Latest news
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Torfaen Play - Whitsun activities
Fri 03 May 2024Good afternoon,
Torfaen Play will be delivering a Play and Activity Camp at Cwmbran Stadium for 8-12 year olds during the Whitsun Half Term. Please see full details on the posters below/attached.
In addition, we are also running a play and activity camp for 5-8 year olds, 7 Play and Wellbeing Camps in primary schools and 5 play and respite sessions for children requiring additional support. These Whitsun play opportunities will be shared soon.
If you can please share this information with your networks that would be great.
Please let us know if you need further information.
Many thanks,
Tyla
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Update 03.05.2024
Fri 03 May 2024Dear parent / carer,
Please note the following:
- Next Monday is Bank holiday. No school!!
- Recycling – as you may be aware, new regulations have come into force across Wales for small organisations / businesses with respect to recycling. Basically, we are now required by law to separate and recycle which is, of course, absolutely the right thing to do. However, we are upping our game and need you to help in two ways:
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- All packaging from children’s packed lunches needs to go home so that it can be sorted and separated by either them or you! Ideally, use reusable containers.
- For snack, please supply a piece of fruit that is not in a plastic wrapper – there are food waste / compost bins on the yards, but not waste bins. Nothing in a wrapper for snack – just fruit!
- Class photos – we now have a date for this – Monday 20th May.
- Sports Day – 23rd May – we have moved the start time for juniors forward to 1:00p.m to allow more time – infants at 10:30a.m.
- Marie Curie – we collected £41.05 towards this worthy cause through the daffodil sale.
Upcoming dates:
April
8th Children return to school
May
Mon 6th May Bank Holiday
15th Year 4 Class Assembly
20th Class Photographs
23rd 10:30 Foundation Phase (R,1,2) Sports Day
1.00 KS2 (3,4,5,6) Sports Day
24th Break up for half term
June
3rd Children return to school
12th Year 5 Class Assembly
Fri 21st Teacher Training Day #5
26th 10:00 Year 2 class assembly / production
Fri 28th Teacher Training Day #6
July
3rd ‘Move up’ day
5th School reports sent out
TBA Paulton’s Park Year 6
12th Open Afternoon 1.45p.m.
15th Year 6 Paulton’s Park Trip
17th 1.30 Year 6 Leavers’ production
18th Year 6 Pizza Party
19th Break up for Summer
SB
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Measles Outbreak in Gwent
Fri 03 May 2024MEASLES OUTBREAK: URGENT MESSAGE FROM ANEURIN BEVAN SCHOOL NURSING TEAM
Dear Headteacher,
As soon as possible please share the below message with all parents & guardians. Please also share/ display the attached poster with parents.
Thank you for your continued support
MMR Vaccines for Children
Following the recent outbreak of Measles in Gwent we are holding a number of MMR vaccine catch-up clinics for school aged children. You will find a list of these clinics by clicking here: https://abuhb.nhs.wales/vaccinations/vaccination-pop-up-clinics/
Alternatively you can call our vaccination booking team on 0300 303 1373. If you require a Gelatine free vaccine, please contact 01633 431 685.
Poster:
file:///C:/Users/1302463/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/PVSTU7CE/MMR%20Clinic%20Promo%20A4%20Poster%20(002).pdf
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Year 6 mobile phone issue - Snapchat group
Tue 09 Apr 2024FAO Year 6 parents / carers
Dear parent / carer,
It has been brought to my attention that there is a Year 6 Snapchat group on which sexually explicit violent images have been being circulated. I know of at least 4 boys that have been part of this group, but the group may be much wider.
Can I suggest that you log into your child’s phone (which should be at home!) and check. You may also need to review your internet / phone settings to ensure that material of this nature is blocked. I suggest that you also ensure that your child knows what to do should they receive an inappropriate image or request for information. There is a clear safeguarding issue here and trust that you will follow this up as necessary.
Please feel free to contact me if you would like to discuss this further or would like any advice on keeping your child safe online.
Regards,
Simon Bates
Simon Bates
Head Teacher, Croesyceiliog Primary School (simon.bates@torfaen.gov.uk 01633 624114)
www.croesyceiliogprimary.co.uk
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update 21.03.2024
Fri 22 Mar 2024Dear parent / carer,
Mobile phones
We have been having a lot of issues in school with mobile phones. We have, unfortunately, for several years had to deal with the fallout from inappropriate social media exchanges out of school – threatening messages, sharing of pornography links, inappropriate self-images, references to suicide and self-harm etc, and you may want to reflect on the access you provide to your child on their smart phone. However, we now have an increasing number of pupils bringing their phones into school – we have tried to oversee this but the numbers are becoming unmanageable. We have now also had several cases where the children have hidden their phones from us and used them during the school day. Given the way in which the phones are sometimes being used (as above), this is a clear safeguarding issue. Whilst I understand that there is an argument that you may want your child to have a phone on the walk to and from school, in terms of safeguarding, this makes no sense. A smart phone on a child makes them a target – on average, 500 children per day are the victim of thefts and muggings, commonly for their phone. In London, it is estimated that two thirds of all mobile phone thefts are from children. You would be much better advised to give your child a ‘brick’ phone if you need to contact them at the end of the day (and we will accept these if you write to us explaining the reasons).
As such, we have taken the decision to ban ‘smart’ phones on the school site for all pupils. This will come into effect after Easter. Exceptions to this will, of course, be those children who need a phone to regulate their medication (diabetics) or those who leave an overnight bag at school due to contact arrangements.
Please support the school in ensuring that you know where your child’s phone is during the school day – possibly turn on ‘find my friends’ in order to double check. We will be taking a zero tolerance approach to children who somehow ‘forgot’ that their phone was in their coat / bag! They will receive a red card and have the phone returned at the end of the week. There are wider issues around phones and an increasing body of evidence that they can have a seriously negative impact on wellbeing – again, you may wish to reflect on this and consider regulating the use of certain apps and the time, and the time of day, spent on a phone / screen.
Parking at the end of the day
I’ve had requests from several local residents asking that parents don’t park in front of their drives and block their cars in. This sounds a pretty reasonable request! Also, as you may have noticed, we have had some new yellow ‘zig-zags’ painted on the road – this means no stopping, dropping or waiting. The purpose is to keep the area clear so that visibility is improved and everyone is safer. Likewise, please don’t drive / park on the pavements – we had a member of staff who was bumped by a car as she walked along the pavement! She’s fine, but let’s leave the pavements for pedestrians.
New catering menu
Starts after Easter – we haven’t got it yet, but it should appear on this link:
https://www.torfaen.gov.uk/lgsl/en/SchoolMeals/Schoolcatering/School-Menus.aspx
Have a great break – see you all on Monday 8th April.
All the best,
SB
Upcoming dates:
Summer Term 2024
April
8th Children return to school
May
Mon 6th May Bank Holiday
TBA Class Photographs
15th Year 4 Class Assembly
23rd 10:30 Foundation Phase (R,1,2) Sports Day
1.30 KS2 (3,4,5,6) Sports Day
24th Break up for half term
June
3rd Children return to school
12th Year 5 Class Assembly
Fri 21st Teacher Training Day #5
26th 10:00 Year 2 class assembly / production
Fri 28th Teacher Training Day #6
July
3rd ‘Move up’ day
5th School reports sent out
15th Paulton’s Park Year 6
12th Open Afternoon 1.45p.m.
17th 1.30 Year 6 Leavers’ production
18th Year 6 Pizza Party
19th Break up for Summer
Simon Bates
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Comic Relief Friday 15th March
Wed 13 Mar 2024All
Just to let you know that we will be supporting Comic Relief again this year (this Friday, 15th March) – donations direct to the charity:
https://www.comicrelief.com/rednoseday/
Regards clothing, as ever, anything goes! (within reason!)
All the best,
SB
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Easter activities in the community
Tue 05 Mar 2024See below / attached fyi – looks like fun!! (drumming / maths!)
SB
Simon Bates
Head Teacher, Croesyceiliog Primary School (simon.bates@torfaen.gov.uk 01633 624114)
www.croesyceiliogprimary.co.uk
I hope this email finds you well.
I’m getting in touch as we have a fabulous family activity taking place at our Croesyceiliog centre during the Easter holidays that I hoped you would be able to share to your parents.
I have attached the poster if you need it and if you had any interested parties, please get in touch and I’ll do my best to help.
Multiply | Beat It!
Music and Maths go hand in hand they say!
Well, it’s true but not always obvious. We’ll use a hands on drum workshop to show you how, whilst having great fun, maths is everywhere.
Nobody will be put on the spot in this workshop. We’ll all just play, have fun and learn some new skills.
Booking is essential as places are limited.
Adults aged 19 or over, with children aged 4-12.
(1 parent to 1 child)
Croesyceiliog Community Education Centre, NP44 2HF
MMC025T23 - Wednesday 3rd April 2024, or,
MMC026T23 - Thursday 4th April 2024
1pm - 2pm for 1 session
All the very best,
Jen
Jennifer Lewis
Community Engagement & MarketingSwyddog Marchnata ac Ymgysylltu ar Gymuned
Jennifer.lewis@torfaen.gov.uk
(+44)7743921239Torfaen Adult Community Learning / Dysgu Oedolion yn yr Gymuned Torfaen
Communities, Customer Service and Digital / Cymunedau, Gwasanaeth Cwsmeriaid a Materion Digidol
Torfaen County Borough Council / Cyngor Bwrdeistref Sirol Torfaen
Address / Cyfeiriad: Power Station, Blenheim Road, St Dials, Cwmbran, NP44 4SY
Mae croeso i chi ysgrifennu yn Gymraeg neu Saesneg/ You are welcome to correspond in Welsh or English.
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update 21.02.2024
Wed 21 Feb 2024Please note the following:
- St David’s Day is a week Friday, 1st March. We will have Eisteddfod celebrations in both buildings. Children to dress in anything Welsh themed (rugby shirts, traditional costume etc) or anything in the Welsh colours (red, green, yellow).
- Uniform shop – Year 6 will be running a uniform sale every Monday from 2:45 – 3:15 in the small room at the front of the site (on the way to the main reception area). We will not be charging for the clothes but you may want to, if you are able, give a donation. This is entirely up to you – any money we raise will go towards subsidising school trips etc. In terms of stock, we have already had lots of contributions (many thanks) but if your child is leaving the school or has outgrown their uniform, could you please wash it and bring it in to the school office (assuming it is in good condition). We’re hoping that this will not only help you financially going forward, but will help to make the school and community a little bit more sustainable and environmentally friendly!
- World Book Day is on Thursday 7th March this year and we will, as ever, do a range of literary based activities on this day. However, we are conscious that the ‘dress as a book character’ element of the day may involve you feeling pressured into buying a new outfit and, equally, we are fully aware that many of you are struggling financially at the moment with the current cost of living issues. As such, as an alternative, your child(ren) can come to school on this day in something ‘comfy’ that they could settle down in to read a book. If you are all set with an outfit then this is great, but if not, and you’d like to save some money, this may be a good option for you.
- The school are once again supporting the Marie Curie Charity (Marie Curie | The UK’s leading end of life charity). If you would like to contribute to this cause, we have daffodil badges available in exchange for a donation (children to bring in old style money on this one!).
Upcoming dates:
February
WB 26th Parent Consultations
March
1st Dress in Welsh costume (all pupils)
WB 4th Parent Consultations
7th World Book Day – Pupils and staff to dress as a book character! (or comfy outfit!!)
22nd Break up for Easter
All the best,
SB
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Mid-year report data explanation
Thu 08 Feb 2024Mid-term reports – a brief guide for parents
The reported results in the lower box (reading and maths) have been assessed as follows: Reading either a standardised score (SAS) or a Read Write Inc (RWI) group Maths a standardised score for pupils Y2 – 6 (SAS) and teacher assessed against year group criteria for Reception and Year 1 These three forms of assessment are as follows: Standardised scores (SAS) This measure compares your child against all the other pupils in the UK that have done the same test. The average score is 100. A higher score is above average and a lower score is below average. The majority of children score between 90 and 110 which should be regarded as the average band. Fewer and fewer children get a score that is towards the extremes of the scale (60 and 140) i.e. the distribution of scores reflects a ‘normal’ curve.
If you are interested in more detail, this is the information provided by our test provider:
https://www.renlearn.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/Standardised-testing-wales.pdf
Read Write Inc (RWI) group
If your child has a number between 1 and 13 (rather than a value between 60 and 140) this relates to their Read Write Inc (phonics) group. Children progress from group 1 through to group 13 and then move onto Accelerated Reader (which generates the SAS scores, as above).
Teacher assessed against year group criteria
Along with all the schools in the local cluster (Croeyceiliog area), we have agreed expectations for each year group for various key skills, such as reading, writing and oracy. Children have been assessed against these year group expectations whereby, for example, a Year 1 child operating at our expected Year 1 level would be 1b, above this level 1a, and below this level 1c. A child may be in Year 1 but operating significantly above this level (Year 2) or below this level (Reception), in which case we will assess them in line with these expectations.
What does the school do with the outcomes?
We use the outcomes to help set appropriate targets and work for your child. Data is not shared beyond yourself and the school staff.
Please feel free to discuss these outcomes with your child’s teacher at parent consultations. Alternatively, contact me at school should you like any further clarification or wish to discuss our procedures in more detail. SB 08.02.2024
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Update 08.02.2024
Thu 08 Feb 2024Dear parent / carer,
Please note the following:
- Mid-year reports are going out tomorrow, Friday 9th Feb. Parent teacher consultations are currently being organised (WB 26th Feb and 4th Mar) and this will be an opportunity for you to ask questions about the report and discuss progress and targets. We assess pupils in many ways and the report refers to various numeric outcomes – in order to understand the numbers, you’ll need to read the attached document. (see above on webpage)
- Attendance – we’ve had a really bad run of illness recently, both staff and pupils. If your child is off ill, please contact the school office either by email (Katherine.rowlands@torfaen.gov.uk or kirsty.hughes@torfaen.gov.uk) or by phone (01633 624114) – please don’t use Class Dojo as these messages are not always picked up in time as teachers are getting ready for the school day.
The current attendance class competition is as follows:
see image below
- Measles – it’s terrible to report, but due to the awful misinformation pushed several years ago regards vaccination, there is now a serious outbreak in the UK spreading from the West Midlands. This could have serious implications for our school and community in the near future. We have received communications from Public Health Wales and we may well be targeted soon to boost our vaccination rates. You should be aware of this issue and growing threat and, if your child is unvaccinated, you may want to sort this yourselves at your local GP.
- Several clubs will be starting up again after half term – football, netball, ‘Glee’ club and chess. More to follow.
- Don’t forget that we break up tomorrow for half term (Fri 9th Feb) and the children are back on Tues 20th Feb (Monday is a teacher training day).
All the best,
SB
Upcoming dates:
February
9th Break up for half term
19th Teacher Training Day #4
20th Children return to school
WB 26th Parent Consultations
March
1st Dress in Welsh costume (all pupils)
WB 4th Parent Consultations
7th World Book Day – Pupils and staff to dress as a book character!
22nd Break up for Easter