Dear Parents and Carers,

 

Welcome back after half term. I hope you had a lovely break. It is lovely to see you and the children back.

 

Well done to George and Edith for their fantastic child-led assembly this week. It was about people who have made a difference in the world and they had done some amazing research. We all learnt about someone we had never heard about before. Well done George and Edith, it was a great assembly.

 

We have an exciting new event on the evening of Friday 22nd March – Dining with Damian. This will be a lovely sit-down meal in the school hall cooked by our chef, Damian. Damian has been a head chef in a variety of restaurants and the menu looks amazing. The tickets are £50 per head. This might sound a lot but when you see the menu you will understand. There will also be two sets of two seats raffled for £5 per ticket. I hope you will want to come and raise money for the school. It will be a lot of fun with very delicious food. More details on how to buy tickets will come from the PTFA. Thank you for supporting this.

 

We are fundraising to install solar panels on our school roof. Having solar panels will enable us to reduce our carbon footprint and work towards a more climate-friendly future. It will help us spend less on bills and more on the children's education.

 

The story so far …

A brilliant local community energy non-profit, set up by several former Betty Layward parents, Stokey Energy, carried out a successful solar panel Feasibility Assessment at Betty Layward earlier in 2023.

The assessment has shown that installing solar panels would help the school:

• lower our energy bills
• cut our carbon emissions, by generating energy from the sun
• shade our roof, to keep kids and teachers cooler in summer with less need for electric fans

So … what could we do?

During the Feasibility Assessment the school's roof was checked and measured and planning permission for installing the panels was obtained.

We think we could fit up to 135 panels on our roof, which could potentially:

• generate up to 40% of the electricity we need to run our school
• save between £13,000-£23,000 each year
• reduce our carbon emissions by 10 tonnes every year

But what would it cost?

Buying and installing the solar panels might cost up to £60,000.

Each panel, bought, installed and generating energy on our roof will cost around £400.

An inverter, needed to complete the system and turn it into usable energy, will cost around £1800.

We will need racking to house the solar panels on the roof, wiring to connect them, and a professional, MCS-accredited team to design, install and commission the system with a 10-year warranty.

 

With Stokey Energy's support, we will be applying for a grant of up to 66% available from Hackney Council's Community Energy Fund, but we will need to fundraise for the remaining 30% of the costs. We will be looking for other sources of grant funding, and we will need your help to raise the rest. Every pound we raise will bring us one step closer to another panel on the roof, another metre of wiring, and another hour of the team's time to supply and fit the system and set it working.

 

What can you do?

We have been spreading the word about this project and we've got some great feedback from the school community. Here are a few comments from our information stand at the Winter Fair:

'It is important to leave a legacy for our whole community - this doesn't just benefit our kids but the wider Stokey community.'

'This is a really good way to help the future generation to understand climate change'.

'Energy independence is key.'

'So good to see Betty getting greener!'

 

Whether you donate now (please don't forget to add GiftAid), research sources of grant fundraising, organise an event, take on a challenge, or fundraise your way, we would be hugely grateful for your support.

 

Please spread the word to family, friends and co-workers.

- Could you ask your employer about match-funding your donation or fundraising?

- Could you challenge your work colleagues or friends to a fundraising goal?

 

This is a GREAT project - not only will it reduce our bills and our carbon footprint, but it is also an opportunity to teach our pupils about the importance of working together as a community for a more sustainable future.

 

There are likely to be further ways we can change our behaviours and equipment to reduce the school's energy use and mitigate its impact on the environment so we are keen to hear ideas from the school community.

 

About donations

Ticking the GiftAid box when you donate will raise an extra 25% on top of your donation, at no cost to you. All the donations given towards this project will be used for this project. If we raise more than we expect, or if for any reason the funds are not needed, the funds raised will be used to engage in activities or provide facilities or equipment which support the school and advance the education of our pupils.

 

Thank you so much for supporting this. The link to the Just Giving Page is  https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-betty-layward-primary-school-go-solar

 

Thank you for being so supportive of this; the children are also excited.

 

Love Productions are currently casting for the new series of the Channel 4 programme, Junior Bake Off. Filming will take place from July 2024 and applications close on Sunday 17th March 2024. Interested bakers can apply online at - www.applyforjuniorbakeoff.co.uk

Please do feel free to contact them on 0207 067 4833, should you have any questions regarding the above. I know we have some great bakers here and it would be great to have some children apply.

 

Our second online auction is live and will run until Saturday, March 2nd at 10pm! We have stunning holiday homes, signed artwork and PTFA babysitting all up for grabs, please register now and get ready to start bidding! https://app.galabid.com/bettysbids2

A huge thank you to everyone who has contributed we are very grateful to our PTFA community! If anyone wants to add any last minute lots please contact renovatebetty@gmail.com

 

Have a lovely weekend,

Jessica

Headteacher