Dear Parents and Carers,

Today felt like a great end to another really busy week here at De Havilland. De Hav Fest is undoubtedly one of the most enjoyable events in our summer term calendar and there was a real sense of excitement around the school in anticipation of this afternoon. My thanks to our FODs team who have given up their time and energy to ensure today was possible as well as our staff team, many of whom have also organised various stalls and events for this afternoon. I must also pay a special tribute to Miss Sanders, who in addition to her long list of duties in our school office, has been on top of so much of the preparations this week. Without these fantastic people in our school community, we would not be able to host such enjoyable events for our children and families. 

This brings me to my next point — one of the key reasons behind events like De Hav Fest is fundraising. Fundraising plays a vital role in enriching the educational experience at a primary school. It helps to provide additional resources, equipment, and opportunities that may not be covered by the school’s standard budget, which as I am sure you are aware from reading the news, continues to be a huge challenge for school leaders. I am aware that many of our families part with much of their hard-earned money at events such as De Hav fest and I wanted to let you know that this is never taken for granted. Something which you should expect from the school is to hear more about where that money is being spent and I will ensure that moving forward, those decisions are being communicated with you. 

Next week we look forward to transition day on Thursday, when children will spend the morning with their new teachers and support staff. This is always an exciting day in our school community as adults get to know the different personalities they will be working with in the new academic year and the children get to know their new teacher better, and become more familiar with the expectations that come with moving into a new year group. We also, of course, wish our Year Six children all the best for their exciting day as they spend time in their new school.

As you will be aware, on Monday school is closed for children as our staff team has a day of training in preparation for September. One of the things we will be working on is a new Danes Educational Trust curriculum which is currently being developed and will be slowly rolled out over the next couple of years. The first subjects to go 'live' are history and geography: I look forward to sharing more curriculum updates with you in the autumn term.

Have a lovely weekend and I hope the children enjoy the extra day off!

Mr. Bostock