The Easter holidays are almost upon us and I hope everyone has a lovely break when it comes. I thought it would be helpful to share a few updates before we head off to roll our eggs and eat lots of chocolate…

Staff News – Mrs Dempster welcomed the early arrival of baby Ellis at the start of March. Both mum and baby are doing well and we are absolutely deligthed for the family. Welcome to the world Ellis!

Miss Perry is getting married over the holidays and we look forward to welcoming her back as Mrs Perry-Smith. We wish her and her new husband every happiness for their future together. Congratulations!

Finally, we look forward to welcoming Pamela Brewster (Early Years Assistant) and Emma Palmer (Early Years Practitioner) to our nursery team after the holidays.

School uniform – Thanks to everyone who has continued to support our school uniform guidance. As a reminder children can wear a traditional uniform of white shirt, gold tie, grey jumper/ cardigan, grey trousers/ skirt and black shoes. However most opt for our relaxed uniform of a plain white t-shirt, grey Grange hoodie, plain black joggers/ leggings and trainers. I would ask that chilren do not wear football tops or designer logos as we want everyone to be ‘uniform’. I would also ask that children do not wear nail extensions as this presents a significant safety risk during sport activities and playtimes. Your support is greatly appreciated in helping us to maintain high standards of uniform which in turn helps the children feel ready to learn. Thank you!

Learning for sustainabilty – Reducing waste has a been a key theme across learning for all classes this year. We have been consulting with staff and children about ways to reduce waste across the school. A popular suggestion has been that we ask each child to bring their own pencil case to school each day which contains everything they need. The thinking is that the children will be responsible for their own belongings and this might reduce waste through pencils, pens etc being lost and broken. We are in the early stages of considering this approach, which would start from August. We would provide a list of the general items required and the school would support any families who would find this financially challenging.  As always, there would be a stock of supplies in school should they be needed. We will keep you updated next term and hopefully we will also be coming up with some other ideas for reducing waste – watch this space!

Dates for your diaries:

• End of term 3 – Friday 29th March normal finish time
• Start of term 4 – Monday 15th April
• MAD groups – Friday 19th April 9.30-10.20am
• Learn to Learn – Friday 26th April
• May holiday – Monday 6th May (school closed)
• P1 induction meeting – Wednesday 8th May 6.00-7.00pm
• MAD groups – Friday 17th May 9.30-10.20am
• Nursery induction meeting – Wednesday 22nd May 6.00-7.00pm
• Sports Day – Friday 24th May – nursery to P4 morning, P5-7 afternoon
• In-service day – Monday 27th May (school closed to pupils)
• Learn to Learn – Friday 31st May
• Transition week – week beginning Monday 10th June
• P7 activities week – week beginning Monday 17th June
• End of term – Thursday 27th June 3pm (P7 Parade 2.45pm)

Thanks to you all for your continued support and a special thanks to my amazing staff team for their hard work and commitment to our children.

Happy Easter! 🐣