Letters : Headteacher's
Icy Conditions (13/01/10)
School closures during bad weather (06/01/10)
Parent Teacher Consultation - Questionnaire (08/11/09)
Parents' Information Evening Feedback Autumn 1 2009 (08/11/09)
Parent Teacher Consultations (09/10/09)
Icy Conditions (13/01/10)
Text shown below. To view the original letter (in pdf format) click here
Dear Parent / Carer,
As you are aware, we are dealing with particularly icy conditions at the moment. The council have said that they are unable to grit minor roads and footpaths as they need to use the grit they do have left, for major routes. This is making it very dangerous under foot for pedestrians trying to make their way to school. Within our school grounds, the situation is also very difficult as we ran out of grit last week. We currently have several orders in place with different companies but are awaiting delivery. Today we have managed to source a grit alternative which is not as effective but will hopefully be better than nothing.
We are trying our best to make paths within school safe, but our site is so large and has many paths which makes it difficult. When conditions are particularly bad and when grit is scarce, we first prioritise the clearing of paths which lead to the main entrance of each building from the front gates and back gate (to clear this area takes about 10 bags of grit). Please keep to these paths for your safety and the safety of your children. For the time being, your child may need to enter school through a main entrance and make their way to their classroom from there. We will make sure staff are positioned in these areas so your child arrives in class safely. Children will also be dismissed from these main entrances. Please allow a little extra time for this. Only once the paths which are our priority have been cleared, can we clear the very long path from the field gate and all of the paths to the many entrances of each building.
Children will be staying inside during play time and lunch time while conditions are icy and playgrounds are not clear. It is a good idea for children to come to school in suitable footwear such as wellies, bringing their normal shoes to change into.
We thank you for your understanding at this difficult time and assure you that we will try our best to keep conditions within the school grounds as safe as possible.
Regards,
Mrs Godfrey
Headteacher
School closures during bad weather (06/01/10)
Text shown below. To view the original letter (in pdf format) click here
Dear Parent / Carer,
As we are experiencing a particularly bad spell of weather, I thought it was worth explaining how we make decisions about whether to close school. A decision to close a school is never taken lightly and will involve making an assessment of: conditions in and around the school; the weather forecast; travel and transport; whether or not it is possible for pupils and staff to travel to school.
Our aim is to make a decision each morning by 7.30am, giving parents enough notice to make alternative arrangements if necessary. If conditions change during the day, we shouldn't need to close but run with a skeleton staff (this will be posted on the school web site). If this is the case, you may wish to collect your child early.
It is always our priority to remain open. This causes the least disruption to pupils, parents, parents' employers and society in general.
As we have many staff who are local, we believe that it will almost always be possible to keep school open with only a skeleton staff. This may be disruptive to pupils' education but closing would be much more disruptive to society as a whole.
By keeping school open, it importantly then gives staff and parents the chance to make a judgement about their particular circumstances and whether their journey is safe. If you are unable to make your usual journey then you should consider alternatives such as public transport, walking or decide not to travel. You are the only person able to make that decision. As a school, we will not advise you about this and by opening we are not expecting all pupils to attend at all costs. All absences due to severe weather will be authorised by school.
Please keep us informed if you are wanting to collect your child early or have decided not to send your child to school. It is also vital that school have your correct contact details in case we need to contact you.
Our concern at the moment is that we have now used all of our grit and are unable to purchase any more as all of the supplies seem to have run out. This could affect safety within the school grounds and may affect our ability to open over the next few days.
How to find out if school is open
School will remain open whenever possible and you should therefore assume it is open unless you hear otherwise. Please check the school web site which will display a message if school is to close by 7.30am (press F5 to refresh) or listen to Radio Aire (96.3FM) or Radio Leeds (92.4 and 103.9 FM) who will make regular announcements about school closures.
PLEASE DO NOT PHONE SCHOOL
It is important to keep the phone lines free in order to check the progress of staff making their way to work.
PLEASE DO NOT LISTEN TO GOSSIP AND RUMOURS
If we are closed or have different arrangements in place, information will be on the web site and radio.
Regards,
Mrs Godfrey
Headteacher
Parent Teacher Consultation - Questionnaire (08/11/09)
Text shown below. To view the original letter (in pdf format) click here
Dear Parents / Carer,
Last term a questionnaire on Parents' Evening was given out. 100 replies were received which is a response rate of 39%. The answers have been analysed and below are the results.
1. How useful did you find Parents' Evening?
Yes 95%
Parts of it 5%
No 0%
2. Did you find being given your child's level helpful?
Yes 98%
No 2%
3 Would you prefer it if your child was present during your appointment with your childs class teacher?
No 68%
Yes 10%
Parts of it 15%
4. Do you feel better informed on how to help your child to progress?
Yes 100%
We are really pleased with the positive response to parent / teacher consultations. However, we are always looking for ways to to improve and as a result of your comments will ensure you receive details about dates earlier and notice of appointment times earlier. Written targets will be provided for all pupils from Y1 to Y6. As the majority of parents would prefer children not to be present at the meeting, this will remain the same for the time being but will be reviewed annually. Wherever possible, teachers will try to keep as close as they can to appointment times. Although some parents would like the appointment times to be increased, five minutes is usually enough in most cases. If you feel you have a specific issue which will take longer to address, please contact school to arrange an alternative appointment. It is also important to note that at East Garforth Primary School we have an 'open door' policy so that if you wish to discuss your child‘s progress with your child‘s class teacher at times other than parents' evening, this can be arranged.
We hope you find these changes useful.
Thank you to all those parents who completed the questionnaire. Your continuing support in working together in partnership with school is appreciated as it helps us to see what we are doing well and where improvements could be made.
Regards,
Miss Rathore
Mrs Godfrey
Parents' Information Evening Feedback Autumn 1 2009 (08/11/09)
Text shown below. To view the original letter (in pdf format) click here
Dear Parent / Carer,
Thank you to those parents who shared their thoughts about the parents' information evenings. Here are the results and our responses.
What did you find useful?
• Getting to know teachers (in particular the new teachers) and school system (particularly for parents new to school)· • • Watching a film of children‘s activities in that year group (Y3/4)
• Finding out what the children will be learning
• How to help with homework and what to expect to be set
• Information about residential /dates / curriculum etc.
• Handouts were very helpful
• Expectations of parents (Y5/6)
How could we improve the meeting?
• Restrict questions to the end of the slot so parents can get to another meeting in school on time (will change for next time)
• More examples of a range of learning logs (to be made available in forthcoming open afternoons)
• Year groups separately to cover specific issues (not manageable and phase groups have the same approaches / curriculum focus)
• Need more time to be able to ask questions (teachers are available before /afterwards and parents are invited to complete feedback forms)
• Suggestion sheet to parents before the meeting so teachers have a clearer idea about what parents wish to know / discuss (meeting in September is for staff to give parents general information more specific requests will be addressed throughout the year)
• More detail of what lessons involve (may be difficult to include with time constraints)
• Provide refreshments (PTA to provide drinks / cook to provide samples of school lunches for tasting)
• Have enough room for all parents to sit down (Reception) (Accurate attendance numbers needed from parents)
What else would you like to receive information about?
• Half-termly letter indicating what is being studied that half term (to begin this year)
• Anything / everything that will help my child's education (further information meetings about specifics e.g. maths calculations)
• Systems for communication with school staff about concerns etc. (Reminder about systems to be sent to all parents)
• Meetings about specific focus e.g. maths calculations (to be planned throughout the year)
• How school is organised in mixed years and how this affects children (to be included in school prospectus and meetings for new parents)
• Curriculum information and targets to help at home with (targets to be shared at parent/teacher consultations and curriculum info to be made available on school website and through half-termly newsletters for each phase group)
• What the national standards look like for each age group (to be made available at parents information evening and open afternoons)
Other comments:
• Open afternoon to see children's work (planned to begin this half term)
• Parents to be invited to assemblies (parents are invited to child of achievement assemblies and will be invited to open afternoons)
• Homework timetables would be useful (information was shared at information evening not always the same each week)
• Events diary at the beginning of the year (will try to provide this is early as possible)
• More information (see above, information for parents using the website in particular is being increased)
Mrs Godfrey
Headteacher
Parent Teacher Consultations (09/10/09)
Text shown below. To view the original letter (in pdf format) click here
Dear Parents and Carers,
Parent Teacher Consultations
Monday, October 19th (2.30 p.m. - 5.00 p.m.)
Tuesday, October 20th (2.30 p.m. - 7.30 p.m.)
Please return the slip below indicating at least 2 times that would be most suitable for you. Each consultation will last 5 minutes.
It is important that you are punctual and that teachers keep to times or this will have an impact on meetings throughout the school. An appointment slip will be returned to you indicating the time for your meeting. It is important that if you have more than 1 child in school that you return a slip to each class teacher. The staff will liaise to try to keep your appointment times as close together as possible.
Please note that children in KS1 will be dismissed from the Upper Hall at the end of the school day and not through the classroom cloakrooms. Parents need to wait in the Y5/6 playground until each KS1 class is sent out 1 at a time. Any KS1 children who are not collected (as their parents are in a consultation) should remain with staff in the hall and wait to be collected from there. F2 and KS2 children will be dismissed as usual. Please make sure your child(ren) know where you will be.
Yours sincerely,
Mrs Godfrey
Headteacher
The original letter included a tear-off reply slip
To see Headteacher's letters from last year click on the 'Archive' link to the left.
Icy Conditions (13/01/10)
School closures during bad weather (06/01/10)
Parent Teacher Consultation - Questionnaire (08/11/09)
Parents' Information Evening Feedback Autumn 1 2009 (08/11/09)
Parent Teacher Consultations (09/10/09)
Icy Conditions (13/01/10)
Text shown below. To view the original letter (in pdf format) click here
Dear Parent / Carer,
As you are aware, we are dealing with particularly icy conditions at the moment. The council have said that they are unable to grit minor roads and footpaths as they need to use the grit they do have left, for major routes. This is making it very dangerous under foot for pedestrians trying to make their way to school. Within our school grounds, the situation is also very difficult as we ran out of grit last week. We currently have several orders in place with different companies but are awaiting delivery. Today we have managed to source a grit alternative which is not as effective but will hopefully be better than nothing.
We are trying our best to make paths within school safe, but our site is so large and has many paths which makes it difficult. When conditions are particularly bad and when grit is scarce, we first prioritise the clearing of paths which lead to the main entrance of each building from the front gates and back gate (to clear this area takes about 10 bags of grit). Please keep to these paths for your safety and the safety of your children. For the time being, your child may need to enter school through a main entrance and make their way to their classroom from there. We will make sure staff are positioned in these areas so your child arrives in class safely. Children will also be dismissed from these main entrances. Please allow a little extra time for this. Only once the paths which are our priority have been cleared, can we clear the very long path from the field gate and all of the paths to the many entrances of each building.
Children will be staying inside during play time and lunch time while conditions are icy and playgrounds are not clear. It is a good idea for children to come to school in suitable footwear such as wellies, bringing their normal shoes to change into.
We thank you for your understanding at this difficult time and assure you that we will try our best to keep conditions within the school grounds as safe as possible.
Regards,
Mrs Godfrey
Headteacher
School closures during bad weather (06/01/10)
Text shown below. To view the original letter (in pdf format) click here
Dear Parent / Carer,
As we are experiencing a particularly bad spell of weather, I thought it was worth explaining how we make decisions about whether to close school. A decision to close a school is never taken lightly and will involve making an assessment of: conditions in and around the school; the weather forecast; travel and transport; whether or not it is possible for pupils and staff to travel to school.
Our aim is to make a decision each morning by 7.30am, giving parents enough notice to make alternative arrangements if necessary. If conditions change during the day, we shouldn't need to close but run with a skeleton staff (this will be posted on the school web site). If this is the case, you may wish to collect your child early.
It is always our priority to remain open. This causes the least disruption to pupils, parents, parents' employers and society in general.
As we have many staff who are local, we believe that it will almost always be possible to keep school open with only a skeleton staff. This may be disruptive to pupils' education but closing would be much more disruptive to society as a whole.
By keeping school open, it importantly then gives staff and parents the chance to make a judgement about their particular circumstances and whether their journey is safe. If you are unable to make your usual journey then you should consider alternatives such as public transport, walking or decide not to travel. You are the only person able to make that decision. As a school, we will not advise you about this and by opening we are not expecting all pupils to attend at all costs. All absences due to severe weather will be authorised by school.
Please keep us informed if you are wanting to collect your child early or have decided not to send your child to school. It is also vital that school have your correct contact details in case we need to contact you.
Our concern at the moment is that we have now used all of our grit and are unable to purchase any more as all of the supplies seem to have run out. This could affect safety within the school grounds and may affect our ability to open over the next few days.
How to find out if school is open
School will remain open whenever possible and you should therefore assume it is open unless you hear otherwise. Please check the school web site which will display a message if school is to close by 7.30am (press F5 to refresh) or listen to Radio Aire (96.3FM) or Radio Leeds (92.4 and 103.9 FM) who will make regular announcements about school closures.
PLEASE DO NOT PHONE SCHOOL
It is important to keep the phone lines free in order to check the progress of staff making their way to work.
PLEASE DO NOT LISTEN TO GOSSIP AND RUMOURS
If we are closed or have different arrangements in place, information will be on the web site and radio.
Regards,
Mrs Godfrey
Headteacher
Parent Teacher Consultation - Questionnaire (08/11/09)
Text shown below. To view the original letter (in pdf format) click here
Dear Parents / Carer,
Last term a questionnaire on Parents' Evening was given out. 100 replies were received which is a response rate of 39%. The answers have been analysed and below are the results.
1. How useful did you find Parents' Evening?
Yes 95%
Parts of it 5%
No 0%
2. Did you find being given your child's level helpful?
Yes 98%
No 2%
3 Would you prefer it if your child was present during your appointment with your childs class teacher?
No 68%
Yes 10%
Parts of it 15%
4. Do you feel better informed on how to help your child to progress?
Yes 100%
We are really pleased with the positive response to parent / teacher consultations. However, we are always looking for ways to to improve and as a result of your comments will ensure you receive details about dates earlier and notice of appointment times earlier. Written targets will be provided for all pupils from Y1 to Y6. As the majority of parents would prefer children not to be present at the meeting, this will remain the same for the time being but will be reviewed annually. Wherever possible, teachers will try to keep as close as they can to appointment times. Although some parents would like the appointment times to be increased, five minutes is usually enough in most cases. If you feel you have a specific issue which will take longer to address, please contact school to arrange an alternative appointment. It is also important to note that at East Garforth Primary School we have an 'open door' policy so that if you wish to discuss your child‘s progress with your child‘s class teacher at times other than parents' evening, this can be arranged.
We hope you find these changes useful.
Thank you to all those parents who completed the questionnaire. Your continuing support in working together in partnership with school is appreciated as it helps us to see what we are doing well and where improvements could be made.
Regards,
Miss Rathore
Mrs Godfrey
Parents' Information Evening Feedback Autumn 1 2009 (08/11/09)
Text shown below. To view the original letter (in pdf format) click here
Dear Parent / Carer,
Thank you to those parents who shared their thoughts about the parents' information evenings. Here are the results and our responses.
What did you find useful?
• Getting to know teachers (in particular the new teachers) and school system (particularly for parents new to school)· • • Watching a film of children‘s activities in that year group (Y3/4)
• Finding out what the children will be learning
• How to help with homework and what to expect to be set
• Information about residential /dates / curriculum etc.
• Handouts were very helpful
• Expectations of parents (Y5/6)
How could we improve the meeting?
• Restrict questions to the end of the slot so parents can get to another meeting in school on time (will change for next time)
• More examples of a range of learning logs (to be made available in forthcoming open afternoons)
• Year groups separately to cover specific issues (not manageable and phase groups have the same approaches / curriculum focus)
• Need more time to be able to ask questions (teachers are available before /afterwards and parents are invited to complete feedback forms)
• Suggestion sheet to parents before the meeting so teachers have a clearer idea about what parents wish to know / discuss (meeting in September is for staff to give parents general information more specific requests will be addressed throughout the year)
• More detail of what lessons involve (may be difficult to include with time constraints)
• Provide refreshments (PTA to provide drinks / cook to provide samples of school lunches for tasting)
• Have enough room for all parents to sit down (Reception) (Accurate attendance numbers needed from parents)
What else would you like to receive information about?
• Half-termly letter indicating what is being studied that half term (to begin this year)
• Anything / everything that will help my child's education (further information meetings about specifics e.g. maths calculations)
• Systems for communication with school staff about concerns etc. (Reminder about systems to be sent to all parents)
• Meetings about specific focus e.g. maths calculations (to be planned throughout the year)
• How school is organised in mixed years and how this affects children (to be included in school prospectus and meetings for new parents)
• Curriculum information and targets to help at home with (targets to be shared at parent/teacher consultations and curriculum info to be made available on school website and through half-termly newsletters for each phase group)
• What the national standards look like for each age group (to be made available at parents information evening and open afternoons)
Other comments:
• Open afternoon to see children's work (planned to begin this half term)
• Parents to be invited to assemblies (parents are invited to child of achievement assemblies and will be invited to open afternoons)
• Homework timetables would be useful (information was shared at information evening not always the same each week)
• Events diary at the beginning of the year (will try to provide this is early as possible)
• More information (see above, information for parents using the website in particular is being increased)
Mrs Godfrey
Headteacher
Parent Teacher Consultations (09/10/09)
Text shown below. To view the original letter (in pdf format) click here
Dear Parents and Carers,
Parent Teacher Consultations
Monday, October 19th (2.30 p.m. - 5.00 p.m.)
Tuesday, October 20th (2.30 p.m. - 7.30 p.m.)
Please return the slip below indicating at least 2 times that would be most suitable for you. Each consultation will last 5 minutes.
It is important that you are punctual and that teachers keep to times or this will have an impact on meetings throughout the school. An appointment slip will be returned to you indicating the time for your meeting. It is important that if you have more than 1 child in school that you return a slip to each class teacher. The staff will liaise to try to keep your appointment times as close together as possible.
Please note that children in KS1 will be dismissed from the Upper Hall at the end of the school day and not through the classroom cloakrooms. Parents need to wait in the Y5/6 playground until each KS1 class is sent out 1 at a time. Any KS1 children who are not collected (as their parents are in a consultation) should remain with staff in the hall and wait to be collected from there. F2 and KS2 children will be dismissed as usual. Please make sure your child(ren) know where you will be.
Yours sincerely,
Mrs Godfrey
Headteacher
The original letter included a tear-off reply slip
To see Headteacher's letters from last year click on the 'Archive' link to the left.