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Jessica's Newsletters
This is the place where you will be able to read my weekly newsletters. Thanks for taking the time to read them, Jessica
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Newsletter Friday 24th January 2025
Fri 24 Jan 2025Dear Parents and Carers,
We have had a busy week at Betty Layward. On Thursday we were lucky enough to have a special visit from Inge Jongkheere, an environmental engineer for the European Space Agency (ESA). Inge is currently working on designing rockets that will be used to survey the effects of climate change on our planet. Inge shared with the children some of the exciting experiences astronauts encounter when they travel into space. She also highlighted the importance of having more females involved in space exploration. Out of 700 people who have been to space only 60 have been female. The children were extremely enthusiastic about Inge's talk and they had so many questions. We are certain we could have filled another hour simply by asking and answering questions. We would also like to say a massive thank you to Barbara who arranged this opportunity for us.
Last week both Reception classes went to the Puppet Theatre Barge in Little Venice. The children enjoyed a performance of Captain Sandy and the Sea Monster. The performance was really magical and the children were lucky enough to meet the puppeteers and ask them some questions. They even got a special demonstration of how to do a seagull's cry. This was Reception’s first trip and they did amazingly well and we were very proud of them. Well done Reception.
We have individual photos on Monday and Tuesday next week. Here is the timetable so that you know when your child’s photo is –
Monday
Nursery-morning children and full-time
Y4 Fuchsia
Y2 Apricot
Y2 Peach
Y3 Jade
Y6 Chilli
Y6 Ruby
Nursery-afternoon children
Y1 Lavender
Y5 Saffron
Y3 Emerald
Tuesday
Rec-Ocean
Rec-Aqua
Y4 Cerise
Y5 Buttercup
Y1 Violet
Catch up photos and sibling photos
Our heating boiler needs a new part and we hope this will be fitted on Tuesday so the children will need an extra layer for Monday and Tuesday. Luckily the weather has not been too cold. Fingers crossed we can get it repaired next week.
Have a lovely weekend,
Jessica
Headteacher
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Newsletter Friday 17th January 2025
Fri 17 Jan 2025Dear Parents and Carers,
We have had a great week at Betty Layward with lots going on. On Wednesday, Year 1 took a trip to the past and visited the Ragged School where they took part in a Victorian lesson and learnt all about what London was like then. An actor conducted a session, meeting the children first out of character, before transforming into the very strict "Mrs Poole”. The session involved the children roleplaying as though they were being taught in Victorian times. This involved using chalkboards and following some very strict rules. The children then got an insight into what it was like for families living in London during this time. It was great to see the children so immersed and they all looked fantastic in their Victorian fancy dress. They loved this trip and were very well behaved. Well done Year 1.
On Tuesday, year 3 visited the Petrie Museum to learn more about the Ancient Egyptians. They were lucky to have the whole museum to themselves. This meant that they could explore the incredible artefacts, including hieroglyphics, clothing, shoes, jewellery, and much more. The children's behaviour and enthusiasm were excellent, and a great day of exploring and learning new knowledge was had by all.
Below is some information about two competitions you might like to do with your child at home.
The Into Film Awards
Entries are now open for our flagship celebration of young filmmaking talent, offering a platform for 5-19 year-olds from across the UK to express their creativity and tell the stories that matter to them. The Into Film Awards are a way of recognising some of the brilliant talent and creativity among young people across the UK, and winning an award can be just the first step on an incredible journey into the world of film and beyond. This year there are 11 categories, including those celebrating animated, live-action, and documentary filmmaking, as well as those showcasing the best storytellers, and the next generation of filmmakers and the practitioners that support them.
We see some great films the children have made for project homework so if you are interested the details are below. Good luck if you apply.
Fourth Plinth School Awards 2025
The Fourth Plinth Schools Awards 2025 competition is a chance for schools to get creative and produce a work of art inspired by the contemporary art commissions for Trafalgar Square’s Fourth Plinth.
Here’s how to get involved:
- children can design a piece of artwork inspired by the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square
- scan or take a photo of your child’s artwork and submit it to the online gallery
- that’s it.
There are winner and runner-up prizes for different age categories: 5-7 years, 8-11 years and 12-15 years, and prizes for the best work from each borough. There’ll also be a presentation ceremony at the new City Hall in the spring and the winner of each category will appear in an exhibition later in the year. Entries can be in all art forms including drawing, painting, sculpture, collage and digital designs. Good luck.
The website for information and to enter is
Have a lovely weekend,
Jessica
Headteacher
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Newsletter Friday 10th January 2025
Fri 10 Jan 2025Dear Parents and Carers,Happy New Year and welcome back. I hope you had a lovely break. it was lovely to see everyone back. Thank you for your kind words and lovely gifts last term. It was a joy to see the children smiling and keen to come back to school on Tuesday morning at the gate. They have settled back in really well and it has been a great start to 2025.Thank you for your support and kind words about the hot water boiler. It is being replaced this weekend, so the hot water will hopefully be returning on Monday. The children have been great about it.The term dates for 2025/2026 and 2026/2027 are now on the school website so you can put those in your diaries.We have a new signing-in machine, so if your child is late to school, you will need to sign your child in on there, as it is part of our registration process and it allows us to know who is in school. If you are taking children out of school early for an appointment you will also need to sign them out in the same way. Please also sign your child in the same way if they come in after an appointment. Thank you for your support with this.It has been great to see so many parents and carers being so positive about our new mobile phone signs. We ask that parents and carers are not on their mobile phones as they enter the school and pick their child up. Please can you also ask any other family members or childminders to do the same. We also ask that you do not wait for drop off by either of our gates at the main entrance of the school. It really makes it hard for Key Stage 2 children to enter the school. We ask that Nursery, Reception and Key Stage 1 parents and carers wait across the road until it is their time to come in.The deadline for reception class applications for September 2025 is fast approaching. Parents/carers with children in nursery class born between 1 September 2020 and 31 August 2021 must submit their reception class application by Wednesday 15 January 2025. If parents and carers do not apply before the deadline, their child's application will be classed as late and will be considered after all the on time applications have been dealt with. Late applicants are also less likely to get a place at their preferred school. So, if you have a child who is due to join Reception in September 2025 please ensure you have applied. Thank you. If you have any questions, please pop in and ask.
I hope you have a lovely weekend,
Jessica
Headteacher
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Newsletter Friday 20th December 2024
Fri 20 Dec 2024Dear Parents and Carers,
Thank you for a great 2024. You are so supportive, kind and we feel lucky to be part of such a lovely community. The children have been brilliant this year and we are so proud of them. This week we had the Year 2 to 6 concert and it was amazing. It was so great to see so many of you there. Thank you for supporting this event and we hope you enjoyed it. We were so impressed with the children’s singing. Well done to all of them.
Today we shared the staff Christmas video which the children really enjoyed. Thank you to Tommy, a parent, who filmed it and put it together. The staff really enjoyed making it and we loved seeing the children’s faces when they watched it. A great way to end the term and 2024.
Here is the video for you to enjoy
Thank you for everything. Have a lovely Christmas, a Happy Hanukah and a brilliant New Year. Enjoy your holidays and we shall see back at the normal time on Tuesday 7th January.
Jessica
Headteacher
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Newsletter Friday 13th December 2024
Fri 13 Dec 2024Dear Parents and Carers,
We have had a great week with many fun things going on.
Thank you to those of you who helped at or attended the winter fair. It was a great event, despite the weather. Thank you to the organisers. It’s a big job organising the event and everyone did a marvellous job. A big thank you to the parents who cleared up. This was only a few so we really do need more help with this next year.
Year 1 and Reception performed their nativity to the school and parents and carers this week. They were amazing even with a technical hitch during the afternoon performance. They sang beautifully without the music and it didn’t put them off at all. They are all stars. Well done Reception and Year 1 and to all the parents and carers for coming.
The Nursery also performed this week and sang some very lovely songs while playing instruments and having some great actions. Well done Nursery. It was amazing.
Christmas lunch was great fun today. We had a lot of fun. First, the children showed each other their Christmas hats in the hall. They were amazing. Then we all enjoyed a delicious Christmas lunch with crackers. The hall was full of big smiles and laughter.
We are looking forward to seeing you next week at our Christmas concert for Year 2 to Year 6. Please remember it will start promptly at 1:30 on Tuesday 17th January at St Matthias church. Please use the south entrance via the double iron gate which is located next to St Matthias school. Please do not bring any food or drink into the church. Please collect your child from school and not the church.
I am sad to let you know that Emma (year 6 teacher) and Luke, our music teacher, are leaving us this term. Emma is moving to Glasgow, and Luke is returning to Australia. Both have been great assets to the school and will be dearly missed. We wish them well for their exciting futures and thank them both for their hard work, dedication, and care for the children.
Please remember we close at 1pm on Friday 20th December and return on Tuesday 7th January. There will be no clubs next week and no Premier on Friday 20th December. All children will need to be collected at 1pm.
Have a lovely weekend
Jessica
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Newsletter Friday 6th December 2024
Fri 06 Dec 2024Dear Parents and Carers,
What a busy time we are having. There are some really lovely things going on and we cannot wait to see you at all our events. Please see the list below with the times and dates and any extra information for each event.
Tuesday 10th December
9:45am - Nativity show for Year 1 parents
2pm - Nativity show for Reception parents
For both these shows please remember to be a quiet audience and please do not bring any food or drinks. Please remember it is two tickets per child and we cannot admit any extra adults.
Wednesday 11th December
10:30am - Nursery Christmas songs in the Nursery
Please remember no food or drink is to be brought into the Nursery and only two adults per child please.
Friday 13th December
Christmas lunch for all children
Christmas Jumper Day – the children can wear their own clothes with a Christmas jumper
Tuesday 17th December
1:30pm the Year 2 – 6 Christmas Concert at St Matthias Church. Please use the south entrance via the double iron gate which is located next to St Matthias school. Please do not bring any food or drink into the church. Please also collect your child from school and not the church.
Friday 20th December
School closes at 1pm and there is no Premier or clubs. School reopens on Tuesday 7th January.
We look forward to seeing you at the above events.
Thank you for all your donations for the Winter Fair. We are always so impressed with your generosity. We are really looking forward to seeing you there tomorrow and thank you for donating your time and support to make it happen. It really does make a difference.
In Reception today we had Family Friday. Thank you to the parents and carers who were able to come. We made decorations for the holiday season and it was lovely to have so many parents and carers attend. Thank you for being so supportive.
On Wednesday, 9 children from Years 5 and 6 attended a Mathematics Challenge Day at Nightingale Primary School. The day was hosted by Pete Hall, a leading mathematics specialist. The children explored challenges from around the world, and looked at the history of mathematics and how they can link their known mathematical knowledge to solve trickier problems. We were very proud of the children that attended as they were confident to share ideas and strategies and they were great ambassadors for Betty Layward.
On Wednesday 3rd December a group of year 5 and 6 girls took part in the Hackney Football League semi-finals against Mossbourne, Riverside and Berger. We kicked off against Mossbourne Riverside and took the lead. Unfortunately, we weren't able to hang on and lost 2-1. The second game against Berger was a tight affair, however Betty Layward came out on top with a very impressive 4-0 victory with a hat trick from Clara. Well done to all the children and thank you to the parent volunteer who accompanied us.
The deadline for reception class applications for September 2025 is fast approaching. Parents/carers with children in nursery class born between 1 September 2020 and 31 August 2021 must submit their reception class application by Wednesday 15 January 2025.
We have had a lot of cheeky elves visit school this week and the children cannot wait to see what they are going to do next. Please see the attached photos for some of the mischief that has been going on.
Yield N16 is a local wine shop and bar serving not only natural, organic, honest wine, but also local craft beers, E5Bakehouse bread, Monmouth coffee, Natoora and all your pantry needs. They will be raising funds for our school again this year starting now until 3rd January 2025. When you are shopping with Yield N16, customers simply need to mention their child’s school and Yield N16 will donate 10% of the total bill back to the school on January 20th.
Have a lovely weekend and we look forward to seeing you at the Winter Fair tomorrow.
Jessica
Headteacher
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Newsletter Friday 29th December 2024
Fri 29 Nov 2024Dear Parents and Carers,
It is good to see the sun shining after the wild weather we had at the weekend. I hope it did not impact you.
As you know, we have our Christmas events coming up. These are on our website's calendar, so please add all these events to your diaries. The Year 2-6 Christmas concert in the church will start at 1:30 p.m. Please remember that the children will need to be picked up from school, not the church. Thank you, and we look forward to seeing you there.
On Friday 6th December we have a non-school uniform day for the children in return for them bringing in items for the Winter Fair. This can be chocolates, toiletries or alcohol. The planning for the Winter Fair is well underway and the main thing we need are volunteers. We would really appreciate it if you could sign up to help. At the moment we do not have enough help and if it does not improve we might have to cancel it. That would be a big shame as so much has already been done and it does raise a huge amount for school and with everything as it is at the moment we need as much financial help as possible. PLEASE sign up and help even if it is just for an hour. It is also a really lovely way to be part of our school community. A massive thank you to those of you who have already signed up. It really does make a difference.
We were very proud of our children this week as they attended the Panathlon Challenge. Here is what they wrote about it –
‘On Wednesday some children in KS2 went on a trip. We went to the Panathlon on the 141 bus. When we got there, we were super excited. When we entered the building, we started doing some activities like beanbag throwing. We did basketball, then we did curling, then we balanced a ball on a racquet and walked around cones. Finally, we threw four balls at a target. At the end, we had a medal and we took pictures as a group together.’By Ajahni, Diana and Taliayah (Fuchsia Class) Well done to these children. It sounded like you had a great time.
This week we launched a new handwriting scheme, Letter-join, for all year groups. Letter-join is an online platform that teaches handwriting in line with the National Curriculum. Handwriting is an integral part of children's writing, which allows them to share their ideas and structure their thoughts in a well-crafted manner. Letter-join has structured lesson plans that build the children's skills incrementally. The lessons will not only teach the children letter formation and joins but also how to develop their writing posture and correct pencil grip. In addition to this, we had an assembly on Wednesday where the children discussed what good handwriting looks like, how we can achieve it and why it is such an important part of their writing. We will be sharing handwriting for the children to complete at home too. To further encourage the children's handwriting development, we will be awarding handwriters of the week a special treat. The children chosen for this honour will be able to choose a pencil topper to put on their pen or pencil for the week as an extra incentive. We look forward to seeing the amazing efforts the children put into this, as well as the opportunity to celebrate their success.
We are now registering 3 and 4 year olds for our school nursery places in September 2025 – 2026. Rainbow Nursery in Betty Layward Primary School prides itself on providing caring and inspiring provision for our children. We are very popular so we advise you to secure your space now. You are very welcome to come and visit us and our school and have a look around our delightful nursery for yourself. We provide 15 hour part time morning places and 15 hour part time afternoon places. We also provide full time 30 hour places that can be fully funded or partially funded and then the other hours are privately paid for. Our nursery is aimed at preschool children aged three and four years old. Children can apply for one of these nursery places if they turn 4 between 1st September 2025 and August 31st 2026 or in the term after their third birthday. Any questions about admissions to nursery in 2025 – 2026 do not hesitate to drop an email to paularamsden@bettylayward.org. We look forward to receiving your applications and meeting you next year.
We finish for the holidays on Friday 20th December at 1pm. There is no Premier or clubs on that day so all children will need to be collected at 1pm.
I hope you have a lovely weekend and please sign up for the Winter Fair.
Jessica
Headteacher
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Newsletter Friday 22nd November 2024
Fri 22 Nov 2024Dear Parents and Carers,
We have had a lovely week and we hope you have too. The weather has been interesting this week and we hope you have been keeping warm. It was lovely to see the children so excited by the snow.
Year 6 Ruby class attended the Hackney Junior Citizenship Scheme event on Thursday. Year 6 met with firefighters, Doctors, nurses, police officers and TFL workers who spoke to them about staying safe, being healthy and looking after their mental and physical health. This was a great day to support year 6's transition to secondary school next year.
Thank you for all your support with the children’s project homework. They are great and the children really enjoyed sharing them with their classes and in a special assembly. Well done to our children for working so hard at home as well as school.
A huge thank you from the PTFA, Quiz team, myself and the staff for your support with the annual quiz last Friday. It was an enjoyable night. The event is entirely dependent on your volunteering and support so a massive thank you to everyone. After expenses, we raised a whopping £4215. Thank you to those of you who came, helped, presented and created the quiz. This total is amazing and shows what a great community Betty Layward is.
Well done to Year 6 who held a bake sale to help them raise funds towards their French trip in the summer. They held it during parent’s meetings and raised an amazing £346.43. I appreciate your support with this. They have been challenged to raise £2000 towards the trip and are thinking of different ways to do it. We know they can and it is a lovely skill for them to learn. The London Fire Brigade also told the children that if you need a fire alarm they will fit one in your home for free or will come and check yours if you already have one. Please use this link to find out more-https://www.london-fire.gov.uk/protect
With this link you can book the fire brigade to come and check alarms and also they will install fire alarms for free if any properties do not have them
I had the lovely experience of going into every class to watch writing being taught this week. Seeing the children focussed, engaged, and enthused by their learning was a pleasure. I was incredibly proud of them all.
Well done to Charley in Year 2 who chose to bake cookies herself and raise money for the school by selling them. She raised an amazing £15.73. Well done Charley.
As you know we try very hard to keep parents regularly informed about first aid incidents at school. Sending paper notifications home can be rather ‘hit and miss’ with notifications often going astray along the way. We are also increasingly aware of the substantial cost, time and environmental impact associated with the amount of paper and photocopying involved with this.
we are changing our system of reporting first aid. We are now going to use a service called Medical Tracker. Medical Tracker not only allows us to inform parents/ carers of first aid incidents by email but it also allows us to analyse the data we record.
Medical Tracker will be beneficial to you because:
We can record and track first aid incidents that involve your child
We can record and track medication administration that involves your child
You can be notified immediately after a first aid incident by email
You can be notified immediately after medication has been administered by email
You will still always receive a phone call for head injuries and any concerns where we think a child needs extra attention. To use Medical Tracker effectively we need to collect the best email address to use to notify you of incidents. Please let us know if this is different to the one on Arbor. Please be assured that Medical Tracker is registered with the Data Protection Registrar and guarantees that all
information you provide will be kept private and will not be passed on to any other organisation.
Important – When we start using Medical Tracker, email messages will be sent from
donotreply@medicaltracker.co.uk. Please add this address to your email address books (or approved sender list) to prevent messages from being blocked by your SPAM/JUNK filters. We will need to rely on you to check your emails to ensure this system works effectively.Please remember not to use your mobile phone as you enter the school, on the school grounds and in the school itself. Please do not bring any hot drinks into school either. Thank you for your support with this.
Have a lovely weekend,
Jessica
Headteacher
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Newsletter Friday 15th November 2024
Fri 15 Nov 2024Dear Parents and Carers,
I hope you have had a good week. We have had a busy and great week. This week we celebrated Anti-bullying week by wearing our odd socks and choosing respect. We enjoyed an assembly where we learned the meaning of respect, and how to spot bullying if it happens. We also celebrated World Kindness Day on Wednesday. Each class wrote acts of kindness on leaves, and created a whole school kindness tree to show kindness grows kindness. The children enjoyed sharing positivity and happiness. I reminded the children that their kindness is evident all the time, not just on this special day. I am so impressed with how kind and thoughtful the children are at Betty Layward.
Thank you for attending your parent’s meeting yesterday. We are so proud of how well the children are doing and how focused they are on learning. It is also lovely to see them when they are proud of themselves.
This week, as part of their Mapping unit, year 5 visited Hampstead Heath for an orienteering session. They looked at maps and compasses in more detail, created their own islands and tested their map-reading and teamwork skills by exploring the Heath's orienteering course.On Tuesday 12th November a group of year 5 and 6 children participated in the Hackney Football League at The Eastway Hub against Halley House. The boys kicked off first and despite displaying great teamwork skills with goals from Joe and Lorcan the boys were defeated. The Girls were up next and blew away their opponents with an 11-0 victory with goals from Livvie, Bonnie, Clara and Martha. Well done to all the children who took part and a special thank you to all the parent volunteers.
It was lovely to have our parents and carers visit us in Reception for Family Friday today. The children and families were thinking about Understanding the World and our local area. They drew maps of the local area that surrounds Betty Layward and thought about their journeys to school.
Our Winter Fair is on 7th December from 12:30-3:00pm. On Friday 6th December please can the children wear their own clothes and bring in a donation for the fair. This can be toiletries, chocolates or bottles of alcohol. If you also have a suitable raffle prize please let us or your PTFA rep know. We will also need help setting up the fair on the Friday and setting up, running a stall or clearing up on the Saturday. Any help is greatly appreciated and we can only run these events if we do have enough help. Thank you for your support with this.
We have a new venue for our Year 2 to 6 Christmas concert. It will be held at St Matthias Church, Wordworth Rd, N16 8DD on the afternoon of Tuesday 17th December. We are just confirming the times and will let you know soon. You will not be able to take your child home from the church. The children will go back to school first.
I look forward to seeing you at the quiz night tonight. Thank you to everyone for your excellent organisation skills, your help and for buying tickets. I look forward to seeing you there.
Have a lovely weekend
Jessica
Headteacher
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Newsletter Friday 8th November 2024
Fri 08 Nov 2024Dear Parents and Carers,
We have had a lovely week back after the half-term break. We really hope you had a good week. It is lovely seeing everyone back. Year 5 started the week with a great trip to the Buddhist Centre in Bethnal Green.
Thank you to those of you who attended the PTFA AGM on Monday. It was lovely to see you there. We really appreciate all the help, time, and support you provide to the school. Every little bit everyone does really makes a difference for the children, so a massive thank you from myself and everyone at Betty Layward. We look forward to seeing you at the quiz next Friday.
Thank you for signing up for your parent’s meeting. Please ensure you have done this. Your child can join the meeting if you would like them to, or they can attend the creche. The creche is only for the duration of your meeting and not for the whole afternoon. Premier is open from 1p.m. but has limited spaces as they need to ensure they have the right adult-to-child ratio. We look forward to seeing you on Thursday. Please remember we close at 1pm on Thursday and need all children to be picked up so we can start the meetings.
Our Christmas Concert for Years 2 – 6 is normally held in St Mary’s Church. Unfortunately, they have just let us know that their heating has broken down so we cannot perform there. We are currently finding a new location and will update you with the location and timings as soon as we know.
As you know, we are implementing OPAL in our playground. This encourages children to play in different ways. Next week, on Wednesday 13 November, OPAL are holding a short webinar for parents to talk about the power of play and to help them make play part of every day for their child. At the event, OPAL Director Michael Follett will explore some of the key benefits of play, look at how playwork theory can support parents, and share his top tips for play at home. This event is part of OPAL's commitment to making play part of every child's life and is fundraising to support Project Play, a wonderful organisation that provides safe spaces to play for displaced children in Northern France. This webinar is free to attend, but we encourage participants to make a suggested donation of £10 to Project Play's fundraiser, which is being match funded by OPAL CIC. Book your free place on https://bit.ly/4fgpQKK
As we ask the children not to be on their phones in school we are going to ask parents and carers to do the same. We are asking that you are not on your phone on the school premises, inside the building, coming into school and in the playground. We think this will be a better example for all the children. Please can you let anyone else collecting know this and signs will be going up soon. Thank you for your support with this.
If you are requesting a leave of absence for your child during term time please complete an absence request form. These can be obtained from the office. We cannot authorise any holidays or trips that could be taken out of term time.
Have a lovely weekend,
Jessica
Headteacher
