BURBAGE PRIMARY SCHOOL NEWSLETTER – No. 7

BURBAGE PRIMARY SCHOOL
NEWSLETTER – No. 7
Dear Families
6th May 2015
Welcome to our first newsletter of Term 5. We also welcome Ebele, Harley and Tristian and their families to the school this
term. We hope you all feel settled-in and part of the Burbage School ‘family’.
As you may have noticed, a spring-clean has taken place across the school and I would like to extend a HUGE ‘Thank you’ to
the families who came to school to help at our Ground Force Day. It was wonderful to have parents, children, staff and
governors (and their partners) working together under the guidance of Mr Last and Mrs McGarry. The school sparkles!
It is good to see the children making the most of our fabulous grounds and playing with the new resources that the School
Council has sourced. Our new PE shed has arrived and we are looking forward to filling it and re-organising the storage of our
resources inside school.
Our Growing School status has moved forward significantly as our ‘allotment garden’ is now in place. We have a three-year plan
that will provide the resource for each class to learn about growing flowers, herbs, vegetables and fruit over the course of their
time at Burbage. In addition we are working towards gaining our ‘Eco-School’ award. This work will support our drive to
continue to develop the school as an exciting place to learn, both inside and outside the school building.
As you can see from the dates in our calendar, we are looking forwards to a busy term ahead. There are important assessments
this term and our very best wishes go to the Year Six children as they prepare for their SATS next week.
With best wishes,
Mrs Nicola Coupe - Principal
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENTS
Congratulations! - BBC Radio 2 500 Words Competition – Congratulations to Bethany in Kestrel class who got through
to the 2nd round of this short story writing competition. 120,000 children entered and she was one of 3,800 that went through.
Sadly she didn’t make it to the next round but it’s a fantastic achievement nonetheless. Well done Bethany!
Annual School Questionnaire – The Governors are finalising the school questionnaire and we welcome everyone’s views.
By popular demand, it is in an on-line format, but hard copies will be in school if you wish to have one. We are asking for your
feedback on a number of things, including the viability of a Before and After School Care Club which, if we have enough take up,
would run from September. Please spare a few minutes to complete the questionnaire - your voice counts!
New Reception Admissions – September 2015 – Wiltshire Council have sent out offer letters to all those families who
applied before 15th January for admission to Reception classes for September 2015. Acceptance slips should have been
returned to the school applied for by 30th April. If you have applied for a place here at Burbage you will receive more details of
induction visits and new parents meetings shortly. We are looking forward to welcoming all our new children for September in
a series of induction visits this term.
If you hear of families who have missed the deadline or who are unhappy with their school allocation, do
encourage them to come and have a tour of Burbage.
School Election – Come and vote! - We have a School Election Running alongside the General Election – Years Five and Six
have set up five ‘parties’ to vote for. They have manifestos and posters and have created promotional videos. Campaigning has
begun in full this week. Mr B has set up a DB Primary Community that children can log in to, so you can see what the parties
stand for. Alternatively, do join us from 2.30pm today to hear the party presentations.
Children in all classes have a polling card and will be voting tomorrow morning in our specially set up Polling Station. If you
would like a polling card of your own, please pick one up from Mr B. All voters welcome.
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CLASS AND PUPIL UPDATES / REMINDERS
MAEP Drumming Workshop Update – Archie, Olivia and Kate took part in the Marlborough Area Education Partnership’s
first Drumming Workshop at Easton Royal Academy this term. It was run by Ms Stubbs and according to Kate it was ‘fun and
exciting but noisy too!’
All - Class Assemblies – Each class will be holding a Sharing Assembly before the end of Term 6 where they will showcase
some of their learning in an informal way. We do hope many of you will be able to come. Dates will be sent out in the next
newsletter.
All - Burbage has Talent – The auditions have taken place and the panel were impressed by the talents shown by the children
who are keen to take part. This event, organised and run by Isabel, Bethany, Ella, Eden, Carrie-Anne and Elizabeth in Year Five,
will take place on Wednesday 20th May from 4.15 – 5.15pm. Entry is £1 per adult. Children are free. Snacks will be on sale. All
money raised will go to School Council to decide what to spend it on for the school. A letter is coming out from the children
this week. We do hope you can support this event.
Woodpeckers – Farm to Fork trip to Tesco– Thursday 21st May. Mrs McGarry has arranged a free trip to Tesco in
Marlborough, this is to support their work to find out about the journey from Farm to Fork.
Wrens, Robins and Chaffinches - Infant Bournemouth Trip – Thursday 25th June – This Key Stage One trip will be a
wonderful part of their topic, ‘I can see the sea, what can you see?’ as the children will be visiting the Oceanarium and eat lunch
on the beach (weather permitting).
Woodpecker Trip – Adam Henson’s Cotswold Farm Park - Wednesday 3rd June – This Lower Junior trip has been
set up to support the children’s learning as they answer the big question ‘Where does our food come from?
Burbage Primary School Summer Evening of Music – Friday 5th June from 6pm – All welcome to this informal
evening of entertainment, run by the music teachers and their pupils. It is a lovely event, where our young performers entertain
us with their talents!
All - Summer Fair – Saturday 4th July from 1.30 – 4pm – The Governors, PTA committee, staff and children are planning
the events of our annual Summer Fair. Each class runs a stall and your help in making this event a success is much appreciated.
Please ask how you can help and bring along friends, family and neighbours! The Year Five and Six classes are currently carrying
out an Enterprise Project as part of their Finance Education lessons and will be selling at the Summer Fair too. More information
to follow.
All - Sports Afternoon – Friday 10th July from 1.30pm – Our annual sports afternoon will take place on the field. The
Year Six team leaders and the children in Oak, Ash, Sycamore and Chestnut teams will compete in various events. We hope you
can come along to cheer them on!
All - Celebration Tea – Friday 10th July – 3 - 4pm – We will be holding a Celebration Tea after the races to mark the
school’s successes this year – especially our Ofsted result. We hope families will be able to stay on after the races and join us
for tea and cake.
REGULAR UPDATES
Slip, Slop, Slap! – Be Sun Smart – With sunny days ahead, please can you protect your child from the sun by putting on
sunscreen before they come to school and by providing them with a hat to wear. We have a smart ‘baseball-style’ hat as part of
the school uniform, but are happy for children to wear a hat from home. Please make sure it is named. If you send in your
child with their own ‘top up’ sunscreen, they must be able to apply it themselves.
Please name School Uniform – Unfortunately we have a growing pile of fleeces and new uniform that we cannot reunite
with owners, as items are not named! Please use a name tag or a permanent pen – as biro fades in the wash. Thank you!
Mrs Coupe’s Coffee and Chat –– Parent Handbook Review – Wednesday 3rd June 2.15 – 3.15pm. If you would be
willing to give feedback/suggestions as we update our parent handbook, please either send in your ideas to the office by
Wednesday 3rd June or come along to the meeting in school. A copy of the current one is on our website, or you can pick up a
paper copy from the office. Your feedback is very welcome; we want the document to be as useful as possible to all our families.
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SUPPORTING BU RBAGE PRIMARY SCHOOL
School Lunches – As part of our review of the school day and following a trip to see lunches in another Wiltshire School, the
School Council have put in place some changes to our lunchtimes. The Infants are now eating lunch separately from the Juniors
and so far the feedback from the children is very positive. With beautiful tablecloths, new utensil holders and napkins, the
quieter Hall space is a much more pleasant environment in which to eat lunch.
We will have another ‘come and see lunchtimes in action’ week later this term where you will be very welcome to drop in and
see for yourselves.
We have a ‘taster day’ lunch booked for Thursday 21st May, when children who usually have cold lunches or packed lunches
will be able to sample some of the food. Parents do not need to book in for this, but might want to encourage their child/ren to
try some of the school meal.
Do you like to ‘Go to Work on an Egg’? The chickens are still laying so if you would like to buy some eggs, please let a
member of Woodpecker class know and they will put you on the egg list. £1 per half dozen. All money collected goes towards
the cost of feed.
Clubs – Thank you to all our families for supporting the clubs so well this term. We are very pleased with the array of different
opportunities that are being put on and thank staff and parents running clubs for kindly giving their time to the school in this
way.
Mrs McGarry reviews the club provision every summer term and puts plans in place for the next academic year, so if you have
ideas for a club for next year, please let her know. Any parent can offer to run a club as long as they are DBS checked, so if
there is something you love or would like to see run as a club, please don’t be shy!
Should your child have to miss a club for any reason, please remember to phone in, or speak to the teacher
running the club, directly. This is because we keep a register of children and need to follow up any absence as
part of our child protection and safeguarding procedures.
Mr B’s Library Questionnaire
A Family Reading Survey is available to complete now, you can access it via the following link
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/353KNNF , hard copies can be collected from the school office if required.
The government is giving money to schools to help children from lower income families do their very best. This funding is called
Pupil Premium. This year, for every primary-aged child registered the school gets £1,300. We use it to pay for extra staff hours,
to subsidise school trips and buy Mathletics. You can see what else we are doing with it on our website.
This funding makes a huge difference to our budget, so please check below to see if you qualify. The more
children eligible, the more money we are given. Our Parent Support Advisor, Jill Shankland can help with filling in forms –
just ask at the office, or contact her on jsh@pewsey-vale.wilts.sch.uk. Your child may be eligible for school uniform vouchers
from us, support with the cost of school trips, or get free school meals in KS2 if you get any of the following:

Income Support

income-based Jobseekers Allowance

income-related Employment and Support Allowance

support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999

the guaranteed element of State Pension Credit

Child Tax Credit (provided you’re not also entitled to Working Tax Credit and have an annual gross income of no
more than £16,190)

Working Tax Credit run-on – paid for 4 weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit

Universal Credit
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PTA UPDATES
Table Top Sale and BBQ – Thank you to everyone who booked a Table Top to sell their goods, or who came along to shop.
The event was an enjoyable social occasion with the addition of BBQ and Beer on sale. An ‘end of day’ school sale may take
place one Friday before the end of term (no BBQ or beer though, sorry!), we will keep you posted by e-mail.
Bags2School – Raised £180 – Thank you to everyone who supported the Bags to School collection. We raised over £180!
80s Disco – Saturday 13th June 7-11pm Burbage Village Hall – save the date!
See last week’s email for details of the event and how to buy tickets. They cost £7.50 each.
PTA Meetings – Thank you to all those who came to the recent PTA meeting where events for the rest of term were
discussed. The next one will be on Wednesday 10th June at 8pm at the White Hart Pub – All are welcome!
Class Representatives – Currently the list for this year is as follows:
Class
Reception – Wrens
Y1 – Robins
Y2 – Chaffinches
Y3&4 - Woodpeckers
Y5 – Kestrels
Y6 – Kites
Parent Representative
Mrs McNicholas
Mrs Westall
Mrs Camp
Mrs Last
Mrs Angel
Mrs Giddings
We are very keen for an existing parent to volunteer to be the rep for the new Reception class in September, at
least for the first term, in order to welcome new families to events – if you would be willing to do this please let
Mrs Thompson or the PTA know.
COMMUNITY NEWS
Pewsey Arts walk – Sunday May 17th – This family friendly event involves a walk around Pewsey to enjoy looking at
sculptures based on the nature seen in the Pewsey Vale. Look out for the school’s entry which has been put together by Mrs
McIntosh, Mrs West and some children in Chaffinches and Robins.
MAEP School Council events – Burbage hosted the MAEP School Councils for a ‘Healthy Schools’ event run by Mrs
McGarry at the end of last term. A range of tasty savoury dishes were reviewed as the visitors looked at healthy packed lunch
alternatives to the sandwich. The visitors were impressed with our plans for growing food in school.
Mrs Coupe is organising a MAEP School Council trip to London on Friday 12th June which will involve each school
sending 4 councillors for a tour around the Houses of Parliament and Westminster Abbey. The cost of transport has been
covered by the government which has made this exciting trip possible. Next autumn will see the whole School Council visit St
Katharine’s for a day of outside learning.
Year Five - MAEP Science Links with St John’s – There will be a science workshop for Year Five on Monday 29 th
June from 9 – 10.45am which will involve the children working in the laboratories to carry out investigations linked to
chemistry and physics. In addition, there is the opportunity for 2 children from each MAEP school to attend an Able, Gifted and
Talented Club on Tuesdays 16, 23, 30th June and 7th July at St John’s 3.30 – 4.30pm.
Year Five - Links with Pewsey Vale School – This term there will be a number of Able, Gifted and Talented days run by
Pewsey Vale School for children in Year Five. We are sure the children will have a wonderful time. Parents will be contacted by
Mrs Farrell with further details. In addition, the whole class will be visiting for a day on Wednesday 8th July.
All – St John’s Music for a Summer Evening – Wednesday 8th July – A letter will be coming home to families. Please
return to the school office so we can work with the children who are available to perform in this enjoyable fundraising event.
Wilton Windmill Wind in the Willows Family Fun Day – Saturday 13th June from 12noon.
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National Bug-Busting Day - Monday 15th June. Please use your bug-busting kit to treat your whole family for headlice on
this day. By doing so, we have the best chance to work as a community to banish our unwelcome visitors. If you need advice, or
another pack, please speak to the office.
VE Day Celebration - Sunday 10th May 2-4pm – Burbage & Easton Royal British Legion are running a fun rounders game at
Barn Meadow for all village families followed by a free buffet at the club where the bar will also be open.
SPORTS NEWS
Marlborough Dance Festival – Review
Another brilliant dance event at St John’s took place in the Theatre on the Hill on Saturday 14 th March. Our dance troupe
shimmied their way through a rendition of ‘A Monster Mash’ dressed as mad professors and zombies and they looked fantastic.
Thank you to Mrs Thompson, Mrs McGarry and Mrs Coupe as well as Mrs Pilson and Mrs Hawkins for supporting the children
on the day.
Year Six Dance Workshop
The class were put through their paces in an enjoyable Dance Workshop earlier this term as Miss Smith from St John’s came to
visit and get to know the children. A number of other events are in the diary to support Transition for the children who are
moving on to Secondary School this term.
Year 2 Fundamentals Festival
Last week the Year Two children had an exciting morning filled with sport as they worked in teams to complete a variety of skill
based activities. The behaviour and willingness to ‘have a go and do our best’ was, of course, fantastic. Well done, Y2 - we even
had a couple of children in the wining team!
Upcoming events:
Y5/6 Kwik Cricket Festival at Marlborough Cricket Club – Monday 8th June – selected children - details to follow
Y5/6 Quad Kids Tournament at Marlborough College – Thursday 18th June – selected children- details to follow
Mini-Marathon at Avon Valley Sports College, Durrington – Saturday 20th June
This year’s Calendar dates for 2014 to 2015 are: Download a PDF for 2014-2015. Note: These are
different from those declared by Wiltshire Council
 Term 5: Tue 13 Apr - Fri 22 May 2015
 Term 6: Mon 1 Jun - Wed 22 July 2015
Remaining Staff Development Days (when the school will be closed to pupils) are:
 Monday to Wednesday 20th – 22nd July 2015
Next year’s Calendar dates for 2015-2016 are: Download a PDF for 2015-2016. Note: These are
different from those declared by Wiltshire Council and the Primary Staff Development Days, when the school will
be closed to pupils) have yet to be confirmed).






Term 1: Tue 1 Sept 2015 - Wed 21 Oct 2015
Term 2: Mon 2 Nov - Fri 18 Dec 2015
Term 3: Mon 4 Jan - Fri 12 Feb 2016
Term 4: Mon 22 Feb - Fri 24 Mar 2016
Term 5: Mon 11 Apr - Fri 27 May 2016
Term 6: Mon 6 Jun - Fri 22 July 2016
The calendar dates are to help you plan ahead for the year. We ask that parents make bookings to travel during the school
holiday times and NOT during term time. Excalibur Academies stresses the importance of school attendance. Holiday absence
will not be authorised unless in exceptional circumstances. Please see the Wiltshire guidance below:
http://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/schoolseducationandlearning/schoolsandcolleges/parentadvice/studentbehaviour/truancy/educationw
elfareservicepenaltynotice.htm This states that if 5 or more school days (10 sessions) either continuous or aggregated are taken
for unauthorised holiday within a period of six months in one academic year then the Education Welfare Service will issue a
Fixed Penalty Notice.
If exceptional circumstances appear to warrant a holiday in term time then applications should be made to Mrs
Coupe for consideration. Forms are held in the Office.
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Dates for your Diary
Wednesday 6 May
All Years – Hustings – open session – parents welcome 2.30 – 3.15pm
Thursday 7 May
All Years – Polling Day – Burbage School Election voting
Sunday 10 May
Village VE Celebration Event 2-4pm, Barn Meadow
11May – 15 May
Year Six – KS2 SATs week
st
Thursday 21 May
All Years - Taster Lunch
Woodpeckers Farm to Form trip to Tesco, Marlborough
25 May – 29 May
HALF TERM HOLIDAY
Wednesday 3 June
Mrs Coupe’s Coffee and Chat – 2.30 – 3.15pm
Woodpecker Class Trip – Adam Henson’s Farm
Friday 5 June
Summer Evening Music Concert 6pm
Monday 8 June
Y5/6 Kwik Cricket Festival
8 June – 11 June
Year Six - Bikeability Group 1 – details to follow
Wednesday 10 June
8pm PTA Committee Meeting at White Hart, Burbage – all welcome!
Friday 12 June
MAEP School Council trip to London
Saturday 13 June
80s Disco at Burbage Village Hall – tickets available now!
Monday 15 June
All - National Bug-Busting Day
15 – 19 June
Year One – Phonics assessments
Tuesday 16 June
All - Class and Leaver Photos
Thursday 18 June
Year 5 & 6 Quad Kids – selected children
Saturday 20 June
Mini Marathon – Avon Valley College, Durrington
22 June – 25 June
Year Six - Bikeability Group 2 – details to follow
Thursday 25 June
Years R, 1 & 2 - Infant Trip to Bournemouth
Friday 26 June
Year Six - Design Technology Day – St John’s
Wed & Thur 1/2 July
Year Six - Induction Days at Pewsey Vale School
Saturday 4 July
All - Summer Fair – from 1.30pm
Mon & Tue 6/7 July
Year Six - Induction Days at St John’s
Wednesday 8 July
Yr R, 2 and 6 - Parent Drop ins for Reports
Thursday 9 and Tues 14 July
Yr 1, 3, 4 and 5 - Parent Teacher meeting
Friday 10 July
All - Sports Afternoon and Celebration Tea – all welcome from 1.30pm
Friday 17 July
Year Six parents - Leavers’ Service 2pm
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