Dear Parents and Carers,

Advent in December is fast approaching and the Christmas spirit is certainly becoming evident here at The Ridge. There is an air of excitement amongst the children (and the staff!) and preparations are in full swing for our celebrations. Over the coming weeks, we look forward to welcoming you to our performances and seeing you at our Christmas Fayre.

Kind regards

Mrs D Hudson

Headteacher

We have reviewed the drop off arrangements for Reception and Key Stage 1 children. Whilst arrangements for children going directly to classroom doors will remain the same, from Monday, we ask parents to exit the school site by retracing their steps around the building, across the playground and through the main gates. The small gate at the back of school will be closed to prevent people using that gate to enter or exit the school site.

Again this week, I have been contacted by a resident of Gregory Road, frustrated by the actions of what he called ‘selfish or stupid parents’ who block drives and the turning circle. Residents have sent photographs of dangerous and inconsiderate parking and on this occasion, a registration number of the car which blocked a drive for 15 minutes earlier in the week.

It saddens me that the reputation of our school is muddied in this way by a small number of thoughtless individuals. However, more concerning is the dangerous parking and manoeuvring which could cause a serious accident and injury. It is also frustrating to have to keep apologising for something which is beyond the school’s control.

• Please avoid double parking along the length of Gregory Road and obstructing the driveways of our neighbours. (Marked out with the white I-------I)
• Do not park on the yellow’ Keep Clear Zig Zags’ or in the turning circle in Gregory Road.
• Please do not park or turn around in the school car park.

Please also keep this in mind when attending events outside the normal school day such as the Christmas Fayre and performances.

At the Governors meeting this week, our long-standing Chair of Governors, Julia Simmonds formally stood down. Julia was initially elected as a parent governor when her daughter started in school over 20 years ago. Since then she has generously given her time and energy to serve the governing body and over the past five years has lead the board with dedication and wisdom in the role of Chair of Governors. We want to express our gratitude for all her commitment to supporting our school. We are delighted that although she has stepped down as Chair of Governors, Julia will remain on the governing body a little while longer to support this time of transition.

We are pleased to announce that our Vice Chair of Governors, Phil Roberts has been elected as our new Chair of Governors. Phil has already made a wonderful contribution to the work of our governing body and we are pleased that he has offered to step up to this vital role in our school leadership. Thank you Phil: we know that you are going to do a fabulous job!

Christmas Fayre

The RFA have been working hard in preparation for our Christmas Fayre on Friday 6^th December. Thank you for all your support and donations – we really do appreciate your generosity. We look forward to seeing you: the fayre runs from 3.30 – 5.30 and there will be a wonderful range of stalls, games and refreshments on offer. This is one of the most important fundraising events of the year so your support is very much appreciated.

Christmas Performances

Our school performances are an important part of our school life and we know that you enjoy coming along to see them. They are a collaboration across the year groups and the result of lots of hard work from the children and the staff.  

Whatever their role, every child matters and every voice matters. The singers in the choir are vitally important to the performance. We understand that Christmas is a busy time, but please make every effort to ensure that your child attends the evening performance. We know that there is demand for evening tickets and that many of you can’t attend during the day, however we find it difficult to fill the last minute gaps and it is disappointing for those who are here, if the performance is affected by absence. Children will need to be back at school for 6.00 p.m. If your child won’t be attending, please make sure that you let their teacher know as soon as possible. Thank you.

Tickets for the Key stage One and Two performances will be distributed in the middle of next week. We are limited to numbers by fire regulations, which limits the number of tickets we can issue, especially for the KS2 event.   If you have tickets that you are unable to use, please return them to the school office so that we can pass them to those on the waiting list for extra tickets. Please remember to bring your tickets with you when you attend the performance. If you do not have your ticket, you will be asked to wait until everyone is seated before going into the hall. Thank you.

Programme Design

Children from Key Stages 1 and 2 are invited to design a front cover for the programmes for this year's Christmas performances. One winner will be selected from each Key Stage and the winner will have their design published on the front cover of the programme for their Key Stage. Rather than a specific performance this year, we are presenting songs and readings so the programme needs to reflect a general Christmas theme, rather than have a specific title.  Children need to hand their designs in to their class teacher by Wednesday 4^th December. 

Christmas Cards

Many children like to send Christmas Cards to their friends. To help with this we will have our red mail box in the entrance hall, where the children can post their card and have them delivered to others in school. Please make sure that any cards posted have the recipient’s full name and class written on the envelope.

Mindful of the cost of cards, we would encourage children to post one card to the class rather than feeling that they have to send a card to everyone.

…..for your support for Children in Need and for Birmingham Children’s Hospital. The bucket collection for the Children's hospital raised a fabulous £180.67.

Thank you for your on-going support with attendance: we know that there are lots of illnesses doing the rounds at the moment, including some flu like viruses, sickness and diarrhoea. This has not only affected children, staff too have been unwell.

This Weeks attendance 

Whole School - 90.87%

Reception - 81.00%

Year 1 – 92.33%

Year 2 – 88.28%

Year 3 – 91.94%

Year 4 – 97.00%

Year 5 – 90.74%

Year 6 – 94.67%

Well done Year 4!

Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility. Mrs Hudson is the Designated Safeguarding Lead and any concerns should be shared with her or the Deputy Safeguarding Leads – Mrs Hadley and Ms Gledhill.  Where child protection concerns are raised, the school has a statutory duty to refer these concerns to children’s social care.

Follow us on Twitter