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Posted on: September 30th 2022

A Message from Carly Ellis

I can’t believe we are at the end of September already!  It has been an incredibly busy start to the year.  We have had a few visits from Suzanne Flack (CEO) which have been extremely positive.  The children have all spoken with enthusiasm about all the learning that is taking place and the opportunities they are given.  Some of the classes have already been out of school for some experiences.  Thank you to all the parents who are volunteering your time to support us on these trips. 

One of our focuses this year is to ensure that children can confidently articulate their learning and be more confident in sharing their knowledge with others.   Teachers and support staff are encouraging children to speak in complete sentences using a wide vocabulary bank.  This was evident in the visits from Suzanne. 

Due to personal circumstances, Mrs Gibbs will no longer be leading Forest School.  Mr Ripley will be leading these sessions now until Mrs Cullen returns from her maternity leave.  The Forest School sessions will be for half a day every week rather than a whole day every two weeks.  Therefore, the day your child does Forest School will remain the same but they will have the session every week on that day.  Please can children come to school dressed appropriately.  They will then either have their session in the morning or in the afternoon.  Miss Bolt, who is currently in Owl Class will be the temporary LSA in Otter Class until we have recruited a new member to our team.

Miss Fitzsimmons will be joining us on the 10th October as our new SENCO.  She will be arranging an opportunity for parents to meet her.

On other staffing news, Mrs Cullen has had a little boy!  We are all looking forward to meeting the little man and seeing her soon.

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A message from Carly Ellis Posted on: 31/03/2023

A message from Carly Ellis

Easter is here!  We have had an amazing term with lots of performances, class assemblies and sports tournaments.   Well done to all those involved. As we said in the last newsletter, teachers will now be updating their dojo posts and the class website pages from now on.  I have been busy looking at the responses from the parent survey, and although it seems like a while ago, I have put together a written summary which has been uploaded to Dojo.  It provides findings and also explain how we are going to further improve our school.  Your views are considered and acted upon so please do share these in future surveys or in passing.  Thank you to parents and carers who are respecting our drive – it is hugely appreciated.  Please be reassured that children’s best interests and safety are at the heart of all that we do. I hope everyone has a fabulous Easter break and I look forward to hearing all about the children’s adventures on their return (Tuesday 18th April).    Categories: 1 CategorySchool News
A message from Carly Ellis Posted on: 3/03/2023

A message from Carly Ellis

March already?  It always surprises me how quickly the school year passes!  We have spent much time since our inspection in November, reflecting on the comments made in the report and discussions that took place during the two days.   We have made lots of positive changes in children’s wider development and have an established School Council Team as well as a Well-being Team – both of which were in their infancy when Ofsted visited.  Mrs Fitzsimmons and Mrs Tanner are doing a great job at leading these teams.  We are also looking at our curriculum and how we can enhance this further.     In reflection to our recent Parent Survey, we have made many decisions which will improve our school further.  Thank you to all the parents who completed the survey and left comments.  The comments left, allow us to understand some of the outcomes more clearly, so thank you.  We will send a comment out on Dojo shortly with all the survey findings and our actions to improve.  However, seeing as I am writing in the newsletter, I would like to share the responses to the question, ‘Which of the following do you find the most useful methods of communication from school?’ 90% of parents said that they find Dojo the most useful method.  Only 5% of parents have said that the monthly newsletter is a useful method of communication.  We have had similar feedback for some time now and have persevered.  However, in future, you will receive the monthly newsletter with all the information you would normally receive except the class information which will continue to be uploaded to Dojo and then placed on the class pages on the website.    I am looking forward to all the Easter festivities which you will share with you are soon as they are confirmed.    Categories: 1 CategorySchool News
A message from Carly Ellis Posted on: 9/12/2022

A message from Carly Ellis

Wow, what a term! We have so much to celebrate! As you are aware we received some great news from Ofsted. We are thrilled and I am very grateful for the team here at Priorswood. Their dedication and hard work has given the children a good foundation which they will build on in years to come. I am looking forward to driving further improvements. The school is in the best place it has been in for some time. We have also received some more good news. The Trust held a public speaking event for all the schools in the Trust to take part in. Each school sent three children to speak about the impact children have on our environment. Our school was represented by Lesley, Izaak and Dinara in Year 6. The children did so well that they won!! Huge congratulations to the three of them and to our school! All the hard work and focus on our oracy this term has paid off! We have also been competing in lots of sporting tournaments around town. Thank you to all the children who are representing us at these events. You are all doing us proud. Please keep safe in the lead up to Christmas and remember to wash those hands. There are a lot of bugs around at the moment and they are hitting us with vengeance! This is the last newsletter before we break up so I would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a wonderful Christmas and a happy New Year. I’m looking forward to a healthier start to the Spring Term! #PriorsGoodCategories: 1 CategorySchool News
A message from Carly Ellis Posted on: 18/11/2022

A message from Carly Ellis

As you are very aware, we had a visit from Ofsted last week!  The Priorswood team were (are!) amazing and I would like to thank everyone for their support. The inspectors were approachable and fair in their comments.  I look forward to sharing the report with you all once it is published officially. At the end of October, we asked you to complete a Parent Survey.  I would like to share the highlights of this and respond to feedback.  100% of children are happy at school.  Out of the 87% of parents who completed the survey and have a child with SEND, 100% agreed that we give their children the support they need to succeed. 98% of parents feel that we have high expectations for their child.   We only had a few written responses.  We received a comment about house points so we will be putting together an information sheet to explain this further.  We will post it on Dojo on completion.  Please be assured that any decisions or changes we make in school are with the children’s best interests. Lin Collins (caretaker) is retiring at the end of this term.  We are very sad but we understand that this is an exciting next step for her!  For those of you that don’t know, Lin is a Priorswood legend!  She started here as a lunchtime supervisor in January 1995, worked in the nursery, as a cleaner and finally as the caretaker. Prior to this she had connections to the school as her children attended and she worked in the kitchen and supported in school  She has dedicated many of her own hours to ensure that the school looks its best and is compliant.  We will be celebrating her years of service to Priorswood near to the end of term but I wanted to give some of you notice as Lin will hold a special place in many hearts.  Categories: 1 CategorySchool News
Message from the Trust Posted on: 22/07/2022

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The last few weeks of term have been busy with lots of celebrations, trips and events to mark the end of the year. Our Y6 Leavers event hosted at Taunton school was a really lovely day which both staff and pupils enjoyed. This is going to be a regular event in the Trust diary.  We wish all our Y6 students every success for the future as they enter the next phase of their education. We love hearing about their achievements after they leave us so please do keep in touch and let us know how they are getting on.  Thank you for all the support you have given our schools over the year. It has been a challenging period, especially with staff absence due to covid, but our staff have been amazing covering absent colleagues, taking on extra roles and responsibilities and providing remote learning to make sure our pupils didn’t miss out. Thank you to each and every one of them for all the wonderful work they have done. It looks as though the lovely weather might continue into the summer holidays. Wherever you are and whatever you are doing I wish you and your families a lovely summer break and look forward to seeing you all in the autumn.  Suzanne Flack, CEO.Categories: 1 CategorySchool News
Young Artists Competition Posted on: 10/06/2022

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As part of the Platinum Jubilee commemorations The Redstart Learning Partnership arranged an all-school Arts Competition to create Jubilee-themed artwork. The judging panel included Suzanne Flack (CEO of The Redstart Learning Partnership), Sue Lennox (a talented local artist who has created many amazing murals across the Trust schools), and Ethne Staniland (Trust Curriculum Lead for Art). The competition entries were exceptional and the judges had a very difficult task to choose the winners. Prizes were awarded for each year group (from Reception to Year 6), and the winning entries will have their work displayed at the Brewhouse Theatre, Taunton to coincide with the TRLP’s Performing art festival. Congratulations to our own Jessica!Categories: 1 CategorySchool News
A message from Carly Ellis Posted on: 26/05/2022

A message from Carly Ellis

This half term has whizzed by so fast!  It has been action packed with SATs, class trips and Health Week that I am sure this holiday is going to be welcomed by all! Apologies for the cancellation of Sports Day yesterday.  It has been the first year for many that we haven’t had beautiful sunshine.  Well done to all our Year 6 and Year 2 children for completing their SATs which is a celebration of all their learning and perseverance during their time at Priorswood (so far).   The children did exceptionally well to come as far as they have with all the challenges we have been faced with over the past few years.  Most of the classes have now had some amazing visits to consolidate their learning.  If your child’s class has not had a trip yet, watch this space!  We have had a lot of external visitors into our school to do a variety of assemblies and workshops.  They have all been really impressed with their welcome from both adults and children.  We have posted their lovely comments on our Facebook page and school website (https://www.priorswoodprimaryschool.co.uk/1781/testimonials). I know we are not at the end of the academic year yet but I am very excited about the Autumn Term.  We will be adding an extra class!  We have a shuffle up morning on 6th July where children will find out which class they will be in and which adults they will be learning from.   At the end of the school day, you will have the opportunity to meet the new class teacher in your child’s new class.  The children will meet you as usual at the school gate and then your child will guide you to their new classroom.   We have a few staffing updates.  As you know, we said goodbye to our SENCo Mrs Ewins-Strowger at Easter and welcomed Mrs Hale to the team.  Sadly, we say goodbye to Miss Wheeler, our Acting Nursery Manager and Miss Hawkins who has decided not to return from her maternity leave.  Mrs Cullen will be leaving at the end of this academic year to have her first baby – very exciting!  Mrs Gibbs will be our new Forest School Lead.  You will have an opportunity to meet Mrs Gibbs on the 6th July.  We are very excited that Mrs Davis will be returning from her maternity leave on 27th June but this means that sadly we will be saying goodbye to Mrs Coussell.   Mrs Davis will be working alongside Mrs Cullen until the end of term.  Lastly, Mr Murphy is getting married over half term so he will be seen with an addition on his finger when the children return from their holidays. It’s been great to see everyone wearing red, white and blue for our Jubilee celebrations today.  We all hope that you have a lovely week and continue to enjoy all the festivities of the Jubilee.    Categories: 1 CategorySchool News
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