05 December 2025 - Letter to Parents

5th December 2025

Dear Parents and Carers,

We have had a great week at Orchard School, with the absolute highlight being our Paris residential trip this week. Pupils have visited Brie Market, the Sacre Coeur, the Eiffel tower and Disneyland as well as taking part in a boat trip. We can’t wait to hear all about it next week! Next week, we have our school show, Aladdin, which we are all looking forward to immensely.

Key Dates

There are some important dates to be aware of this term. Please make sure you put these dates in your diary.

Year 10 Mock Exam Information Evening – Wednesday 20th May 6- 7pm   

Parent Subject Consultation Evenings

The dates for these through the year are as follows:

Year 7 Parent Subject Consultation Evening – Thursday 23rd April 3.30 – 7pm  

Year 8 Parent Subject Consultation Evening – Thursday 11th December 3.30 – 7pm   

Year 9 Parent Subject Consultation Evening – Thursday 19th March 3.30 – 7pm  

Year 11 Parent Subject Consultation Evening – Thursday 12th February 3.30 – 7pm  

Please also note the following date: 

Year 9 Options Evening – Thursday 26th February 6 – 7.30pm  

To help parents and children decide together which options subjects/GCSEs they might choose to take over the next two years in school.  

Teaching and Learning/Curriculum

Next week we see the continuation of mock exams. As with last summer we are absolutely thrilled with how well the students are doing in their exams themselves. The schedule itself is here Orchard School - Exams, Assessment and Reporting and one of the big revision techniques we are pushing is the use of flashcards. A flashcard has a basic prompt or question on one side, and an answer on the other. Students use these to quiz themselves.

Safeguarding

Barnardo’s Support for Parents

Barnardo’s provides a wide range of services to help parents and carers manage the challenges of family life. Their support includes:

Parenting guidance and resources – Practical advice on everyday parenting challenges, from routines to behaviour management.

Safety and wellbeing support – Help for families worried about issues such as online safety, domestic abuse, exploitation, or substance misuse.

Specialist programmes – Tailored support such as the Cygnet Programme for parents of autistic children, offering strategies and peer connection.

Family support projects – Local services that strengthen parenting capacity, improve family wellbeing, and provide help during times of crisis.

Financial and practical advice – Guidance for families struggling with the cost of living or other pressures.

Barnardo’s works across the UK to ensure children grow up safe, happy, and hopeful, while giving parents the tools and confidence to support them.

Festive Lunch

We are pleased to announce our Festive Lunch menu which will take place on Wednesday 17th December. The day looks slightly different for our students as we have a longer lunch time so that each year group can eat with their Year Team and staff; we start lunch earlier and finish slightly later. It's always a well-attended event with lots of decorations and sparkle, Christmas music and lots of cheer. There will be a reduced break menu option on this day to support the kitchen in the increased numbers for lunchtime and this will be the only menu option on this day. The cost of the meal remains at £2.77 for the full menu including a bottle of water. Orchard staff cannot wait to celebrate with our students; please ensure you talk about this with your children and ensure they have money on their lunch account the day before (please remember it takes 24 hours to funds to appear) to take part! For children in receipt of free school meals, this will be their meal option for the day.

Clubs – Term 2

Please remember to encourage your child to sign up to one of our brilliant lunchtime or after school clubs. They’re a great way for them to meet new friends, learn new skills and make lasting memories. Orchard School - Clubs and Enrichment

Attendance

We are really proud of how our students have engaged with the start of the punctuality to school refresh this week. Thanks for all of your support with ensuring students arrive by 8.20am each day. Students need to keep on coming in every day to be in for a chance to win some end of term prizes. Being on time too will get you extra entries!

At this time of year and at the end of term, there is sometimes a misconception that lessons slow down and therefore time in school is less important. We want to remind and reassure you that this is not the case. Lesson and curriculum delivery happens right up until the end of term and each day over the next few weeks is just as important as the days preceding.

It was 8W2 and 7W1 who topped last week’s attendance leaderboard, so well done to all!

Belonging

Next week, Mr Ripley is running an interhouse football competition. This will be for Years 7 and 8 after school next Wednesday 10th and Years 9 and 10 on Tuesday 16th December, also after school. No sign up is required and all are welcome. There are also lots of other great clubs running as usual.

Mince Pies with the SEND team, supported by Bristol Family Hubs - Reminder

Parents and carers of our SEND students are invited into school on Tuesday 9th December between 3.30pm and 4.30pm, to meet the SENDCo, Deputy SENDCo and other members of the SEND team. There will be tea, coffee and mince pies, with a chance to chat with other SEND parents/carers as well as staff. We’re pleased that members of Bristol Family Hubs will also be joining us. We hope to see some of you there!

Community Events

Improving NHS Mental Health Services for Men.

Ebenezer Church is hosting a forum on Monday 8th December, 10am- 1pm for members of the community to discuss this topic. Access to mental health support for men can often be a challenge; this event is about addressing these issues and creating change. Visit the eventrbite page to sign up.

The Ardagh on Horfield Common is hosting two family events on 13th December: a Christmas Food and Craft Market, and Santa’s Woodland Grotto. See their website for details.

Wishing you a lovely weekend.

With best wishes,

Mel Sweet, Headteacher