Dear Parents,
Welcome to the first newsletter of the year. Thank you for bearing with us yesterday and we hope that does not occur again.
The children have enjoyed an excellent start to the school year, settling into their routines really well. Our new teachers have settled in very smoothly and a mini heatwave is a good way to start the year! We look forward to the first Friday celebration assembly tomorrow morning.
Summer improvement works
You may have seen the tweet at the beginning of the term with all the work that happened over the summer. These included a new pond (paid for by Trustees money), new signs out the front and Anthony (premises manager) providing some much needed repairs to the outside of reception and painting and decorating of a classroom in need of repair-5W.
Thank you to some substantial PSA commitment, we were able to purchase 12 new smartboards-these went into Year 1, Year 2, Year 5 & Year 6.
School results 2022-23
Explanation
As a school we are very proud of our results, especially given the cohort of our this Year 6 with 8 EHCPs and new children arriving. You can see the very secure foundations we give our children in EYFS and KS1.
The R, W & M (Reading, Writing and Maths) statistic is one that is frequently compared to as a national measure and we are 25% above national. You can also see in numerous other areas how far ahead we are of national measures e.g. over 30% at KS2 greater depth reading.
As well as our attainment, we are very proud of our progress scores. It is complicated statistic to explain how it is calculated, but simply shows the progress from KS1 to KS2. You can see if national is 0.0 and Richmond is approximately 2.0 across the three subjects, we achieved almost double that.
Context
The National data for EYFS, Phonics and KS1 is from 2022, as 2023 has not been released yet.
The Year 6 cohort had 8 EHCPs and four children arrived from abroad during the year.
Progress score is an indicator of a child’s progress from their KS1 results to their KS2. National is always zero and therefore we have included Richmond to give you a comparison.
GPS is Grammar, Punctuation and Spelling.
In the KS2 SATs papers, the % for expected is approximately 50% and for greater depth is 75% for reading and 85% for maths.
There are more detailed statistics available on the school website covering previous years
Dates for Class/Year group assembly dates, Christmas concerts and Parent engagement events
With our meet the teacher events starting this week, we have reviewed our parent engagement offer. Some of these are a continuation from last year, whilst there are new events. We look forward to seeing you at these and will continue to remind you throughout the year. Unless we state otherwise, there is no need to sign up. The document is attached.
Sheen Mount 'Purpose'
Alongside all our stakeholders, the leadership team and the Governors are looking at redefining the school purpose-previously called vision. We have engaged with staff on the INSET days and will do shortly with the pupils. We would welcome some parent input.
There are only three key questions to answer and they are below. To fill in the survey please click here- https://forms.gle/3zx2Zw5cLuiVAknR7
If someone were to ask you in three words or sentences to describe or to summarise Sheen Mount, what would you say?
What would a child be like after 7 years here compared to the beginning?
Where should our ambitions be for the next five years?
Curriculum bulletins
These are now available to read under each year group on the website.
Walking in front of KS1 and Doves class
A reminder please that unless you are dropping off at Moles, Otters, Hedgehogs or Doves, please keep away from these classes by the front of the school at drop off/pick up. This will allow parents from these classes to have a more relaxed experience. All other parents should walk through the playground behind the planted area.
Uniform requests for the beginning of term
The cycle tops from last year can be worn for PE whilst they still fit.
PE shorts are now black; children can wear white whilst their current pair still fit them.
Hair needs to be tied back, if it is longer than shoulder length.
Sports trainers should not be worn for school unless it is a PE day.
School shoes need to be black; all black trainers are permissable.
Tracksuits should be plain without extravagant logos or markings down the side.
School events
We have already had our first school trips of the year with Year 6 visiting the fabulous local resource of the air raid shelter in Mortlake over the next two days.
https://lookup.london/air-raid-shelter-st-leonards-court-mortlake/
Congratulations to our Year 5 & Year 6 football teams who competed in the Hampton School football tournament last Saturday. The Y5 team played 5 games, they had 3 victories and drew and lost 1. The Y6 team played 8 matches and were unbeaten, with 4 victories and 4 draws. Thank you to Mr Brown for giving up his Saturday morning to take the teams.
School games award
The school were awarded 'silver' for our PE provision last year, having not applied for the award for a number of years. 
'The School Games Mark is an awards scheme designed to reward schools for their commitment to the development of competition across their school. Participating in the annual School Games Mark allows schools to evaluate their PE provision and develop an action plan for future progress.'
With Mr Brown leading our teaching of games and teams and Miss Lawton the curriculum side, our ambition this year is gold!
PSA open meeting and thanks
On Wednesday 20th September, the termly PSA meeting is taking place in the school hall at 8pm. Anyone and everyone is welcome and by attending you are not signing up to anything! Myself and Mrs O'Brien will be in attendance and there will be an opportunity to find out more about the PSA foci for the year and ask any questions.
Substantial thanks go to some prominent members of the team who are stepping back from the committee after two years- Calli Louis (co-chair) Tamsin Bryant (vice-chair) and Alicia Hickman (Treasurer). Tamsin continues to support us through the final stages of the planning application for the field-I thank her for her time and substantial commitment to this. We will bring you further news of this when we have it.
Reception parents welcome event
Please see the time and the date for this annual event. Along with the PSA, we have slightly changed the event which we hope will allow and encourage more parents to attend. Firstly, we hope a Wednesday night might allow for more availability than a Friday. Secondly, there wil be a more proactive approach to get parents mingling as well as a fun quiz. Thirdly, the event is shorter and those who are still thirsty afterwards can move onto the Vic.
Swimway
As well as teaching the children at school, we thank them for their commitment to allow some of our children to swim for free in their Sunday lessons; it is a great resource and opportunity.
Community events
Archive Explorers
Archives carry the stories of human lives from the past into the present, and beyond to the distant future. Join the Archive Explorers and become a detective, hunting for clues to uncover the secrets of past people and bringing them to life.
These workshops are aimed at children aged 5-14. Children should be accompanied by an adult. Saturday 30 September, 10 to 11am.
https://www.richmond.gov.uk/kyp_activities_for_children_and_families
Richmond CoderDojo
Richmond CoderDojo is a free coding club open to young people aged 5 to 15 with sessions on Scratch, HTML, Python, and using micro:bits. Coder Dojo has returned to in-person sessions at Richmond Old Town Hall, on the fourth Saturday of each month from 11am to 1pm.
The next session is Saturday 23 September. Book your place now! https://www.richmond.gov.uk/richmond_coderdojo
Barnes Children's centre
There are a range of activities for the Under5's at Barnes and the various children's centres. https://5f2fe3253cd1dfa0d089-bf8b2cdb6a1dc2999fecbc372702016c.ssl.cf3.rackcdn.com/uploads/ckeditor/attachments/13803/Autumn_2023__1_.pdf
Have a good weekend
Tom Holmes - Headteacher
Maria O'Brien - Deputy Headteacher
.JPG)
