St James E-News

10th February 2023

Welcome to the St James Primary School's E-News, a weekly roundup of the latest news and events at the school

Headteachers Blog

Dear Parents and Carers,

Our next Parent Consultations are on 7th March and 9th March and we will be offering a hybrid approach, with face to face consultations and virtual consultations. We have done this based on parent feedback. Booking for the consultations with go live after half-term, a letter providing full information will be on our next E-News on Friday 24th February.

Last Tuesday was Safer Internet Day and we sent home some parent guides about popular online games and platforms and how to keep your child safe. We regularly talk to children about how to behave and keep themselves safe when online and we have added a handy guide to which you may find useful to use at home.

I hope you have a lovely half-term.

Valerie Elliott

School Notices

Footwear For School - if you are planning to buy new school shoes for your child this half term, please remember our Uniform Policy that requires plain black or white trainers (not boots, no flashing lights, no decoration) or black school shoes suitable for running in.
Open Classrooms - Open classrooms provide an opportunity for parents or carers to view their children's work in the classroom. They will take place after half term from 3.10 to 3.30pm on the following dates;

Tuesday 21st February - Y1
Wednesday 22nd February - Y4 and Y5
Monday 27th February - Y3 and Y6
Tuesday 28th February - Y2
Wednesday 1st March - YR
Monday 13th March - Nursery

Toys and Trading Cards - We discourage children from bringing their own toys into school, as we cannot be responsible for any damage or loss. We have seen a recent increase in the number of trading cards brought into school.
Boogie Pumps- the children enjoyed a lively assembly last Tuesday, led by Laurel from Boogie Pumps. There is a flyer on the Parent Portal if you would like to know more. You can click here if you would like to book a place for your child at their after-school club which takes place on Fridays.
Safer Internet Week - we hope that you have found the information we have sent out during this week helpful. All of the information has been added to the Parent Portal for reference. Some parents were concerned about the information we emailed about Huggy Wuggy after we were made aware that some children have been viewing this and other unsuitable content at home. Please be assured that this is not something that is happening at school. Our filtering systems, staff supervision and internet code ensures that the children are as safe online as they can be.
Sickness in School - we hope that this school holiday will provide a 'firebreak' for all of the bugs that children have been suffering from this half-term. However, we continue to ask you to help us minimise the spread of illness by only sending your child to school if they are well. If your child has a stomach bug, please ensure that they do not return to school until 48 hours (2 days) after the last episode of either sickness or diarrhoea as they will still be infectious.
Christmas Jumper Exchange - a very enterprising group of parents are organising a Christmas jumper exchange in school later this month on Thursday 23rd and Friday 24th February. Please see the note on the Parent Portal for more information.
Drop in sessions with our Home School Link Worker, Helen Owen - The role of the Home School Link Worker (HSLW) is to support families with a range of issues at home or at school. 1:1 sessions are available on Wednesdays. To book an appointment, email Helen on hslw@st-james-elstead.surrey.sch.uk or ring the school office to request a call back.

Letters This Week

The following classes have had letters uploaded to the Parent Portal this week. Note: You will need to login to view this area, contact the office for information.