Foundation Stage 2021

Welcome to The Spinney Primary School

 

Starting school is a very exciting time in a child's life and we are keen to make the experience as happy and as calm as possible.  We want you and your child to feel confident and relaxed about starting school. We would normally, at this time, be inviting you to attend various induction sessions so we can meet you and introduce you to life in our school, however, in these strange times, we are unable to do this.  We have therefore created this page, where we hope you will find the answer to some of the questions or concerns you may have. 

 

If your child was born between 1st September 2016 and 31st August 2017 your child will be due to start school in September 2021.  The application process for this begins on 10 September 2020.  Applications should be made by 15th January 2021. Any applications received after this time will be late, and will only be considered by the admissions team in May 2021, after all the 'on-time' applicants so it is important that you apply by the closing date.  For further information please visit www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/admissions.Please take a look at the attached leaflet for further information. 

 

You will be informed of the school your child has been allocated on 16th April 2021. Once you have received your offer, it is your responsibility to accept, or decline, your place.  Please call, or email the OPS team to let us know your decision. 

 

We would normally then invite your and your child to some induction sessions such as a parents evening and some 'Come an Explore' sessions, but at this time we cannot say whether we will be able to do this.  We may have to welcome you to The Spinney in a more virtual way. Once all places have been confirmed, we will be in touch with parents to advise the latest situation. 

 

September 

Children will attend school on a part time basis during the first three weeks of school.  For the first two weeks of school life,  younger children will attend from 9:00-11:00 am, and the older children from 1:00 - 3:00pm.  During the third week, all children will attend from 9:00 - 1:00pm so that they can stay for a school lunch.  Children will be expected to attend school full time (9:00 - 3:15pm) from week four onwards. 

 

We are a school, with a very strong community and believe that communication is key.  If you have any questions of concerns about starting school in September that are not answered here, please do not hesitate to contact the OPS team on the school phone number (01223) 568836, or on the office email address office@spinney.cambs.sch.uk if you would prefer.  You are likely to have many questions, including 'Who do I speak to about ...?' We hope the attached document goes some way to helping you with that question.

As we are sure you can appreciate, there is a huge amount of information that we would like to share with you.  We have tried to keep this page as simple as we can and to redirect you to other areas of this website where you will hopefully find the answers to some of your questions. 

We would like to share with you important aspects about life in Foundation Stage.  In the Parent Handbook below, you will find details of the curriculum the children will be learning, about the things the children enjoy doing and small, but important tips about the class.  You will also find a link to our current Foundation stage class page where you will find more information, including a lovely video made by a previous Foundation stage class which we hope you will share with your child. 

Children attending are expected to wear school uniform.  Please see below information about our Uniform expectations, and how to order online. Our supplier has informed us that due the current situation it will take slightly longer for uniform orders to be processed. Orders made after 31st July may not arrive in time for the start of term. Once you have purchased uniform, please name EVERYTHING, as there will be 30 new red Spinney sweatshirts all arriving on day 1 of school in September, and they all look the same!  Thank you for your help with this.

Lunches are provided by our partners, Lunchtime Company.  Below you will find a link to the School Lunches page of our website as well as a form which we would like you to complete for your child.

Many working families may be looking for childcare before or after school. Our Wrap Around Care offer provides both of these.  Further details, including Autumn term booking forms, registration documents and cost can be found on the Wrap Around Care page of this website.  Please click on the link below.

We have a strong and welcoming Friends Team who support school by purchasing items to enrich the curriculum in school.  They have recently funded some new IT equipment, as well as a wonderful puppet show for the whole school at Christmas and the termly Stay & Play craft sessions.  They would be delighted to welcome new members to their team, to support them as much and as often as you are able to. All help is warmly and gratefully received.  For more information, click on the link to the Friends page below.

We use an exciting way to record, track and share your child's learning during their time in Foundation Stage.  This system, called Tapestry, may have been used by your child's nursery and if so, we will be able to pick up their Learning Journey from that point onwards.  Tapestry enables staff to take photographs, videos and add written observations of the activities that your child does at school.  You will then have access to see this at home, and you will be able to add your own photos and comments to the journal.