5th July, 2024

Dear Parents / Carers

Please read on to find out more about what has been happening at Cardinal Newman this week and to see what is coming up in the future!

Have a lovely weekend. 

Catherine Burnham

Executive Headteacher


Governors’ Fund classroom iPad appeal – thank you!

Thank you very much to everyone who contributes to the Governors’ Fund.  We are blessed to have many long-standing contributors within the Cardinal Newman community and we are delighted this year to have welcomed many new contributors.

Our focus for most of this academic year has been on fundraising to purchase 30 new 10th generation iPads (together with anti-shock cases for protection) and we are delighted to announce that these have been purchased!  Thanks to your generosity, children throughout the school will now be able to use these iPads on a 1:1 basis in their classrooms to enrich their learning.

The assistance of the whole Cardinal Newman community is crucial in helping us to continue to offer all of our students an exciting Cardinal Newman education. Many families choose to give a regular monthly gift; some families make ad hoc donations and we are extremely grateful for all contributions.

We would love to increase our regular donors and would be extremely grateful for any donations you feel able to give, which you can make easily online here. 

Thank you for your support.


Mobile phone use onsite

Please can we kindly remind you mobile phones should not be used onsite for safeguarding reasons. Thank you for your co-operation.


News

RE Learners at St Georges Junior

On Thursday 20th June, Eve and Jack from Year 5 attended a greater depth in RE event at St George’s Junior school. The morning was led by Fr Andrew, a Salesian priest and Head of RE at Salesian school, Battersea. The children worked with other pupils from our local deanery schools to think about some religious concepts more deeply.  Eve and Jack really impressed Fr Andrew with their knowledge and religious literacy. The morning concluded with a delicious lunch!

The Good Shepherd Celebration

On Thursday 27th June, Mrs Burnham and Miss Bealin-Kelly accompanied the Year 4 Prayer Council to the annual Good Shepherd celebration at Worth Abbey. Bishop Richard led the celebration for the schools of the diocese with the focus on the Year of Prayer. It was a lovely joyful celebration.

Some quotes from the children:

Sofia: "It was amazing to see the artwork each school had made about the Our Father, I love how everyone pictured the message".

Mia: "I was amazed at the size of Worth Abbey inside and I liked seeing the side chapel with the tabernacle.  Also the event helped me to see the size of the diocese and I liked looking at all the different school banners".

World Faiths Week

Monday 8th July marks the start of our World Faiths week at Cardinal Newman.  Year groups will encounter and dialogue other worldviews during the week in their RE lessons.  It is an opportunity to learn more about others who hold a different worldview, alongside helping to build a culture of peace and respect.  On Monday 15th July the PA have kindly funded a visit from Judaism for Schools who will lead workshops for children in YR-4.  This will allow the children to ask questions and dialogue with an authentic Jewish believer. 

 

Coffee and Conversation

The final Coffee and Conversation for this year will be held with Mr Flower on Friday 12th July at 8:40am (after drop off) in the hall.  All are welcome and we have included a focus specifically on the current KS2 children with regard to smartphones being handed into school.  We hope that as many parents as possible will be able to attend. Those who cannot attend are welcome to share thoughts or questions via email to the school office ahead of the meeting.

The themes for this meeting are:

Uniform: Annual feedback on uniform is welcome.  This year's question is: Our current uniform has a number of options for pupils (particularly for girls) - this allows choice, but can also look untidy when all together in the different options.  Would we settle on one uniform choice for summer and one for winter?  Previous parent consultations have discussed topics such as - updating the PE kit to a more modern (more expensive) fabric (decided against last year but happy to revisit) and the value (or otherwise) of the distinction of keeping different girls and boys uniforms (parents decided to keep the distinction as allowing the girls to celebrate their own identity as girls).  Parental views are welcome.


Smartphones: Our current policy allows Y6 children who walk home from school to hand in their phone at the office.  Is there parental appetite to change this policy (not allow phones to be handed in - so therefore no phones in school at all) or not?

A group of parents are keen to develop a culture of "smartphone free childhood" within our Cardinal Newman community.  This is a decision which can only be made by parents as it affects home life, not school life, but it would be interesting to share views on this topic together so that parents can support each other to make the best decisions for their children.


Summer Camps


05 Jul 2024
Year 6 - Maths
As part of their preparation for Secondary School, Year 6 were visited by Mr Creen, Head of Maths at Salesians.  He took them though a 'Calculator Skills' session where the children explored using a scientific calculator which the children found very useful. A highlight o...
Read more
05 Jul 2024
Year 5 - cricket
Well done to the Year 5 boys who competed in the cricket competition yesterday! You persevered against tough opponents and achieved great performances throughout the afternoon! For more photos click here.
Read more
04 Jul 2024
Year 5 - Wintershall
On Tuesday 18th March Year 5 had the experience of watching the Life of Christ production at Wintershall.  The children found the experience immersive as the play was acted out around them.  It was lovely to see how our Cardinal Newman children were able to identify key moments in the...
Read more
04 Jul 2024
Year 3 - Art
Year 3 have been inspired this week by the works of Georgia O’Keeffe and created their own masterpieces. The children made their own viewfinders to use and focussed on composition, shape and the blending of colours. Well done to Anna, Alex and Hugo for achieving a Headteacher award! For more p...
Read more

Brooklands Museum - School Membership card

Please note the card is now booked up until the Summer holidays but if you would like to go on a waiting list, please contact the office.  If you have booked the card and are no longer able to make that date, please let the office know.

For more information about the museum, please visit www.brooklandsmuseum.com 


National Online Safety: Wake Up Wednesday Guides for Parents 

We would like to make you aware of our ‘online safety’ advice, guidance and support page called ‘Wake Up Wednesday - what parents / carers need to know’.

Wake Up Wednesday, created by The National College, aims to inform parents and carers on topics such as social media platforms, gaming, and IPad security. They include top tips, important reminders and reality checks on a wide range of online safety topics. They are a great resource to keep up to date with the issues children may encounter. 

We will post relevant articles of interest that should help you and your child here on our website.

We thank you for your ongoing support in assuring the safety of our pupils online.  


Eco Committee

 

Summer Fayre

 

This Sunday we will be selling seedlings at the Summer Fayre to raise money to buy sensory plants such as grasses, herbs and sunflowers to add to our prayer garden. If you have any spare plants that  you don't need please donate them to us  as slugs have decimated our supply! We look forward to seeing you.


Vacancies

Teach Southeast Teacher training

Train to teach with outstanding ITT provider Xavier Teach Southeast. 

Take a moment to flick through XTSE's prospectus here or watch some of our 'success stories' here. 

Follow XTSE on social media to find out about more events, or just pick up the phone today to the Xavier Teach SouthEast team on 01932 578 682 or email j.crome@xaviercet.org.uk 

Xavier Catholic Education Trust Vacancies

To find out more about vacancies within the Xavier Catholic Education Trust, please click here


Parents Association Notes

To contact the PA, please email: PA@cardinalnewmanschool.co.uk  

Bottle Tombola

 

 

Thank you for all of the donations today. We look forward to seeing you at the fair on Sunday!

 

 

 

 

The Summer fair will take place on Sunday 7th July, 2024 11.00 am - 3.00 pm. More information to follow.


St Barnabas Youth Club


Summer Clubs April 2024

External Run Clubs Summer Term 2024

Please see details of external clubs here.

Teacher led Clubs Summer Term 2024

Please see details of teacher led clubs here.

 

New! Gaelic Football Club - Please click here for more information.

After Crafts - Please find flyer here.

Ballet - For more information, please click here

Chess Club - Please book via Scopay. 

Code camp - Please see flyer here

Engineering club - Please find flyer here

Footbellas Girls Football Club - Please find flyer here.

French Club - Please find flyer here

Irish Dancing - Please email lgsoid@hotmail.co.uk

iRock  - Please find flyer here

Judo class - Please contact Diane Capon on 07960 699 077 or email diane.capon@sky.com

Mini Dance Performers - Please click here for more information

MTech - an extracurricular music technology and creative composition course for children aged 7-13. For the flyer click here.

Spanish club - Please find flyer here

Tae Kwon Do - For Year 2-6. Please find flyer here.

Ukulele club - Please book via Scopay. Dates this term are 

April 24th
May 1st, 8th, 15th, 22nd
June 26th
July 3rd, 10th

Please click here for more information. 

Planet Soccer - Please click here for more information. 

Homework Club (Y3-Y6)

Homework club runs from 3.15 pm - 4.15 pm Monday - Friday, cost is £5 (free if your child attends Whizz Kids after-school club). Please book and pay for via Scopay.

Music lessons - during school hours, music lessons can be arranged through Surrey Arts. Please contact them directly by telephone on 01483 519303, by email at surreyarts@surreycc.gov.uk or visit the Surrey Arts web page for more information. You can subscribe to the Surrey Arts newsletter here.


Lost Property

Please collect lost items from the lost property box in the KS1 playground.  Please label everything clearly so it can be returned to the owner. Please note it can take some time for items to reach the lost property box depending on where they were lost. 

Items not claimed from the lost property box will be disposed of periodically as it quickly builds up. Thank you.


Communicating with your child's teacher 

Messages for teachers can be put in your child's reading/homework diary/bookbag, eg. pick up arrangements, homework issues, lost property, requesting a meeting with the teacher or anything else you would like the teacher to know.

For KS2 children, please remind your child to tell the teacher that the message is in there.

Absences should still be communicated via the office. (see below)


Pick-up notes 

Please note that if someone other than a parent/carer is picking your child up, you need to let the teacher or the office know. Please put pick-up notes in your child's reading/ homework diary or bookbag. 

For KS2 children, please remind your child to tell the teacher that the message is in there.

Children will not be released with someone else unless we have been notified of it. 

If you do need to let the office know about a last minute pick-up change,  please do so before 2 pm if possible.

Thank you for your co-operation.


Y6 Independent Walkers

If your child is in Y6 and you would like to let us know they will be walking home from school independently, please email the office.


Y6 Mobile Phones

If Y6 children wish to bring their mobile phone to school, they just need to drop the phone at the school office before school and collect it after school.  Phones should be switched off please and not switched back on until children are off site. 

No need to complete any form or email the office. 


How to report your child being absent or sick

Please notify the school office every day your child is absent from school before 9 am so we can adjust dinner figures and complete the registers. Please either ring the school office on 01932 222536 and leave a voicemail or email absence@cardinalnewmanschool.co.uk. If you email us about an absence, you will not receive an acknowledgement reply due to the large volume of emails we receive in relation to this daily.  

If your child has a stomach bug, they should not return to school until 48 hours after the last episode of illness.

Absence Request

If you require a school absence for your child for some reason, please email the school office with the details. 


Wellbeing

Crisis Helpline

Children and Young People's Emotional Wellbeing and Mental Health Service

Sleep and why it matters

Please click here for information on Sleep and why it matters. More videos can be found on the Childrens Health Surrey website here

National Sleep Helpline: We are here to help

At any given time up to 40% of adults and 50% of children (this rises to 80% with a SEND diagnosis) have difficulties with their sleep. Yet in a recent survey, almost 60% of adults felt there was a lack of support for sleep issues. Sleep problems can leave people feeling isolated and lonely. 

Our free helpline is run by trained sleep advisors, many of whom are specialists in working with SEND. We can talk to young people directly, or parents (we can also talk to adults, including older people, about their sleep issues). 

The helpline is open 5 times a week, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday evenings 7-9pm, and Monday, Wednesday mornings 9-11am. The number is 03303 530 541. 

You can read more here: https://thesleepcharity.org.uk/national-sleep-helpline/

Support groups and workshops for parents and carers

123 Magic Parenting course

No one has ever said parenting was easy. Living with children can be one of life’s most enjoyable experiences, but it can also be unbelievably frustrating. 123 Magic is a simple, precise and effective way of managing the behaviour of children. It’s not magic but works like magic! Please click flyer here for more information. 

Parent Wellbeing Service, Barnardo's Referral Form

Please see information flyer here and referral form here for support from Barnardo's Parent Wellbeing Service. 


eSafety and Safeguarding

Reminder: Keeping children safe online and in the real world

At Cardinal Newman School we are always reminding the children how they can keep themselves safe whether in the real world or in the virtual world. Class teachers regularly use the Zones of Regulation to assess how the children in their classes are feeling. Children are encouraged to share their worries using the ‘What I want my teacher to know boxes’ which are in each Key Stage 2 classrooms and the Worry Monsters which can be found in the Keys Stage 1 Classrooms.

Information to support parents can be found on the school website here.

Please continue to report any safeguarding concerns to Mr Flower (Designated Safeguarding Lead) or Mrs Burnham (Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead).


PA Summer Fair
All Day
07
July
Year 4 Mosque trip
All Day
09
July
Coffee and Conversation
8:40am – 9:30am
12
July
Y6 Production
7:00pm – 8:00pm
16
July
Whole School mass of Thanksgiving (End of Year) time tbc
All Day
19
July
End of Summer term ( Half day)
12:30pm – 12:30pm
19
July
Inset day (school closed for children)
All Day
02
September
Inset day (school closed for children)
All Day
03
September
Start of Autumn Term
All Day
04
September

To see the full Calendar of Events, click here.


School Day: 8.40 am - 3.15 pm     Office opening hours: 8.00 am  - 4.00 pm Monday - Friday

Arch Road, Hersham, KT12 4QT    T: 01932 222536   E: office@cardinalnewmanschool.co.uk