18 September 2007

Dear Parents

Welcome back to the Autumn Term. A number of new children have joined the school this term and I would particularly like to extend our welcome to them and their families.

I am afraid our first letter of the year is always a long one and this is no exception. Please bear with it as there are a number of things we thought we needed to advise you about at the beginning of the term.

Firstly, we have a number of dates to advise you of as follows:
 

Date
9th October	Individual Children's photographs
10th October	2:15 Harvest Festival All Saints Church
16th October	Parents Evening 5pm – 7pm
18th October	Parents Evening 3:30pm – 5:30pm
15th – 19th Oct	BOOK FAIR
18th October	Healthy tuck shop (Thursday this half term, remember 50p)
22nd -30th Oct	Half term (including 29th Oct inset day)
1st November	Operation Christmas Child Shoe box collection
30th November	Shell science Circus Work Shop (all children)
10th 11th 12th Dec	School Christmas production. Are We Nearly There Yet….?
18th December	West Midlands Theatre Company Visit. The Fire Bird
TBC	Christmas dinner and Christmas parties
20th December	2:15 Carole Service All Saints Church (Last day of term)

A list of holiday date and non-contact days is attached for your information. This should make it easier for you to avoid booking holidays in term time. In exceptional circumstance an application for leave of absence form can be obtained by parents from the school office. This form is required to be completed at least 4 weeks before the date of absence is due to start.

More information will follow shortly about an art project the children will be doing in school. They will design a Christmas card which will be professionally printed for you and your family to buy.

May I remind all parents that, if it is at all possible, we very much prefer cheques sent into school for any payment, no matter how small the amount. The only real exception is the 50p needed for Tuck Shop. Cheques for dinner money should be made payable to EdenFoodservices (all one word).
The cost of a school lunch is currently £1.60 per day.
They also require card number / valid from date / expiry date and child’s name on the back.
Some sports club payments go directly to the supplier, but we will always let you know when this is the case. Most other payment should be made payable to Ridgmont Lower School. All money should be sent in named envelopes and given to your children to hand to their class teacher each morning. Class One’s reading bags are regularly checked for letters/payments, etc coming into school.

Each September we remind those of you with older children who walk to school, or walk to catch the school bus, on their own please let us know in writing. We would then record this information and if your child was absent and we hadn’t had any contact from you we would get in touch just to check their whereabouts.
Please let us know as soon as possible in the day if another adult is meeting your child at the end of the school day.

The current practice as far as the school bus is concerned is that a list of children eligible to use the bus is kept in the school office and information is recorded as to when these children normally use the bus. If your child is eligible, please let Mrs Dimery know as soon as possible which days your child intends to use the school bus and whether it is for morning, afternoon or both trips. Similarly, if your child/children are going to be using Fordfield Nursery or Swallowbrook After School Club please let us know which days they will be going.

If you wish to book your child/children into Early Birds on a regular basis and have not received and returned a booking form please speak to Mrs Dimery. We would appreciate all booking forms being returned urgently to allow us to arrange staff cover. For anyone wishing to book an occasional session please remember to check the dates with Mrs Dimery as soon as you know them.

We always appreciate help in a variety of ways from parents/grandparents/friends. If you would like to come into school to help in any way, such as with cooking or playing chess and draughts, or indeed sharing a particular skill with the children please speak to myself or your child’s class teacher.

New record / information sheets are attached. If your child has any medical problems that we do not already have on our records please let us know immediately. If your child is asthmatic, even if it is only mildly, can you please ensure that we have a set of up to date inhalers in school as soon as possible. Can I take this opportunity to remind you that it is important to keep your children at home for a full 24 hours after any sickness and diarrhoea symptoms.

Premier Sports continue to come into school to deliver high quality coaching for a range sporting activities both at lunch time and after school. Sign up sheets are sent out in the first week of each new half term.
The Tesco Sport for Schools scheme commences on 11th September. Please help us collect as many vouchers as possible whenever you visit a Tesco store or petrol station. Get friends and family involved too! These vouchers are exchanged for sports equipment for the school.

Following Bedfordshire County Council guidelines we would like to advise you that if your child is prescribed antibiotics to be taken three times a day, these should be given before school, just after your child arrives home from school and bedtime. This prevents the medicine having to be brought to school. We would however, administer the antibiotic if your child was going straight on to either Fordfield Nursery or Swallowbrook After School Club.

In order to help us to record absences promptly in class registers we would be grateful if you would telephone the school before 9.00 a.m. on the day of absence. A message can be left on the answer phone if necessary.

Please find attached our annual letter regarding updating of permission slips. We would appreciate it if you could sign and return the slips as soon as possible.

Lynda Clark
Headteacher