Kingsholm C of E Primary School and Nursery

23rd October 2026

Newsletter 4

Our Value this Term is Friendship

In This Issue

Headteacher's Message
Attendance
Forest Classroom News
School Ministers News
PTA News
Latest News
Gloucestershire Gateway Trust
Any Other Business
Term Dates

Headteacher's Message

Dear Parents/Carers,

We have made it! Autumn term 1 is done and we can all look forward to the October half term and the upcoming Christmas Term.

This has been my first Autumn Term at Kingsholm and once again I have been amazed at the wonderful opportunities the staff create for our children.

We have seen everything from: Theatre productions, birds of prey, sports fixtures, clubs, Break the Rules day and so much more. The staff work incredibly hard to provide a rich and varied education for all.

Next term is packed so look out for dates: Time to Talk Evenings, Nativity and Christingle to name a few.

And finally...

Last week we had a visit from an OFSTED Inspector who was asked to review the progress the school had made recently, and I wanted to celebrate some of her comments to really highlight how the school is continually striving to improve:

The school is an inclusive, nurturing environment. The highly structured and well-established routines help pupils feel safe, happy and ready to learn.

Pupils who struggle to come into school are given sensitive, meaningful support.

Classrooms are calm and purposeful. Relationships between adults and pupils are warm and respectful.

Expectations for behaviour are high and applied consistently, with reasonable adjustments for pupils who need support.

Pupils behaved well in all lessons visited.

The work done to develop the curriculum since the inspection is impressive.

Phonics was taught consistently well in all sessions visited.

Have a wonderful break

Kind regards,

Mr Larner

Joke of the week:

What is made of leather and sounds like a sneeze?

A Shoe

Attendance

Weekly Year Group Attendance

Week beginning 12th October

Reception 93%
Year 1 90%
Year 2 93%
Year 3 95%
Year 4 96%
Year 5 93%
Year 6 90%
Whole School 93%

Week beginning 19th October

Reception 95%
Year 1 91%
Year 2 93%
Year 3 96%
Year 4 94%
Year 5 90%
Year 6 90%
Whole School 93 %

Forest Classroom News

Hello Forest School Families and Friends,

Well, mud season has begun and the children have hugely enjoyed exploring mud and how water can be controlled using trenches and dams. The shelter has been up for those that wanted to take a break from the rain and chat with friends or make a house. Last week we were luckier with the weather, which meant learning with fire: cooking popcorn and toasting bagels. There have been several brilliant cafes made making mud hot chocolate and baking cakes and making soup with leaves and other things added to the mix. Some children also continued to collect the beautiful, coloured autumn leaves that have started to fall.

Wishing you all a peaceful week off,

Kind regards,

Kate Shepherd (Forest School Leader),

School Minister's News

Dear Parents / Carers,

We have reached the last few days of this half term and are enjoying getting to know our new roles.

The Year 5 /6 classes were treated to an early pantomime last week here at school which was ‘Robin Hood’ we were able to take part and sing along!

For some of the Year 6's we have been looking at potential secondary schools which is exciting!

We are all looking forward to break the rules day and seeing everyone breaking the rules!

Well done to everyone at school for working so hard and we hope you all have a lovely half term and stay safe.

From Nidha and Harmony :) *** Please remember we are here if you want to talk to us. ***

PTFA News

Break The Rules Day - THANKS

Thank you to everyone who donated to the Break the Rules Day. The children have enjoyed coming in with crazy hair, tattoos, wearing their own trainers etc and we have raised a fantastic sum of £463.70

Did you know?

We have two PTFA banners, one on the KS1 playground and the other on the KS2 playgrounds which contain PTFA information. Please do keep an eye on these.

On a separate note, if any parent / carer has a business and could help with a raffle prize, we would love to hear from you, or should you wish to drop a prize off in the office, it will find it's way to us.

Thank you as always for your support.

DATES OF THE PTFA MEETINGS

Latest News

Harvest Festival Assembly

We enjoyed welcoming our Year 4 parents / carers to the Harvest assembly where our year 4 classes performed brilliantly.

Thank you to everyone who attended and for all the donations we received.

Thank you

As you can see from the certificate, we are once again blown away by our school communities generosity. Your kind donations will certainly help lots of families.

Amended School Dinner Menu

Please see the amended dinner menu.

Sports News

Last week - 12-16 October:

Girls football team played against Coney Hill girls and beat them 4-2 with goals from Emily M and Josie D - both year 6. (Monday)

Boys football team played against Dinglewell and beat them 1-0 with a goal from Isaac (year 5) - Tuesday

On Thursday, the girls played in a regional final tournament at Oxstalls Sport Park collecting 1 win on our travels.

Well done to everyone involved.

'Wake up Wednesday' parent guide around online safety

Despite it not being Wednesday, this new section will feature helpful guides. Please see the first one below.

Updated School Policies

All our school policies are available to view on the school's website, under the 'Key Information' Tab. We will share any updated policies with you here.

Gloucestershire Gateway Trust

Kaleidoscope Children and Family Centre (GGT)

Please see the latest timetable

Kaleidoscope Children and Family Centre are hosting Community Get Togethers- This is a fantastic opportunity to connect with your neighbours, exchange ideas, and discover what’s happening in our local area, all in a welcoming and informal atmosphere. If you are interested in getting involved and shaping local service and activities, please email Craig.wheeler@ggtrust.org

Any Other Business

Parent / Carer Consultation Meetings

We will be having our first parent / carer meetings of the academic year on Tuesday 10 and Wednesday 11th of November from 3:30 -6pm.

This is an ideal opportunity to find out how your child is progressing and to ask any questions you may have.

The bookings are now open on Schoolping. If you have any problems with bookings, please contact the school office.

Online Safety

Please see the link below which is a useful guide for parents/carers.

Com Groups: A Parent's Guide to Online Safety

Reminders…..

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Please check your child's hair on a regular basis

Head lice can make your head feel itchy.

The only way to be sure someone has head lice is by finding live lice.

You can do this by combing their hair with a special fine-toothed comb (detection comb). You can buy these online or at pharmacies.

How to get rid of head lice

Treat head lice as soon as you spot them. You can treat head lice without seeing a GP.

Check everyone you live with, or have close contact with, and start treating anyone who has head lice on the same day.

There's no need to keep your child off school if they have head lice. You do not need to wash your laundry on a hot wash.

Wet combing

Lice and nits can be removed by wet combing.

You can buy a special fine-toothed comb (detection comb) online or from pharmacies to remove head lice and nits.

There may be instructions on the pack, but usually you:

wash hair with ordinary shampoo
apply lots of conditioner (any conditioner will do)
comb the whole head of hair, using the detection comb, from the roots to the ends

It usually takes about 10 minutes to comb short hair, and 20 to 30 minutes for long, frizzy or curly hair. When you've finished combing the hair, comb through all the hair again for a second time.

Do wet combing on days 1, 5, 9 and 13 to catch any newly hatched head lice. Check again that everyone's hair is free of lice on day 17.

Medicated lotions and sprays

If wet combing has not worked or is not suitable, you could try a medicated lotion or spray. These kill head lice in all types of hair, and you can buy them from pharmacies, supermarkets or online.

Head lice should die within a day. Some lotions and sprays come with a comb to remove dead lice and eggs.

Some treatments need to be repeated after a week to kill any newly hatched lice.

Check the pack to see if they're OK for you or your child to use, and how to use them.

If lotions or sprays do not work, speak to a pharmacist about other treatments.

Treatments that are not recommended for head lice

Some treatments are not recommended because they're unlikely to work.

For example:

products containing permethrin
head lice "repellents"
electric combs for head lice
plant oil treatments, such as tea tree oil, eucalyptus oil and lavender oil herbal remedies

Wet combing video

The charity Community Hygiene Concern has a video about wet combing for head lice.

Monday 2nd November is an INSET day and the school will be closed. Term 2 starts on Tuesday 3rd November.
Summer school trip payments - Hopefully you will have seen the schoolping message regarding forthcoming summer trips for Years 1,2,3,5 and Reception. ( Year 4 and Year 6 already have a trip planned) As part of our commitment to providing children with a wide range of enriching experiences, we are planning a number of visits/experiences during the Summer Term 2027. While the destinations are still being finalised, we would like to give families plenty of advance notice to help spread the cost over the coming months. We are requesting a contribution of £20.00 per child to cover the anticipated costs of transport and admission charges. By notifying families well in advance, we hope this will allow contributions to be made gradually, equating to approximately £1 per week between now and the trip dates in the summer term.As the visits are not directly linked to the National Curriculum, they are voluntary enrichment opportunities rather than curriculum-based activities. Unfortunately, this means that children will not be able to attend if payment is not received, as the school is unable to subsidise the costs incurred.To secure your child's place, a non-refundable deposit of £10.00 must be received by Monday 8 February 2027. This may be paid as a single payment or in smaller instalments over several weeks. The remaining balance will be requested once the final arrangements have been confirmed.
Breakfast Club and Free Breakfast Club - For those families who use these provisions, a reminder that we are unable to accept children once the doors close. For Breakfast Club the doors open from 7:45 -8:15. For the free breakfast club the doors are open from 8:15pm and close at 8:25.
Parking - When dropping off and collecting the children, we ask our families to not park in the Kaleidoscope / Children's Centre. We appreciate the limited parking areas however please do not use this provision.
Cool Kids, Buffer and Breakfast Club - These provisions MUST be booked in advance using the link which is sent out weekly via SchoolPing. ALL sessions need to be paid for in advance unless you pay monthly and already have this payment agreement set up and in place. Places will be refused if there is money owing on the account and until the account is cleared.
Family Support - We appreciate for many these can be tricky times. Do get in touch if you have any worries about food, finances or housing and we will try and help. Please get in touch with the Virtual Office - virtualoffice@kingsholm.gloucs.sch.uk