Hot Topics - Archive
Meeting 24th May 2018
Following on from the NSPCC talks to pupils, the school will look into arranging for them to come in to talk to parents.
Changes to SEN pupil provision at the school were explained. Pupils are now banded by the Local Authority and the school receives funding according to the banding, instead of an agreed amount of support in hours. Unfortunately this has led to a reduction of hours available to support our SEND pupils. As a school we have revised the way in which we support SEND pupils with the pupils' needs being the focus, rather than how many hours they are given. We now have teams of support around the pupil rather than 1:1 support.
On a positive note, pupils are now less reliant on one person and are working more in groups and co-operating with one another.
The new electronic system of registration has made monitoring of attendance easier. Attendance should be at 90% or higher. Alerts are being sent to the parents/carers of those not reaching this on a half termly basis, either via telephone or email.
The issue of pupils who have medical absence not getting attendance certificates was raised. The school will look into why this happens in some cases, as it should not be. It was highlighted that that pupils are proud to receive these and working towards Attendance Ted in EYFS/KS1 and the Attendance Cup in KS2.
The school advises that advice from the Education Welfare Office is that for medical appointments pupils have to be present for at least half a session to get marked as present. If more than half a session is missed then they are given an absent mark.
It was asked whether it was possible for pupils to have both packed lunch and school dinners within a week, particularly if there is one meal in a week that they will not eat e.g. roast. The issue of pupils becoming confused over what they were due to be eating was highlighted, however the school is reviewing how school dinners are ordered and if it is possible to go paperless, with an online system.
Following feedback those who achieve the required level will receive their badges and certificates as quickly as possible. The system of Dojo class rewards was also explained. The reward each class will be working towards is pupil led. Pupils need to achieve 20 Dojo points per half term to qualify for the reward. Those pupils who do not achieve will not participate in the reward. There was an additional request to see if it was possible to get a Dojo point total rather than just a daily amount.
There are no plans for the school to change the current brainstretcher system. There was a request to see if it is possible for the school to produce appropriate reading lists for each year group. Also, if the school had any preferred workbooks or worksheets sites can this information be put on the website. Both these points would be looked into.
There was wide praise for the Year 3 Egyptian Workshop, visit of poet Paul Cookson, picnic option in the school lunch and improvements in after school provision.
22nd March 2018
The school believes it is best to start joined up handwriting early as it is harder to switch in later years. Also, the constant movement and flow of cursive writing means it is the best form of writing for pupils with dyslexia. National guidelines require pupils to have joined legible writing and they will not be able to receive the higher teaching assessment of ‘working in greater depth’ unless they can demonstrate this.
Mrs Gates joined the forum and told us about the hard work and proactive projects the Eco Council have been up to and are planning to do.
- Eco Codes - the council’s codes and Eco Principles are displayed in each classroom. The council makes sure these are being followed and are known by staff and pupils. Practising the codes will provide evidence to support an application for our Green Flag award, which we are aiming to achieve.
- Wild Flower Meadow - Miss Robson has championed the planting of wild flowers to create a new wild flower meadow. This should be flowering in late spring.
- RSPB - the Eco Council have signed up to the RSPB and have been busy observing birds and making bird feed
- Switch Off Fortnight - to help reduce the school’s electricity usage, each class had a Switch Off Monitor. The council surveyed how well we switched off lights, computers and other electrical items at the beginning and end of the period and saw a good improvement.
- Bike-ability - Year 5 have now completed this. The council hopes this encourages pupils and parents to cycle more and use the car a little less.
- Used Ink Jet Cartridges - the council have introduced a scheme where used ink cartridges, from school or homes, are collected and reused. The company reusing the cartridges will pay the school for each item collected. So a win/win all round.
- Water Week - the council have organised a week long ‘saving water’ awareness campaign with the help of the charity Water Aid.
- Working Outdoors - Epping Forest Council are providing funding to help us use the natural and eco friendly green area between the new Arboretum estate and Epping St Johns school. There will be various activities linked to science topics and a story teller will be working with us in these natural surroundings to help inspire and enthuse the children. Project ideas include mud kitchens, bug hotels, mindfulness and yoga and maybe even a journey into fairy world….
Thursday 1st February 2018
Term Dates: Term dates for the following school year are confirmed as soon as possible. Once dates are given by Essex County Council, the governors then agree the inset days and the school publishes the dates. The school does liaise with Epping St John’s with regard to dates to try and ensure comparable dates. However, Epping St John’s has changed to an academy which means that they will break up a week before in certain terms.
Target Tracker/Class Dojo: The teacher expectations for each of these was confirmed by Miss Abel.
Target Tracker - there should be at least one post every two weeks for pupils in Years 1-6. The system is used differently in Foundation which is why parents may notice a drop in posts between Foundation and Year 1. Miss Abel reviews all posts on Target Tracker.
Class Dojo - there should be at least one post every week for pupils.
Eco-Council/School Recycling: The school continues to have a commitment to recycling. Each classroom has its own recycling box and normal rubbish collections at the school have been reduced.
Religious Participation: The school is non-denominational and within the classroom the national curriculum is followed. There is no formal prayer time in assemblies, however there is reflection time. Any speaker at assemblies is briefed by the school with regard to what they should talk about. Parents have the right to choose whether assemblies are attended.
Thursday 30th November 2017
School lunches: Mrs Owen, the head of the school kitchen, came and spoke to the PCF regarding provision of school meals, availability of drinks, kitchen hygiene, portion sizes and the monitoring of children eating food. If anyone has any further questions please speak to your PCF representative.
Attendance at school sports events: the PCF were shown an information sheet from the governors detailing extra curricular sporting activities at Epping Primary School. This covers all aspects of sport including child selection for both competitive and friendly events.
Governors Leaflet - Extracurricular Sporting Activities
Growth Mindset : the importance of the Growth Mindset programme was discussed and that all new parents (whatever year their child enters) at the school should receive information/training on this.
Child absence due to sickness: the confusion over the time a child should be kept off due to sickness was questioned. Namely the school recommendation of 24 hours versus Essex County Council recommendation of 48 hours. Ultimately parental judgement needs to be applied to this issue e.g. whether the sickness is a one off or a more substantial issue.
Thursday 12th October 2017
Impact of the PCF last academic year: ntroduction of hot topics on the website; school photographs survey resulting in volunteers attending this year's photo session to ensure pupils are smart; ensuring that pupils' privacy is maintained in classrooms whilst changing for PE; Target Tracker signup drive; numerous individual/year specific queries discussed and resolved.
Hot Topics: member of the PCF to feedback to the school ICT/website team after each PCF meeting to ensure hot topics are maintained and parents/carers are kept updated on what is being discussed and resolved at each Parent Carer Forum meeting.
Friends of Epping Primary: Suggestion of increased cooperation between the Friends of Epping Primary and the PCF - two members of the PCF to act as liaison.
Queuing etiquette: Reminder to parents to try and not block school entrances and exits when queuing at classrooms.