Principal’s message to families – 8 May 2026
The grass has been cut and plans have been finalised in readiness for our FAMILY FUN DAY 16th May 2026
The grass has been cut and plans have been finalised in readiness for our FAMILY FUN DAY next Saturday- so be sure to buy your tickets soon and encourage family and friends to join you! £10 a car- what a bargain! Included in your ticket price are the inflatables, forest schools activity, the Makaton choir and the music. There will be cakes, coffee, cold drinks and ice-creams to buy and a selection of stalls selling cakes, plants, ornaments and things for your garden amongst other things.
The sensory bus will be available too!
Do just keep an eye on the website in case the weather is looking poor, but we will try to go ahead if we can and would make a decision by Friday if there is any change – sunshine is ordered….
Last week…
Photos and information about the PGL trip that KS3 went on last week can be seen here, on the website…
Some lovely things there to share with your children and talk about; whether they went, would like to go in the future or have already been!
This week…
In assemblies this week we learnt about what being a good role model means. We talked about who our role models are and how we could be one. There were lots of children who talked about parents and grandparents being their role models, as well as famous people like the 100 year old David Attenborough! (Happy birthday Sir David!!). Take a minute to ask your child who their role model is and see if they can remember why role models can be important.
…children have had a visit to the Deep, as part of their Geography learning on oceans. The visit gave students the chance to see a wide variety of marine life up close, including sharks, rays, and colourful tropical fish.
Throughout the day, students explored how oceans are formed, why they are so important to our planet, and the challenges they face such as pollution and climate change.
Our students were a credit to the school, showing enthusiasm, respect, and excellent behaviour throughout the trip. A fantastic day of learning beyond the classroom!
Reminders…(medication)
We would like to remind parents and carers about our medication procedures in school.
For the safety and well-being of all students, all medications must be handed into the medical room along with a completed consent form. Paper and digital copies of consent forms are available upon request. Medications must never be kept in students’ bags or on their person.
Even common medicines such as paracetamol can be unsafe if taken incorrectly, shared, or used without staff knowing. Keeping all medications in the medical room helps us make sure they are given safely, recorded properly, and that students can be monitored for any possible side effects.
Dawn House keeps a small supply of paracetamol, ibuprofen and antihistamines that can be given to students if needed. This will only be given after gaining consent from a parent or carer, usually through a telephone call home. If these are required frequently we do expect that parents provide them.
Our Medical Support Co-ordinator, Emily, is always happy to help with any questions or concerns about medications in school.
Coming up…
As part of our support for the National Year of Reading, Eduthing (our new IT provider) are delighted to be offering a free session for parents and carers on making reading a habit at home on Thursday 21st May, 7pm – 8pm.
The session will explore:
Why small, positive reading moments make a big difference
Simple digital supports that help with tricky words and confidence
How audio, captions and short digital texts can help on busy days
Ways to use your child’s interests to boost motivation
Fun, low-pressure family reading challenges
How to find personalised book suggestions based on what your child enjoys
Full details are provided in the attached PDF, including a clickable/scanable QR code that parents and carers can use to register for the session.
Staff news…
Faye Mitchell joins us as teacher in Primary 1 on Monday- welcome! Mr Gething moves to teach in our Junior class and Mr Annia will now be teaching your children to cook!
At the end of this half term we say good bye to Lisa who is one of the residential support workers who will be moving on to a new job. We thank Lisa for all of her hard work and dedication and the care she has given to all the students in residence during her time.
Unfortunately starting from next half term, some afterschool clubs that residence run will no longer be running, these are the Monday Foodie Friends Club and the Wednesday Eco Club. We will be continuing with or after school wraparound care still but this will also be limited numbers. We will be reviewing this for the new school year and thank you for responding to our questionnaire about this.
Several staff attended Jeanette Alvey’s funeral this week. It was a quiet, very ‘Jeanette’ affair. Our flowers joined some from her knitting and crochet club; we heard music from the band ‘Wet, Wet, Wet’ ; and walked out to the theme tune of her favourite TV show, ‘Friends’. We thank everyone for their kind words and contributions and a donation has been made to Macmillan. We will let you know when the lovely bird table, in Jeanette’s memory, is going to be put up in the reading garden.
Have a good weekend everyone,
Jenny
If your child leaves home in the morning a little unsettled and you want to quickly tell us, so we know to expect a tricky start to the day, a quick email (that we can follow up later) to the tutor and/or core team with ‘Handle with Care’ in the email title will ensure that we are aware
