Head Master: Robert MacDonald, M.Ed., B.A.
Telephone: (01242) 522086
Email: hm@richardpate.co.uk
Monday 7th September, 2009
Dear Parents,
The children have returned in fine form to the new term and we all look excitedly toward the school year in prospect. Our enrolment of 304 is most encouraging in the current climate and with growing waiting lists in many year groups we find ourselves in an enviable position locally. For the first time since my arrival three years ago we have not had extensive building works disrupting our summer holidays but we are delighted with the re-design of our Junior toilets and the new floor in the Nursery toilets seems to have rectified an on-going issue.
You should all have received a letter on Friday containing information about the Autumn Term calendar. Junior parents will also have received the clubs and activities list which covers this term’s offerings for Year 3 to 6. Finally our Year 6 parents will have received some very important information regarding entry to grammar schools and important dates for Independent Senior Schools and Open Days for various maintained schools.
Year 5 and 6 Parent Meeting : Our preparations will continue this week for our Year 6 children as they work towards their move on to Senior School. I will be meeting with them weekly to go over Verbal Reasoning and discuss the process involved with choosing the right senior school. We will also be holding a meeting for all Year 5 and 6 parents on Thursday 10th September at 7.00pm to discuss grammar school entry. This is an opportunity for me to discuss the process with you as a group and answer any questions you may have. I have invited Year 5 parents for the first time and also sent a copy of the Open Day dates as it sometimes helps to begin considering options a year early.
This is also the time of year where Year 6 parents book an appointment with me to discuss the specifics surrounding your child’s onward movement. We will discuss your wishes and what needs to be done to ensure we find the very best option for next September. Please phone Mrs. Minett to book your appointment as soon as possible.
School Times: As your children return to school we must all refresh our memories with important times of the day.
8.15am – 8.30am - Junior children can be left for early supervision on the netball courts
8.30am – 8.45am - Prep children supervised on the back playground
- Junior children supervised on the netball courts
8.45am - Prep and Junior children taken to classrooms - any child arriving late must report to the school office.
Collection is 3.30pm for Prep children and 3.40pm for Junior children. All children to be collected from individual exterior classroom doors. Prep children will be kept in their rooms until 3.45pm and Junior children until 3.55pm.
Car Park: The first week of school is inevitably a busy one in our car park as people become comfortable with the arrangements and clubs and activities have yet to begin. We do remind everyone that there is a one-way system in operation and that you must adhere to that system even if a dream parking space appears in the opposite direction. Patience, as always, is the most important component but simple instructions such as not speaking on mobile phones, not parking across the zebra crossing and obeying speed limits are all vitally important rules to obey.
We have also been made aware of a road closure effective from next Monday. It involves the lower end of the Old Bath Road and while it will not close the end of Southern Road it will have an impact on the journey to and from school. I have contacted the County Council but at the time of going to press with this newsletter I have not heard back from them. The closure apparently will be from the 14th to the 18th September and as soon as I have any further information I shall let you know.
After School Club: Our after school club is open to children from Nursery to Year 6 from Monday to Friday. You can book your child in by ringing Mrs. Minett before 12 noon on any given day. If you wish to book your child in on a regular basis you can also do that through Mrs. Minett. Our limit for after school is 30 children and we will stop accepting additional children once this number has been reached. The older children will stay in one of the Junior classrooms to complete their homework before joining the others for tea. The late club is run by our own teaching staff and ceases operation at 5.30pm. It is vital that your children are collected by 5.30pm.
Uniform: One of our collective frustrations centres around lost property and we once again ask for your assistance in ensuring everything is labelled and checked periodically throughout the year. We would also appreciate your assistance in reminding your children of the importance of looking after their own possessions. It is surprising how often the same children are responsible for the majority of lost property.
Curriculum Spotlight: We are still enjoying the wonderful memories which came from last term’s Creative Arts Focus. The splendid art work lives on throughout the school and for the vast majority of you the framed art work your child brought home is no doubt hanging proudly. The company which framed every piece is coming to collect the last 25 pieces so if you did not have an opportunity to purchase your child’s masterpiece you have one last chance.
This term our attention has turned to mathematics and Mrs. Penny Lewis and Mrs. Argyrou, our Maths Co-ordinators, have arranged a number of exciting activities. We will be working on activities throughout the term but will have a special focus week in October where we will welcome ‘Bubblz the Clown’ and the Happy Puzzle Company to take us through a variety of interactive Maths tasks. We will be gathering as a whole school community on the playing fields to launch 350 helium balloons. We will then track their progress to see which balloon covers the greatest distance. We also have a family Maths quiz which we hope you will get involved with as the term unfolds. We shall keep you fully informed of all the upcoming events but it promises once again to be an action packed focus.
Medical Information: As many of you will be aware from media reports the government’s strategy regarding swine flu has changed. The general consensus is that cases have become less severe and less frequent but also that the return to school will more than likely lead to an increase in both frequency and severity. We are also given to believe that school closures are far less likely. Our advice to you as parents is to keep your children home if they are exhibiting flu like symptoms. You do not need to keep their siblings away from school if they are not showing any visible symptoms. Should we receive any significant change to the advice we shall let you know. As always we recommend that regardless of the illness children should stay home until they are fully recovered or your GP has issued advice that it is sensible to return.
Communication: This first newsletter of the year is being sent out by pupil post and by e-mail. This is to ensure that everyone receives this important communication. Subsequent newsletters will not be sent to you by hardcopy. They will be available by e-mail and will appear on our website to download. You will also be alerted to its arrival by Clarion Call. Clarion Call is our text messaging service. It is an inexpensive means for us to communicate quickly and effectively with you about a range of issues. We have two levels of status for you as parents. One is ‘emergency only’ and this means you will only receive information about school closures and school trip delays. The second level means you will receive these vital texts but also general information texts which may remind you about newsletters or parent meetings. We do not abuse the system but we have been made aware by some parents that they only want vital information to reach them through this means. As a default you are all considered level 2 users. If you wish your status to be changed to emergency only please contact a member of the administrative team.
Important Staffing Announcement: It is with great mixed emotions that I announce two key retirements from our Richard Pate family effective from the end of the year. Mrs. Catherine Smith and Miss Mary Wright have both indicated that this will be their final year in teaching. I say mixed emotions because while their departure will leave a very big hole to fill here at the school I know they will both be entering exciting new chapters in their lives and as a friend I wish them both the very best as they embark on the many new challenges that await them. There will be many opportunities before the conclusion of this year to sing their praises but I will start by saying that both have been invaluable to me in my first three years of Headship and to the Richard Pate family for many more years than that. Miss Wright has developed our library into one of the finest in the county and has provided the most wonderful space to discover the joy of reading. In her role as Special Needs teacher she has helped countless children to work through the mysteries of learning in the most patient and caring of ways. She has combined the art of teaching and endless patience with a willingness to embrace technology and this combination has helped to make our Special Needs Department one of the finest I have ever had the pleasure to work alongside. Her boundless experience has been one of the most valuable resources any of our teachers has been able to call upon while her sense of fun will certainly be missed from the staff room.
Mrs. Smith has been a fixture at Richard Pate for more years than I am allowed to share but in that time has been an inspiration to so many children. As a deputy head and senior leader of our school she has been instrumental in charting the direction of the school for many years. Her experience in Special Educational Needs has seen her act as Coordinator of Special Needs for the Independent Association of Preparatory Schools and like Miss Wright an invaluable resource to teachers here at Richard Pate. She has managed to be a favourite among our parents, a true friend to members of staff and in the words of one of her recent pupils “whatever they’re paying her, it isn’t enough”. I think perhaps that says it all. To both Miss Wright and Mrs. Smith I would like to extend my personal thanks and the appreciation of the whole school for their significant contribution. The challenging search for their replacements will begin in January and we shall have a long list of requirements to fill the void.
As always we thank you for the privilege of educating your children. We look forward to another year of wonder and discovery and hope you will join us for as many events as possible during this term and throughout the year.
Yours sincerely,
Robert MacDonald
Headmaster