Ashmead Road, Deptford, London, SE8 4DX Tel: - 020 8692 6081

Email: - admin@ashmead.lewisham.sch.uk web:- www.ashmead.lewisham.sch.uk

Family

Handbook

Welcome to Ashmead Primary School! Dear Parents/Carers, I am pleased to be able to provide you with a copy of the Ashmead Family Handbook. Within it you will find the key information that will support you and your children through your time at Ashmead. We are very proud of our school – its special ethos, committed staff, wonderful playground and great resources. Most of all we are proud of our brilliant children. They are at the heart of this community and their learning, safety and wellbeing are what comes first for us. This handbook for parents and carers has been jointly written by staff and governors. The intention is that we will revise it annually. We would welcome your feedback on it. I am keen to listen to families and I’m in the playground every morning before school and at the end of the day. You can email me at headteacher@ashmead.lewisham.sch.uk, or telephone the school to make an appointment. I look forward to talking to you.

Sean O'Flynn

Our Vision for Ashmead

This draft vision statement was written in response to feedback from parents, staff and children.

Our Vision Ashmead Primary School is a learning community where:

‐ children come first

‐ we have the highest ambitions and expectations for all our children

‐ children are active learners who are curious, independent, creative, risk-taking, ambitious and who relish being challenged

‐ we believe that being part of our school community will help change children’s lives for the better – that we make a difference

‐ we succeed by involving the whole community

‐ academic, artistic, sporting and other successes are shared and celebrated

‐ children know that progress comes from working hard in a safe and

supportive environment

‐ children help to make and implement important decisions

‐ our curriculum is responsive to local, national and global events and provides

rich, relevant and exciting contexts for learning that celebrate our diverse community

‐ children regard themselves as both leaders and lifelong learners

‐ we support and challenge each other constructively and respectfully, aware

of the balance between rights and responsibilities

Priorities 2011-2012

• Challenge and ambition for every child • Embedding leadership through the whole school

• Improving teaching so that children make better than nationally expected

progress

School Dinners

Children can have either school dinners or a packed lunch from home. We encourage all children to try school dinners in the first instance. The quality of the food and standard of cooking is very good. These are currently priced at £1.60 per day and we ask that the week’s amount (£8) be paid in full at the beginning of the week in cash using the blue dinner money envelopes or paid online using Pay+. You can also choose to pay for the whole or half term by cheque in the first week of the term. If paying by cash please ensure your child’s name, class and the date is on the envelope. Children should put their dinner money envelope in the tray in their classroom rather than bring it directly to the office. If you have more than one child in the school then you can put all dinner money into one envelope. If children want to change from school dinner to packed lunch or vice versa then please give us a week’s notice in writing as the kitchen orders food in advance. If you anticipate your child will be late to school (e.g. a dental appointment) and will need a dinner then please contact the school office by 9.45am to ensure that their name is added to the list for the day. If you are on Income Support or Job Seekers Allowance you can claim free school meals for your child. Application forms are available from the school office. We know that a number of our parents are entitled to free school meals but don’t claim them for various reasons or because they don’t know how to go about it. We encourage all parents who are entitled to claim to do so, even if their children have packed lunches, as the children then are entitled to additional benefits (such as a discount on music tuition and school journey fees).

The School Day EYFS: Nursery 9.05-11.35 Morning session 12.55-3.25 Afternoon session Nursery children are entitled to 15 hours per week, which is the same as 6 sessions. Therefore you will be asked to identify an additional session for your child to attend. EYFS: Reception 9.00 Registration 9.00-10.30 Session 1 10.30-10.45 Break 10.45-12.00 Session 2 12.00-1.15 Lunch 1.15 Registration 1.15-2.15 Session 3 2.15 – 2.30 Break 2.30 -3.30 Session 4 Key Stage 1 – Years 1 & 2 9.00 Registration 9.30-10.15 Session 1 10.15 -10.30 Assembly (except Mon/Fri) 10.30-10.45 Break 10.45-12.00 Session 2 12.00-1.15 Lunch 1.15 Registration 1.15-2.15 Session 3 2.15 – 2.30 Break 2.30 -3.30 Session 4 Key Stage 2 – Years 3, 4, 5 & 6 9.00 Registration 9.30-10.15 Session 1 10.15–10.30 Assembly (except Mon/Fri) 10.30-10.45 Break 10.45-12.15 Session 2 12.15-1.15 Lunch 1.15 Registration 1.15-2.15 Session 3 2.15 – 2.30 Break 2.30 -3.30 Session 4

Who’s Who? Ashmead Staff: 2011- 2012 Headteacher: Sean O’Flynn Deputy/Reception Teacher (.6): Jane Bickley SENCo Pat Bulpitt Nursery Teacher/EYFS leader Joseph Wollen Nursery Nurse Beryl Shockness TA (Nursery) Jo Castaldo Reception Teacher (.5) Rachel Booth TA (Reception) Negi Lleshi Year 1H teacher Josie Hocking TA (Y1H) Helen Markey TA (Y1H) Michell Dixon Year 1L teacher (.5) Lynette Brittan Year 1L teacher (.5) Hilary Lawrance TA (Y1L) Rehana Rahman TA (Y1L) Val Schlanker Reading Recovery teacher Arlene Weller Year 2 teacher Joyce Brown TA (Y2) Feride Nidai Year 3 teacher Dan Absolom TA (Y3) Jason Piers Year 4 teacher Alice Cattanach TA (Y4) Penny Andrews TA (Y4) Maria Year 5 teacher Deborah Arnold TA (Y5) Caroline Field Year 6 teacher Susi Almond TA (Y6) Karen Nageh TA (Y6) Sarah SEN Support teacher Chris Chambers Learning Mentor Brian Foley School Business Manager Julia Costello Front Desk (am) Ann Sabah Front Desk (pm) Sam Blane Premises Officer Angelo Lione PPA cover All class teachers are entitled to one tenth of their teaching timetable per week for planning, preparation and assessment time and NQTs (Newly Qualified Teachers) are entitled to an additional tenth of their time for continued professional development. We try to cover PPA with regular staff to minimize the disruption for the children.

Beginning and end of the school day

We have an ‘early drop-off’ facility, which opens at 8am for children from reception to year 6. You can get an application form from the school office. It is run by Karen Nageh in the music room. Sessions cost £1.50 per child. We are trialing a reduced rate for children who arrive after 8.30. Children who come to this should come through the main door.

The playground is open from 8.45am and parents and children enter via the side gate. Staff are in the playground in the morning and are available to chat to parents and children at this time. Parents remain responsible for their children until the bell goes for the start of school. The bell rings at 9am for the children to line up.

Lining Up Reception/Year 1/Year 2 Children line up outside their classroom doors, which open at 9am. Years 3-6 Children line up in class lines in the playground and are collected by teachers at 9am.

Wet mornings/break times The head/deputy will make a decision as to whether it is too wet to be in the playground. If it is, then the children go straight to their classrooms from the playground on arrival.

At the end of the day, children in reception/years 1 and 2 leave from their classroom door once the teacher can see the person collecting them. Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 are brought downstairs by their class teachers and are dismissed from the playground. Any child who has not been collected by 3.40pm goes to the main office

Communication Effective communication between home and school are vital to children’s success. Informally Teachers are in the playground immediately before and after school and are happy to answer quick queries then. Should it need a little longer, please make an appointment with the teacher for a mutually convenient time. The head and/or deputy are in the playground before and after school and are happy to deal with queries as well as see parents by appointment. Parentmail Our preferred method of sending home letters is “parentmail”. This is a web-based system that allows letters to be sent by email. All parents who give us an email address will automatically receive all letters by email. Families without an email address receive paper copies of all letters. Letters Any letters that require parents to return a reply slip (e.g. trip letters) are sent as paper copies to all parents as well as by parentmail. Website This is full of information about the school, has a regularly updated school calendar and all newsletters. Class teachers and their classes are responsible for keeping these up to date on a regular basis. We also aim to include relevant policies and forms for your use (e.g. ‘early drop-off’ club form). Class newsletters and curriculum information You will receive a class newsletter and a forecast of the term’s work at the start of each term. They can also be found on the school website on the class home page. School newsletters A newsletter is sent out fortnightly. It keeps you informed of forthcoming events as well as telling you what has been happening in school. This is an important source of information. Parent questionnaire Parents are asked to complete a questionnaire each year by the governors. It helps governors to identify priorities for school development. Meet the teacher All class teachers hold a meeting early in the autumn term to introduce themselves to you and to give information about the forthcoming year. These are a great way for you to meet informally with the teacher and other parents. Parent-teacher meetings/End of year reports More formal progress meetings about your children take place twice a year, in Autumn and Spring and an end of year report is sent home in Summer. A parent comment sheet is included so that your views can be kept with a copy of the report in your child’s records.

Children’s Wellbeing

Safeguarding Child protection is the responsibility of all staff at Ashmead. We will:

• Establish a safe environment in which children can learn and develop. • Ensure children know that there are adults in school who they can approach

if they are worried. • Practice safe recruitment procedures for all staff and volunteers who work

with children. • Raise awareness of child protection issues and equip children with the skills

required to keep them safe. • Include opportunities in the curriculum for children to develop the skills they

need to recognise, and stay safe from, abuse Behaviour expectations We want all the children at Ashmead to feel happy and safe in school. We aim, through a friendly and open school atmosphere, to teach the children the value of self-discipline. We want every child in the school to feel he or she has an important part to play in making the school a lively and interesting place to learn. Visitors to our school often comment on how friendly and helpful the children seem, and how well behaved they are. Where we are concerned about a child’s behaviour we get in touch with the parents and work together to improve it.

Children who are unwell at school Sometimes children fall ill while at school. It is important that we have up to date contact numbers so that if your child needs to go home we can contact you quickly.

Children who wet/soil themselves From time to time children have accidents. Spare clothing is kept in school for these situations. We do ask parents to return these clothes washed. Head lice Headlice are common amongst primary school children – about one in ten primary aged children catch them each year. Often you can tell when children have them because they will scratch their heads or you see louse droppings on pillows or clothes. If you discover your child has head lice please treat them immediately and inform us so that we can tell other parents in your child’s class that there is a case so they can check their child’s hair as well. The most effective way of keeping headlice at bay is to check your children’s hair on a regular basis.

Medicines There are times when children are well enough to be in school but still require medication (eg a course of antibiotics). You must fill in an ‘administering medicine’ form which is available at the office. Medicines are kept in the medical room and should be handed in and collected from the office daily. Children on regular medication/treatment will have a care plan in place that is written by the school nurse in consultation with parents. A record is kept of all medicine that is administered.

On-line safety The majority of families at Ashmead now have internet access at home. The internet is an invaluable source of information, entertainment and education provided it is used safely. In school, internet access is controlled by strong firewalls that prevent children accessing inappropriate sites. This is regularly monitored to ensure security systems are still robust. We always recommend that at home you keep your computer in a ‘public’ room in the house, not children’s bedrooms and keep an eye on the sites

your child is visiting. We are very aware that several of our children are using social networking sites such as Facebook, Bebo, MySpace, MSN, to name but a few. It is very important that you as parents/carers know what your children are accessing on the internet and who they are speaking to as well as the risks involved in the use of social networking sites by young children. Most social networking providers have set 13 years as the minimum age a person can register as a user. The following basic principles should be followed in order to stay safe online. •Never reveal personal details online •Never arrange a meeting with a stranger you meet online •Follow the advice by social networking sites to keep you safe •Do not open emails, accept downloads or follow links from people you don’t know More information can be found on http://www.childnet-int.org/

Attendance and Punctuality

Being absent from school affects your child’s learning. Obviously some absences are unavoidable, for example, illness, however, we would expect children to have good attendance. We are constantly working to ensure perfect punctuality. We expect children to be in school in time for the bell at 9am. What to do if my child is absent? For the safety of your child please contact us on the first morning of an absence. This should be by an adult (in person, phone call or letter) and not a message by another child. If we don’t receive a reason from an adult then we will ring you and if we still don’t hear from you, we will send a letter requesting one. Any absence that does not have a satisfactory reason will be counted as unauthorised. We will contact parents of children whose absence is of serious concern and this may involve referring them to Lewisham’s Attendance and Welfare Team. PLEASE NOTE THAT GOING SHOPPING AND BIRTHDAY TREATS ARE NOT ACCEPTABLE REASONS FOR A CHILD TO BE ABSENT. Absence other than for illness or educational reasons is at the discretion of the headteacher and requests for such absences should be put in writing prior to the absence to Sean using the Holiday Absence Request form which can be downloaded from the website or collected from the school office. What to do if my child is running late? If your child arrives after 9am they will be marked late. The gates are locked at 9.05am and they will have to enter through the main door. Children arriving after 9.15am without a valid reason, such as a medical appointment, will have their lateness recorded as unauthorised. We will write to you if your child is late twice or more in a week asking for an improvement. If your child’s punctuality hasn’t changed then you may be asked to come into school to discuss the situation. At the end of the school day children should be collected at 3.30pm. If you are delayed for any reason then please phone school to let us know. Children should not be collected early unless they have an appointment (please let us know in advance).

Supporting your child’s learning

At home There are many ways you can help your child with their learning at home. Throughout their time at Ashmead every child brings home reading books. While your child is learning to read it is vitally important they have the chance to read their books to an adult at home regularly. Once they are fluent, competent readers then talking about what they are reading is crucial to improve your child’s understanding of what they are reading. More details about reading expectations and other ‘formal’ homework activities will be given to you by your child’s class teacher. However, learning at home extends beyond any activity that is sent by school. Using activities around the home such as cooking or shopping are great ways to develop maths and language skills as are board and other games.

Additional Educational Needs Some children learn quickly, others need additional help, especially in reading, basic language work, or basic maths either for a short time, or throughout their time at school. At Ashmead, we have systems in place where children who need a little extra help benefit from support individually, or more often a small group. This help is likely to come mainly from our team of well-trained teaching assistants. If your

child needs that kind of help, we keep in touch with you and let you know exactly what progress is being made. Also we offer extra help to children for whom English is not their first language. If we feel your child has particular additional needs in education, and needs to be put on the Special Needs Register, this will be discussed fully as it might be necessary to obtain additional outside help from a range of services available to us through the Lewisham Inclusion Service. Your first point of contact regarding your child’s learning is always their class teacher. Pat Bulpitt oversees the provision for children on the additional needs register and makes referrals to external agencies as appropriate.

Governors

The governing body of a school is responsible for ensuring that it is run to promote pupil achievement. Its duties include:

• setting strategic direction, policies and objectives • approving the school budget • reviewing progress against the school's budget and objectives • appointing, challenging and supporting the headteacher

All types of people can become school governors. No special qualifications are required, but you must be 18 or over on the date when you are elected or appointed. Enthusiasm, commitment and an interest in education are the most important qualities. You don't even need to have a child at Ashmead. We particularly welcome new governors who have transferable skills developed at work, or who have a particularly good understanding of the community served by the school. Parent governors are elected for a term of four years. If you are interested in becoming a parent governor then why not talk to one of the current governors or read about it on www.direct.gov.uk All our current governors information is available on the governor’s section of the school website.

Ashmead PTA

As well as the governing body there are ways that parents can have a further role in the school. We have a Parent Teacher Association (PTA), who organise fund raising as well as social events.

And finally … Occasionally you may have concerns over some aspect of your child’s education, even if it appears to be minor. The little difficulties are easy to deal with, don’t let them become major concerns. In the first instance, please discuss any matter with the class teacher. If things continue to bother you, you can speak to the head or deputy. The following is generally the order we suggest you approach people if difficulties arise. Most concerns are resolved either by talking to the class teacher or to the head or deputy.

1 talk to the class teacher 2 talk to the head or deputy 3 write to the Chair of Governors c/o the school 4 contact the local authority –

The Complaints Officer 3rd floor Laurence House 1 Catford Road London SE6