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West Hill Primary School Newsletter NOVEMBER 2022

Welcome to the November newsletter. Lots of dates have been added for Christmas performances for all year groups. You can find all details at the end of this newsletter.

Attendance and Punctuality

Being 20 minutes late for school every day for a year is the same as missing 3 whole weeks of school!

Please make sure your child is in school by 8.50am every morning and be mindful of the effect being late can have on your child:

  • If you miss the introduction to your first lesson many times, you will also miss important material.
  • When you get to school, you may be tired, out of breath and unable to concentrate for a while.
  • Your work may suffer, because you won’t know what to do, and school may stop being fun.
  • Being late can be embarrassing and stressful.

West Hill Governing Body

Do you know who our Governing Body are? We currently have 2 vacancies for Parent Governors. If you would like more information please contact the School Office. The governors fulfil their duties by advising, challenging and supporting the Head teacher and the Senior Leadership Team, monitoring activities and progress in school, and visiting the school during school hours. You can find out all about our Governors on our website.

The governing body of West Hill Primary School has two sub-committees:

  • Curriculum Committee
  • Finance, Premises and Personnel Committee

The Co-chairs of the Governing Body are Tamazin Steele and Matthew Halliday.

My name is Tamazin Steele and I was appointed to the Board of Governors in July 2019 as one of the Co-opted Governors. I taught in a local secondary school for over 15 years and want to bring that expertise and knowledge to West Hill Primary School to help ensure that all the children attending receive an appropriate and supportive education. I currently work with newly qualified teachers across England and in my spare time enjoy running and spending time with my three children.
Hello, I am Matthew Halliday and I have been a Co-opted Governor at West Hill since October 2021. As a solicitor dealing with international corporate matters, I bring experience in effective governance and risk management to my role as a governor. I hope to use these skills in supporting the school with continually raising its high standards for the benefit of all pupils. In my spare time, I can often be found out cycling or running, though mostly to enjoy the cooking and eating afterwards.

Children In Need - Friday 18th November

The school council are organising Children in Need and raising money for charity. Children in Need is on Friday, 18th November 2022. Children can wear: spotty or stripey clothes, a Pudsey headband or their favourite clothes. Please make sure your child wears appropriate footwear. Bring £1 for the Children in Need charity.

PTA Winter Lights Fair

If any parents would like to help out with the school fair please contact the school office or speak to a member of the PTA.

We need your help with the following:

  • Donations for raffle prizes
  • Design and donate a Jolly Jar (wrapped sweets only and no nuts) by 28th November
  • Volunteers to help out at the school fair
  • Cake donations (ingredients need to be clearly labelled)
Examples of Jolly Jars - they can contain sweets, crafting items, hair accessories, small toys.

Please let us know if you can help with any of the above.

Author of the Month - November

Each month West Hill will focus on a different author, illustrator or poet. This month it is Joseph Coelho. Have you heard of this person before? Do you know any of his work?

WATERSTONES CHILDREN’S LAUREATE JOSEPH COELHO IS AN AWARD-WINNING PERFORMANCE POET, PLAYWRIGHT AND CHILDREN'S AUTHOR BASED IN KENT. HE AIMS TO INSPIRE YOUNG PEOPLE THROUGH STORIES AND CHARACTERS THEY CAN RECOGNISE AND EXPLORES THEMES INCLUDING FEAR, COURAGE, DIVERSITY, GRATITUDE, EMPATHY AND LOSS. IN ADDITION TO EXPLORING EMOTIONAL LANDSCAPES, COELHO IS INSPIRED BY MAGIC, THE ANCIENT WORLD AND OFTEN DRAWS ON HIS OWN EXPERIENCES TRANSFORMING THEM INTO SOMETHING UNIVERSAL THAT CAN BE SHARED. THROUGHOUT HIS CAREER, HE HAS HIGHLIGHTED THE POWER OF POETRY AND READING, CHAMPIONING AND CAMPAIGNING FOR LOCAL LIBRARIES AND SPOTLIGHTS NEW VOICES AND DIVERSITY THROUGHOUT HIS WORK.

Mrs Atkin and Mrs Caraccio were lucky enough to meet Joseph Coelho on the 3-year research project West Hill are doing with CLPE on ‘Reflecting Realities’. He did creative workshops giving them some fantastic ideas to bring back to school.

Reading Club have been reading Zombierella and said: We read Zombierella in Reading Club and I remember when Zombierella said “ Why do I have the guts…” Some parts were funny and some parts were scary and gruesome. ( Shae, Year 4)

I remember when we were reading Amelia St Clair and the Long Armed Killer and I felt scared by the title but it was interested when I started to listen to the story. ( Elissa, Year 4)

In Year 3, I thought the scientists were the bad guys but there was a twist in the adventure and it was mysterious. ( Taliah, Year 4)

Remembrance Day at West Hill

On Friday last week we had a special assembly to commemorate all those who have lost their lives in fighting for our country. Year 6 produced and edited a video and gave their own presentation at the assembly as they have been learning about World War 1 and World War 2. They also created their own 'slam poetry'. A lot of effort has also gone in to their pottery work this week as you can see from the photos. Some of the children have been working on their own poppies for a display and Fajr in Y5 has written a poem.

Spelling Help

Spelling Shed is a fantastic resource for helping your child with their spellings and is completely FREE to use. Children have their own log-ins so that they can practise their assigned words in a fun way with games. Please click here for your user guide.

FREE Online Safety & Digital Course for Parents

All parents and carers from across Wandsworth are welcome to join these sessions.
We are here to help.

Did you know that we can refer families to the Wandsworth Food Bank? If you need support please speak to Mrs Healy, Mrs Carmen or the school office. The Food Bank can also help you apply for other assistance if you are eligible.

Wimbledon Dons can also support families at West Hill with food box deliveries. We can refer you to them if you need help.

A charity called Little Village provides families in need with clothing, nappies, buggies, beds, bedding, books, toys and much more to families with children up to the age of 5. If you need help please contact us for a referral.

Discretionary support grants are also available from Wandsworth Council for those in need. This includes emergency crisis assistance for food and fuel. Please click here to apply.

Grants and benefits are available to help you pay your bills. Citizens Advice have put together a really useful list of all the help available which includes a list of energy providers' schemes to provide grants if you are in debt to your supplier (this is towards the bottom of the webpage). Please click here for all the information.

If you need extra clothing for your children we have a clothing bank here at West Hill. We have clothes and footwear available for children from the age of 3 to young teenagers. It is all completely free. Please contact the school office if you would like to choose some items.

Dates for your diary

Wednesday 16th November - Parent & Carer Coffee Morning - Winter Lights Fair

Thursday 17th November - Early Years visit from Learn 2 Love 2 Read

Friday 18th November - Children in Need

Wednesday 23rd November - Parent & Carer Coffee Morning - Early Years - How to support your child at home with learning

Wednesday 23rd November - Year 6 Dental Survey

Thursday 24th November 10.15am - Year 3 and 4 Music Concert (bottom hall)

Tuesday 29th November 9am-11.30am Year 1 Trip to St Michael's Church

Dates for your diary

Wednesday 7th December - Christmas lunch for pupils (deadline for ordering was 4th Nov)

Friday 9th December 3.00pm - 4.00pm Winter Lights Fair

Monday 12th December 9.15am - Early Years (Nursery & Reception) Winter Concert

Tuesday 13th December 2.30pm - KS2 (Years 3-6) Singing Concert

Wednesday 14th December 9.15am - KS1 (Years 1&2) Wriggly Nativity Performance

Wednesday 14th December 2.30pm - Rock Steady Performance

Friday 16th December - Donate £1 and wear your own clothes day. School closes at 2pm

The first day back for children after Christmas is Wednesday 4th January.