15 November 2024 - Letter to parents

Dear Parents and Carers,

I hope that you have had a great week. We have had a busy week, with lots of
activities in support of Anti-Bullying Week, such as a bake sale and Odd Socks Day,
plus a tutor programme, and assemblies, centred on this theme. We also marked
Remembrance Day, with a minute’s silence and a thoughtful speech from Mr Hurran,
on Monday.

Key Dates

• Year 11 Exams Prep Information Evening – Wednesday 26th March 6.15 – 7.45pm

Parent Subject Consultation Evenings
The dates for these through the year are as follows:
• Year 7 Parent Subject Consultation Evening – Thursday 3rd April 3.30 – 7pm
• Year 8 Parent Subject Consultation Evening – Thursday 5th December 3.30 – 7pm
• Year 9 Parent Subject Consultation Evening – Thursday 6th March 3.30 – 7pm
• Year 11 Parent Subject Consultation Evening – Thursday 13th February 3.30 – 7pm

Please also note the following date:
• Year 9 Options Evening – Thursday 27th February 5 – 7pm

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

There will also be a Revision Evening for Year 11 students and their parents/carers on
Wednesday 20th November – further details of this will be sent directly to Year 11
parents and carers shortly.

Festive Lunch – Wednesday 11th December

Deck the halls with Turkey and Gravy – It's time for Festive Lunch!
Featuring festive decor, music and a specially designed festive menu – we are
excited to announce that this year's Festive Lunch will take place on 11th December.
The menu is available on our website along with a full list of allergens and ingredients
here: School Meals (Parents & Carers menu tab)
On this day, there will be a reduced offering at break service and the only food
available at lunchtime will be the Festive Menu – no other food choices will be
available on this day. The hall will be decorated, we will have merry music, and the
students will get to eat festive lunch with their tutors and Year team to celebrate the
end of the year. The cost will be the same as a normal meal deal at £2.69.

Last Day of Term

The last day of term this year is Friday 20th December. Children will have morning
lessons, time with their tutor group and an assembly before leaving school in staggered
timings around lunchtime. Year 11s will leave first, and Year 7s last, by 12.35pm - please
note the earlier finish time. Christmas jumpers or own clothes, for those who may not
want to wear a Christmas jumper, may be worn on the last day of term.

Attendance

Congratulations to the following tutor groups for having the best attendance in each
year group this week!
7A1,8W2, 9A2, 10D1, 11D2
Friday 8th attendance winners were:
7A1, 7A2, 7W2 (all 100%!!) 8W1, 9W2, 10D1, 11D1,
Year 7 – Overall best attending year group
Dorchester- Overall best attending House
House points have been awarded to all students in the above Tutor Groups - keep up
the good work, everyone!

Meal Pricing

We wrote to you last week to let you know that the local authority has increased the
cost of a Meal Deal in the Kitchen to £2.69.
Student and Parent voice is always at the forefront of everything we do – following on
from some of the questions raised this week, we thought it best to clarify what is
contained within a Meal Deal.
A Meal Deal consists of:
- The main hot dinner, or a sandwich
- A plain bottle of water (not flavoured or Radnor Fizz)
- The ‘Dessert of the Day’ which is indicated on the menu board.
There are always other bakes, cakes and flavoured water items available, but these
would be charged separately.
Please be assured that we have heard your feedback, and we are working with the
kitchen provider to ensure that signage is clear and readily available in all areas to
support students with making smart choices.
This information has also been put into Tutor Notices this week, so students gain an
understanding of what is available to them.

Arbor Pay – Topping Up

We thought it would be useful for you to know it can take up to 24 hours for money
loaded onto Arbor to ‘show’ in the kitchen and be available for your child to access
these funds. We recommend topping up the night before if you can, to avoid the
balance being too low to make purchases.
If any student ever finds themselves with a balance too low to purchase lunch, please
encourage them to tell a member of staff; they are always available in the dining halls
to support or via student reception.

Year 11 Mocks

We have 3 school weeks until the Year 11 mock exams. Students are receiving
timetables next week, well in advance of the examinations, and we are launching our
revision support which includes tutor sessions, an assembly this week, discussing
revision strategies with our teaching staff and a parents information evening on
Wednesday 20th November. This is all part of our wider action plan to ensure Year 11
achieve the best set of results they can this year.

Exercise Books

We know exercise books are a great reflection on learning of students. We have been
working with our staff to ensure exercise books are of great quality – we would
encourage you to check through your child’s exercise books and pass on any
feedback you have.

Staff Success

Ms Stockley, one of our Sports and Health teachers, has been selected to represent
Great Britain in HYROX, an international sporting competition that combines
endurance running with functional fitness exercises. It consists of an 8-kilometer race,
with 8 unique workout stations such as sled pushes, rowing, burpees, and more. I am
sure you will want to cheer her on in June! We certainly will be at Orchard.

Measles

We have been notified by the Local Authority that there is a rising number of cases of
Measles within the Bristol area. Whilst we have had no notification of any confirmed or
suspected cases in our school community, we wanted Parents and Carers to be aware
that Measles is extremely infectious and, if your child is experiencing any of these
symptoms, please do not send them to school. They need to stay away from school for
4 days after the rash has appeared. Please read the factsheet that explains the signs
and symptoms, and which provides advice on prevention and how to arrange
immunisation. What to do if you think your child has measles and when to keep them
off school – The Education Hub

Community Events

Horfield Methodist Church invites our school community to its Christmas Fayre, on
Saturday 23rd December. More details can be read here: Christmas Fayre | Horfield
Methodist Church

Horfield Common Repair Cafe is running this Saturday 16th November at The Ardagh.
It’s free, and people are invited to bring along items in need of repair! Horfield
Common Repair Café - The Ardagh Community Trust

With best wishes,
Mel Sweet, Headteacher