Friday 18th July 2014

Dear Parents/Carers,

Unbelievably, today marks my final edition of the newsletter as I prepare to leave the building one final time next Tuesday. Whilst I am excited about my new venture in Barnsley, leaving Cookridge is obviously an act that I undertake with sadness. It has been an absolute privilege to lead this wonderful school since 2011 and I am forever grateful for the opportunity to be a part of all of your lives, if only for a short while. I have worked with very many dedicated friends and colleagues whom I have admired greatly for their individual special qualities. I have worked alongside hardworking and dedicated governors. I have met wonderful parents whose support I have always been very grateful for. But most of all – I have met the most fantastic bunch of children I could ever have imagined and I will miss each and every one of them greatly in the months ahead. Cookridge children are unique, a fact that I recognised immediately I stepped into the building before even deciding to apply for the job! They are full of confidence, spirit and spark and their positive energy, enthusiasm for life and learning and their wonderful, warm friendliness fills the atmosphere. I have not taken very many ‘quiet’ walks around school during the past three years, for I have always been greeted with enthusiastic ‘hello’s’ and news of what they are up to. My office has never been a quiet sanctuary, for it has most often been bursting at the seams with children collecting their head teacher’s awards, again bursting with news of their success.  Even assemblies, notorious for their silence, have rarely been so at Cookridge, for I have loved hearing every tit-bit of news your children have shared with me throughout the years – even as they come into assembly in supposed ‘silence’! So, when I leave the building on Tuesday I do so with a great sense of pride in everything they have achieved and a great sense of certainty that your children will continue to fill that big old building with joy and laughter, will continue to charm the new staff beginning in September and will absolutely continue to be loved by the new staff team as they have been by us all – it is impossible not to! I have asked them to remember just one of the many things I have told them during the past three years for it is something I truly believe – our young people have the world at their feet and they can be whatever they want to be in life: the future is theirs to craft and I wish them every happiness in their individual journeys. Thank you so much for sharing your beautiful children with me. I wish you all my love and good luck for the future.

 

‘Be Brilliant’ Wednesday

Wednesday brought bright sunshine, balls, butterflies, bees, and hundreds of bikes to school; all with one intention - to raise awareness and funds for the Battens Disease Family Association. The exercise bike in the hall was busy all day with children desperately cycling away, clocking up the miles. We managed to cycle 44 miles in total which could get us all the way to Barnsley and BACK! The Pinnacle catering staff created some excellent 'B' fayre, there were burgers, brownies, bogies (just kidding!), and broccoli - all delicious and all part of a brilliant day. We collected money in buckets and sold buns for bunce, and we couldn't have done any of it without your contributions, so if you baked a bun, wore a wrist band, rode a bike, had a butterfly painted on your face then THANK YOU! Your hard work is much appreciated because we raised an incredible £707.94 for this wonderful cause, which is especially close to our hearts knowing and loving Ellie-Mae as we do, and welcoming Caleb to the crew in September, too. One million thanks to Miss Hobson and Mr Gamble for being their brilliant selves and bringing FUN to Cookridge all day on Wednesday, to the entire staff team who helped the day go with a bang and thank you to you all for joining in this fun event, giving freely your buns and pennies and showing your support to a family in your community  – you were truly brilliant. Congratulations to Ali Adoul who won the £30 love to shop vouchers and to Hannah Stratton who won the family museum ticket.

Universal Free School Meals

From September all children in Reception, Y1 and Y2 are entitled to enjoy a school meal completely free of charge as part of the Government initiative announced last year. This is great news as we know how good the quality of our school dinners is and would love more children to enjoy them! If you would like your child/children to continue or to start to have a school meal in September please return the slip sent out 20th June to the office. If we do not receive your slip or a note we will presume you require a PACKED LUNCH.School meal prices for the rest of school have a slight increase to £2.00 (Year 3 & 4) and £2.05 (Year 5 & 6) per day. If you have any dinner monies outstanding, please settle by Tuesday so you can start the new school year afresh. Thank you.

 

FREE Family Fun summer sessions

If you are looking for places to go during the long summer break, look no further. The Family Fun sessions below include outdoor games, building and making things and lots more! No booking needed - just come along and join the fun! Further information is available on ESNW website: esnwcluster.co.uk​

 
Session 1 Wednesday, 23rd July 1 -3 at Holy Name Primary School

Session 2 Wednesday 30th July 1-3 at Holt Park, off Farrar Lane

Session 3 Wednesday 6th August 1 -3 at Ralph Thoresby School

Session 4 Wednesday 13th August 1 -3 at Silk Mill Bank

Session 5 Wednesday 20th August 1-3 at Ralph Thoresby School

 

Sports News

Y5/6 Rounders - Last night some pupils from Year 5/6 competed in a rounders competition at Ireland wood Primary School where we finished second. There were some superb batting skills on display with Mackenzie Turner, Liam Jones, Matty Caines, Nathan Brown and Matthew Hampshire all hitting numerous rounders throughout the event. Willow Driscoll-Duke proved a fantastic bowler (with less than 24hours notice) and Sophie Russell was a reliable fielder who manned third base expertly. Charlotte Shields and Cecy Mwashako also fielded well, with a super catch each and overall it was a fantastic team effort in stifling heat. Thank you to all the parents who turned up and supported the children in the event, it really does make competitions that bit more special for each child!

 

Across the course of this year, sports at Cookridge really has become a very strong feature of our school and I have two people to thank for that: Mr Gamble and Mrs Woods have formed a formidable team and have offered very many opportunities for our pupils to compete in local competitions. They are currently taking delivery of brand spanking new kit for our competitors to wear at events and I am confident that, under their leadership, sports will continue to flourish. Many thanks to both of them for the enthusiasm they bring to this aspect of school and for the hours invested in your children’s sporting endeavours.

 

Dates

Please make use of next year’s term dates, available on the website, when booking holidays for the year ahead:  http://www.cookridgeprimaryschool.org.uk/parents/school-calendar.php . Let me also remind you of the training days set for the coming year:

Monday 1st September 2014

Tuesday 2nd September 2014

Friday 24th October 2014

Thursday 2nd April 2015

Friday 26th June 2015

 

So, once we break up on Tuesday, pupils return to school on Wednesday 3^rd September after a long and sunny summer (fingers crossed!)

 

Next Week…

Just a couple of key events next week (phew!) with Monday’s Leavers Coffee Morning 9-10 (please come along if you can) and Leavers Lunch with the children (featuring an extra special, secret surprise!)

 

Tuesday is all about Y6 as they prepare to leave Cookridge behind them for their next adventure. Leavers Assembly begins at 2pm on Tuesday 22^nd July. It will be a sad day as we wave off this bunch of fantastic young people... My final line in my final newsletter at Cookridge is dedicated to you guys: you have been incredible and I have never been more proud of anyone than I am of you lot as you set sail for pastures new: good luck, you motley crew! ;0)

 

Have a wonderful weekend,

Sam Bailey

Friday 11th July 2014

Dear Parents/Carers,

This week has been a strange one, with the children in the building for three of the five days… A school is just a building without the kids so it was wonderful to have them back today!

 

Rocking and Rolling…

On Wednesday, the whole school was literally rocking as we welcomed the Artforms Brass Band into school. The sound really was immense and several of the children – and staff – were up at the front showing their moves! Senorita Castero really can rock it! Thanks to our wonderful Mrs Fletcher for organising all of the musical performances this year – a great addition to the music curriculum, fully appreciated by us all.

 

Standards Report

This week, we finally received back our Y6 SAT results and I am now in a position to share with you the key headlines of our achievements this year. I’m going to get statistical for a while, so bear with me….

 

ü  Our end of Reception outcomes are up 20% on last year’s outcomes at 72%, and up 20% from our starting points in 2011, despite the introduction of a more challenging Foundation Stage Curriculum and Assessment Framework introduced last year….

ü  Y1 Phonics Screening Test outcomes are an astonishing 98%. This is a test which was introduced in 2012, and we have consistently performed above all schools nationally (around 70%) in this test. This incredibly strong performance in this area underpins our rapid improvements in KS1 reading and writing outcomes....

ü  Our Y2 outcomes are phenomenal. 98% of pupils secured a national expectations (2b+) in reading and maths, and 91% in writing. Again, this is significantly above national outcomes and a 100% improvement on our position before 2011, when broadly 50% of pupils secured national expectations. We are also thrilled that an incredible 37% of pupils have secured the higher benchmark of L3b+ in reading, and 21% in maths. The proportion of pupils securing these higher outcomes has therefore increased by around 20% during the past three years….

ü  Progress in Years 3, 4 and 5 is consistently good in reading, writing and maths. Higher proportions of pupils than ever before are operating comfortably at L3 and L4 and continue to make good progress towards higher L5 outcomes. Our Y6 2015 outcomes are therefore predicted to be above 90% L4+ for the first time ever….

ü  Our Y6 outcomes are also astonishing. 83% of our pupils secured L4+ outcomes in the reading test, with 21% at Level 5, 81% secured L4+ in writing, with 24% securing L5+ and 79% secured L4+ outcomes in maths, with 33% securing L5+.  AND that’s not all….. Last year, we secured our first ever Level 6 outcome in maths (equivalent to GCSE Grade ‘C’). This year, FIVE pupils achieved this phenomenal feat in maths, and we also secured our first two Level 6 outcomes in the Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar test. These outcomes are remarkable and reflect the incredible tenacity of this very fine bunch of Y6 pupils. At the end of their Y2, just 42% achieved national expectations in reading, 32% in writing and 53% in maths. This cohort’s collective achievements, then, mark the kind of transformation that school is all about - with staggering progress between Y2 and Y6. We are obviously immensely proud of them all and cannot commend their temerity highly enough…. Having taught Y6 pupils for around 10 years – I can honestly say I have never met a finer bunch of young people.

 

It is obviously important to recognise the collective achievements of a staff team whose team work, determination and stamina during the past three years has led to a great story of success for individual pupils. This is not about the school headlines – this is about the fact that our pupils walk taller for their achievements, and truly believe that they have the world at their feet.  That is what makes this job the best in the world. Thank you to everyone who has given their all this year (staff, pupils, parents…) and long may this story continue…

 

Reports

Whilst the above headlines are all about the achievements of cohorts, this evening you have received your child’s report which details their individual journey this year. During the past week, I have enjoyed reading every one of the 320 reports painstakingly crafted by our teachers – I hope that you enjoy them half as much as I have! Please share them with your child and be sure they know how proud you are.

 

Staffing Vacancy

Pinnacle are looking to recruit a kitchen assistant to begin work in September. The role is Monday to Friday TTO 11.30am to 1.30pm. If you are interested – please contact Mrs Chappel via the school office.

 

BOOKS PLEASE!

Can I please appeal to you all to have a good scout around the house to locate any books belonging to school. At this time of year, we begin collecting and sorting book stock for the coming year and would therefore appreciate it if you could return all books to the building as soon as possible.

 

Next Week…

Is our last full school week together before the summer holidays!  There is something exciting happening every, single day!

Monday 14th July BIKE TO SCHOOL WEEK.   Y5/6 LIGHTWATER VALLEY DAY.

Tuesday 15th July Rec/KS1: Elsa’s Summertime Ball event – REC/KS1 PARENTS WELCOME.

Wednesday 16th July ‘B Brilliant for the Brownnutt’s’ event

Thursday 17th July The Railway Children – theatre production (pm).

Friday 18th July Sports Day.

 

Don’t forget ‘B Brilliant’ Wednesday! Remember:

®     Bring spare change for the buckets

®     Bike to school for the week

®     Bring £1 and wear ‘B’ themed non-uniform

®     Bake buns and donate them to a massive bun sale (don’t forget to bring your pennies!)

®     Cheer on the biking events – how far can we go in the hall bike-athon? How will YOU do on the ‘Bumbling on Bikes’ cycling course?

®     Enjoy your ‘B’ themed lunch!

 

Sports Day is next Friday. Parents/carers are warmly welcomed to cheer us on! Reception and Key Stage 1 Sports Day is to be held during the morning with a 9:00am start. Parents/carers can drop their child of as usual and then make their way to the field to find a good seat! Key Stage 2 Sports Day is to be held in the afternoon with a 1:00pm start time. Parents/carers should arrive from 12:45pm and use the side gate to gain access to the field.

 

Garden ‘Drop-in’

Mrs Holmes continues to do a wonderful job in the garden area: the difference between Easter and now is simply staggering. She invites parents/carers to bob in to the allotment for a walk-about at hometime next Friday. If you’ve never seen this area of our school – you should! 

 

Coffee Morning

I’m having a final fandango for my loyal coffee morning attendees over the years! I’ll put the kettle on at 9am on Monday 21^st July – if you have an hour to spare for an old friend, please come along to the hall… All staff who are leaving at the end of this school year will also be there so if it’s not only me you want to say your farewells to – please take this opportunity to wish our fabulous staff well!

 

Have a wonderful weekend,

Sam Bailey

Friday 4th July 2014

Dear Parents/Carers,

This week has been busy with plenty of celebration around attendance. A record 66 of our children took ‘the bus’ to the movies yesterday, watching a film of their choice as just reward for being in school every day. Today, we celebrated our magnificent achievement as a school - having hit our target 96% for the year - by enjoying our first ‘Golden Day’ – a fun day of Bouncy Castles and adventure. We’ve had a ball….

 

Strike Day

As you will be aware, the National Union of Teachers (NUT), UNISON, GMB, Unite and UCATT, have voted to hold a strike on 10^th July. This action is being taken as part of a campaign against proposals to make changes to public sector pay, working conditions and pensions provisions going forwards. We have undertaken a risk assessment based on the number of staff that will be participating in the strike on the 10^th July and a decision has been made to close the school. I am sorry for the inconvenience this inevitably causes but I am sure you will appreciate the health, safety and wellbeing of our pupils is paramount.

Those of you keeping abreast of the very busy events schedule this half term will notice the 10^th July was the date we had set for Sports Day this year. This has now been re-scheduled for Friday 18^th July and we hope to see you there.

Staff Leaver’s Party!

All children are invited to join with us in having a fabulous party lunch on Monday 21^st July. We plan a marvellous finger buffet spread, with all kinds of tasty treats to allow us all to have a wonderful party lunch the day before we break for the summer, and a number of staff move on. All pupils taking school meals will enjoy this feast! Those pupils eating a packed lunch will of course be able to join in with the fun, but if you would like your child to have a school dinner on that day as a one-off celebration, please complete and return the slip below by Friday 11^th July so that we can get the catering right at this very special event!

 

Friends update

Last night, our wonderful Friends met for the final time this school year to take account of the fantastic year of fundraising and events they have managed. There was much to talk about, and many plans afoot for the year ahead and the group have reached their fundraising target of £8,000 accrued over the last two years. There will be a brand new piece of playground equipment in the playground during the first two weeks of the summer holiday – largely paid for due to the extra funds raised by this very small but very powerful group. Many thanks to the Friends group who have done a magnificent job once again, and to you for taking part in all of the events organised! We hope your children enjoy the fruits of all of our labours in September!

 

We have some unclaimed raffle wins from the Summer Fair:

390 and 389 (Luke Hall)

Erin number 235 (Erin)

67 (A Lister)

178 (Ryan)

 

Be Brilliant for the Brownnutts

Wednesday 16^th July is a very special day! We are having a 'Be Brilliant for the Brownnutts' day. Ellie Mae is in Reception and her little brother Caleb will be joining Reception in September. During the year we have known the family, both Ellie Mae and Caleb have been diagnosed with Battens Disease – a devastating condition. This family are incredible. Whilst coming to terms with this themselves, Mr and Mrs Brownnutt have been very active in raising money for the Battens Disease Family Association (http://www.bdfa-uk.org.uk/), an organisation that provides support for the families of children with Battens Disease. To lend our support - we're organising a day of 'B' themed events – bikes, buckets, buns, buckets…yep, come on let's BE BRILLIANT!

 

So, here's what we're going to do (and what we need YOU to do!):

®     Each morning and at home time we will be shaking 'Buckets for the Brownnutts' for parents/carers to contribute spare change.

 

®     Bring £1 for non-uniform… Wear something ‘B’ – brown, beige, burnt orange… Baggy? Children are to pay £1 for the privilege – all of which goes straight into the buckets… The Batten's Disease Family Association even sells t-shirts, ribbons, wristbands etc. Follow this link to go shopping http://www.bdfa-uk.org.uk/shop

®     As this event coincides with ‘Bike to School’ week, children who come to school using their bike (or any other kind of wheels!) will raise money as they cross the school gateway: We will literally PAY them to come to school all week – putting funds raised into a big old bucket… Children who come to school using their wheels will also have their names put into a hat for a raffle that will drawn at the end of the week -  first prize is a £30 Love-To-Shop voucher, and second prize is a family trip to Thackeray Medical Museum.

®     We will be having a classic Cookridge Bun Sale with buns being sold at playtime and after school. Any donations of buns for the day will be much appreciated – bake every bun with love, that’s the condition!

®     We will be running a day long bike ride, using an exercise bike positioned in the hall it will be our job to keep those wheels turning all day long! If you’re impressed – bung some change in the bucket!

®     There will be a 'Bumbling on the Bikes' cycling course which all children will be invited to have a go at, throughout the day… Anything could happen!

®     School meals people will enjoy a 'B' themed lunch (burgers, baked potatoes, brownies etc)

 

Anything you do to lend your support across the week will be much appreciated. It’s not all about the money – it’s about the fun, raising awareness of the cause and sending our love to this wonderful family. My heartfelt thanks to the brilliant Miss Hobson and Mr Gamble for organising the day: I’m sure it will be brilliant! 

 

Next week…

Please remember – school is closed to pupils on Monday due to the teacher training day, and on Thursday due to strike action. A short school week next week then, but plenty to squeeze in nonetheless! Exciting Class Swap day on Tuesday - don’t forget to pop in after school to meet your child’s new teacher.

Monday 7th  July TRAINING DAY – SCHOOL CLOSED.

Tuesday 8th July Class Swap Day – all children to new classes.   2pm Y6 Production – Y6 PARENTS WELCOME.   3.15 Meet the Teacher welcome meetings for parents.   6pm Y6 Production – Y6 PARENTS WELCOME

Wednesday 9th July Brass Wind Musical Concert (pm)

Thursday 10th July STRIKE DAY – SCHOOL CLOSED.     (Sports Day rescheduled for Friday 18th July.)

Friday 11th  July Y2 Skipping Festival.   REPORTS OUT TO PARENTS.

 

Have a wonderful weekend,

Mrs Bailey