Dear parents/ carers,
As you will probably be aware, next Wednesday 5th July and Friday 7th July have been identified by the National Education Union (NEU) as the next days of industrial action in their pay and funding campaign.
Members of the NEU are not obliged to let us know in advance of their intentions, but our staff have been co-operative and kind enough to offer this information so that you know what our situation is and that if needed, you can make alternative arrangements for childcare for the day.
The classes so far where the teacher has given advance notice of strike action is:
Wednesday 5th July
Classes that will be closed:
Class 6 Mrs Marsden
Class 7 Mrs Yates (afternoon only)
Class 8 Miss Fabregas
Friday 7th July
Class 10 Mrs Harrison
If there are any changes or any other teachers decide to strike we will let you know as soon as possible.
Staff appreciate the inconvenience the action will cause and for that send their apologies. We would like to assure our school community that this is not a decision our teachers have taken lightly.
Class Organisation 2023-2024
Dear Parents and Carers,
We would like to update you on our transition arrangements for the next academic year.
Prior to the covid pandemic, we mixed classes each year so that our pupils experienced a wider range of friendships and class dynamic.
After giving this much consideration we have decided to go back to this arrangement .
The teachers have worked together and dedicated a lot of time to creating new class lists and have made sure that children are in classes with at least one friend.
During lesson time, the children will be focused on their learning. At play times and lunch times they will all have the opportunity to mix with their peer groups. This means that they will get at least 1 hour 15 mins to socialise with whoever they wish.
We have a transition morning planned on 10th July where your children will get to meet their new teacher, classmates and members of staff in the classroom.
On that day your child will come home with a letter which will confirm which class they are in.
Please know that all of this has been very carefully considered and we are asking that you trust us to make this work for your child.
Thank you for your support.
We are experiencing a power cut in school. Work is going on on Fairfield Rd in order to resolve the problem but it is not due to be fixed until at least 4pm.
This means that our gates and phone lines are not working.
We have manually opened the vehicle entrance/ exit which is the only way to get in and out of school.
Can parents arrive from 3pm and go to classroom doors. We will let children go as soon as you arrive to allow a steady flow.
Children who normally walk home alone through the back gate will be accompanied by a member of staff to the back gate from leaving the main entrance.
Can all pupils from year 4 and below be collected from classroom doors please.
Members of staff will be at the vehicle access.
For the safety of our pupils and families no staff / deliveries / parent vehicles permitted between 3.00-3.30.
For any urgent communication with the school office:
cbasir@southparade.wakefield.sch.uk
Thank you for your patience and understanding.
Following the devastating, untimely and tragic death of our lovely Freya, we have been in discussions with her family about creating a space that will ensure Freya's memory lives on at South Parade.
Freya was passionate about nature, wildlife and gardening. Therefore we feel that it is wholly appropriate to dedicate our already wonderful pond area, to make it even better, and make it a space that all our children in school will be able to access and enjoy.
We will name this space 'Freya's Garden.'
We will be moving forward with this project in conjunction with Froglife (a national wildlife charity). Darren from the charity has been to visit and has thankfully agreed to work with us on this.
He said:
The pond we have is already a fabulous resource for wildlife, with lots of frogs and newts already living there!
It would definitely benefit from some cleaning out and removal of vegetation to create more open water. As discussed this would be best done during the winter period (November to January) to minimise disturbance to amphibians.
There is so much potential to improve that area of the grounds and make a lasting legacy for Freya and a real positive impact on local wildlife.
The project would include:
Looking forward to seeing what we can achieve together.
Darren
Froglife may be able to fund some of the project, however in order to make this happen we are asking for your support with donations. I know we had lots of our families and people in the local community asking if we were collecting donations for anything at school following Freya's death, but we wanted to make sure we had a clear plan in place to make it the best possible dedication for Freya's memory.
Here are the details in order to make an online donation:
South Parade Primary School Fund A/C
05-06-56
31238621
Ref: Freya’s Garden
If you would prefer, please feel free to send in a cash donation.
On behalf of everyone at South Parade and Freya's family we thank you for your support.
In order to make our annual Summer Fayre a success we need your help! Thank you so much for the donations so far, we are asking for your support with more please!
We are holding a non-uniform day next Friday (23rd June) in exchange for a summer fayre donation.
Nursery, Class 1 and Class 2: Bring packets of sweets
Class 3, Class 4, Class 6 and Class 7: Bring a bottle (alcohol, pop, shampoo etc.)
Class 8 and 9: Bring a bottle, tombola item or teddy
Class 10, Class 11, Class 12: Bring a tombola item
Class 13, Class 14 and Class 15: Bring a teddy
Please feel free to donate more items than stated!
Thank you so much for your support.
Please can we ask that children adhere to our school uniform policy.
We are seeing an increase in children wearing clothes that are not school uniform such as different coloured shorts and hoodies, and very short shorts etc.
PE kit may be worn on PE days only. This should include black shorts, leggings or tracksuit bottoms and a white t-shirt. Also a plain black hoodie (without a logo).
School uniform on the days where there is no PE session should include grey skirt/trousers/shorts or summer dress, a white polo shirt and blue jumper/cardigan (with or without logo).
We do appreciate that the weather at the moment is particularly warm. Some children choose to wear cycling shorts under their skirt or summer dress which is absolutely fine to do so. For children that normally wear trousers, until the end of the summer term we will accept black cycling shorts as part of the uniform. These must be at least mid-thigh length please.
Please note that sandals are not to be worn to school.
When it comes to buying new uniform, please remember our uniform bank where we appreciate donations of uniform in very good condition.
Thank you for your co-operation.
Just a polite reminder about our 'School Streets' scheme. This is where we have in place a Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) with Wakefield Council. This is to restrict traffic at school drop-off and pick-up times on Westwood Road/Queens Walk.
Westwood Road and Queens Walk are closed to all traffic (with exception of permit holders and emergency vehicles) from 8.35am-9.05am and 3.05-3.35 daily.
Thank you for your cooperation and for helping everyone to stay safe.
Summer Fayre 12th July
We are looking forward to our summer fayre after school on 12th July.
We have lots of exciting stalls planned for you to come along to.
In order for this event to be a success we need your help please!
We are asking for you to bring in the following items over the next few weeks please:
Teddy bears/ soft toys
Toys and games
Sweets
Tombola items
Candles
New and unused toiletries - bath, shower items etc.
Thank you for your support. We really appreciate it.
The Uniform Bank
We are very pleased to let you know that our uniform bank is well stocked. We have many items that are like new. Please pop to the school office if you would like any uniform items for now or or if you are thinking ahead for September. Or if you would prefer, please use the email address: uniform@southparade.wakefield.sch.uk
We can for you to discreetly collect the items or send them home with your child - whichever you would prefer.
Everything is catalogued and organised into age groups.
Thank you so much for your kind donations, this is greatly appreciated. Please feel free to donate any items to our uniform bank that are in very good condition.
This is a discreet, free service for any family that requires any assistance with uniform items. It is there to be used! Please do so.
Thank you.