ferncumbe friday

Friday 13th September 2019

Welcome back!

It has been an incredibly busy start to the new term and everyone has returned refreshed and ready to start another year of exciting learning. It is always lovely to hear how the children have enjoyed the summer holiday and are settling into their new classrooms. Reception children have joined The Ferncumbe Family and are making a really positive start.

This year our Learning Support Assistants are working with children, and supporting learning across a variety of year groups.

Hatton Class (Reception) - Mrs Stephenson and Mrs MacKintosh

Haseley Class (Year 1) - Miss Forbes

Honiley Class (Year 2) - Miss Grubb

Rowington Class (Year 3) - Miss Reid

Shrewley Class (Year 4) Mrs White and Mrs Eaves

Wroxall Class (Year 5) Mrs Grier and Mrs Foss

Lowsonford Class (Year 6) Ms Houlihan and Mr Upton

marle hall residential

This week Lowsonford Class have had a fantastic time at Marle Hall in North Wales. From canoeing and rock climbing to the 'B.L.T.' and sea level traversing, they have faced every adventurous challenge that has come their way with determination, enthusiasm and confidence, attributes we hope to see in abundance as they progress through the coming year. Miss Morris, Mr Bladon and Mr Kitney, who are accompanying the children, assure me that there has been a tremendous team spirit throughout the week.

‘Meet the teACHER’ INFORMATION EVENINGS

A reminder that on Wednesday 18th September 2019 there will be the chance to visit your child(ren)’s classroom(s) and listen to a presentation by teachers regarding important information for the academic year 2019-2020 There will be two slots from which to choose (6.15pm and 7pm), which will allow you to visit more than one year group if needed.

We look forward to welcoming as many parents as possible as there will be lots of sharing of information, and the opportunity to ask questions.

Hatton Class parents, as communicated earlier in the week, please note that Reception’s ‘Meet the Teacher’ evening is unfortunately postponed to Wednesday 2nd October at 6pm.

The Friends have been busy organising our annual barbeque which will take place at the end of next week, Friday 20th September, from 5.30 - 7.30pm on the school playground. This fantastic event is always extremely well attended. It is such a pleasure to catch up with members of the Ferncumbe Family, both old and new. I hope to see you there!

UPCOMING DIARY DATES

May I remind you to refer to the bottom of the home page on the website for an interactive calendar of important dates throughout the academic year. These dates include INSET days, term dates, etc.

inset day

Please note that there will be an INSET day on Friday 20th December.

friends of ferncumbe news

Welcome to the new school year. Once again Friends have lots of events planned to raise funds for the school. We are starting the year with the annual Friends of Ferncumbe BBQ on Friday September 20th from 17:30 to 19:30. This is a great event for meeting new friends and catching up with old ones. There will be a BBQ, refreshments and a raffle. We look forward to seeing you there.

AGM Thursday 26th September 8pm in The Falcon

Our AGM is taking place on 26th September. We have a committee set up to run the Friends Association (our school PTA) and many of you already volunteer to help run events throughout the year. We are looking for new members to join the committee and help us with our fund raising efforts. If you are interested, please come along to join us. For more information, email thefriendsofferncumbe@gmail.com

We currently have a vacancy for Chair Person. Please let us know if you would be interested in taking on this role. You will be fully supported by the rest of the committee.

Finally, if you are on Facebook did you know that Friends have a page on there with regular updates on events, ways you can help us raise money and other useful information about school life? You can find us at The Friends of Ferncumbe.

note regarding bus passes

Please do ensure that your child has their bus pass with them next week as we have been told that the drivers will be checking them. We are fully aware that some passes have not yet arrived and in that case bus chaperones have a list of children entitled to a bus pass.

We undertand that occasionally children travel on the bus for a play date or other reason, but if the bus is full and the child has no entitlement to a pass then they may unfortunately not be guaranteed a seat.

message from chair of governors

For some of you receiving this start of term’s newsletter, your children are new to Reception and you indeed may be new as parents to Ferncumbe. The staff, Governors and I offer our warmest welcome to you.

For many of you, the start of this Autumn term is yet another year at Ferncumbe with yet more for your children to learn, to experience, and new challenges with our talented and hard working staff under the leadership from Sally Morris and Tracey Webb. My recollection of what it was like many years ago when my own children were at this stage, is that it is as demanding on you as parents as it is for the children! I wonder whether you are ever tempted to occasionally remind them of this?

We will shortly be holding an election for a new Parent Governor. The Governing Body plays a really important role in the life of the school, in being accountable for oversight of how well the school is performing, spending its money and in setting the school’s objectives. I would urge you to watch out for when the details of this election are announced, in case you wish to stand; in addition, if you have an urge to help the school achieve its aims and give your children the best education, please make contact with me at chair3210@welearn365.com or with Miss Morris or Mrs Webb. We are always on the lookout for actively interested parents to serve and also specific skills like Finance, IT and interest in subjects such as Special Needs.

There will be something different in the way Ferncumbe is led this term. Because the Governors have agreed to consider proposals for Ferncumbe becoming an Academy, Miss Morris will be stepping away from the day-to-day running of the school for two days a week to concentrate on developing these proposals. Mrs Webb will take responsibility as Head of School on those days. This arrangement is similar to one that successfully existed a little over a year ago when Miss Morris was Director of Primary Education at Aylesford Primary School.

Finally, I took over as Chair of the Governors in the last days of the summer term and I will, with Miss Morris and Mrs Webb’s help, ensure I can be available at certain parent events in case anyone wishes to speak to me or ask any questions.

Let me finish as I began in welcoming all our children and their parents to the start of the Ferncumbe 2019/20 academic year.

Best wishes
David Lane

Birthday Celebrations

This year we would ask you to consider celebrating your child’s birthday, in school, by donating a book.

Rather than sweet treats, your child can share their favourite story with their teacher and classmates. The book will then be dedicated to your child and placed in their class library. This legacy will be enjoyed by other children for years to come.

If you would like some book suggestions please talk to your child’s teacher or Mrs Reid.

With very best wishes for a lovely weekend,

Tracey Webb, Head of School

Newsletter Issue 1