It has been a lovely week in school this week and I think this has been helped by the Indian summer we have been experiencing. It has been a little colder today and apparently this is the start of the autumn weather. I do not think that we can complain though because it has been a fabulous summer and I only hope next year’s is as good.

One of the highlights of the autumn term for me is the Harvest Festival but, as I intimated last week, we will not be able to hold it this year because the school hall is not going to be completed in time. We did consider holding it in the dining hall but this is really too small and it would have too big an impact on school lunches. Instead, we have decided to join in with a food collection that Dame Alice Owen is organising for a Potters Bar Charity. More details of this will follow in a newsletter next week. I would also like to inform you that the work on the hall is going well and it will hopefully be finished in a couple of weeks which will mean that the class assemblies and the Christmas shows will be able to go ahead as normal.

As you all know, the church kindly allows our parents to use their car park at the beginning and end of the school day. However, it has been brought to my attention this week that some parents are parking inconsiderately. On one day two parents had parked so badly that it made it almost impossible for other cars to drive through. Can everyone please remember that it is a real privilege being allowed to use this car park and if parents do not use it properly then the church may stop us from being able to park there.

There is plenty going on in school next week even though we cannot hold our Harvest Festival. On Monday the photographer is coming into school to take individual and family group photographs so you make want to take extra care with your child’s appearance on Monday. On Wednesday some of the girls are taking part in a pre-season netball tournament which helps them to ‘hone their skills’ for the season ahead. On Thursday we have two lots of visitors in school. In the morning the Rotary Club are coming in to present the winner of the poster competition with their prize and in the afternoon a photographer from the Welwyn and Hatfield Times is taking a photograph of the new Reception class to put in their paper. The ‘Book Fair’ is also still in school until Tuesday so if you have not purchased a book yet there is still time to do so. A lot of people bought books last night which is great. Remember the more books you buy the more books we can purchase for the school.

Have a great weekend. I look forward to seeing you all on Monday, with all the children clean and neat in preparation for having their photograph taken.

As I informed you last week I had to be out of school for 2 days so I feel like the week has flown by – I hope you all feel the same. The good thing is that school ran very smoothly without me here or perhaps I should be worried about that because if it runs too well when I am not here people may think that I am superfluous to requirements and I would not like that.

Unfortunately, it does look like we will have to cancel our Harvest Festival this year because the hall will not be finished on time. I am disappointed about this because I do enjoy this event but I would rather the work on the hall was finished well than they rush the job. I will know for certain what is going to happen next week and I will then inform you of the final decision.

Next week we have the Book Fair arriving in school which the children all love. You will be able to purchase books from Thursday 27^th September until Tuesday 2^nd October and the fair will be open from 3.10pm – 4.00pm. As there is work being carried out in the hall the Book Fair will be in the dining hall this year. If your child attends Kids ’N’ Clubs this will be held in the Foundation block while the Book Fair is in school. In the past the school has always done very well from this event and hopefully it will be the same this year. Remember that the more books you purchase the more funding the school will be awarded to buy books for the library.

That is all for now. Remember, as I informed you in my newsletter, that from Monday, children in Years 1 and 2 will need to be dropped off at their classroom door in the morning. Please may I ask that parents do not accompany them into the classroom and just drop them off at the classroom door to help encourage their independence. I hope you all have a pleasant weekend.

As I sat down to type this I found it hard to believe that just over a month ago I was still sitting on a lovely, hot beach. It is amazing that even though we have been back in school a little more than a week it feels like we have never been away. All the extra-curricular clubs started again this week so school life has truly returned to normal which is why the holidays are now only a distant memory.

All the clubs appear to be running very smoothly but may I please ask you to check ‘Gateway’ to see which clubs you have signed your child up for. When I took Netball Club this week I had some children on the list that did not want to do netball and I had some turn up who were not on the list. We have managed to sort this out but it is important that we know who is going to attend each club for safety reasons. As I mentioned in my last blog if your child cannot attend a club the person running it needs to know before the club starts. You can ring up and let the office know if your child has to miss a session and they will contact the teacher running the club.

Although we have only been back for a short time I will be out of school next week on Tuesday and Wednesday. I can assure you that I am not on a mini–break but on two separate courses. Hopefully there will be no issues when I am away but if you do have any concerns that you wish to discuss you can make an appointment to see me on my return or you can see Mr. Gradwell, our new deputy head, who will be in charge in my absence.

That is all for now. Next week some of the school teams are taking part in some ‘friendly matches’ (which they will still try to win) and the choir are taking part in a concert at Lochinver School on Friday afternoon so there is plenty to look forward to. Fortunately, we are still having some sunny weather so I hope it lasts so that you can all have a pleasant and relaxing weekend.

I would like to welcome everyone back to another school year. I know it is difficult getting back into a routine after being away for over six weeks but I am sure that you will all be pleased to hear that the children have all settled well into school. As I explained in my newsletter, our renovations are progressing well but the disruption to the building and not being able to use the hall has not affected the children at all and I am sure that we are all going to enjoy a good year together. I am also pleased to report that although the building work is making it necessary to alter some of our routines, the improvements that have been made to the school so far are making the disruption all worthwhile - as the saying goes ‘You cannot make omelettes without cracking a few eggs’.

Next week all the school clubs start again which all the children look forward to. Although one or two clubs are having their start postponed due to the hall being out of action, we also have a few new ones such as a cooking club starting which means that the children have an even bigger selection to choose from. May I remind parents that if a child is unable to attend the club for some reason then the adult running the club must be informed in advance. If a child has also signed up to a club, they also need to attend and not just not turn up because they do not feel like it on that day. We would ask that if children have committed themselves to an extra–curricular club they should attend it for half a term and then if they feel like it is really not for them they can give it up.

That is all for now. I hope you all have a fabulous weekend and I look forward to seeing you all again on Monday.