Front Page News

From today parents can apply for the following:

• Placement in Reception for September 2022 – Children with date of birth 01.09.17 – 31.08.18
• Placement in Year 7 for September 2022 – Children currently in Year 6 of a Primary school.

RECEPTION ADMISSIONS

If your school has a nursery attached, information letters will be handed delivered in the coming days which are to be given out to parents. It is important to obtain signatures from parents to confirm they have received this document and are aware of the requirement to fill in an application form.

SECONDARY ADMISSIONS

Letters will be posted out in the coming days to parents directly to inform them of the need to apply for a Year 7 placement for next September. Letters will be sent to all Year 6 parents.

*Families living outside of the South Tyneside borough will need to apply directly to their own home local authority.

CLOSING DATES

Secondary – Monday 1 November 2021 at 4.30pm

Primary, Infant and Junior – Monday 17 January 2022 at 4.30pm

Well what a week it has been! COVID restrictions have been removed and there is a different feel in school. I’m sure there will be tired children this Friday after a full week back with some very hot days.

Enjoy your weekend.

In this update:

1. School Car Park
2. Diary Dates
3. Swimming
4. Communication
5. Hot Dinners
6. Nuts in school

1. School Car Park

After observing the start and end of the school day this week, it has been decided to implement a trial period of closing the carpark once the scaffold is removed. The car park will be closed to parents on a morning and at afternoon pick up times.

Thank you for parking safely and inconsideration of local residents. 

We will consult with a number of stakeholders regarding the impact of this trial to decide on a permanent decision.

2. Diary Dates

You can check the school calendar at https://mortimerprimary.co.uk/school-calendar/

Or see our term dates at https://www.southtyneside.gov.uk/article/37174/Mortimer-Primary-School

• Parents’ Assemblies are back starting with 2SK on Friday 1^st October!
• Parents’ evening will run in school 11/10/21 and 18/10/21
• October Half term – we close on Friday 22/10/21 and reopen 1/11/21
• Thurston Residential 8^th – 12^th November
• 15^th November school is closed
• Bikeability starts 22^nd November – details to follow
• We even have Christmas dates booked! We will share those later.
• School closes for Christmas on Friday 17^th December and reopens Wednesday 5^th January 2022.

3. Swimming

Swimming session restart next Tuesday (14.9.21) for 5AM and 5PM. This will continue till half term (last session 19.10.21)

4. Communication

During the height of the pandemic we engaged all forms of communication to support families. Following the removal of COVID19 restrictions we have reviewed our lines of communication. Our use of Facebook will change. Our school posts will have commenting turned off and staff will not reply to any questions or queries via the Facebook Messenger app.

Teachers are available at the end of the day in the first instance to discuss your child, else the school office should be contacted for all other queries.    

We will continue to use paper letters, email, texts, Teachers2Parents app, Facebook and our website to keep parents up to date. This is a comprehensive package of communication to keep everyone up to date.

5. Hot Dinners

The kitchen is prepped to be open and serving hot food on Monday! Fingers crossed there are no issues over the weekend.

All meal options need to be booked the Wednesday of the week before.

6. Nuts in school

Please can nut based products not be sent into school. This includes peanut butter, Nutella spread, Snickers, Reece’s cups etc. Thank you for your understanding of this request.

Best of luck if you are running the 40th Great North Run this weekend. Watch out for the speedy Mrs Stelling and the not so speedy Mr Bennett. Oggy, oggy, oggy!

Two days back in and it’s like we haven’t been away. Everyone is settling in to the routines and rhythms of the school day, but I think we will all be very tired by the end of the week.

There is a lot to update you all on already, so please take the time to check items that are relevant to you.

In this update

1. Year 1 school exit
2. Lunch orders for next week
3. Packed lunches this week and next
4. Milk money
5. Flu vaccinations
6. Sign up for school emails

1. Year 1 school exit

Entry into school has been very successful with children entering the yard on their own.

On collection, we ask that parents find a white box (one per parent) and move forward to empty boxes as the children with parents in the front row are collected. Today parents moved forward too quickly which created a long line and made it difficult to see. Once you are at the front row of boxes your child will be sent to you. Please then exit via the fence side of the yard. Thank you for your helping in making the process as quick, easy and as safe as possible for you and the children.

2. Lunch orders for next week

We are very confident that we will be able to supply hot meal options from Monday 13^th September. Lunch options need to be booked by 10pm Wednesday the week before (8.9.21 for week beginning 13.9.21) via Parent Pay. Any child who does not have their lunches booked, will be given a cold meal option.

3. Packed lunches this week

Please can we ask that parents who send their children in with a packed lunch to remember to put a bottle of water or juice in with it please.

The Packed lunch menu for weeks 1-3 can be seen below.

4. Milk money

The milk money for the autumn term is now live on Parent Pay, its £9.10 per term.  This has to be paid for by Friday 10th September otherwise your child won’t receive milk this term. 

If you think you are eligible for FSM (Free School Meals) please pop in to the office and pick up an application form.

5. Flu Vaccinations

Reception to Y6 pupils are all eligible to have the vaccination although it is not compulsory.  Forms will be sent home tomorrow.  They have to be returned by Tuesday 14th September 2021 at the latest as the Nurse is collecting all the forms on Wednesday 15th September. Parents need to complete the form even if they DO NOT wish their child to be vaccinated. 

    6. Sign up for emails

Please don’t miss out on school information. Sign up for the latest emails at https://forms.gle/jR2ogaMNqbcqtYFv8

Thank you for working with us whilst the building work is completed. KS2 exit will become much easier once children can leave via the ramp.

Many thanks

Dear parents/carers,

We hope you have enjoyed the summer break and made the most of your children’s time away from school. School reopens to pupils on Monday 6^th September.

The start of term is just around the corner and we have many key points to communicate with you before welcoming your children back to Mortimer Primary School.

Included in this newsletter:

1. School building work
2. Access to school
3. Lunches
4. School timings

1. School building work

Improvements and essential maintenance to the school roof began just before closing for the summer. Work was fully on schedule until five active sparrow nests were found. Under the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981, the building work cannot continue until the nests are deemed no longer active. The impact of this delay is detailed below.

2. Access to school

With work delayed, the school has a large section of fencing to ensure Health & Safety is met.

As you can see, the front of school is affected, but all entrance points are safe and able to be used. The school car park and turning circle will be closed to parents during both morning and afternoon peak times until further notice. The yellow barrier will be closed. We ask that you allow additional time for your journey and park considerately for local residents.  

3. Lunches

The roof area above the school kitchen is affected by the delay. As a result, we will be unable to offer hot lunch options (definitely for the 1^st week). The options available on Parent Pay reflect this. We are working hard to secure some hot accompaniments eg roast potatoes etc. Parents are welcome to send packed lunches with their child if they prefer.

Some parents may have already chosen a hot meal option for next week before the current issues. If parents can edit their choices for next week, as no hot options will be available.

Lunch options need to be selected by the Wednesday before the week in question via Parent Pay.

4. School Timings

With COVID restrictions lifted, we plan to operate our school day as follows.

Reception – Please note the morning timing is slightly different to that presented at the school meetings.

KS1 – Parents will not have access to the yard on a morning as again pupils will be greeted by a staff member at the gate. At the end of the day, we ask that Year 2 parents allow year 1 parents to be near the front of the yard to speed up pick up. Year 2 parents can then move forward to collect.

KS2 – we have staggered upper and lower KS2 leaving times to alleviate congestion.

We hope that this provides the key points to the start of this new school year. We will continue to share updates via email, text, school website and our Facebook page. All queries should be directed to the school office.

Many thanks

Mrs Cunningham – Head Teacher

Mortimer Primary School

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