27 September 2024 - Letter to parents

Dear Parents and Carers,

I hope that you have had a great week. We were so pleased to see so many prospective parents and carers at our open evening on Wednesday; we are thrilled that Orchard is the school of choice for so many in our community. We had lovely feedback from parents and carers, especially relating to the kindness of staff, how impressive our Student Ambassadors were and what great facilities we have. If you missed it, but want to find out more, contact Mr Grafton via info@orchard.tila.school.

Key Dates

There are some important dates to be aware of this term.

From September we have Parent & Carer Information Evenings arranged for each year group. Please make sure you put these dates in your diary.

• Year 8 Parents’ Information Evening – Thursday 3 October 6.15 – 7.45pm

• Year 9 Parents’ Information Evening – Thursday 10 October 6.15 – 7.45pm

• Year 11 Planning for Success Evening – Tuesday 1 October 4pm – 6pm This is by invitation only

• Year 11 Exams Prep Information Evening – Wednesday 26 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 3 April 3.30 – 7pm

• Year 8 Parent Subject Consultation Evening – Thursday 5 December 3.30 – 7pm

• Year 9 Parent Subject Consultation Evening – Thursday 6 March 3.30 – 7pm

• Year 10 Parent Subject Consultation Evening – Thursday 14 November 3.30 – 7pm

• Year 11 Parent Subject Consultation Evening – Thursday 13 February 3.30 – 7pm

Please also note the following date:

• Year 9 Options Evening – Thursday 27 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. This is on the same date as the Subject Consultation, as we found this worked very well for parents this year.

Attendance

We have seen the number of absences due to illness creep up in the past week. We appreciate as the weather changes and term gets underway students may pick up bugs. As always, we encourage you to send your child into school first thing and we will look after them and monitor them throughout the day. All years had assemblies on attendance last week and the need to stay resilient, come with tissues, practise good hand hygiene and not to miss out on any learning.

A reminder that sanitary products are available and free in school for students and can be asked for at any office with a pink sticker on the door, as well as at student reception.

We are also celebrating the best Friday attendance now, with Tutor Groups winning extra House Points for the highest attendance on this day. Do remind your child that Fridays mean free baked beans and bacon rolls in breakfast club, Votes for Schools in afternoon Tutor Time, plus a chance to win attendance prizes as a Tutor Group!

This week’s highest attending Tutor Groups:

7A2- 100%!

8B1- 92.86%

9A2- 96.24%

10D1- 92.66%

11A1- 93.94%

Free School Meals

Your child may be eligible for Free School Meals, and we do not want them to miss out.

There are some common myths about Free School Meals:

• Your child does not have to queue or eat separately. Other students will not know that your child receives Free School Meals. You can still give your child a packed lunch if you prefer!

• You do not have to live in social housing to be eligible for Free School Meals. • You do not need to have been claiming Free School Meals when your child was at primary school.

• It’s not just about food. If a child is registered at our school as in receipt of Free School Meals, then we as a school get additional funding, which means we can offer you discounts on school trips, educational resources, revision materials, extra mentoring and in some cases, uniform, or IT for home learning.

The quickest way to apply for Free School Meals in via the council website: https://www.bristol.gov.uk/schools-learning-early-years/free-school-meals

We can help you to fill in the form if you need it – just email us or phone us: info@orchard.tila.school or 01173772000. We can print and send off forms for you too at school reception.

Alternatively, download the form attached to this email, print and send to:

Free School Meals Service, Bristol City Council (City Hall) PO Box 3399, Bristol, BS1 9NE

We know that lots of parents could claim Free School Meals for their child but have not yet done so. The process of applying using the link above is quick and easy and in most cases, you will get an instant decision.

More information can be found here: https://parent.bristol.gov.uk/web/portal/pages/parents/travel-and-free-schoolmeals

Careers Support and Guidance

We have a number of careers events coming up this term. These are great opportunities for students to learn about life beyond school and start preparing for their post-16 pathways.

Year 9 - Careers in Catering and Hospitality Assembly (Mollie’s Diner)- 12 October

Year 10 - Mock Interviews taking place on 9 and 16 October.

- Preparation for Work Experience (WEX) ahead of WEX week 10 – 14 February

Year 11 - 1-1 careers meetings taking place with Mrs Thorne to discuss post-16 and beyond.

Post-16 Assembly from Trininty – 27 September

Post-16 Assembly from Collegiate - 4 October

Post-16 Assembly from St Brendans - 11 October

Post-16 Assembly from SGS - 18 October

There are also post-16 open evenings taking place across Bristol. Please see the document attached for details - Post 16 provider open events 

Safeguarding

If you have a concern about a child, please contact the following members of our Pastoral staff who are Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs).

 Another method of reporting concerns is via the Whisper Report on the ‘Quick Links’ section on the school website.

Community Events

The Vench invites members of the community to a planning meeting on October 10, 6.30pm- 8pm to discuss plans for the adventure playground and community space. Speak to Lisa for more information: 07710392078.

Ebenezer Church 90th Birthday Celebrations- a variety of events including special Community Celebration on Saturday 12 October from 12-4pm. If you know of people who have come to Ebenezer Church over the last 90 years and have any photos, memories or stories to share then please pass on the link - www.ebe.org.uk/90thbirthday as they would love to hear them.

After School Hangout - on alternate Friday afternoons for families with primary school aged children at Ebenezer Church, and includes a free meal. See the welcome page for more events.

Wishing you a lovely weekend.

With best wishes, Mel Sweet, Headteacher