Dear Parents,
Thank you to those parents who completed the Annual Trust Survey. I am pleased to say that at first glance, the results and feedback are very positive! I now have the task of analysing the feedback and will share the full results with you in due course.
Visual Arts Competition
Over half term children are invited to take part in the LAT Visual Arts Competition. The competition is open to all children who attend a LAT academy and prizes will be awarded to the winners in the following 2 categories: EYFS and KS1, and KS2. There is no theme for the competition so children can create whatever they like, including drawing, painting, sculpture, photograph, animation, digital, textiles and printmaking. Children wishing to enter must bring their entry in on our first day back after half term – Monday 24th February. I will not be able to accept late entries, so anything received on Tuesday onwards will not be entered.
Cricket Club
I am pleased to share that Calypso Cricket will be running our Cricket Club next term. Calypso Cricket Coaching was founded in 2020 in Maidstone. After a series of successful sessions and camps, the Calypso Cricket coaching model has grown all over Kent. The aim of Calypso is to give aspiring cricketers the chance to primarily learn how to hit the ball hard and long, bowl fast and take some stunning catches. Calypso Cricket aims to adapt the traditional idea of coaching cricket, building on the basics to coach the more entertaining aspects of the game, from the flamboyant shots to spinning it round corners. Calypso will be offering after school coaching sessions at Horsmonden on Thursdays and for more information and details of how to book, please follow the link.
Parents taking photographs
We really appreciate parents who generously volunteer their time to assist with school trips, in-school support, and Forest School. To ensure everyone is clear on the subject, I’d like to outline our expectations regarding parents taking photographs.
While parents are welcome to take photos for personal use at productions and assemblies, we ask that you refrain from doing so when volunteering to assist with school activities. When helping, your full attention needs to be on supporting the children. Furthermore, we have several children whose images cannot be shared on social media, making it difficult to ensure compliance when photos are taken during these times.
After School Club
We still have a vacancy for the right candidate to join our friendly staff team and work in our After School Club. It would be perfect for someone who would like to gain experience of working in schools with a view to becoming a teacher/teaching assistant in the future, plus the successful candidate would be off work during the school holidays! If you are interested in finding out more, please follow the link.
Dinner Selection Trial – All year groups
We have now rolled the dinner selection trial out to all parents and are keen to get your feedback on this. The system is new to us all and it is important to remember that there may be some teething problems. For this reason, if you have any feedback, I’d be grateful if you could share it with me or the school office team, so we can work together to find a solution.
To recap, using the ‘Dinner’ section on MCAS to pre-order your child’s lunch will reduce registration time in class and therefore increase teaching time. It will also support the catering team in reducing food wastage and ensure that meal selections can be met.
Orders can be placed up to one day beforehand but please note that it will not be possible to amend the choice in school, once made, so please discuss the choices with your child/children in advance. Currently, children can still choose a meal in school during registration, if no pre-selection is made, but this option will be phased out.
World Book Day
On Thursday 6th March we will be celebrating World Book Day and children are welcome to come into school dressed as a book character. They will take part in book related activities as well as being able to choose a book to take home, courtesy of FoHPS.
‘Chocolicious Bars’ are available to pre-order on MCAS and include a choice of milk chocolate/soy free. Children will be given their bars at the end of World Book Day and find out if they’ve won a prize. Winning prizes can be collected by parents after school. Please see the attached poster for more information about the amazing prizes to be won inside the bars!
As always, If you have any feedback, questions or queries, please do not hesitate to contact me. You could catch me on the gate in the morning/afternoon, email, or make an appointment at the school office.
Have a lovely half term and I look forward to seeing the children back on Monday 24th February.
Kind regards,
Hayley Sharp
2024-25 Diary Dates
Term 3
- Friday 14th February – INSET Day for Staff
Term 4
- Monday 24th February – Start of Term 4
- Thursday 27th February, 2:45pm – Online Safety Workshop for Parents
- Friday 28th March – Fabulous Females Afternoon, drop in between 2:15pm to 3:00pm
- Thursday 6th March – World Book Day
- Tuesday 11th March – Class Photos
- Wednesday 26th March – Parent Consultation Meetings, 3:30pm – 5:30pm
- Thursday 27th March – Parent Consultation Meetings, 3:30pm – 5:30pm
- Friday 4th April – FoHPS Easter Egg Hunt
- Friday 4th April – End of Term 4
Term 5
- Tuesday 22nd April – Start of Term 5 for children
- Monday 5th May – Bank Holiday, school closed
- Monday 12th May – Year 6 SATs Week
- Friday 23rd May – End of Term 5
Term 6
- Monday 2nd June – INSET Day for Staff
- Tuesday 3rd June – Start of Term 6 for children
- Saturday 7th June – FoHPS Summer Fair
- Friday 13th June – Marvellous Males Afternoon, drop in between 2:15pm to 3:00pm
- Wednesday 16th July – Year 6 Production, 2pm and 5:00pm
- Tuesday 22nd July, 2pm – Year 6 Leavers’ Assembly
- Tuesday 22nd July – End of Term 6