the hall before 9.00am to receive the children as they enter. We will therefore be locking the back gates just after 8.55am and if you are still in the playground you may then have to leave the school via the front entrance. If you wish to walk your child to the door, you will need to come in at 8.45am prompt. Parents of Key Stage 2 children are asked to encourage independence by letting them walk in alone. As you may know, the school is now overdue an inspection from Ofsted and any delays in the start of learning would be very much frowned upon by them. I am sure I can count on your support to ensure the children get a prompt start to their learning day.

Thank you for your ongoing support.

 

Yours sincerely

Mrs K Weston

 

 

8th Sept 2017

Dear Parents and Carers
I am delighted to be writing this first letter to you in my new role. I feel very privileged to be given the opportunity to lead Trinity Primary School through the years ahead. I have had a wonderful first week with pupils and staff and would like to thank you all for being so welcoming. I would like to pay tribute to the fantastic behaviour and good manners that the pupils have shown. They have made me feel very welcome and I look forward to meeting you all over the coming weeks. If you are new to Trinity too, I would like to take this opportunity to welcome you to the school community.
During the last year there was much to celebrate; academically the pupils achieved higher results than in previous years and there was much to be proud of in the sporting sense too with Trinity achieving the Gold Award from School Games as well as being the overall winner in the Primary Schools Swimming Ga-la. I very much hope to build on these successes and assure you that our aim is for all pupils to achieve the best possible skills in English and maths as well enjoying the full range of curriculum subjects. The school has an excellent reputation for extra-curricular activities which will continue. I want Trinity to be known within Herefordshire as a school where staff are warm and caring, where pupils are proud of their academic achievements and which provides an excellent foundation on which they build their future. I know these aims are shared by all staff and by governors and I am sure that with your support we can all achieve this for our children.
On page two you will see a list of dates. Please keep a note of those that involve your child. This is a list of dates on the school calendar at this point and will be added to as the term progresses. I envisage writing a Newsletter on a fortnightly basis with the need for more specific letters being sent as and when needed. If you have any concerns or wish to talk things over please do not hesitate to come in and see me.
Yours sincerely
Mrs K Weston
 

Parentmail contact
There have been a few problems with this so the office staff ask that if you have not received any emails from them so far this term, please ring or call in to the office and ensure they have your up-to-date mobile number and email address so they can re-enter on the system.

After school clubs
These will start week commencing Monday 18th September with letters being sent out next week. Please make sure you look out for the letter and complete and return it straight away to be assured that your child gets a place.
End of Day
We are very aware of the confusion that has arisen this week at end of day and are working on improving this. Please be patient and be assured that your child is safe with the teacher until he/she sees where you are in the playground.
Free School Meals
If you feel your child might have an entitlement to this service please call in to the school office and collect a form. The school receives additional funding for every pupil with this entitlement and can support your family in a range of ways - even if your child is in Year R, 1 and 2 and automatically gets a free hot lunch. If you even think there could be a chance, fill out the form anyway.
Medical Information
If your child has any medical needs please make sure that this is reported to school staff. A form will shortly be sent out to you so that we can update our records.
PE and Swimming Kit
Your child will shortly bring home their Class Newsletter so you will be aware of PE and swimming days. Please remember to send the appropriate kit in on those days. Remember to clearly name all kit and bags. Your child will need trainers for PE lessons with plimsolls no longer being needed. They can be worn if your child already has them. PE tops are white with Trinity name and logo and are available from the school’s uniform shop.
Parent Governor vacancy
There is currently a vacancy for a parent-governor at Trinity. What does this involve?
 The opportunity to learn more about the organisation of the school.
 The opportunity to contribute to the work of the governing body in ensuring high standards of education for all of our pupils.
 Attendance at approximately four meeting per term. There is some flexi-bility about timings of these—within the school day as well as evenings.
If you are interested you need to be nominated by a parent so please approach someone and ask them to do this. Please do not nominate another parent unless you know they are willing to take up the position. A more formal letter will be sent separately next week together with nomination forms.

 

 

21^st July 2017

 

Dear Parents and Carers

Attendance at Trinity

The classes who had the highest attendance for the week ending 3 July 2017 were R1 and 4MG having achieved 98% and 99.3%. The whole school attendance for that week was 95.8%. The classes who won the following week, 10 July 2017, were 2L and 3H having achieved 98.6 % and 100%. The whole school attendance for that week was 96%.

Summer Term Winners:-

R1 & R2 joint winners KS1 with 95.6%

3W KS2 with 97.8%

WHOLE SCHOOL 95.4%

 

Whole Year Attendance Winners

KS1 winner is 2H with 96.5%

KS2 winner is 3W with 97.7%

WHOLE SCHOOL 95.7%

 

We have had 27 children who have attended school for the whole year and they have received their medals in assembly.

A big thank you to everyone for their support with attendance and we are hoping for another great year next year.

Thank you for getting your children to school on time each day, we know that every day makes a difference.

Sport for Schools Sponsored Event

A big thank you to everyone who sent in their sponsorship money for the fitness event with Paralympic athlete Jack Rutter. The sponsor money has been shared between supporting the GB Athletes (£800) and the school (£1,200) to buy new PE equipment. All children who raised £5.00 or more have received wristbands etc for their efforts.

Thank you once again for all your support in this event.

 

Eat Well for Less – BBC Programme

Have you seen this programme? They are currently on the lookout for fun and lively families who would like to save money on their weekly shop and eat more healthily. The show follows Masterchef’s Gregg Wallace and award winning greengrocer Chris Bavin on a mission to prove that it is possible for families to save money on their food budget without scrimping on taste and nutrition.

If you are interested in this and would like to get in touch with the producers, they can be contacted on 0117 970 7661, or email eatwell@rdftelevision.com; www.facebook.com/EatWellForLess or on twitter @EatWellForLess.

 

Melody Dance Company

For any children interested in gymnastics/dance etc, the Melody Dance company will be holding clubs over the summer. For more information please see www.melodydancecompany.co.uk or to make a booking call Laura on 07891 342 184.

House Competitions

Following the Sport House Competitions in the Autumn and Spring terms, we have had four extremely exciting Sports Days take place over the last couple of weeks.
The overall results are as follows:-

1^st 847 points Ludlow

2^nd 831 points Raglan

3^rd 826 points Chepstow

4^th 784 points Goodrich

 

Well done to all the children who have taken part in these events, always giving their best and showing good team spirit.

PE Gold Award

For the second year in a row we are pleased to announce that the school has been awarded the School Games Mark, Gold Award 2016-17. The School Games Mark is a Government led awards scheme launched in 2012 to reward schools for their commitment to the development of competition across their school and into the community. Schools in England are able to assess themselves across bronze, silver and gold levels. Thank you again for your continued commitment to Trinity’s school sport!

Parentmail

If you currently receive Parentmail you will have received a text or email to say we are going over to the updated version of Parentmail. Could we ask that you all remember to sign up again as per the instructions, so you can start receiving Parentmail on the new system as from September. Thank you. For those not currently receiving Parentmail and would like to from September, please get a form from the school office.

School Dinners

On the first day back at school in September the children will receive their menus for the following week. Can they please be back in the office by the next day, Wednesday 6th, this is due to us not returning to school on a Monday.

Medicines

Please remember to collect any medicines etc you may have in school for your child on the last day. Any medicines left will be disposed of over the school holidays. Thank you.

Trinity Staff

Sadly at the end of this term we will be saying goodbye to 5 members of staff,
Mrs Morgan and Mrs Bolton who have been Teaching Assistants in Y1, Mrs Williams who will not be returning from her maternity leave, and Miss Whitbread who now moves on to a new position at Leintwardine Primary School.

Everyone at Trinity would like to wish them all the best of luck for the future and thank them for everything they have done for the school.

 

Finally, I would like to say how much I will miss everyone at Trinity. I have had a lovely and rewarding time over the last 15 years. I have been greatly inspired by the children, watching them grow and flourish on their journey through school. Over the last year I have been proud to be one of the Acting Headteachers of the school and to be able to lead such a dedicated and hardworking team. Thank you very much for your support. I wish every one of you, and Mrs Weston, the very best for the years to come.

I hope you all have a lovely Summer break.

We come back to school on Tuesday,5^th September 2017.

Yours sincerely

 

Mrs K Mather

Acting Headteacher

 

7^th July 2017

Dear Parents and Carers

Attendance at Trinity

The classes who had the highest attendance for the week commencing 19^th June were 1HG and 2L having achieved 98.6% and 5O achieving 99.6%. The whole school attendance for that week was 95.3%. The classes who won the following week
(W/C 26^th June) were 1A and 3H achieving 97.6% and 99.1%. The whole school attendance for that week was 96%.

Thank you for getting your children to school on time each day, we know that every day makes a difference.

Sainsbury’s Vouchers

A massive thank you for all the vouchers the children have collected, 23,000 in total!! We now await the goodies to arrive early next term.

The Little Princess Trust

The children from Reception and Treetots Nursery held their Teddy Bear’s Picnic on 27^th June. We had so much fun! We are pleased to tell you that we raised £81.00, which we are sending to the Little Princess Trust.

In addition, Aleesha and Philomena had their hair cut for the same charity (how brave!). Not to be outdone, their nan also had her hair cut (which she hasn’t had cut for 30 years) – well done all three.

Sun Hats and Cream

During the warm and sunny weather, can you please ensure your child has a sun hat, a drinks bottle and applies sun protection before they come to school.

Summer Concert

We will be having a Summer Concert on Thursday, 13^th July at 6pm in the school hall. Everyone is welcome and refreshments will be available.

Herefordshire School Games

On Wednesday, 5^th July we took a team of 70 children to participate in the Herefordshire School games. We had a great day participating in Rounders, Tri Golf, Pop Lacrosse, Gymnastics and Athletics. All the children had a lovely day and they were a real credit to the school, working to the best of their ability and their behaviour was excellent. We had success in the following:-

• Toby Rees Y3 won a Gold medal in the Individual Vault competition in gymnastics.
• We came in 2^nd place out of 24 schools in the Y4 Athletics, with the children getting silver medals.
• The Y4 Pop Lacrosse team came 1^st place in the competition, winning gold medals and a large cup.

 

Well done to all those who took part and a big thank you to all the teachers and TAs who gave their time to take the children to the event.

 

Please remember that if there is anything you would like to discuss or share with me, please do not hesitate to contact me. I am usually available both before and after school if you want to share something quickly. Alternatively, an appointment can be made at a more convenient time if you prefer

Yours sincerely

 

 

Mrs K Mather

Acting Headteacher

 

 

23^rd June 2017

Dear Parents and Carers

Attendance at Trinity

The classes who had the highest attendance for the week commencing 5^th June were 2H with 99.2% and 3H & 3W having achieved 100%. The whole school attendance for that week was 96.1%. The classes who won for the week commencing 12^th June were 2H and 3H having achieved 96.4% and 99.6%. The whole school attendance for that week was 95.5%.

Thank you for getting your children to school on time each day, we know that every day makes a difference.

Sponsored Fitness Event with Jack Rutter – GB Athlete

We had an amazing day meeting Jack Rutter who was a truly inspirational role model for the children. All the children gave 100% in the fitness circuit and enjoyed supporting each other to do their best. In the assembly we heard about Jack’s life and sporting experiences, as well as the challenges he has had to overcome. Photos will be posted on our Trinity Primary School Facebook page and on the school website.

 

Please could all sponsorship money (no matter how small) come into school by Tuesday,
27^th June. If you have lost the sponsorship form we have spares in the school office. All money raised is split between the school for the purchase of PE equipment and supporting GB athletes, like Jack, in their quest to compete for our country.

I would like to thank you for your ongoing support with all our sporting activities.

Rounders

On Tuesday, 20^th June, a mixed Year 5 and 6 rounders team went to Whitecross to play in a rounders tournament. There were 10 teams altogether – split into 2 pools. We played
4 games and won all of them – scoring over 12 rounders in one match! We now qualify to play in the school games on 5^th July. The children were a credit to the school and yourselves. They showed determination, team work and fantastic sportsmanship. Well done.

Music Lessons at Trinity School

Our peripatetic music teacher Mrs Scott, who comes in to teach some of our children, tells us that she has spaces available for anybody who is interested in learning to play a musical instrument in September. Violin, cello, flute, clarinet, saxophone, trumpet or cornet lessons are available as individual or paired lessons. Keyboard lessons are available on an individual basis and Ukulele lessons are available either in small groups or individually.

If your child is interested please contact Mrs Scott by email on sarascott150@gmail.com or telephone her on 01432 880363 after 5pm, by the end of June at the latest.

Sports Days

Below is a reminder of the dates for our Sports Days:-

Y1 and Y2 – Tuesday, 11^th July at 1.15pm Reserve date – Monday, 17^th July

Y3 and Y4 – Wednesday, 12^th July at 1.15pm Reserve date – Tuesday, 18^th July

Y5 and Y6 – Friday, 7^th July at 1.15pm Reserve date – Wednesday, 19^th July

Reception – Thursday, 13^th July at 1.15pm Reserve date – Thursday, 20^th July

School Photographs

We have received the photographs back and hopefully these will be coming home to you in the next few days.

Sick Absence

When phoning in your child absent from school, please remember to leave your child’s name, class and a full explanation of what is wrong with your child. If attending a Doctor or Dentist appointment, please remember to provide us with a copy of the appointment card.

 

Please remember that if there is anything you would like to discuss or share with me, please do not hesitate to contact me. I am usually available both before and after school if you want to share something quickly. Alternatively, an appointment can be made at a more convenient time if you prefer

Yours sincerely

Mrs K Mather

 

Acting Headteacher

 

 

 

 

 

9^th June 2017

 

Dear Parents and Carers

Attendance at Trinity

The classes who had the highest attendance for the week ending 22^nd May were
R1 and 6L having achieved 99.3% and 99.1%. The whole school attendance for that week was 94.1%.

Thank you for getting your children to school on time each day, we know that every day makes a difference.

School Answerphone

We are pleased to report our answerphone is now back up and running.

Sickness Absence

To report an absence you can email the school on absence@trinity.hereford.sch.uk making sure you leave your child’s name, class and reason for their absence, eg earache, sickness etc, or you can call the school office on 01432 266268.

 

Please ensure that you ring for every day of your child’s absence. Also it is a parental responsibility to ensure children are in school on time and the bell goes at 8.55am. We are having quite a few children turning up after the register has been taken.

Dental/Doctor Appointments

Can we ask that you please try and make all dental and doctor appointments outside of school hours for routine appointments. We appreciate that sometimes emergency appointments will be in school time. Appointment cards/letters need to be produced to the school.

Leave of Absence Panel

The next meeting of the Absence panel is on Friday, 7^th July 2017. If you are planning a few days away during term time you will need to collect a form from the school office and apply for Leave of Absence on behalf of your child/children. Copies are also available from the website to download - see Key Information. Please note, this is only granted in exceptional circumstances. You do not need to apply for time off for planned hospital or dental visits - this would be classed as medical and all you need to do is send a letter to the class teacher and provide a copy of the appointment card.

Car Parking by Trinity School

We have received a complaint again from one of our local residents living near to the school. Please could we ask that you do not enter Barricombe Drive by car before and after school? We have a continuing arrangement with The Range which allows parking in their car park in the mornings and afternoons.

We are so lucky to be able to use the car park that belongs to The Range. Please park in The Range and walk the few yards to the bridge.

Sainsburys Vouchers

Can we ask that all Sainsbury vouchers come into school as soon as possible as we need to send them off very shortly – we don’t want to miss the deadline. Thank you for all the vouchers you have sent in so far – we have counted over 20,000.

School Fete

Plans are well under way for this year’s Fete which is happening on Friday, 23^rd June, straight after school.

 

Friday, 16^th June and Friday, 23^rd June is “Wear What you Like” days and in return we would like as much chocolate (for the chocolate tombola) or bottles (for the bottle tombola) to be brought in with your child on those Friday mornings.

 

From next Monday there will be a box in reception for you to bring in any unwanted toys (not soft toys) or bric-a-brac to be sold on the White Elephant stall, which Mrs Complin has kindly offered to sort out for us.

We still need helpers for the actual fete, so if anyone is happy to spare an hour we would be very grateful. If you can spare some time, please call or text Di Andrews on 07984 807 199.

 

We are still looking for Raffle prizes. Can you please return your raffle tickets as soon as possible, along with any unsold ones. We do have more available if you are able to sell some, so please ask at the school office.

Nicola’s School Dance Summer School 2017

Following our very popular after school dance sessions led by Nicola’s School of Dance, they will be running a summer school at Trinity – details as follows:-

Dates: Monday 24^th July to Friday, 28^th July

Venue: Trinity Primary School

Times: 10.00am to 3.00pm (drop off from 9.30am)

Price: £95 which includes a free t-shirt and 4 tickets to the showcase on the Friday

afternoon.

Age: 6+

 

A £30 non-refundable deposit is required to book your child a space.

For more information on Summer School 2017 or to book on please call 07900 167740 or email admin@nicolasschoolofdance.co.uk

 

Please remember that if there is anything you would like to discuss or share with me, please do not hesitate to contact me. I am usually available both before and after school if you want to share something quickly. Alternatively, an appointment can be made at a more convenient time if you prefer

Yours sincerely

 

Mrs K Mather

Acting Headteacher

 

 

26^th May 2017

 

Dear Parents and Carers

Attendance at Trinity

The classes who had the highest attendance for the week commencing 8^th May were R1 and 6P having achieved 98.3% and 99.2%. The whole school attendance for that week was 96.3%. The classes who won the week commencing 15^th May were R3 and 5SM achieving 99.3% and 98.5% respectively. The whole school attendance for that week was 92.9% due to the sickness bug going around again.

Thank you for getting your children to school on time each day, we know that every day makes a difference.

Eco Club

The Eco Club are collecting coloured, plastic bottle tops, of any size. They will be using them to make a piece of art work inspired by recycling. If you could bag up any bottle tops you have these can be brought to 2DW.

Photographs

You will have received the proofs for the class and team photographs this week. Please ensure the order form and money is returned to school as soon as possible in the sealed envelope provided. We must receive these by Tuesday, 6^th June at the latest to ensure you receive your photographs by the end of the Summer term.

 

Year 6 children are off on the London trip so it is imperative that these are returned before they leave for London on the Tuesday.

Sainsbury’s Vouchers

A big thank you for supporting us again this year and collecting the Sainbury’s vouchers. If you have any at home, could we ask that you bring them in as soon as possible so we can send them off and get as much equipment as possible for the school. We will let you know how many we have collected once we do a final tally. Once again many thanks.

Cycle Path

It has been brought to our attention that there have been a few near misses on the path outside the school between pedestrians and cyclists. Can we just remind everyone to be aware of each other to avoid any future accidents ensuring that you walk on the pedestrian part of the path.

National Sport Week

In the week beginning 19^th June we are participating in National Sport week. During this week we will have a whole school focus on sport and well-being and the children will have the opportunity to participate in some new sports to encourage them to get active. We are also having a visit from an Olympic athlete and taking part in a sponsored event, which will help raise money for school PE equipment . More details will follow at the start of next half term

 

We hope you all enjoy your week off and look forward to seeing you after Half Term.

 

Please remember that if there is anything you would like to discuss or share with me, please do not hesitate to contact me. I am usually available both before and after school if you want to share something quickly. Alternatively, an appointment can be made at a more convenient time if you prefer.

 

Yours sincerely

 

Mrs K Mather

Acting Headteacher

 

 

 

12^th May 2017

 

Dear Parents and Carers

Attendance at Trinity

The classes who had the highest attendance for the week ending 28^th April 2017 were 2L and 3H having achieved 99% and 99.6%. The whole school attendance for that week was 96.7%. The classes who won the following week were 1G and 5SM, achieving 100% and 99.5% respectively. The whole school attendance for that week was 97.1%.

Thank you for getting your children to school on time each day, we know that every day makes a difference.

SATs

As we all know the children have been doing their SATs this week. The Year 6 teachers want to say a big well done and thank you to the children for working so hard these last weeks and months in preparation for them. It is now all over and the children can breathe a sigh of relief. Once again well done children for all your hard work.

Bicycles/Scooters

Just a quick reminder, can the children please remember to take bicycles and scooters home at the end of the day and especially at weekends, as we cannot guarantee or be responsible for their safekeeping if left at school.

School Answerphone

We are still experiencing technical difficulties with our answerphone. When you call the school you are still given the option to press to leave a message, however, this is not working.

To report an absence you can email the school on absence@trinity.hereford.sch.uk or call the school office on 01432 266268. Obviously, the phone can get extremely busy in the mornings so please bear with us if you do not get through the first time. Please keep trying, or alternatively as mentioned above, you can send us an email with the child’s name, class and reason for absence.

Dog Fouling

Unfortunately, over the last week we have had several children arrive at school with dog faeces all over their shoes, which they have then walked onto the school carpets. Please be aware, when walking your child to school, of dog fouling on the pavements and if you do own a dog, please pick up after it.

School Photographs

On Tuesday, 16^th May and Wednesday, 17^th May we have the photographers in school who will be taking photographs of each class with their teacher. They will also be taking photos of the Sports teams who play for Trinity. Please could you ensure the children wear the correct school uniform with cardigans or sweatshirts for the class photographs. Those in Sports teams who regularly play for the school should bring in any items of clothing or shoes they would wear for matches, eg socks, trainers, football boots.

School Uniform

Now we are into the final term of the school year, can I remind everyone of the importance of wearing the correct school uniform.

Girls should be wearing grey skirts of an appropriate length, pinafore dresses, shorts or trousers with a white or yellow polo top and black school shoes.

Boys should be wearing grey trousers or shorts with a yellow or white polo top and black shoes.

Sun Hats and Cream

During the fantastic warm and sunny weather, can you please ensure your child has a sun hat, a drinks bottle and apply sun protection before they come to school.

PFTA Summer Fete

The PTFA Summer Fete will be on Friday, 23 June - 3.30pm to 6.00pm.

To help with donations for the fete we will be holding 2 non-uniform days on Friday,
16^th June and Friday, 23^rd June – more details to follow.

Please remember if there is anything you would like to discuss or share with me, please do not hesitate to contact me. I am usually available both before and after school if you want to share something quickly. Alternatively, an appointment can be made at a more convenient time if you prefer.

 

Yours sincerely

 

Mrs K Mather

Acting Headteacher

 

 

 

28th April 2017

Dear Parents and Carers

 

Welcome back to the Summer Term. I hope you are all rested and refreshed from your Easter break.

Attendance at Trinity

Unfortunately, during the Spring term the school was hit by an abundance of bugs and nasties. However, the classes who had the highest attendance for the Spring Term were 2H with 97.5% and 3H with 97.4%. The whole school attendance was 95%.

The classes who had the highest attendance for the week ending 7 April were 1G and 5O having achieved 98% and 98.9%. The whole school attendance for that week was 96%.

Thank you for getting your children to school on time each day, we know that every day makes a difference.

Trinity School Values

The values for this half term are Patience and Democracy.

Trinity Marathon

All children had a fantastic last day before the Easter break taking part in the Trinity marathon. It was a great day and we managed to raise £251.86 for LOOK, a local charity in Hereford that supports young people with visual impairment. Thank you for all your donations.

Lunchtime Supervisors needed

Our supply list of casual dinner ladies is again running a bit low. If you would like to come into school to assist with the supervision of children over the lunchtime and are available (maybe a few days a week), please contact Mrs Lea in the main office. A DBS check will need to be carried out (we will arrange this) and you will, of course, be paid.

Sports days

Y1 & Y2 - Monday 10th July 1.15pm Reserve date: Monday 17^th July 1.15pm

Y3 & Y4 - Tuesday 11^th July 1.15pm Reserve date: Tuesday 18^th July 1.15pm

Y5 & Y6 - Wednesday 12^th July 1.15pm Reserve date: Wednesday 19^th July 1.15pm

Reception - Thursday 13^th July 1.15pm Reserve date: Thursday 20th July 1.15pm

Co-operative Community Fund

Trinity has been awarded an amazing £3,056.27 through the Co-operative local community fund. A big thank you to the Co-operative, Trinity PTFA and everyone who has supported us.

Please remember that if there is anything you would like to discuss or share , please do not hesitate to contact us . We are usually available both before and after school if you want to speak to us quickly. Alternatively, an appointment can be made at a more convenient time if you prefer.

 

Kind regards

A Monger

Acting Headteacher

 

7^th April 2017

Dear Parents and Carers

Attendance at Trinity

The classes who had the highest attendance for the week ending 24^th March were 5O and 2H having achieved 99.6% and 96.5% respectively. The whole school attendance for that week was 94.7%. The classes who won the following week were 3C and 2L achieving 100% and 97%. The whole school attendance for that week was 95.5%. Our whole school attendance figure is slowly rising again following the outbreak of chicken pox amongst a lot of our pupils. Summer is on its way and a bit of sunshine and fresh air always makes us feel better.

New Staff and Leavers

Mrs Veronica Rogers, my PA is leaving us to retire after many years of service to our school. She first started as many of our staff did, in the school’s dedicated Physically Disabled Unit (PDU) as a dinner lady in 1998 and became a fixture in September 2005 working in the school office with Mrs Lea. We wish her well in her retirement and hope that she will come and see us from time to time. Mrs Andrea Evans, our HLTA is also leaving us and moving on to Bishop’s school to take up an admin position there. I hope she settles in well and is happy in her new role. We are currently advertising for a replacement and will let you know when someone has been appointed. We are also saying farewell to Mr Adam Breakwell who has taken on the role of Executive Headteacher and supported Mr Monger and myself in our roles as Acting Headteachers and the rest of our senior leadership team. He has brought a huge amount of support and in-depth knowledge with him and for this we are very grateful.

Mining Bees

Our little friends are back! The colonies of mining bees that nest under the grass/mud at the bottom of the playground are starting to emerge again. They are non-aggressive and provide a lot of interest for the children. It is interesting to see how protective the children are of these little creatures. For this reason, the bottom part of the playground is now out of bounds and cones have been put along the edge of the nesting area – this is to stop the children stamping all over the bees nest site.

Comic Relief

I am very pleased to inform you that following the final count-up of all the coins and loose change we managed to raise the grand total of £760.00 for Comic Relief. Thank you to everybody who donated money, dressed up, proudly wore their red noses and generally joined in with the spirit of the day.

PTFA Bingo Night

The recent Bingo event was a huge success - a profit of £420 was made on the night. The Magic Makers (aka The PTFA team) would like to thank everyone who helped on the night either in person or with donations. Without the support of parents and carers we wouldn't be able to provide the children and the school with the little extras that make a big difference. Thank you.

Pedestrians and Cyclists

There have been a couple of near-misses recently on the cycle path, please could you be aware of bikes and scooters and keep an eye out for where your children are playing at any given point in time. This could apply both near our school and indeed further afield. Stay safe.

Have a lovely Easter Holiday; I look forward to seeing everybody back in school on Monday 24^th April, rested and ready for the exciting summer term ahead.

Kind Regards

K Mather

Acting Headteacher

 

 

24^th March 2017

Dear Parents and Carers

Attendance at Trinity

The classes who had the highest attendance for the week ending 10^th March were 5SM and 2L having achieved 98.9% and 98%. The whole school attendance for that week was 93.4%. (You can see the Chicken Pox virus is really starting the hit the attendance figures now), the classes who won the following week were 2H and 4W achieving 99.3 % and 97.7% respectively. The whole school attendance for that week was 90.3%. Thank you for supporting us with our drive for better attendance. There will always be dips when we get a break-out of infectious diseases but we will always strive to be the best that we can be.

Maths at home

There is a lovely game available on the following link www.topmarks.co.uk/maths-games/hit-the-button

which is really good for getting children to practice their quick recall of number bonds and multiplication and division facts. It is tablet and computer friendly is called Hit the Button. Give it a go and let us know what you think.

Co-op community Funding

Last month I mentioned the fundraising at the Whitecross Roundabout Co-Op and now they have raised £1086.54. If you have a Co-Op loyalty card and have not yet linked it to a local community project, we would love it if you were to choose Trinity School. Any time you buy Co-Op own branded products you will earn cash for your chosen local organisation. There is currently £5091.22 sat in a pot which as yet has not been allocated. If you are one of those people who have not assigned your card to us, please consider doing so in the next couple of weeks as the scheme finishes on the 9th April. Thank you.

Parking - Again

We have received some emails from a gentleman at Herefordshire Council. They are proposing to improve the highways access onto the Three Elms Industrial Estate and have made various visits to the site to ascertain various safety issues surrounding the proposed works. The man chatted to various people including some of our parents (who were apparently not aware of the informal agreement to park at The Range car park) and to others who were parking in and around the trading estate. We have been asked again to remind parents that parking is available at The Range and it would be advisable (and safer) if they were to take up this offer. When we get more information about the start date of the works, we will let you know, in the meantime please drive safely and park with consideration and care.

Sadly we have also received a complaint from the furniture store Annette’s, who tell us that our parents are regularly parking (and turning) on their driveway thus blocking the access for their delivery lorries. They asked us to remind you that this is a private driveway and big lorries regularly use this entrance for access and egress to their property. Please, please use the car park at The Range, where we do still have (and hope to continue to have) permission to park our cars there when dropping off and collecting the children from school. Thank you.

Friday 7^th April – Last day of term

Mrs Kate Pitman is one of our parents and she came into school last Monday with Dan who brought his guide dog with him. Dan plays blind football and was telling the children all about it. On Sunday 23^rd April 2017 Mrs Pitman will be running in the London Marathon this year and she is raising funds for the local charity “Look” who support local visually impaired people. Whereas Mrs Pitman is running the whole marathon on her own we are going to support her by also running the marathon on the last day of term and during the day with each child will be contributing a small section of the total distance. By the end of the day we too (collectively) will have run a marathon. Please can you send your child into school on the last day of term dressed in trainers and sports kit ready for a bit of running at some point during the day? We would also like to make a donation to the charity too. Please could you also send in 50p per child? Thank you.

Hereford Schools Tournament

Well done to the year 5/6 boys who recently competed in the Hereford Schools football tournament at Wyeside. Despite being knocked out at the quarter-finals stage the boys were very competitive throughout the day and gained lots of praise for their style and manner of play. Once again they wore the Trinity badge on their shirts with pride and distinction.

Looking for Extra Swimming Coaching?

The Coaches from Typhoon Leisure are hiring our school pool on Thursdays and Fridays for afterschool swimming coaching. If you are interested in extra tuition for your child please contact Tom Santillo direct on either of these numbers: 01213 188752 or 07971 356 874. He will be able to advise you on what places are available and what costs are involved.

Please remember that if there is anything you would like to discuss or share with me, please do not hesitate to contact me. I am usually available, both before and after school, as is Mr Monger, if you want to share something quickly. Alternatively, an appointment can be made at a more convenient time if you prefer.

Kind Regards

 

Mrs K Mather.

Acting Headteacher

 

 

 

10^th March 2017

Dear Parents and Carers

Attendance at Trinity

The classes who had the highest attendance for the week ending 24^th February were 3H and 3C both having achieved 100%. The whole school attendance for that week was 95.5%. The classes who won the following week were 2H and 3W achieving 99.6% and 99.2% respectively. The whole school attendance for that week was 96.7%.

Thank you for supporting us in our drive for good attendance; we know that every day makes a difference.

Swimming Resumes Next Week

The children will resume their swimming lessons at school on Tuesday 14^th March. Mrs Liasenko has been with us a few days and is getting to know her way around. Please remember to send in your child’s swimming kit on their correct swimming days – Years 1 and 6 swim on Tuesday, Years 2 & 5 swim on Wednesday and Years 3 & 4 swim on Thursday. Thank you.

Fancy becoming a Governor?

Trinity School are looking for another Parent Governor to join them. Individuals wishing to stand must be parents or guardians of a registered pupil at the time of their election. They must be proposed and seconded by other parents or guardians of children at the school. A nomination form can be found on the school website under the tab ”About Us” followed by “meet the Governors” alternatively a form can be collected from the school office. If you would like to nominate someone, please return the completed form to the school by 24^th March 2017. For more information please get in touch with either Mr Monger or myself.

Collecting children from afterschool clubs

There are many school clubs and outside organisations using our facilities and lots of parents waiting around at 4.30(ish) to collect their children. Most of our parents wait for the bottom gate to be unlocked as they have parked in the Range carpark. For the parents who live by school and collect from the other entrance (for vehicular access) please can they wait by that side of the playground (shed, bikeshed, etc) and wait for their children to be sent to them? There are people from Halo using the pool and children attending our afterschool club who are playing on the playground – now that the weather is getting better and the nights are drawing out, I know that Treetops like to get their children out in the fresh air for a run around if they can. Thank you.

Technology at Ashfield Park

Last Friday – 3^rd March Mr Lane took 8 of our pupils from Year 4 to Ashfield Park Primary School in Ross to an interesting and exciting day of learning. They learnt how to present book reviews and amongst other things refined their skills in the processing of iPad software. It was a lovely day away from the normal school routine and they got to meet lots of pupils from other schools.

Music Lessons at Trinity School

Our peripatetic music teacher, Mrs Scott who comes in to teach some of our children tells us that she has four spaces available for anybody who is interested in learning violin, cello, flute, clarinet, saxophone or keyboard. These are given on a one to one basis or as a pair (depending on which instrument is being taught) and you pay Mrs Scott directly. She also teaches trumpet, cornet and ukulele but these are given as group lessons and are subject to availability. If your child is interested please contact Mrs Scott by email on sarascott150@gmail.com or telephone her on 01432 880363 after 5pm.

Please remember that if there is anything you would like to discuss or share with me, please do not hesitate to contact me. I am usually available, both before and after school, as is Mr Monger, if you want to share something quickly. Alternatively, an appointment can be made at a more convenient time if you prefer.

Kind Regards

Mrs K Mather.

Acting Headteacher

 

 

 

 

24^th February 2017

Dear Parents and Carers

I hope you have had a good half term and have settled back into the school routine again.

Attendance at Trinity

The classes who had the highest attendance for the week ending 3^rd February were 3C & 4M having achieved 98.6% and 1A who had 98.3%. The whole school attendance for that week was 95.8%. The classes who won the following week were 2H and 3W achieving 98.9% and 98.5% respectively. The whole school attendance for that week was 94.3%. Thank you for getting your children to school each day, we know that every day makes a difference.

Swimming Resumes in March

I am delighted to confirm that we have appointed a swimming teacher who will start teaching the children on Tuesday 14^th March. Her name is Mrs Liasenko and has previously worked for Halo. It is quite possible that many of you know her already. She is very popular amongst the children and the parents and we are delighted that she has agreed to join our staff. In two week’ time please make sure that your children bring their complete swimming kit into school on the correct days. Thank you.

Comic Relief

As usual we will be supporting Comic Relief and hope you will join in too with red T-shirts, ted noses, red hairbands, red faces – red anything! This will take place on Friday 24^th March and we will have red noses on sale for £1.00 each from Monday 13^th March.

Co-Op community Funding

The fundraising continues at the Whitecross Roundabout Co-Op and we have so far raised £1062.00. If you have a Co-Op loyalty card and have not yet linked it to a local community project, we would love it if you were to choose Trinity School. Any time you buy Co-Op own branded products you will earn cash for your chosen local organisation. We are told that there is currently £4148.00 sat in a pot which as yet has not been allocated. If you are one of those people who have not assigned your card to us, please consider doing so in the next couple of weeks as the scheme finishes in 6 weeks. Thank you.

Staff Changes

Mrs Ammonds has returned full time to teach her class in 1A following her maternity leave; she started back on Monday 20th February. We have had a period of handover from Miss Mason to Mrs Ammonds to ensure a smooth transition from one teacher to the other. Huge thanks to Miss Mason for covering the class for the last term and a half, it will be sad to see you go. We might see Miss Mason again as she is staying in Hereford and will be doing supply work. Another member of staff leaving for pastures new is Mrs Bowen. She is moving to the council to join the admin team in Safeguarding. It is a full-time job with more hours and safeguarding our children is something Mrs Bowen is very passionate about. We wish her well in her new job and hope she settles in quickly.

Trinity School Values

The values for this half term are humility and Rule of Law.

Poorly Pupils

By now, I think most parents are aware that they must phone in daily if their child is off sick. I appreciate that the phones do get busy sometimes but you can send messaged via email to school using the absence email address – absence@trinity.hereford.sch.uk this email address is checked early and often for messages. Please do not send information about poorly children to the admin@trinity address as this may not get checked until later when the initial hustle and bustle has calmed down a bit. Also if you know your child is doing a club after school could you please mention this to the office staff so that they can get a message to that teacher too? Thank you.

Hot Dinners at Trinity

We had an interesting request from AiP about the choices parents make on behalf of their children for the dinners they serve at school. Quite a few children are getting upset about what is chosen for them and don’t want to eat what has been ordered. Would it be possible to sit down with your children and discuss with them what they would like to eat and if they want to try something different, remind them that it is their choice to do so as the meal that is ordered is the one that will be prepared and given to them on that day. Unfortunately AiP do not have enough spare dinners to offer the children if they don’t like what is on offer.

 

Please remember that if there is anything you would like to discuss or share with me, please do not hesitate to contact me. I am usually available, both before and after school, as is Mr Monger, if you want to share something quickly. Alternatively, an appointment can be made at a more convenient time if you prefer.

Kind Regards

 

Mrs K Mather.

Acting Headteacher

 

 

 

 

3^rd February 2017

Dear Parents and Carers

Attendance at Trinity

The classes who had the highest attendance for the week ending 20^th January were R2 and 4MG having achieved 99.6% and 99.3%. The whole school attendance for that week was 95.7%. The classes who won the following week were 6P and R1 achieving 100% and 98.3% respectively. The whole school attendance for that week was 93.5%. As you can see by the drop in the whole school figure, the chicken pox virus has affected a lot of our children. We hope they are feeling better very soon.

Punctuality – Getting to school on time

The new system of coming into school as soon as the gates are opened seems to be working well, the children are quietly and calmly hanging up bags and coats, chatting to their friends and generally getting to school in a good frame of mind ready for the day ahead. There are still a number of children (and parents with children) who are dashing to get into the school ‘by the skin of their teeth’ thus arriving a bit flustered and occasionally interrupting the lesson which has already started. School officially begins at 8.55am with the register being done at 9am. Please can you bear this in mind when planning your journey to school? Thank you.

Winter Games

We are delighted to confirm that we have three more teams going to the finals of The Winter Games next week. Our High 5 team has qualified, so has our Quicksticks Team and also our Indoor Athletics team. Trinity School is going to be very well represented. Good Luck to all of our teams; we shall be rooting for you next Wednesday, 8^th February. We will let you know in our next newsletter how we got on.

Handwriting Hero
As part of a whole school drive and focus on improving handwriting and presentation of work we have launched the Handwriting Hero Award. This will be given out weekly to children who have made a great improvement with their handwriting and presentation. Certificates will be given out weekly in Praise Assembly and the children will also be recognised and congratulated in the whole school weekly assembly. Please can you chat to your child about this focus and encourage them to practice at home? Thank you.
PTFA Disco

The ladies of the PTFA will be on the playground next week selling tickets for the school disco, - in the morning before school on Tuesday and Thursday and after school on Wednesday. The letters went out to all of the pupils well over a week ago so you should have received your copy by now. If it is not to hand there is one available on the school website – www.trinity.hereford.sch.uk – it is under the tab parents and letters.

Fundraising for The Haven

We have received a lovely letter of thanks from Breast Cancer Haven. Four of our pupils in 4W, Lily, Maisie, Ava and Charlotte worked hard to raise £21.10 in school by holding a raffle and organised this themselves. Well done girls, this is a very kind and generous thing to have done and the ladies in the fundraising office at The Haven Shop were very impressed.

Poorly Pupils

By now, I think most parents are aware that they must phone in daily if their child is off sick. I appreciate that the phones do get busy sometimes but you can send messages via email to school using the absence email address – absence@trinity.hereford.sch.uk this email address is checked early and often for messages. Please do not send information about poorly children to the admin@trinity address as this may not get checked until later when the initial hustle and bustle has calmed down a bit.

Afterschool Clubs and collection of pupils

Please note that parents should be parking in The Range carpark and waiting for their children at the playground gates. These gates will be unlocked at 4.30 when the clubs are finished.

Lunchtime Supervisors needed

Our supply list of casual dinner ladies is again, running a bit low, mainly because we keep taking them on full time. If you would like to come into school to assist with the supervision of children over the lunch-times and are available (maybe a few days a week) please contact Mrs Lea, the school secretary in the main office. A DBS check will need to be carried out (we will arrange this) and you will, of course, be paid.

Half Term Break

Half Term is 13^th Feb to 17^th Feb. We finish at normal time on Friday 10^th February and return to school on Monday 20^th 2017. Have a lovely week’s holiday everybody.

Please remember that if there is anything you would like to discuss or share with me, please do not hesitate to contact me. I am usually available, both before and after school, as is Mr Monger, if you want to share something quickly. Alternatively, an appointment can be made at a more convenient time if you prefer.

Kind Regards

Mrs K Mather.

Acting Headteacher

 

 

20^th January 2017

Dear Parents and Carers

Attendance at Trinity

The classes who had the highest attendance for the week ending 13^th January were 2H and 4W having achieved 100% and 99.3%. The whole school attendance for that week was a brilliant 97.1%. Well done everybody; this is a marvelous start to the new term.

Sports Award

Good News! Trinity School has been awarded GOLD from the School Games and we are now able to use the Gold logo on our headed paper. We had previously been awarded silver for all our efforts in including sport into the lives of our pupils and this new award is justification for all the hard work and effort that my team and I put into the extra-curricular sporting activities which our school takes part in. The award ceremony will take place next Tuesday, on January 24^th at Whitecross School and we will be taking two of our pupils, Eden Daley and Finley Rivett to collect this award on behalf of our school.

Extra-curricular Clubs

There are still a couple of spaces available on some of the “paid for” clubs if anybody is interested……

Ballroom and Latin Dance has 2 spaces, Cheerleading has 1 space and Cross Fit also has 1 space available. These are all for next term. If your child fancies a go at any of these activities, please call the school and ask for Mrs Yvette Allen.

Young Voices

Our school choir is off to The Genting Arena in Birmingham on Tuesday 24^th January to take part in one of the largest school choir concerts in the world. They are looking forward to it with much anticipation and excitement. It is an all-day activity and the choir will be back quite late. The event is amazing and the memory of the day will stay with them for the rest of their lives. Hopefully we will get a few pictures to add to our school website.

Late Arrivals

If your child arrives late to school and has missed the school register, please remind them to call into the school office to make sure that they are on the register, this is crucial for knowing how many pupils are in the school at any one time and in the event of a fire, the register is the “go to” list to check for any missing pupils.

Having a Sort Out?

The Teachers in Early Years are on the lookout for any old puzzles, games and toys in a reasonable condition which are no longer needed at home and could be put to good use for the children in Reception. If you think you may be able to help, please contact Mrs Preece one day after school to let her know. Thank you.

Reading with your children

Your children are never too old to be read to, be they babies in cots, 4 year olds, just starting school, or tired teenagers who just need a bit of time with you without interruptions. Pick up a book and share this experience with your child. It will reap rewards in the future.

Trinity Facebook Page

Our new Facebook page is up and running. It is primarily used for sending out information and news, and seems to be quite a hit. If you are a parent and have the Facebook app, search for Trinity Primary School with our logo and like us and follow what we do.

Uniform Shop

The school uniform shop is open every Wednesday afternoon at the end of school from 3pm until 3.30pm. An ordering service is available – the order form is on the school website www.trinity.hereford.sch.uk under the tab: Community, PTFA. There is also an up-to-date price list on this part of the webpage. I have also been asked to mention that we still have some Eco-bags available for sale which have the self-portraits drawn by the children. These were made last year by the children and we still have a few bags available made by the pupils who left last summer (if you know anybody in this category who may have missed out on theirs please pass the info on). Thank you.

Leave of Absence

The next meeting of the Absence panel is on Friday 3^rd February 2017. If you are planning a few days away during term time you will need to collect a form from the school office and apply for Leave of Absence on behalf of your child/children. Copies are also available from the website to download - see Key Information. Please note, this is only granted in exceptional circumstances. You do not need to apply for time off for hospital or dental visits - this would be classed as medical and all you need to do is show the letter or appointment card to the class teacher or the ladies in the school office. Thank you.

Parking by Trinity School

A few of our parents have raised concerns that “parents in a hurry” are being a bit reckless when dropping off their children by The Range. We are so lucky to be able to use the carpark that belongs to The Range but still there are parents who insist on using the bit of road that is closest to the bridge with no regard to the safety of other users, and as parents have said previously – “It is an accident waiting to happen!” Please, let’s not get to that point. Park in The Range Carpark and walk the few yards to the bridge.

Lost Property

The amount of lost property we have in the baskets is mounting up again. Please, please, please label your children’s clothing, their shirts, their shoes, their PE kit – everything! This stuff isn’t cheap and having to replace it unnecessarily seems an awful waste of money.

Finally, please remember that if there is anything you would like to discuss or share with me, please do not hesitate to contact me. I am usually available, both before and after school, as is Mr Monger, if you want to share something quickly. Alternatively, an appointment can be made at a more convenient time if you prefer.

 

Kind Regards

 

Mrs K Mather.

Acting Headteacher

 

 

6^th January 2017

Dear Parents and Carers

Happy New Year everybody and welcome back. I hope you had a very relaxing Christmas and are now rested and ready for the new term.

Extra-Curricular Clubs

Clubs start on Monday, Please make sure that we have up-to-date mobile numbers on Parentmail just in case an afterschool club is cancelled at short notice and we need to text you this information.

New Mobile Phone for Christmas?

If you have changed your mobile phone number in the last few months, please remember to contact the school to update your details. We have had a few instances recently where we have been unable to contact parents when needed. This is a safeguarding issue and of great importance, please be sure to let us know if you have changed your number recently. Thank you.

School Census - please read.

 

Each year a census is done at all Local Authority schools and this determines how much funding is allocated to each of us. Each year schools can receive additional funds for a number of reasons one being if a child whose parent or step-parent serves in the forces. The MOD has confirmed that they are happy for all service personnel to disclose that their children are Service Children in England for this census. If this situation applies to you, we would be very grateful if you could contact the school and speak to Mrs Lea, the school secretary or Mr Monger or myself. All information will be dealt with in the strictest confidence.

The second reason why Trinity may be eligible for extra funding is for families who are eligible for Free School Meals. (This is a separate issue from the Universal Free School Meals for all the younger children in school). There are other benefits to be had too - like having the school trips paid for as well, (that is, for those pupils in receipt of Free School Meals).

All information is confidential and there is no discrimination between eligible children and those who are not. If you feel that you may qualify for free school meals; please see Mrs Lea in the school office for an application form as soon as possible.

 

New Morning Entry Procedure

The new system of coming into school seems to be proving popular if the amount of positive feedback is anything to go by, thank you to the parents who have made the time to confirm this. If any parent has an idea which they wish to put forward, please do come and see us.

Coughs and Colds etc.

Please remind your children to cover their mouths when they cough; wipe noses when needed and wash hands before eating and after going to the toilet. Various winter bugs are continuing to strike without warning and are not very pleasant if you or a member of your family is laid low with it.

Hot Dinners at Trinity

AiP are currently chasing parents for outstanding dinner money. There has been an increase in the number of menus handed in to school without any money enclosed. AiP have advised us that from now on they will no longer provide a meal for your child if it has not been paid for. It has been said many times before…. Please put your money and menu in an envelope marked with your child’s name, class and AiP/Dinner Money. Too many menus arrive with loose change which becomes lost between home and the AiP Kitchens. If you have not ordered a meal the previous week (and paid for it those who have to pay) - your child will need a packed lunch sent in from home.

Residential Visits

Bookings for London (Year 6) and Malvern (Year 4) are well under way. If your child is going on one of these trips this year please make sure that you are making regular payments – London is due in on a Wednesday and Malvern is due in on Tuesday. Please remember to enclose your payment card.

There are a few extra places available on the Year 4 Residential Trip to Malvern. If your child would like to join us and hasn’t put their name down yet, please get in touch with the class teacher. Places for London are fully booked and cannot be added to.

Leave of Absence

The next meeting of the Absence panel is on Friday 3^rd February 2017. If you are planning a few days away during term time you will need to collect a form from the school office and apply for Leave of Absence on behalf of your child/children. Copies are also available from the website to download - see Key Information. Please note, this is only granted in exceptional circumstances. You do not need to apply for time off for planned hospital or dental visits - this would be classed as medical and all you need to do is send a letter to the class teacher.

Trinity Values Programme

The values for this half term are Love and individual Liberty.

Please remember that if there is anything you would like to discuss or share with me, please do not hesitate to contact me. I am usually available, both before and after school, as is Mr Monger, if you want to share something quickly. Alternatively, an appointment can be made at a more convenient time if you prefer.

Kind Regards

 

Mrs Kate Mather

Acting Headteacher

 

 

16th December 2016

Dear Parents/Carers

Attendance at Trinity

The classes who had the highest attendance for the week ending 2^nd December were Bluebells and 5SM both having achieved 98.9%.  The whole school attendance for that week was 96.7%.  The classes who won the following week were 2L and 6L both achieving 99%.  The whole school attendance for that week was 95.9%.

The attendance figures for the whole of the autumn term are very, very pleasing.  The overall winners are 1A with 98.3% and 3W with 98.2% attendance for the whole term!  They will get a treat in the new year of a DVD and popcorn afternoon.  The whole school attendance for the Autumn Term was just as pleasing with an overall figure of 96.6%.  This is above the Governments guidelines and we are very pleased with this result.  Thank you all the Mums and Dads for getting your children to school each day.  We know that every day makes a difference.

Staff Changes

Mrs Griffiths from year 1 is leaving us to go to St Pauls Nursery, and Mrs L Evans has finished her contract as a teacher and will spend more time with her family, although we may see her from time to time if she is able to pop in and visit us – if so, she will be most welcome.  Two of our TAs are moving jobs too. Mrs Hall from year 3 is going to Bishop’s School which is closer to home for her and is offering more hours.  Mrs Mitchell-Hill from year 1 is leaving us to join her husband full-time in his jewellery making business.  We shall be sad to see them go and wish them every success in their new jobs.  We have appointed Miss Lawrence to take over from Mrs L Evans in year 5 and Mrs Winters will move to Year 1 to replace Mrs Griffiths and to lead the year group.  A new teacher – Mrs Laird will join Mrs Dawkins to teach 2DW.

Sporting Achievements

Trinity School’s High-5 team are going from strength to strength with our latest achievement being that we came third out of 12 teams at the area tournament at Whitecross High School on Thursday 1^st December, meaning that we are through to the Winter Games being held on 8^th February 2017.  Well done everybody; we are very proud of you.

Swimming Lessons for next Term

It is with regret that we must advise you that we have been unable to recruit a Swimming Instructor to teach our pupils swimming in the New Year.  We will advertise again in 2017 and let you know when an appointment has been made.  This means that no swimming kit is needed for the time being.

Parent Supported Reading Event

On Thursday 1st December, parents of Year 3 pupils were invited in to school to take part in a reading lesson with their child. The class teachers led the session and then parents read with their child. We would like to thank the many parents who turned up and supported the event. The children thoroughly enjoyed it and we did too; the afternoon was a great success!  Look out for dates coming up in the Spring term for other year groups to have this opportunity too.

Extra-Curricular Clubs

Letters will be going out during the first week of the new term inviting your children to join in with a wide and varied range of extra-curricular clubs.  Be sure to send the reply slip back (if appropriate) giving details of a mobile number where you can be texted should the club be cancelled at short notice.

Co-Op members Local Community Fund

The Co-op have extended their fund raising period for the LCF for an extra few weeks up to 8^th April next year meaning that co-op members can chose which local charity to support for an extra 3 weeks.  So far our share of the pot amounts to £1,109.13.  So if you are a regular shopper at the co-op remember to swipe your card every time you pop in and if you are not already a member join up now and chose to support Trinity School.  I’m told that so long as you live within 15 miles of the store you should be able to find us to complete your application to support Trinity Primary School.  Thank you for your support; it means a lot to us.

Lunchtime Supervisors needed

Once again, our supply list of casual dinner ladies is running low.  If you would like to come into school to assist with the supervision of children over the lunch-times and are available (maybe a few days a week) please contact Mrs Lea, the school secretary in the main office.  A DBS check will need to be carried out (we will arrange this) and you will, of course, be paid.

Leave of Absence

The next meeting of the Absence panel is on Friday 3^rd February 2017.  If you are planning a few days away during term time you will need to collect a form from the school office and apply for Leave of Absence on behalf of your child/children.  Copies are also available from the website to download - see Key Information.  Please note, this is only granted in exceptional circumstances.  You do not need to apply for time off for planned hospital or dental visits - this would be classed as medical and all you need to do is send a letter to the class teacher.

Have a lovely Christmas Holiday and a safe and happy new year.  We shall see you all back in school on Wednesday 4^th January 2017.

Kind Regards

Mrs K Mather.

Acting Headteacher

 

 

Newsletter 7

2^nd December 2016

Dear Parents/Carers

Attendance at Trinity

The classes who had the highest attendance for the week ending 18^th November were 1G with 98.3% and 3H with 99.6%.  The whole school attendance for that week was 97.1%.  The classes who won the following week were 1G again and 5O achieving 99% and 99.6% with the whole school attendance being 96.8%. This is a fabulous achievement for the last four weeks and well above the Government expectations.  Well done everybody, we know that every day makes a difference.

Extra Curricular Clubs

All school clubs have now finished as there is so much going on in school during the final two weeks.  Look out for the letter in January giving information on the Spring Clubs and what is available for your child to take part in.

Trinity School Debating Team

Our school Debating Team represented us well at a local competition.  Our team consisted of Dan Mills from 6L, Abbie Davies from 6P and Rhiannon Baxter from 6D. Our debating skills were not as good as our rivals and we lost out to Lord Scudamore School, but the organiser did send us this lovely message….

“Your team was my absolute inspiration for the day. They spoke spontaneously and eloquently and then were so gracious. My team remarked that it was so nice to have them there for the whole morning because they listened carefully to everything and were so positive. They were such a credit to Trinity.”

It is nice to know that in a world full of such bad news, Trinity can produce some lovely children who are a credit to themselves, their families and to our school too. Well done Dan, Abbie and Rhiannon.

Christingle Service at Holy Trinity Church

Our school choir have been invited to sing at the Christingle service on Sunday 11^th December at Holy Trinity Church.  Everyone is welcome to attend.  The service will start at 4pm and is expected to last about an hour.  Additionally, on Monday 12th December our choir will be singing in Sainsbury's from about 1.30pm onwards.  If anyone happens to be shopping there on Monday afternoon please come along and give us some support.

Request for Leave of Absence

The Attendance panel will meet on Friday 9^th December to review the requests for pupil absences.  Please note that all requests for leave of absence should be on the proper application form.  This can be found on the school website and is also available from the school office and must be sent to school by Thursday 8^th at the latest.  Thank you.

Dog Mess

A perpetual problem, I’m afraid.  Parents please be aware that some dog owners sadly, do not clear up after their pets and one or our pupils managed to step in some mess which transferred to their trousers.  The mess was outside our gates on the grass by the fence.  Please be on the lookout.

Naming your child’s clothing

There has been a surprising amount of un-named school uniform which gets put into our lost property bins (currently situated in corridor by 3C) on a weekly basis.  Please can you ensure that your child’s name is marked on all their clothing so each item can be returned to your child rather than sent to lost property?  Thank you.

Kind Regards,

 

Mrs K Mather.

Acting Headteacher

 

 

 

Newsletter 6

18^th November 2016

Dear Parents/Carers

Attendance at Trinity

The classes who had the highest attendance for the week ending 4^th November were 1A and 5O both having achieved 100%.  The whole school attendance for that week was a massive 97.5%.  The classes who won the following week were 2DW, 2H and 3W all achieving 99.3% and with the whole school attendance being 97.4%. This is a fabulous achievement for the fortnight and above the Government expectations.  Well done everybody!

Flu Immunisations for Years 1, 2 & 3

A few years ago a programme of immunisations was rolled out across the country for our young children.  This year they will be returning to Trinity to immunise the children in Years 1, 2 & 3 on Thursday 1^st December.   The school nursing team will be visiting our school to do this and I’m very happy to report that it is not an injection but a dropper which is inserted into the nose - they might sneeze a bit; but it doesn’t hurt, and it might prevent a nasty dose of ‘flu.  You should have received the paperwork by now, please be sure to return the forms which were recently sent out.  Thank you.

School Travel Survey

Herefordshire council have asked us to ask our parents to complete a travel survey using the following link, by the end of November please

https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/Herefordshire_School_Travel_Survey  

or by typing in the following….    https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/Herefordshire_School_Travel_Survey

Please give it a go if you can, it will take about 5 mins or so.  Thank you.

School Photos

School photos have been sent out to the children and order forms are due back in by 21^st Nov (Monday) as they will be collected on Monday afternoon for processing.  If your order is late it will be returned to you for you to make your own arrangements for printing and there is likely to be a delivery charge too.  We anticipate that the photos will be back by Christmas as they make lovely presents for relatives.

Request for Leave of Absence

The Attendance panel will meet on Friday 9^th December to review the requests for pupil absences.  Please note that all requests for leave of absence should be on the proper application form.  This can be found on the school website and is also available from the school office and must be sent to school by Thursday 8^th at the latest.  Thank you.

Naming your child’s clothing

There has been a surprising amount of un-named school uniform which gets put into our lost property bins (currently situated in corridor by 3C) on a weekly basis.  Please can you ensure that your child’s name is marked on all their clothing so each item can be returned to your child rather than sent to lost property?  Thank you.

Dinner Money and Milk Money

Dinners for the upper school are currently £2.20 per day and milk is 95p per week.  Please make sure that money is always sent to school in an envelope marked with the information about which it relates to.  We are still getting money handed in (and left on desks) for trips, dinner, milk, uniform etc. which is not contained in any way and goes missing or gets split up from the note or menu. Money envelopes are still available to purchase from the school office or from the uniform shop at a cost of £2 for a book of 40, or alternatively try to recycle used envelopes or the prepaid one which seem to endlessly come through the post these days. Thank you.

Access into the building

If you need to enter the school building please could you report to the school office first and not wander around the school unaccompanied. All external doors are locked on the electronic key system

Changeable Weather

Please send your children into school with a coat every day.  We will always go out to play in all but the worst of weather.  After a morning of school work, a run about and breath of fresh air is beneficial to all.  It is worth mentioning that if the school is unable to open for any reason, snow, flooding, heating failure etc. a message will be posted on the school website, local radio will broadcast the information and an e-mail will be sent out to all parents who are registered with Parentmail. It is worth checking to make sure that your email address is up to date. (* How are you getting this message? If it is by email, you are up to date, if you are reading a paper copy please consider signing up to Parentmail).

Kind Regards,

 

Mrs K Mather.

Acting Headteacher

Newsletter 5

4^th November 2016

Dear Parents and Carers

Attendance at Trinity

The classes who had the highest attendance for the week ending 21^st October were 4W and 1HG having achieved 100% and 97.6% respectively.  The whole school attendance for that week was 94.4%.  Thank you for all your efforts in getting your child to school; we know that every day makes a difference.

Swimming Pool

Sadly, our lovely school pool is out of commission at the moment so there are no swimming lessons for the time being.  Mr Boyle is still taking the classes at the appointed time and teaching different skills – currently lifesaving and CPR.

Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal

As in previous years our House Captains will be out on the playground with the poppies and collecting boxes.  We would suggest a minimum donation of 50p.  In recent years the Royal British Legion have offered us other merchandise and have done so again.  There will be a variety of items on sale including friendship bracelets, slap rulers, wristbands, pencils, crayons, rubbers etc. ranging from 50p to £1.00 per item.  Please send the correct money if you can.  Thank you.

School Governors – Parent Elections

If you have ever fancied becoming a school governor, now is your chance.  Mrs Morris is stepping down as she is expecting a baby, so there is a space on our board of governors for a parent governor.  Letters and nomination forms are being prepared and should be with you in the next few days.

Anti Bullying Week – 14^th November

If you have a child who is being bullied or you know somebody who has, there are ways around it.  On our school website there is some helpful information on how to cope, who to speak to and what to do.  Please take a look at the website for this and other information on    www.trinity.hereford.sch.uk

Flu Immunisations for Years 1, 2 & 3

A few years ago a programme of immunisations was rolled out across the country for our young children.  The school nursing team will be re-visiting us on Thursday 1^st December to immunise the children in Years 1, 2 & 3 and I’m very happy to report that it is not an injection but a dropper which is inserted into the nose - they might sneeze a bit; but it doesn’t hurt, and it might prevent a nasty dose of ‘flu.

New early morning entry procedure

Following feedback from the parent questionnaire we are reorganising our school entry procedure first thing in the morning.  It will be very similar to when it is wet and children come straight in.  There will be more information to follow later.

Autumnal Weather

Please make sure that your child brings a coat to school every day.  Winter will be upon us very soon, but it is already very damp and chilly and we like the children to go out and play whenever possible.

Schools Values Programme

The value for this half term running up to Christmas is Appreciation & Mutual Respect and Tolerance.

Children in Need Day – 18^th November

We will be wearing our spots and all things spotty to raise money for Children in Need.

Christmas Jumper Day

On the last day of term, - Friday 16^th December we will be having our Christmas Jumper Day.  If you don’t have a “proper” Christmas Jumper anything Christmassy will do.  All donations will go to Save the Children.

Kind Regards,

 

Mrs K Mather.

Acting Headteacher

 

 

NEWSLETTER 4

21^st October 2016

Dear Parents and Carers

Attendance at Trinity

The classes who had the highest attendance for the week ending 7^th October were 2H having achieved 99.6% and 3H with 98.9%.  The whole school attendance for that week was 96.5%.  The class who won the following week was 1HG and 3C achieving 100% and 99.3% respectively with the whole school attendance for that week being 96.1%.  Thank you for all your efforts in getting your child to school, we know that every day makes a difference.

Open Day and Evening

We will be holding our Open Day and Evening on Tuesday 1^st November.  This is for children who will be starting school in Early Years in September 2017. There are tours around our school planned for 9.15-10.30, 1.15-2.30, the evening tour at 6.30-7.30 also has a short presentation.  Do you know of any young child due to start school next September?  If so, please let their parents know about our Open Day and ask them to contact the school office on 266268 to book a tour.  Thank you.

Residential Trip for Year 4

If you have a child who is going to Malvern next year, please make sure that your deposit is paid to school as soon as possible to secure a place.  A deposit of £50 is required by Friday 4^th November, deposits cannot be accepted after this date as bookings are now being made.  If you anticipate there may be some difficulty in paying for this trip please see your child’s teacher.  Thank you.

Facebook – who’s watching you?

Social media is a fantastic tool for sharing information, but we have had one or two instances recently where posts have mentioned the school, our staff or other parents and their children.  There is a policy on our school website which should be referred to if you have any doubts or concerns in this matter.  If there are any school-related issues to be dealt with, please tell us so that we can sort this out.  Thank you.

Autumnal Weather

Please make sure that your child brings a coat to school every day.  Winter will be upon us very soon, but it is already very damp and chilly and we like the children to go out and play whenever possible.

PTFA - AGM

The AGM took place at school on Tuesday 18^th October in the school library.  Thank you to the parents who came along; your support is always appreciated.  We are pleased to announce that we have a new PTFA Secretary – Mrs Hanbury who has children in Reception and in year 5.  We are though, still looking for a chair and a treasurer.  Our next meeting will be on Thursday 3^rd November at 3.30pm everyone is welcome to come along.  We will be looking at things like fundraising and organising dates and events like the school disco and the Christmas Fayre.

Roller Skating at The Core

There is a club running over half-term for all you budding roller-skaters.  If anyone is interested, contact one of the team on 07472 634837.  There is a Halloween roller disco being held on Saturday 29^th, 6-8pm at £5 a ticket and also they are looking towards a club running in the week running up to Christmas (we will have broken up by then).  If this sounds like your sort of thing; give them a call for more details.

Yours sincerely,

Mrs K Mather

Acting Head Teacher

 

 

 

 

NEWSLETTER 3

7^th October 2016

Dear Parents and Carers

Attendance at Trinity

The classes who had the highest attendance for the week ending 23^rd September were R1 and 3W having achieved 98.9% and 98.6% respectively.  The whole school attendance for that week was 95.9%.  The classes who won the following week were 4W & R2 achieving 100% & 97.9%.  The whole school attendance for that week was 96.7%.  An excellent result; thank you for your support in this, we know that a high school attendance means the best possible opportunity for our children.

Helping your Child at Home

At Trinity in Early Years, Year 1 and Year 2 we teach our phonics through the 'Read Write Inc' Phonics Scheme (RWI). Our children enjoy the fast paced and exciting, daily lessons. We do get asked by a number of parents how they can support their children at home, with both reading and phonics.  On our school website there is a page under the 'Parents' tab with activities and suggestions that you can do at home, not just for phonics, but maths activities too. There is also a link to the RWI website which has a page and videos with ways to support your child's reading. The RWI link is http://www.ruthmiskin.com/en/parents/  If you have any questions regarding phonics or reading please do ask your child's class teacher.

Residential Trip for Year 6

If you have a child who is going to London next year, please make sure that your deposit is paid to school as soon as possible to secure a place.  A deposit of £50 is required by Thursday 20^th October, deposits cannot be accepted after this date as bookings are now being made.  Thank you.

Open Day and Evening

We will be holding our Open Day and Evening on Tuesday 1^st November.  This is for children who will be starting school in Early Years in September 2017. There are tours around our school planned for 9.15-10.30, 1.15-2.30, the evening tour at 6.30-7.30 also has a short presentation.  Do you know of any young child due to start school next September?  If so, please let their parents know about our Open Day and ask them to contact the school office on 266268 to book a tour. 

School Uniform

Please be aware that your child should be wearing the correct school uniform to school – including proper black school shoes and not trainers.  Girls should be wearing grey skirts, pinafores or trousers with white or yellow polo shirts.  Keeping warm with a sweatshirt or cardigan (grey or yellow) which is available from our Uniform shop which is open every Wednesday.  Boys should be in grey (not black) trousers or shorts with a white or yellow polo shirt with a grey or yellow sweatshirt – again, available from our school uniform shop.

Football Association Skills for Girls

There will be a 5 week club for girls who wish to improve their footie skills to be run on Thursday after school during November and the first Thursday in December.  We are fortunate that it is conveniently being held at our school (so no travelling involved) but parents need to apply directly to the coach, Paul Hughes using the following link…….

http://faskills.thefa.com/SkillCentres/Hereford/TrinityPrimarySchool

The sessions are £1 per evening and will run for 1 hour.  As with all other Trinity after school clubs the sessions will finish at 4.30pm at which point you will need to collect your child from the playground.

Cycle path and cyclists

When you are delivering or collecting your children to and from school, please keep an eye out for cyclists and ensure that they can get by unimpeded.  Many thanks.

Co-Op fundraising for Trinity School

As mentioned in the last newsletter the Co-op has chosen us as one of their nominated charities.  All shoppers who purchase Co-op own branded products will earn 5% for themselves (similar to other supermarkets who have loyalty schemes) and besides that you will earn 1% for the community, and you can choose Trinity if you wish as the beneficiary for your 1%.  If you have a Co-op membership card under the old scheme, new cards will be coming out soon.  If you are not a member and wish to join the Co-op membership scheme it costs just £1.00 to join.

Schools Values Programme

The value is Democracy for the remainder of this half term.  After half-term we change to Appreciation.

Yours sincerely,

Mrs K Mather

Acting Head Teacher

 

 

 

NEWSLETTER 2

23^rd September 2016

Dear Parents and Carers

Attendance at Trinity

The classes who had the highest attendance for the week ending 16^thSeptember was R1, R3, 1A, 2H, 3W and 5G all having achieved 100% !  The whole school attendance for that week was 98.3% - this is the best that we have ever been; long may it continue. Thank you for your support in striving towards a good attendance for all our children.

Co-Op Community Causes

We have been successful in our application to be one of the Co-op’s local community causes. Mrs Celeste Trenchard and Mrs Bev Evans from the PTFA were instrumental in applying and securing the funding and we owe them a great deal.

When members of the Co-op use their loyalty card and buy own brand products 1% is given to one of three local causes, Trinity being one of the three.

This money will go towards school projects like our minibus fund.  If you, as parents shop at the Co-op, please remember to show your co-op loyalty card so that Trinity can receive the benefit from the Co-op’s generosity.  Many Thanks.

Dogs

However cute and lovely your pet pooch is, I regret he is still not allowed on school property.  If you need to come into school to collect your child or chat to the teacher, your dog must be left outside.  Thank you.

Collecting children after school

Now that the children are getting settled into their new routines please can you, as parents wait outside the gates when you collect your child at home-time.  Only the parents of pupils in Year 1 & 2 should be present on the playground.  Parents of Early Years children will still need to go to the classroom door for all of this term.

Headlice

It is not necessary to keep your children at home to treat them for headlice.  Modern day treatments are quick and simple to use and children must be sent to school as soon as possible so as not to miss too much of the day.

Appointments

It has become necessary for parents to provide some form of evidence to the school office when requesting that your child/children be removed for appointments, be it dentist, hospital, Doctors or similar.  Please show Mrs Lea the letter or appointment slip and she can mark the register in advance to show your child’s absence.

School Census - please read.

Each year a census is done at all Local Authority schools and this determines how much funding is allocated to each of us.  Some families are eligible to free school meals due to their family circumstances or a low income.  There are certain criteria to fulfill, but if you are entitled to this benefit then it is worth applying for, as not only do you get a lunch provided for you (this is a separate issue from the Universal Free School Meals for all the younger children in school) there are other benefits to be had too - like having the school trips paid for too. All information is confidential and there is no discrimination between eligible children and those who are not.  If you feel that you may qualify for free school meals; please see Mrs Lea in the school office on Monday or Tuesday for an application form. There is no compulsion to take up hot dinners if you do not like the hot meal on offer, there are baguettes available and it is a very useful back-up when lunchboxes have been forgotten.

Schools can also receive additional funds if a child whose parent or step-parent serves in the forces.  The MOD has confirmed that they are happy for all service personnel to disclose that their children are Service Children in England for this census. If this situation applies to you, we would be very grateful if you could contact the school and speak to Mrs Mather, Mr Monger or Mrs Lea the school secretary.  All information will be dealt with in the strictest confidence.

Open Day and Evening

We will be holding our Open Day and Evening on Tuesday 1^st November.  This is for children who will be starting school in Early Years in September 2017. There are tours around our school planned for 9.15-10.30, 1.15-2.30, the evening tour at 6.30-7.30 also has a short presentation.  Do you know of any young child due to start school next September?  If so, please let their parents know about our Open Day and ask them to contact the school office on 266268 to book a tour.  Thank you.

 

Yours sincerely

 

Mrs K Mather.

Acting Headteacher

NEWSLETTER 1

 

9^th September 2016

Dear Parents and Carers

Welcome back to a brand new year!  It is lovely to see all the children again, and so many new faces too.  This newsletter will contain a number of reminders and some new information, all of which are important. 

Extra-curricular Clubs

A separate letter about all extra-curricular clubs is being printed and should be with you very soon.  As in previous years, all pupils attending an afterschool club need to be registered with Parentmail so that we can notify you by text, in the event of a club being cancelled at short notice.  Clubs will start during the week beginning Monday 19^th September.

Parentmail

This is the first Newsletter of the new school year and will go out as a paper copy to everybody.  We have a huge number of parents who are on Parentmail and receive their fortnightly newsletter via e.mail.  This does, of course save lots of paper and also ensures that the paperwork does not get lost on the way home from school.  If you are not on Parentmail yet, please consider signing up for it.  Details are available from the school office.  Thank you.

Health and Safety

Just as a reminder for the beginning of the school year, please can you take note of the following Health and Safety points?

• Contact Numbers

Please ensure that the school has up to date telephone numbers and contact arrangements for your children.  All changes should be passed to the school office.

• Jewellery

Children are not to wear jewellery in school for safety reasons.  No necklaces or bracelets, including friendship braids or loom bands should be worn.  Stud earrings are permitted but children will either have to put sticking plasters or tape over them during PE or remove and replace them without adult assistance.  Tape and sticking plasters are not provided by the school. Long hair must be tied back for PE.  Children should not wear earrings at all for swimming.  If your child is unable to remove and replace their own earrings, please ensure that their swimming hat can completely cover their ears and fits tightly to their heads.  No nail varnish or tattoos should be worn to school.

• Parking and Our New Bridge

Please could we ask that you do not enter Barricombe Drive by car before and after school?  We have a continuing arrangement with The Range which allows parking in their car park in the mornings and afternoons.  Please give it a try.

• Illness

From time to time children are sent to school who have vomited or had diarrhoea overnight.  I feel that it only fair to your child and their classmates if they remain at home for the 48 hours following a sick bug.  The staff appreciates your help and co-operation in this matter.

• Medicines

We are unable to administer any medicines to children.  If your child has four doses of medicine a day, you are welcome to come into school at lunchtime to administer the medicine yourself.  Specific medical needs will be discussed and agreed on an individual basis.  Children must not bring tablets such as Disprol or Calpol to school for self administration.

• Dropping off and collecting children

If you change your normal arrangements for collecting your child at the end of the day, can you please inform the school so that we can ensure the children are delivered safely to the correct adult? 

• For collection of Yr 3, 4, 5 & 6 children:

Please stand outside the gates so teachers can clearly see you and are able to effectively supervise their children.  Please reiterate to siblings collecting sisters and brothers that they must not come and sit on the benches just outside the school doors.

When dropping off in the morning please stand well clear of the class lines, near to the playground gates or outside the fence, so teachers can clearly see their children and the children can see their teacher. 

• Walking home without adult supervision

To improve the safety of children at Trinity we are continuing to monitor the supervision of children walking home from school.  If you wish your child to walk home on his or her own or to be picked up by an older brother or sister who is under the age of sixteen, could you please collect and complete a ‘Walking home unsupervised’ form from the school office.

• Photograph permission

Before any photographs of your child are taken in school we must have your permission. If you are new to the school or your circumstances have changed please collect a Photo Permission form from the school office.  Whilst we encourage parents to take photographs and video of their children at concerts, assemblies and sports days, can I remind you that any images that contain other children must be for family use only and not posted on any social networking sites.

Balls

Please DO NOT allow children to bring balls into school.  We will provide balls for the children to play with at breaks and lunchtimes.  This will save any confusion with the types of balls which are allowed, and those which are not.

PE and Swimming

It is very important that children have their PE kits on the correct day.  Children will know their PE days by the end of this week.  Please do support them in remembering their kits, and please can you ensure that your child brings the correct swimming kit on the appropriate day.  Years 1 & 6 on Tuesdays, Years 2 & 5 on Wednesdays and Years 3 & 4 on Thursdays.  Girls should be swimming in a one-piece costume (not a bikini style) and boys should wear a traditional type of trunks (not Bermuda shorts.)  Swimming hats are required for both boys and girls. If your child is unable to swim due to illness, please make sure that a note is sent in to the class teacher.

Uniform

Please, please, please label every item of school clothing and equipment.  Whilst we have been able to return some lost property, there are still large amounts left over at the end of each school year.

Hot Dinners at Trinity School

All pupils in Year R, 1 & 2 are eligible to a hot dinner at school which is paid for by Government initiatives.  A meal will not automatically be provided for each child as this will lead to a lot of wastage, therefore is you wish to take advantage of the free meal offered and for your child to be fed at lunchtime please ensure that a menu is completed for the appropriate week and handed in on Wednesday of the preceding week.  Dinners for pupils in Year 3, 4, 5 & 6 will still need to be paid for - currently £2.20 per day.  Menus are on the school website. www.trinity.hereford.sch.uk  (under the tab ‘Parents’ - school lunch menus.)

School Access

Our security system continues to be popular and effective, providing a safe environment for the children.  If you need to see someone before school, you can enter either through the main reception entrance or through the door which leads to the main offices from the playground.  If you need to come into school during the day or just before the end of the day, please come to the main reception entrance.

Please note that children must walk around the school perimeter to enter school through the main playground gates.  They must not enter through the main reception entrance.  Children coming through this entrance will be asked to walk around to the main gates.

Collecting Year 1 and 2 children

Please stay well back from where the children come out of school.  If parents move forward to the classes, it is very difficult for the class teacher to ensure that the children get to the correct adult.  Your child will be sent across the playground to you.  Do not take children from the line – it is the responsibility of the class teacher to send the child to the adults collecting the children.  Year 1 & 2 children should now be left to line up on their own in the mornings.  Please do stand well away from the lines so that we can encourage the children to enter the school independently.

Milk

Please note that the cost of milk is 19p per carton.  Milk is free of charge for pupils up until their 5^th birthday after which payment will become due.  It amounts to 95p per week, or £13.30 for the whole term up until Christmas.  If possible please pay for the whole term in one go, as this avoids the need for loose change to be handed over and time taken up by the teachers and TAs counting and checking the payment each week.  Please ensure that the correct money (cash or cheque) is sent in, cheques need to be made payable to Trinity School.  Pupils in KS1 (Yr R, 1 & 2) have milk delivered to their classrooms.  Older pupils may purchase milk on a daily basis from the milk monitors in the school dining hall. Thank you.

Snacks

Just a reminder that only fruit is permitted during morning breaks.  No yoghurts, cereal bars or other food is to be consumed at morning break.  This is part of our Healthy Eating Policy which is reviewed every year.

Headlice

Please do be aware of how quickly head lice spread.  Please check your child every night to ensure that they have not picked anything up during the day.  Please treat if necessary or alternatively comb through the hair with conditioner regularly.  It is very important that the whole school community works together to try and prevent the spread of head lice.  If head lice are clearly visible in a child’s hair, we will inform you confidentially so that treatment can start quickly.  Thank you.

Cycling to School

Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, if your child cycles to school unaccompanied he or she must wear a cycle helmet and must have passed their cycling proficiency on-road test.  If your child cycles to school with you then the responsibility lies with you to ensure that they are safe.  They should still wear a cycle helmet as this will prevent a more serious injury should they be unfortunate enough to come off their bike.  Thank you.

Schools Values Programme

The value for this half term in the school values programme is Responsibility. 

Yours sincerely

 

Mrs K Mather.

Acting Headteacher

 

 

21^st July 2016

 

End of Term;      End of School;      End of an Era

 

Dear Parents and Carers

PAT – Positive Attendance at Trinity

The class chosen to host Pat the tiger for the week ending 8^th July was R2 having achieved 99.3%.  The whole school attendance for that week was 95.6%.  The following week Pat was looked after by 5m & 5C who both managed 97.8%, with the whole school attendance being 95.1%.  The winners of the Good Attendance for the Summer Term was 3L with 97% with a whole school total of 95.6% and the winners for THE WHOLE YEAR was 5C with 96.5% with the whole school managing 95.7% for the whole year. This year there has been an extra award to 34 pupils who have managed 100% attendance for the entire year; they will receive a certificate and a medal.  

Thank you for all your support in our efforts to increase our overall attendance for our children.  Little by little, we are making a difference.

New staff and leavers

As usual, we are having a change around of staffing at the end of the school year. Mrs Denny is leaving us for pastures new; Mrs Williams and Mrs Preece are going on maternity leave, and Miss Hooper is getting married; she will return in September as Mrs Hamer.  We are also losing 4 of our TAs - Mrs Emilia Koziol-Wisniewski, who has done so much for the Polish community and Mrs Brookes who has supported her in the last 12 months, Miss Poole is moving to another school to a job with longer hours and Miss Read is leaving too.  We wish them well in their different jobs and careers and hope that they might pop into see us occasionally.

We will have 5 new members of teaching staff starting in September. Miss Bradley in Early Years, Miss Westoby in Year 3. Also starting are Miss Mason in year 1 and Miss L Evans in year 5 who are both known to the school.  Mrs Sampson will continue to cover Year 5.  We extend a warm welcome to all our new staff and hope that they settle in well and enjoy the friendly atmosphere here.

Herefordshire School Games

On Wednesday 6^th July children from Trinity School participated in the Herefordshire School Games. We entered teams in 6 competitions and also had a group of children taking part in the Change 4life festival activities. In total 90 children from Trinity went to the Leisure Centre for this event.

We had teams in: Y3/4 Gymnastics, Y3/4 Trigolf, Y3/4 Indoor Athletics, Y4 Boys Cricket, Y5/6 Tag Rugby and Y5/6 Rounders-(A/B Teams)

We all had a fantastic day with the children displaying excellent behaviour, team spirit and sportsmanship and had the winning team in: Gymnastics, Rounders (Trinity A) and Indoor Athletics.  We also had 3 children gain individual medals in the Gymnastics, they were:

Lewis Rose – 1^st place in the Vault, Ella Wathern - 1st place in the Floor routine and Zosia Bryzek – 2^nd place in the Floor routine.

Well done to all children who took part and worked with great determination, effort and team work.  Thank you also to all staff who have given their time to run extra-curricular PE activities throughout the year thus enabling the children to achieve so much in these sporting events.

There are lots of photos of the children participating on the day and these will be put on the school website soon.  

Thank you. 

From Mrs Mather.

 

School sports Days

Notwithstanding the rain and showers and the intense heat and sunshine which mainly affected Years 3 & 4, we managed to hold most of our sports days.  The final total of points is set out below.

Overall Results

Whole year including Sports Days – Cup winner

Leavers Assembly

If you are a parent of a child in year 6 we look forward to seeing you at the Year 6 leavers assembly at 9.30am on Thursday morning.  We wish them well at their new school and trust that they will work hard and reach all their goals; it will be sad to see them go.

For the rest of us; we shall be back at school on Wednesday 7^th September ready to start all over again.  Have a good holiday; we look forward to hearing all about your summer holidays when we return in September.

 

Finally, and this time it is very final, I shall be around for a few days more to tie up any loose ends and hand over the last of the paperwork to Mrs Mather and Mr Monger. I feel I am leaving you in very capable hands whilst the Governors sort out the lengthy application process for my replacement.  It will be sad to go but I have learnt a lot; made many friends and it will be very emotional when I step out the door for the very last time.  Thank you for all your support over the last eight years, there have been some very tough times to work through but I leave the school in a better position than ever to cope with the ever-changing Government rules and systems for educating our children.

 

Good Luck and Goodbye.

 

 

Mrs A Pritchard.

Head Teacher

 

 

LEAVE OF ABSENCE DURING TERM TIME

 

1. Absence Request Letter

7 September 2015

REQUESTS FOR ABSENCE DURING TERM TIME

In 2013 new legislation was introduction relating to the granting of leave during term time.  This particularly related to the taking of holidays during term time.  Headteachers are only permitted to grant leave in cases of ‘exceptional circumstances’.

There has been some confusion over the last 12 months about the taking of holidays in particular during term time.  The governors and I have therefore taken the decision to set out a clear procedure for parents wishing to take their children out of school during term time.  This procedure is detailed in our updated Attendance Policy which is available on the school website, or from the school office on request.

 I would like to summarise and clarify for all parents and carers the new policy for requesting absences during term time. 

This policy will relate to all absences from October half term 2015 – please see the attached schedule of when absence requests must be received by in order to be considered for an authorised absence

 

PROCEDURES FOR APPLYING FOR ABSENCE

1. The School’s ‘Request for Leave of Absence’ Form must be completed with supporting evidence.
2. All requests for absence must be received at least half a term before the absence.
3. The Attendance panel will meet at the end of each half term to consider all requests for absence.
4. Following the meeting of the attendance panel, all requests for absence will be responded to on the Trinity Primary ‘Response to Request for Leave of Absence’ form.

Trinity Primary Attendance Panel

The Attendance Panel will consider all requests for absence received during the half term.  The panel will review the request and supporting evidence and will make a collective decision about whether to approve the request or not.  The panel will be made up of:

The Headteacher

A governor

The Family Support Co-ordinator

The Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator

An Assistant Headteacher

 

Unplanned Absences

When a child is absent from school and no request for absence has been received or if no reason has been given for the absence, the absence will be recorded by the school as ‘unauthorised’.

Absences can only be authorised when the Absence Request procedure has been followed. It cannot be granted retrospectively, even if the reasons for absence are valid. A referral will be made to Herefordshire Council for the issue of a Penalty Notice or further legal proceedings. Please note that Herefordshire Council may decide to take legal proceedings if a Penalty Notice has already been issued previously.

 

 

EXCEPTIONAL CIRCUMSTANCES

The Government have not yet provided clear guidance about the definition of ‘exceptional circumstances’ and what is considered to be ‘exceptional’ for one person may not be seen as such by another. Each request will be considered individually and parents may be requested to provide evidence of the circumstances surrounding their request.

As a result of this legislation, Headteachers would not be expected to deem any term time holiday as ‘exceptional’ and therefore any decision to grant absence will be made by our attendance panel using the following criteria:

• The individual circumstances as to why the holiday is being requested in term time and the evidence provided.

Absence will not be authorised for Years 1, 2 and 6 pupils during the 2 weeks before statutory testing and during the test period. 

 

It is very important to understand that if this procedure is not followed, the absence will be unauthorised and a referral will be made to the Local Authority which may result in a fixed penalty fine or further legal proceedings.

 

Any absence will have an adverse affect on a child’s education, but we do understand that there may be exceptional circumstances where this cannot be avoided.

If you require any further clarification on the new procedures, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Yours sincerely

 

Mrs A Pritchard

Headteacher

 

2. A Guide for Parents

 

ATTENDANCE MATTERS - A GUIDE FOR PARENTS    

1. When does my child need to be in School?

Your child should be at school by 8:50am, ready to line up in their classes by 8.55am,  but not before 8.30 a.m.

2. What happens if my child is late?

Registers close at 9:05am.  Pupils who arrive after registration should report to the school office.

A series of unauthorised late marks may lead to referral to the EWO (Education Welfare Officer). The school may consider legal action if a parent fails to engage with guidance and support and may consider preparing a case for prosecution in line with local authority guidance and code of conduct.

3. Does the School need letters explaining my child’s absence or will a phone call do?

We would expect a parent to notify the school by letter or phone on every day of absence, unless the length of absence is known in advance. We will telephone you if your child has not arrived in school by 9:30 a.m. and no message has been left.  If we do not receive an explanation, or if the explanation is unsatisfactory, we will not authorise the absence.

If we are concerned about aspects of your child’s attendance or punctuality we will contact you to discuss the best way forward.

An accumulation of unauthorised absences will lead to a referral to the Educational Welfare Officer.

4. What reasons will the school accept for absences?

• Illness. However persistent illness without medical evidence will not be authorised: After more than 20 days illness parents will be expected to grant permission for the school to consult the medical practitioner concerned.

• Emergency dental/medical appointment.(Please make routine appointments after school or during the holidays)

• Day of religious observance

• Family bereavement

• Family holidays in exceptional circumstances and authorised by the Headteacher.

Except in the case of illness, you should ask for permission for your child to miss school well in advance, giving full details. In cases of recurring absences through illness you may be asked to produce a medical certificate – SEE THE ATTENDANCE POLICY FOR DETAILS.

5. What is unacceptable?

The school will not authorise absences other than those in exceptional circumstances. Family holidays, day trips, shopping or birthdays are not classed as exceptional.

6. Can we take family holidays during term-time?

Family holidays should be taken during school holidays. Only in exceptional circumstances will permission be given. In such circumstances requests should following the procedure in the attendance policy.

7. My child is trying to avoid coming to School. What should I do?

Contact your child’s teacher  immediately and openly discuss your worries. Your child could be avoiding school for a number of reasons – difficulties with school work, bullying, friendship problems, family difficulties. It is important that we identify the reason for your child’s reluctance to attend school and work together to tackle the problem.

 

3. Attendance Policy 2015 - 2016

 

TRINITY ATTENDANCE POLICY 2015 -2016

“ Believe and Achieve - 

Attendance matters”

 

Statutory Duty of Schools :

The Education Act 1996 requires parents or guardians to ensure their children receive efficient, full-time education, either by regular attendance at school or otherwise. Schools are responsible for recording pupil attendance twice a day: once at the start of the morning session and once during the afternoon session. An entry must be made in the attendance register for all pupils of compulsory school age who are on the school’s admission roll.

 

Philosophy

At Trinity Primary School we promote a culture in which children enjoy coming to school, and do not want to miss out. We are committed to providing a full and efficient education to all pupils and embrace the concept of equal opportunities for all. We will endeavour to provide an environment where all pupils feel valued and welcome.

For a child to reach their full educational achievement a high level of school attendance is essential. We will consistently work towards a goal of 100% attendance for all children. Every opportunity will be used to convey to pupils and their parents or carers the importance of regular and punctual attendance.

School attendance is subject to various Education laws and this school attendance policy is written to reflect these laws and the guidance produced by the DfE.

Each year the school will examine its attendance figures and set attendance targets. These will reflect both national and Herefordshire attendance targets.

The school will review its systems for improving attendance at regular intervals to ensure that it is achieving its set goals.

This policy will contain within it the procedures that the school will use to meet its attendance targets.

 

Positive Attendance at Trinity:

We celebrate the class with the highest weekly attendance.  ‘PAT’ the tiger is awarded to the winning class during the whole school assembly on a Monday.

Termly certificates are given to children who have attended every day for a whole term and at the end of the academic year children with 100% attendance are rewarded by the PTFA.

 

As a parent you can help us by:

Parents/carers must ring by 8.55am every morning of all absences with the full reason for absence and when their child might return to school. Please give as much information as possible as the head teacher must make the decision if the absence is authorised or unauthorised.

It is the responsibility of parents/cares to always make any medical appointments out of school hours or during school breaks where possible. If there are any appointments that have to take place in school time parents/carers need to put the absence in writing and give school a copy of the appointment to be attended.

Parents/carers must always send in a note explaining the reason for absence on their child’s return to school after an illness.  This is in addition to the telephone calls explaining the reason for absence.

Parents/carers should speak to the head teacher if their child will have a prolonged absence due to illness.  The school can then liaise with the relevant agencies to provide additional support during the absence.

It is the responsibility of parents/carers to keep school updated of any changes of address, telephone number or situation that can have impact on their child’s education and attendance.

 

School Policy:

Attendance will be an important feature of Trinity Primary School’s priorities and will be regularly reported to the Governing Body. Consistent and vigorous monitoring and evaluation procedures are in place.

Following an unexplained absence, parents/carers will be contacted by letter requesting the reasons for the absence.  Parents will be contacted within a week of the absence.

Parents/carers will be regularly reminded of the importance of good attendance and punctuality in newsletters, the school prospectus and the Home-School agreement.

Good attendance will be celebrated in school newsletters and during assemblies.

Children’s attendance will be reported to parents on their annual reports.

Where there are concerns about attendance, Parents/carers will be invited into school to discuss the concerns and if there are any ways that the school can support the family.

If we continue to have concerns regarding attendance and punctuality then the school’s Education Welfare Officer will become involved and will be there to help support both family and school to improve the attendance of the child.

                                                                     

Authorised Absence

Some absences are allowed by law and are known as “authorised absences”.  For example, if a child is ill, there is a family bereavement or for religious observance absence will be authorised. Parents may be asked to consider GP consent if there are ongoing medical issues or to provide medical evidence.

                                                                                                                                   

We realise that there are rare occasions when there might be a particular problem that causes your child to be absent.  Please let us know and we shall try to deal with it sympathetically.

 

Unauthorised Absence

There are times when children are absent for reasons, which are not permitted by law.  These are known as “unauthorised absences”. Where there is no explanation for the absence or where the explanation or reason for the absence is considered unsatisfactory then the register will be marked with an unauthorised code.

Unauthorised Absences have to be reported to the Local Authority. The Education Welfare Officer,  will be informed by school.  Following a meeting with the Educational Welfare Officer, the school may consider to liaise with Herefordshire Council who may take legal action against you if your child has unauthorised absences.

 

Punctuality and Collection at the end of the day

 

Morning registration is at 8.55am.

It is important to be on time as the first few minutes of the school day are often used to give out instructions or organise schoolwork for the rest of the day. If your child misses this short but vital session, their work for the whole day may be affected. Late arrivals are disruptive to the whole class and often embarrassing for your child. We take the view that there are no late children, only late parents.   Arrival after the close of registration at 9.05am will be marked as unauthorised absence in line with the DFE guidance.

We will let you know if we have concerns about your child’s punctuality and you will be invited into school to discuss if there is any support required.

Collection at the end of the school day is just as important as the beginning of the day. It is the parents/carers responsibility to collect children on time. If there are any concerns regarding late collection regularly school will take the appropriate safeguarding procedures.

 

Children Missing Education

When pupils leave the school and no information has been received by the school and parents/carers are unable to be contacted, we have a duty to safeguarding and must contact the Local Authority.  Your child will be considered to be a Child Missing Education.  This means that the Local Authority has a legal duty to carry out investigations, which will include liaising with Social Services, the Police and other agencies, to try to track and locate your child.

By giving us details of your child’s new school and location, unnecessary investigations can be avoided.

 

POLICY REGARDING REQUESTS FOR ABSENCE DURING TERM TIME – 2015-2016

It is a legal requirement for children to attend school (The Education Act 1996, Section 444) . The school places great importance on attendance. High attendance leads to high achievement as well as social and emotional benefits. School holiday dates are published in advance. The government has recently made amendments to their guidance (The Education (Pupil Registrations) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2013.

 

These amendments state that:

Headteachers may NOT grant any leave of absence during term time unless in exceptional circumstances.

Schools are in session for 38 weeks per year, so there are opportunities to take children on holiday during the remaining 14 weeks.

The purpose of this policy is to provide guidance on:

• procedures for applying for leave during term time
• the consequences of taking unauthorised leave in term time

 

PROCEDURES FOR APPLYING FOR ABSENCE

1. The School’s ‘Request for Leave of Absence’ Form must be completed – see appendix 1
2. All requests for absence must be received at least half a term before the absence.
3. The Attendance panel will meet during the last week of each half term to consider all requests for absence.
4. Following the meeting of the attendance panel, all requests for absence will be responded to on the Trinity Primary ‘Response to Request for Leave of Absence’ form.

 

Trinity Primary Attendance Panel

The Attendance Panel will consider all requests for absence received during the half term.  The panel will review the request and supporting evidence and will make a collective decision about whether to approve the request or not.  The panel will be made up of:

The Headteacher

A governor

The Family Support Co-ordinator

The Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator

An Assistant Headteacher

 

Unplanned Absences

When a child is absent from school and no request for absence has been received or if no reason has been given for the absence, the absence will be recorded by the school as ‘unauthorised’.

Absences can only be authorised when the Absence Request procedure has been followed. It cannot be granted retrospectively, even if the reasons for absence are valid.

 

EXCEPTIONAL CIRCUMSTANCES

The Government have not yet provided clear guidance about the definition of ‘exceptional circumstances’ and what is considered to be ‘exceptional’ for one person may not be seen as such by another.

 

As a result of this legislation, Headteachers would not be expected to deem any term time holiday as ‘exceptional’ and therefore any decision to grant absence will be made by our attendance panel using the following criteria:

• The individual circumstances as to why the holiday is being requested in term time and the evidence provided.

Absence will not be authorised for Year 1, 2 and 6 pupils during the 2 weeks before statutory testing and during the test period. 

 

CONSEQUENCES OF TAKING AN UNAUTHORISED LEAVE DURING TERM TIME

Taking leave during term time without authorisation will have an impact on a child’s learning. Parents who choose to take an unauthorised absence during term time must accept that this will have an adverse effect on their child’s educational achievement.

In cases of unauthorised absence the school may refer the matter to the Local Authority. The Local Authority decides whether to issue a penalty notice or to issue other legal proceedings. The fixed penalty fine is collected and kept by the Local Authority, not the school. Further information is below:

The Education (Penalty Notices) (England) Regulations 2007

Amendments have been made to the 2007 Regulations in the Education (Penalty Notices) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2013. These amendments, as described below, will come into force on 1 September 2013.

Please note that Herefordshire Council may decide to take legal proceedings if a Penalty Notice has already been issued previously.

DEFINITION OF A PARENT - Section 576 of the Education Act 1996 defines 'parent' as:

• all natural parents, whether they are married or not  
• any person who, although not a natural parent, has parental responsibility for a child or young person  
• any person who, although not a natural parent,  has care of a child or young person (having care of a child or young person means that a person with whom the child lives and who looks after the child, irrespective of what their relationship is with the child, is considered to be a parent in education law).

 

Amendments to 2007 regulations will reduce the timescales for paying a penalty notice. Parents must, from 1 September 2013, pay £60 within 21 days or £120 within 28 days.

 

If payment is not received within 21 days, the fine will increase from £60 to £120.  If payment is not received after 28 days, Herefordshire Council will instigate legal proceedings. Please note further absences following the issue of a Penalty Notice for unauthorised absence for leave in term time may result in Herefordshire Council taking further legal action.

 

There are alternative legal proceedings available to the local authority if issuing a penalty notice is not appropriate. Please note Herefordshire Council may decide not to issue a Penalty Notice and may take alternative legal action

 

We value your support in helping us to maintain high standards.

 

“Every day counts…”

 

Policy Date:   1^st September 2015

Review Date: 1^st September 2016

 

Headteacher:              Mrs A. Pritchard

Coordinator :               Mrs M. Adams

Governor:                    Mrs R. Bowen

 

 

 

4. Absence Request Form

 

TRINITY PRIMARY SCHOOL - REQUEST FOR LEAVE OF ABSENCE

 

 

5. Penalty Notices

 

PENALTY NOTICES

For absences and holidays taken in term time

 

Any absence from school disrupts a child’s learning. Whilst a holiday may be considered educational, children will still miss out on the teaching that others receive.  In addition, children returning from a term time holiday generally require additional time from teachers to catch up on the teaching they have missed.  This can have an impact on the education of other pupils in their class. Please note Herefordshire Council may decide not to issue a Penalty Notice and may take alternative legal action.

 

WHY HAVE I RECEIVED A PENALTY NOTICE?

A holiday/absence has been taken during term-time of 5 days, or more, and was unauthorised by the head teacher.  Herefordshire Council was therefore instructed to issue a Penalty Notice.

 

WHY WAS THE HOLIDAY UNAUTHORISED?

By law, only a head teacher can make the decision whether to authorise an absence from school, not the Local Education Authority or a parent.  A holiday is only authorised if the head teacher considers that the circumstances are “exceptional”.

 

WHO RECEIVES A PENALTY NOTICE?

Where there is more than one person liable, a separate notice may be issued to each person ie. parent.

 

Each parent* receives a Penalty Notice for each child. For example:

1 parent/1 child = 1 penalty notice

2 parents/1 child = 2 penalty notices

1 parent/2 children = 2 penalty notices

2 parents/2 children = 4 penalty notices

*parent includes a step-parent or other carer and can include an absent parent.

 

DEFINITION OF A PARENT

Section 576 of the Education Act 1996 defines 'parent' as

• all natural parents, whether they are married or not  
• any person who, although not a natural parent, has parental responsibility for a child or young person  
• any person who, although not a natural parent,  has care of a child or young person (having care of a child or young person means that a person with whom the child lives and who looks after the child, irrespective of what their relationship is with the child, is considered to be a parent in education law).

 

HOW CAN I PAY?

Full details are set out on Page 2 of the Penalty Notice – this can be paid by cheque, over the phone by debit/credit card or in person by cash, debit or credit card.

 

WHAT HAPPENS IF I DO NOT PAY?

If payment is not received within 21 days, the fine will increase from £60 to £120.  If payment is not received after 28 days, Herefordshire Council will instigate legal proceedings. Please note further absences following the issue of a Penalty Notice for unauthorised absence for leave in term time may result in Herefordshire Council taking further legal action.

 

CAN A PENALTY NOTICE BE WITHDRAWN?

Legislation only allows for a Penalty Notice to be withdrawn if it ought not to have been issued to the person named, or if it contains material errors.

 

If a holiday has been unauthorised by the head teacher, the local authority cannot override their decision. If you have any queries in relation to why your holiday was unauthorised you must refer these to the head teacher, not the issuing authority.

 

WHO RECEIVES THE MONIES PAID?

Monies received cover the cost of the administration process in issuing and enforcing the Penalty Notices and the costs of any subsequent legal action against recipients who do not pay.

 

LEGISLATION

On 27th February 2004 Section 23 of the Anti-Social Behaviour Act came into force. This introduced powers to Local Education Authorities to issue Penalty Notices. Herefordshire Council issue Penalty Notices in accordance with The Code of Conduct. This was last revised in September 2012.