Family Newsletter 24 April 2015

2014-2015
Family
NEWSLETTER
Friday 24th April 2015
Dear Parents and Carers,
No 14
Dates
I hope you are enjoying the excellent
2015
th
weather we have been having.
Mon 11 May – PTFA Plant Sale
Monday 4th May – Bank Holiday
As we are approaching summer and the
Monday School Closed
(fingers crossed) continued hot weather,
w/c Monday 25th May – Half Term
please can all pupils come to school with a hat
Sat 27th June – Summer Fete
or cap, suncream and where appropriate, a
named water bottle. Staff will be able to reapply suncream to your child if you have provided a bottle. Thank you.
On to other news:
Parents Evening – Thank you for attending parents evening this week. I hope
you found the session informative. I am sure you would like me to pass on
thanks to the staff who helped support the evening. If you have any questions
about your child’s education, please speak to your teacher in the first instance
who will be able to help you.
Parent Governor Vacancy – We have advertised and received applications from
three parents for this vacancy. The parents have been asked to provide a short
personal statement in support of their application. These statements will be
circulated to you, with a voting slip, to enable you to vote for your preferred
new Bidwell Brook Parent Governor. Thank you.
We are very pleased to tell you that Dawn Chaplin (Support) got married over
the Easter holidays and became Mrs Dawn Lewis. Our congratulations go to her
and her new husband.
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NEWSLETTER
Important Information re 16-19 Transport from September 2015
DCC transport have now sent out eligibility assessment letters for those
students who will be enrolling for post 16 education in September 2015. Once
these have been received back and approved they will then send out payment
forms from early May. Bidwell Brook school has signed up to a service level
agreement with Devon County Council and the arrangements for this are as
follows:Students eligible for reduced rate travel
If you are in receipt of qualifying benefits, you will be eligible for a reduced
rate of payment, which will automatically qualify for bursary funding. You will
receive a Bursary form with your transport form which should be completed and
sent back to Transport. They will then assess your eligibility for a concessionary
rate of transport, and if approved by them, they will advise us of the decision
and invoice us directly for the cost of transport. The full cost will be met from
the school’s allocation of Bursary Funding.
Students paying full rate travel
If you are not in receipt of qualifying benefits, but on a low income, or your son
or daughter is eligible for Guaranteed Bursary Funding, then you may still apply
for assistance with the cost of transport. You will need to complete a Bursary
application form. When completed, return to school with correct supporting
documents and the CBF 1 form that transport will send you. If your application
is successful, we will stamp and send back the CBF1 form. You will then need to
return this form together with your payment form to Transport and the school
will again be invoiced directly and the cost of travel will again be met from the
school’s allocation of Bursary Funding.
Vulnerable Student Bursary
Please note that for those students who fit the Vulnerable student criteria for
Guaranteed Bursary Funding there may be some crossover between full rate and
concessionary travel costs. Eligibility for Guaranteed Bursary Funding is :-
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2014-2015
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NEWSLETTER
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Young people in care or care leavers
Young people in receipt of Income Support in their own name
Young people in receipt of Employment Support Allowance and Disability
Living Allowance or Universal credit in their own name or Personal
Independence Payments in their own name
This group of students will be eligible for further support of up to a maximum
of £1200 to enable them to access further education. If your circumstances fit
these criteria, then please request an application form if we have not already
sent one out to you when you receive your payment form from Transport.
Application forms are available to download on the Bidwell Brook School website
http://bidwellbrook.devon.sch.uk/information/16-19/ or by phoning the school
office.
If you have any queries, please contact Lynne Williams.
This weeks Snippets
HappykidsHolidays Properties
Dreaming of a holiday in the sun where:
every member of your family is welcomed and there are no stares and no
embarrassment?
the environment is safe and you have been made aware of any dangers?
you've had help planning and preparing for your holiday?
you have someone to turn to if there’s a problem?
you know your requests will be taken seriously, no matter how unusual they
might be? If the answer to any of the above questions is "yes" then
happykidsholidays is for you. happykidsholidays is a non profit making
association aimed at supporting families with children and teenagers with
Autistic Spectrum Disorders who want to come on holiday in France. For more
information contact: Emma Ryland at emma@happykidsholidays.com
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NEWSLETTER
Phab
The Phab Residential Holiday Projects for 2015 are now open for applications.
There are 280 places available to children, young people and adults
http://phab.org.uk/overview/
Introduction to Total Communication courses:
6 & 20 May
18 & 25 June
30 Sep & 7 Oct
30 Sep & 14 Oct
Ockment Centre (West)
Dartington Village Hall (South)
Springfield Court (North)
Broadclyst Village Hall (Eastern)
For further details parents can contact email: Sharon.walters@devon.gov.uk
Tel: 01271 341112
Progress magazine
Progress magazine supporting 12-25 year olds with additional needs is available
to download as an app now. Go to: http://www.progressmagazine.co.uk/ for all
the latest information and up dates.
Sirona Therapuetic Horsemanship
Sirona Open Day Saturday May 9th 2015 11.00am – 3.00pm
Come and meet the team and find out what they can offer. Contact Hannah
Burgon Mbl: 07958356114 or Gammage Tel: 07818 453402 email:
info@sironacic.com www.sironacic.com
DISC Plus
Amanda Smithson and Kris Taylor are covering the Eastern area of Devon and
will now be offering information to staff and families from Capital Court twice a
week. Kris Taylor will be available on Tuesdays and Amanda Smithson on
Wednesdays.
If you would like information on funding, local support groups, contact details
for specialist support services or details of suppliers of specialist equipment,
sensory toys and clothing please contact us and we will endeavour to assist.
We look forward to meeting you and sharing information in the future.
Amanda.smithson@devon.gov.uk or Kristine.taylor@devon.gov.uk
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NEWSLETTER
Explore the Brixham and Kingswear Peninsula this Saturday 25th April 9am –
6pm for a layered walk with local historian John Risdon.
Please bring water, a packed lunch, all-weather walking clothes and shoes. To
cover the cost of boat hire there is a suggested charge of £4, but dogs are
welcome on the walk and on the boat. Please email admin@encountersarts.org.uk to sign up or get more information. Please note, the walk is only
about 6 miles.
Meet at Brixham Fish Market, The Quay, Brixham. TQW5 8AW at 9am
Free Event this Sunday 26th April 10am – 12pm.
Geocaching for Beginners!
Have you ever wanted to find out more about Geocaching in the area? Learn all
about Geocaching on this free event with Dave Halsall of Singing Paddles! All
you need is a GPS or smartphone with a Geocaching app downloaded! If you want
more information about Geocaching, or download the free introduction app visit
http://www.geocaching.com.( It will be a good idea to do this before coming to
the event.)
For more information see
http://www.southdevonaonb.org.uk/explore/events/geocaching-for-beginners/
Meet outside Churston Farm shop cafe, Brixham Road Churston Ferrers. TQ5
0LL at 10am
Storytelling, craft & play at Honiton Museum
Date – Saturday 25th April 10am-12pm – FREE
Where - Honiton Museum, High St, Honiton, Devon EX14 1PG
We're Going on an Iron Hunt but I'm not scared....Don't miss Carousel's last
stop on our Iron Working Storytelling Tour at Honiton Museum on Saturday.
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NEWSLETTER
Designing a new wheelchair (specialised seating)’ meeting on Wednesday 29th
April 2015
PenCRU is excited to be leading the involvement of families in a project funded
by the charity Sparks. We would like you to get involved!
About the project
Tim Adlam, an engineer (and parent carer) at Bath University is leading a
research project to design a new seat for children. The seat will be designed to
move with the child during spasms and normal movement. Tim would like parents’
views on how a seat for pre-school children is likely to be used so we are inviting
any interested Family Faculty members to come along to a project meeting on
Wednesday 29th April 2015 (10:30-12:30 followed by a lovely lunch) at St
Luke’s campus, Exeter (Exeter Medical School, room G27).
Tim would like to get your thoughts on things like where the seat might be used,
what activities you would be using the seat for, how much storage space would it
need among other things. If you have a child who has movement difficulties and
uses a wheelchair we would very much like to hear your experiences about your
child’s movement. Parents of children with other conditions who are interested
can participate depending on numbers. Remember, parents are the experts!
Please let me know if you are interested in this project or attending the
meeting. As usual, we will cover reasonable travel and childcare costs and
provide an £25 acknowledgement for your time.
To find out more about Tim and the project please see the links below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSQFbYsYwuM
http://www.sparks.org.uk/our-research/functional-seat-children-cerebralpalsy/
If you have any questions at all please do not hesitate to contact PenCRU or Tim
directly.
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2014-2015
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NEWSLETTER
Disabled Activity Day – Saturday 20th June
10am – 4pm – Plymouth Hoe
Lots of activities
Free Admission
For further details contact Phil on 01752 784490
Just a reminder: Parent newsletters and attachments also go on our school
website: http://bidwellbrook.devon.sch.uk/
Accessible from the scrolling news-feed links on the front page of our website
or on the Newsletters page.
Kind Regards
Jacqui Warne
Executive Head
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