Hello all,

Welcome to this weeks newsletter. I hope you are all well and were able to enjoy a restful half term break in some sunshine.

This week, after a training day on Monday, we were right back to work. Year 4 started their multiplication tables checks and Mrs Nokes was really pleased with how sensibly the children applied themselves and focused on the check.

Next week we will be administering the Phonics Screening Check to children in Year 1 and some children in Year 2. 

We also have Year 4 having two visits- on Tuesday a visit to St Margaret's Church and on Wednesday to Trentham Monkey Forest. Year 4 have also decided to use use some of their fundraising from their eco project to adopt a monkey from the forest, alongside one from the WWF. Hopefully the monkey won't be returning to school with the children on the coach!

Next week, we will also have some Medical students from Birmingham University in school. As part of their medicine degrees, they spend a week in a Primary school and will be spending time supporting children, seeing how children learn and delivering sessions on careers in medicine. Hopefully this will inspire some future medics amongst our pupils.

Unfortunately this week, we had further reports of parents and school neighbours having dispute around parking. Can I please once again refer you to the  newsletter section on this matter and remind parents who drive to school for collection and drop off, of the availability of parking on the car park at the Holiday Inn, and the need for adults to set an example for children in the way in which we interact, treating others with kindness and mutual respect. Thank you for your support.

Have  a lovely weekend.

Mr S Jones

Friday 5th June: Y6 Swimming

Monday 8th June: Phonics Screening Checks start

Tuesday 9th June: Y4 lesson at St Margaret's Church 2pm-3pm.

Wednesday 10th June: Y4 visit to Trentham Monkey Forest

Friday 12th June: Y6 swimming

Tuesday 16th June: Reception trip to Hatton Adventure garden.     

Friday 19th June: Y6 Swimming

Tuesday 23rd June: Year 1 visit to the Black Country Living Museum.   

                             Y6 lesson at St Margaret's Church 2pm-3pm.

Thursday 25th June: Nursery Sports morning 09.15-11.00

Friday 26th June: Y6 Swimming

Monday 29th June: Reception Sports morning 9 -10.30am

Tuesday 30th June: Y3 lesson at St Margaret's Church 2pm-3pm.

                             New Nursery (September 2026 intake) information session 4pm-5pm

Wednesday 1st July: New Reception Parents (September 2026 intake) Information evening. 6pm

Friday 3rd July: KS2 Sports at Q3 Academy Great Barr

Tuesday 7th July: Y5 lesson at St Margaret's Church 2pm-3pm.

                          Year 1&2 Sports (afternoon)

Thursday 9th July: Children to meet their new teachers (morning)

Friday 10th July: Y6 Swimming. Summer term reports to parents

Tuesday 14th July: Y6 leavers assembly 09.30

Wednesday 15th July: Rocksteady Concerts 14.30

Thursday 16th July: Parents book look 15.45-18.30.

Friday 17th July: Pupils break up for the summer holidays

As some of you will know Dan from KoreWellness came in to school last week and ran gymnastics workshops for children in specific year groups. Part of this was talent identification for Diving. Please see the poster attached for more information on how your child can get into Diving should they be interested. 

There is also an upcoming Diving British Championship in Sandwell 4th to 7th June.

Please see this link for tickets if you are interested.

https://www.aquaticsgb.com/events-and-tickets/aquatics-gb-diving-championships-2026/event-schedule/?utm_source=contact&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=school_contact&utm_id=schools

For children and families:

 SDCA and SignHealth Youth Workshops
See attached ‘SDCA and SignHealth Youth Workshops’

SDCA have arranged for SignHealth to deliver two separate sessions for young people aged 8–17 years who are Deaf, Hard of Hearing, Deafblind, Cochlear Implant users, or users of other hearing devices:

Monday 29th June – Internet Safety and Harm

Monday 6th July – Taking Care of Your Wellbeing

These sessions aim to provide valuable information, guidance, and support in an accessible environment for young people with hearing loss.

We would greatly appreciate your help in promoting these sessions and reaching as many young people and families as possible.

If anyone would like further information, please do not hesitate to contact me:

Email: craig_pothecary@sdca.co.uk
Text / WhatsApp / FaceTime: 07791 921011

Men’s Mental Health Walks

💚 Join us as we walk shoulder to shoulder for Men's Mental Health.

 Invite your friends, bring the whole family (and the dog!), and meet us there. Walks will cover a few loops of each park and all abilities are welcome.

 🗓️ Friday 12 June
• 📍 Victoria Park, Tipton – meet at the War Memorial at 10.30am
• 📍 Brunswick Park, Wednesbury – meet at the play area at 1.30pm

 🗓️ Saturday 13 June
• 📍 Dartmouth Park, West Bromwich – meet at the War Memorial at 10.30am
• 📍 Britannia Park, Rowley Regis – meet at the MUGA by the car park at 1.30pm

 🗓️ Sunday 14 June
• 📍 Lightwoods House & Park, Oldbury – meet at Lightwoods House at 10.30am
• 📍 West Smethwick Park, Smethwick – meet at the Pavilion at 1pm

On Sunday, activities will run from 2–4pm, including street games, Learn to Ride with British Cycling, wellbeing and volunteering info, and family activities. There’s no booking required, people can simply turn up.
Please wear suitable footwear and bring a drink. See attachment ‘poster.’

🎨🌱 Make a Special Gift for Dad! 🌱🎨

Looking for a fun and creative activity for your child?

Join us at Wood Lane Community Centre where children can create a handmade Father's Day gift by:

🖌️ Painting a flowerpot
🌻 Planting their favourite flower seeds
💌 Making a personalised Father's Day card

📅 Thursday 18th June
⏰ 4:00pm – 5:00pm
📍 Wood Lane Community Centre, 157 Wood Lane, West Bromwich, B70 9PT
💷 £2 per child

Spaces are limited, so book your place today!

 Neurodiversity Clinic for Parents and Children

Mondays, 4.30pm – 6pm, from 18^th May, Ree-Charge CIC Hub, 15-17 Bull Street, West Bromwich, B70 6EU

Prick Up Your Ears (PUYE) CIC will be running a weekly Acutherapy Seeds clinic for neurodiverse children and their parents, to try our newly developed protocols for AuDHD, covering Hyperactivity, Distraction, Executive Functioning, and Meltdowns, alongside tried and tested protocols for Anxiety, Depression, Sleep, and Stress, parents can also receive treatment to support their wellbeing.

 No appointment necessary, each treatment costs £10, or £15 for parent and child. (Please arrive by 5.30pm to be treated).

For parents:

 Free Community CPR Sessions in West Bromwich

Thursday 2^nd July, 2 sessions: 11am-2pm or 5:30pm – 8:30pm at West Bromwich Leisure Centre, Moor St, B70 7AZ

Join Hearts in the Stand in partnership with Sandwell Council for a FREE community CPR session as part of the Council's Safer 6 Campaign.

 These sessions are available to residents who are 18 and older.

 In the session, you will learn:

• How to perform CPR
• How to control severe bleeding
• How to respond to choking

 Let’s make Sandwell safer, stronger and ready to act!

 Spaces are limited, book using the link below to secure your spot.

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/free-adult-first-aid-and-cpr-training-tickets-1989828017164

Please see attached ‘CPR Training’ that can be shared on social media, and ‘CPR training with QR’ that can be printed for display.

Please see the attached poster requesting donations of items for use at Forest School. As the spring turns to summer many of you may be spending more time working on gardens, or perhaps clearing out a garage and we thought that this may be a useful time to request the listed items. If there is anything you are able to donate, please contact the school office. Thank you to those who have donated so far.

We wanted to take a moment to reinforce the importance of maintaining a kind, respectful, and inclusive environment for all of our children. As part of their development, children are continuously learning not only academically, but also socially—how to relate to one another, understand differences, and build positive relationships.

 It is essential that children feel safe, valued, and included within the classroom. We have recently noticed that, at times, perspectives or opinions about other families, parents, or children may be filtering into conversations at school. While these situations are often unintentional, they can influence how children interact with one another and may lead to feelings of exclusion or misunderstanding and that is not a culture we adopt or support within our school.

 We kindly ask for your support in reinforcing messages of kindness, equality, and respect at home. Encouraging children to speak positively about others and to embrace differences plays a vital role in helping us maintain a nurturing and inclusive school culture.

 In the same spirit, we would also like to request that birthday invitations, sweets and party bags are shared directly between parents, rather than being brought into school for distribution. This helps us ensure that no child feels unintentionally left out and prevents any potential social difficulties within the classroom.

 Our commitment remains firmly focused on creating a safe and supportive environment where every child can thrive. These early years are a crucial stage in their social development, and together we can help guide them with empathy, understanding, and kindness.

 Thank you for your continued support in helping us foster a positive and inclusive community.

As you will have seen on the news recently, there has been a lot of discussion at government level around screen time for children, use of social media and mobile phones in schools.

Since it has been so high profile we thought it apt to review our mobile phones policy. It is on the website and I have added a summary of key points below.

• As a general rule, pupils are not permitted to bring mobile phones to school unless there is a specific reason agreed in advance with school leaders (e.g., travel safety) Travel to and from school will only apply to pupils in year 6.
• Where permitted, phones must be switched off as soon as it is on the school site and handed in at the office at the start of the day and collected at the end.
• Use of mobile phones during the school day, including break and lunch times, is prohibited.
• Mobile phones must not be used to take photographs or videos on school premises without explicit permission.
• Pupils found using mobile phones inappropriately will face sanctions in line with the school’s behaviour policy, and will lose the right to bring a phone to school.
• Pupils who need a mobile device to link with a medical device will have this written in to a care plan and this will be supported by the school.
• Pupils are not permitted to wear Smart Watches in school

• Parents and Carers

  • Support the school’s mobile phone policy and reinforce expectations at home.
  • Ensure pupils understand when and how mobile phones can be used appropriately.
  • Communicate with the school regarding any concerns or exceptional circumstances.
  • Model good mobile phone use by not using phones on the school site except in emergency situations

  • Mobile Phone and Smart Watch Use by Staff

    • Staff should use mobile phones responsibly, ensuring use does not disrupt teaching or compromise professional standards.
    • Personal mobile phones should not be used in front of pupils except in emergencies or with senior leader approval.
    • Staff must not use personal devices to photograph or record pupils unless authorised for school purposes and with appropriate consent.
    • Smart watches must be in ‘flight mode’ while on the school premises so as not to cause a distraction

Thank you for your support

As a school we like to promote health and well being and while we allow children to bring a snack to have at break time, we ask please that this is a healthy snack such as a piece or pot of fruit. We have noticed an increase in children wanting to have crisps to take out at break time. We do not consider crisps to be a healthy snack and while these may be fine as part of a packed lunch, we ask that children do not have them for break time snack.

Allowed snacks

In line with statutory guidance, snacks should primarily be:

· Fresh fruit (e.g. apples, bananas, berries, oranges, pears, grapes etc.)

· Vegetables (e.g. carrot sticks, cucumber, peppers, celery)

· Plain dairy products (e.g. plain yoghurt, cheese portions)

· Savoury items pack size less maximum 30g (e.g. plain breadsticks)

Government guidance states that snacks should be limited to fruit, vegetables, or similar healthy options without added salt, sugar or fat.

Where there are children who, for reasons linked to SEND, have restricted diets, we are happy to work with parents to ensure that reasonable adjustments can be made.

 We also remind parents that a number of children in school have allergies, including nut allergies, and that for no reason should any items containing nuts be sent in to school. We would also like to request that birthday sweets, cakes and party bags are shared directly between parents, rather than being brought into school for distribution. Staff cannot safely check items for allergens and we will not distribute these. 

Thank you for your support.

Story:Last week, many people in the UK and across the world were celebrating Eid al-Adha.
Question: Why do people celebrate different things in different ways?
Virtual Picture News: www.picture-news.co.uk/discuss

This half term's ASC will be Summer Sports for years 1 and 2. Booking for these will open soon. Club times: 15.30-16.30. Booking is available here: https://www.bookings.aspire-sports.co.uk/Login-Aspire 

PE days for the Summer term:

Reception: Monday

Year 1:  Wednesday and Thursday

Year 2: Tuesday and Friday

Year 3: Thursday and Friday

Year 4: Monday and Wednesday

Year 5: Monday and Thursday

Year 6: Thursday and Friday (Swimming)

Children need to arrive at school ready for PE. PE Kit is as follows. A plain white t-shirt, plain black jogging bottoms/leggings/shorts, trainers, school jumper or cardigan. No jewellery should be worn, long hair needs to be tied back, piercings that cannot be removed must be taped up- tape/plasters provided from home. Any religious/cultural jewellery that cannot be removed must be secured/covered- sweat bands are perfect for this.

All reading and library books will be given to children over these first couple of weeks. We aim to ensure that the books children are issued are in line with their need and ability. Children will have 2 books, one school 'levelled reading book' and one Reading for Pleasure book. The Reading for Pleasure book is aimed to foster a love of reading. We expect children to be heard read at least 3 times per week and comments written in their reading record. Children should have their reading book and reading record in school each day. We ask for your support with this.

Any lost or books damaged beyond repair will incur a  £5 fee to allow us to replace them.  This will be issued via ParentPay. 

Many children like to bring their own pencil cases and stationary items into school. This is fine, but please remember that all items needed for school work will be provided by school. We ask that no scissors or sharp items come into school. School will provide children with safety scissors to use in school when required.

Useful items may include: pencils, rulers, crayons, a protractor (Y4+), a blue handwriting pen (KS2), felt tips and a glue stick in a sensibly sized pencil case. Again there is no requirement or expectation that pupils have their own items from home.

Children can also have a water bottle with a sports cap, containing water unless agreed otherwise, their reading book and reading record. In most circumstances there should be no need for other items to be coming into school without prior agreement. We ask for parents support with this. Please ensure all items of uniform are named to ensure that we have the best possible chance to return lost items to the right people.

A reminder to parents and carers to be careful and considerate with their parking when dropping off and collecting children. It is imperative that the front of school remains clear, and that we respect neighbouring properties and ensure they are to access and egress their homes and businesses. This seems to be a particular problem with parents parking in the 'cut out' on the Birmingham Road, next to school. We ask that parents and carers do not park across people drives or in residents spaces at Sophie Gardens, and remember our school value of Respect when talking to one another.  More than anything we need to keep everyone safe. I hope that you have seen the signs that we have purchased to help remind parents and carers about parking, one is outside the main gates and another on the 'island' in the layby towards the under passage on the Birmingham Road. 

We are pleased that we are able to have an arrangement with the Holiday Inn J7 to allow parents to use car parking facilities at appropriate times. If you are interested in this please contact the school office and they will help arrange a pass for you.

Safeguarding is very important to us at St Margaret's, and we firmly believe that everyone has a role to play in keeping children safe. Should you have any safeguarding concerns please contact our Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL), Mr Jones, or in his absence Mrs Boud or Mrs Humphries via the school office. If you have a concern for the safety of a child outside of school time you are able to report this directly to Sandwell Children's Trust on 0121 569 3100 or https://www.sandwellchildrenstrust.org/report-child-risk/ . If a child is in immediate danger, you should contact the police (call 999).

Should you have any need to contact school to discuss anything, your first port of call will most likely be your child's class teacher. The way to do this is via the school office who are happy to pass on a message, or arrange a call back. We ask that you do not engage teachers in conversation on doors when dropping off or collecting children, as the primary focus has to be the safe arrival and dismissal of children. Further information on communicating with school can be found by following the link below.

Address:

St Margaret's CE Primary School

Birmingham Road

Birmingham

B43 7AP

Telephone:

0121 357 2758

Email: postbox@st-margarets.sandwell.sch.uk

OR

Use contact us page on website: https://stmargaretscofeprimaryschool.co.uk/about-us/contact-details/

Website: https://stmargaretscofeprimaryschool.co.uk/

Information on our Communications Protocol and Procedures and Parent Code of Conduct can be found on our website.

https://stmargaretscofeprimaryschool.co.uk/parents/policies/