Dear Parents and Carers,

I hope this newsletter finds you well. 

We come to the end of what looked like a shorter week on paper, but when trying to fit five days of work into four, all of a sudden it becomes something of an extremely busy week! 

I would like to start by expressing my gratitude to all of the parents and carers across our Early Years classes who came in to read with their child this morning. When popping into Ash class, it was great to see so many adults engaging with the children and most importantly, lots of happy faces! Reading with the youngest children in our community fosters early language development, strengthens emotional bonds, and nurtures a lifelong love of reading, laying a strong foundation for their future learning and well-being. We hope to see more families with children in Nursery and Reception join us for some reading over one of the coming Fridays.

I wanted to take the opportunity today to reinforce a policy which we have in place here at De Havilland. To ensure the safety and well-being of all our children, we kindly ask that children do not bring sweets or treats to share with classmates, even when it is to mark a birthday. If parents or carers insist on sharing out sweets with their child's classmates, this needs to be done by the parent / carer once the children have been dismissed at the end of the school day. I do not want to appear a killjoy on this topic, especially as I am someone who enjoys a sugary treat themselves! However, some children in our community have severe allergies, and even small amounts of certain ingredients can pose serious health risks. As a school, it is our responsibility to ensure your children are kept safe and not to provide them with any food items without your knowledge. 

Finally, I must end by wishing our Year Six children all the very best for their SATs next week. This is the first year since 2014 that I have not been directly involved with preparing Year Six children for their SATs, but I am more than aware of all of the hard work which has been undertaken by both children and adults. I know that everyone involved is looking forward to a really successful week!

Enjoy the sunshine this weekend and to anyone celebrating the Buddhist festival of Vesak, may you have a very peaceful and joyful day!

Mr. Bostock