I wanted to take a moment to say a huge thank you to our incredible staff team.
At Belswains, we always go above and beyond for our children, and over the past few weeks that commitment has been clearer than ever. Despite the exceptionally hot weather, every member of staff came together, sharing our air-conditioned spaces and adapting plans to ensure that we remained open for our children and families.
There is so much that goes on behind the scenes, and I couldn't be prouder of our team. We had classes doubling up so that children without access to air-conditioned rooms could learn in cooler spaces. We continued with our fantastic Year 6 productions, moving performance times to the coolest parts of the day (although they were still very warm!) and live-streaming them for families at home – a huge thank you to Miss Finn for making this possible.
Our clubs continued to run, with staff adapting activities rather than cancelling them, and we worked with our external providers to ensure they could continue supporting our children, even when many schools had to reduce their opening hours or close for part or all of the day because of the heat.
I also wanted to thank our families. Earlier this month, a social media post about Belswains was shared online. Although it has since been removed, I was genuinely touched by how quickly so many of you contacted us to offer your support and to check in with the school. It was a wonderful reminder of the strength of our community.
We are incredibly fortunate to have such a dedicated staff team and such a supportive community. Thank you all for everything you do to make Belswains such a special place. I am immensely proud to be part of it.
Mrs Claridge
Deborah Woodman, our Chair of Governors
After a rewarding 42-year career in finance, banking, and accounting, Debbie now enjoys retirement with a focus on giving back and exploring new horizons. Her professional life was built on precision, integrity, and a strong sense of responsibility—values she continue to carry into everything she does today.
Married to Terry with two grandchildren, one of primary school age, she is actively involved in the community, serving as a school governor, treasurer for a community association, and supporting local scouting initiatives. These roles allow her to stay connected, contribute meaningfully, and support the development of others.
Alongside volunteering, she has a passion for travel and enjoys discovering new places, cultures, and experiences. Retirement has given her the opportunity to balance service and adventure, making the most of every day.
EYFS have been incredibly busy over the past few weeks. Despite the warm weather, the children have shown fantastic resilience and enthusiasm, never letting the heat dampen their spirits.
We had a wonderful Sports Day where the children impressed us all with their excellent team-building skills, enthusiasm, and positive attitudes. It was particularly lovely to see such strong examples of sportsmanship and kindness, with children encouraging and supporting their teammates throughout the morning.
In addition, the children have been fascinated by our caterpillars. They have now formed their cocoons, and there is great excitement as we eagerly await their transformation into butterflies.
KS1 Sports Day took place on Wednesday 10th June. The children had so much fun and loved taking part in a variety of events, including the ball throw, egg-and-spoon race, 60m sprint, speed bounce and long-distance running. Year 1 particularly enjoyed the standing jump, where they competed to see who could jump the highest. Meanwhile, Year 2 found the welly wanging event especially amusing and had lots of giggles throughout!
Last week, Year 1 pupils enjoyed a fascinating visit to the British Schools Museum. They were very excited to start their trip in style on a double‑decker coach! The children then stepped into an authentic Victorian classroom, taking part in a strict traditional lesson. The Victorian lesson even included using slate boards and slate pencils. Children also explored and played with traditional Victorian toys and even made their own to take home. It was a memorable hands‑on experience that brought history vividly to life.
This week, Year 2 enjoyed a fantastic trip to Knebworth House. During the day, they took part in a range of exciting Tudor-themed activities, including playing traditional instruments, learning a Tudor dance, and practising writing their names using the Tudor alphabet. In the afternoon, the children had great fun exploring the adventure playground, running around the fort, and racing down the huge slides. It was a wonderful day filled with learning, exploration and plenty of smiles!
Year 4 Owls and Nightingales stepped back in time on Friday 19th June, arriving at school dressed as fantastic Ancient Egyptians! The excitement was clear from the moment they walked through the door, and our mixed‑class activity day was packed with hands‑on fun from start to finish.
Children learned an energetic Egyptian dance with Miss Finn, complete with dramatic poses and rhythmic movements. With Mrs Gazza, they experimented with making their own papyrus and ink, discovering how Ancient Egyptians created materials for hieroglyph writing. Over in Mrs Farrow’s room, pupils chopped, mixed and tasted a refreshing Egyptian fruit salad- perfect for the warm weather.
Every child also created a striking pharaoh head artwork, using pencils, oil pastels and felt tips to bring their designs to life. The results are truly stunning and will make a brilliant display.
The sunshine added to the atmosphere, giving us a real taste of Egyptian heat, but Year 4 were absolute stars throughout. It was a brilliant end to a brilliant topic. Great job, Year 4!
This week, Mrs Claridge took our seven amazing Scholars Programme pupils to SOAS University of London to celebrate the end of their incredible university adventure.
Over the past eight weeks, the children have been working with a real PhD tutor, exploring a fascinating humanities topic, carrying out their own research and even writing a university-style essay. They have certainly had a taste of what life as a university student is like!
Their graduation day was packed with exciting experiences. They toured the university with current students, learnt more about university life, and proudly took part in a graduation ceremony to celebrate all of their hard work and achievements.
The children were a real credit to the school, asking thoughtful questions, embracing every opportunity and showing just how much they had learnt throughout the programme.
Of course, no school trip would be complete without an unexpected favourite moment and despite the impressive university buildings and inspiring talks, the overwhelming highlight for many of the children was the soap sculpture in the bathroom! Safe to say, it received almost as much admiration as their graduation certificates!
A huge congratulations to all seven pupils. It has been excellent to witness their curiosity, resilience and enthusiasm they have shown throughout the programme.
We had a lovely visit to Langleybury Farm this week. The children enjoyed meeting and feeding the animals, exploring the farm and learning about the different animals that live there.
After spending time with the animals, the children enjoyed a snack together in the shade before having great fun on the adventure playground. It was wonderful to see everyone smiling, exploring and enjoying the fresh air.
The children represented Belswains brilliantly and had a fantastic morning making special memories with their friends.
On Friday 17th July, we are excited to be holding a special Kindness Day in school. This day will focus on one of our core school values- kindness.
Throughout the day, children will take part in a range of thoughtful and engaging activities designed to encourage them to reflect on how they can show kindness to others. One of the highlights will be our Kindness Post Box, where children can share kind messages with their friends and members of the school community.
To help celebrate the day, children are invited to come to school wearing bright, colourful clothing instead of their usual school uniform.
We are very much looking forward to a wonderful day filled with positivity, reflection and acts of kindness!
As part of our exciting OPAL (Outdoor Play and Learning) project, we are continuing to develop our outdoor play provision to give children more opportunities for creative, imaginative, and active play.
To support this initiative, we would be very grateful for any donations of suitable items. If you have any resources at home that you no longer need, we would love to give them a new life at school.
Examples of useful items include:
Toys (e.g. cars, figures, small world items)
Plastic containers or storage boxes
Small construction materials
Dressing-up items
Kitchen utensils (e.g. pots, pans, wooden spoons)
Outdoor play equipment
Wellies (any size)
If you would like to donate, please leave items in the reading shed located on the playground under the sails.
Thank you for your continued support in helping us create a rich and engaging outdoor environment for all our children.
We are delighted to invite all parents and carers to our Open Evening on Wednesday 15th July.
This special event is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate everything the children have achieved this year and to share the exciting learning that has taken place across the school. Every classroom will showcase examples of the fantastic work our pupils have been creating, giving families the chance to see the progress, creativity and dedication that our children have demonstrated throughout the year.
Parents will also have the opportunity to take home some of the children's treasured masterpieces, providing a lasting reminder of their achievements and a chance to celebrate their hard work together as a family.
As we look ahead to the new academic year, Open Evening will also give children and parents the opportunity to visit their new classroom and meet their new teacher. We hope this will help everyone feel excited, confident and prepared for the year ahead.
We look forward to welcoming you and celebrating another successful year at Belswains Primary School.
We’re excited to share some brilliant upcoming PTA initiatives that bring our school community together while supporting families in practical, joyful ways.
Our preloved uniform shop Re-opens Monday 6th July, offering a sustainable and budget‑friendly way to keep your children kitted out for school. All items are priced at £1, and all proceeds go directly back into PTA projects that benefit our pupils. Payments to be made by scanning the QR code in the shop, or cash honesty box. Donations of clean, good‑condition uniform are warmly welcomed. Simply pop the items in the preloved uniform bin outside of the shop.
Get ready for our upcoming Bubble Run - a fun‑filled event where children can dash, dance, or stroll through clouds of colourful bubbles. It’s a fantastic way to get active, raise money for the school and enjoy time together outdoors. Participants will complete a course filled with bubble stations, music, and plenty of photo‑worthy moments.
Click here to deposit your sponsorship money!
A heartfelt thank you to our amazing PTA for their fantastic fundraising efforts this year. Their hard work has enabled them to purchase 30 new Chromebooks for the school, giving students greater access to digital learning and classroom technology.
We’re truly grateful for the PTA’s continued support and dedication to our school community.
Congratulations to all the pupils who received a certificate in assembly, staff have noticed you doing something above and beyond!
Reception Robins Matilda for amazing ideas and discussion on our topic of 'On the Beach'.
Reception Robins Theo P for being a kind and caring friend.
Reception Sparrows Olive for writing an amazing poem about a seahorse.
Reception Sparrows Arlo for finding an adult and leading them to what he wants.
Year 1 Goldcrests Azai for sharing many ways to protect our environment.
Year 1 Goldcrests Duaa for working so hard to partition numbers into tens and ones.
Year 1 Firecrests Alita for doing some great writing independently.
Year 1 Firecrests Kady for completing lots of great work in Maths.
Year 2 Starlings Ffion for engaging with all her learning and always doing her best.
Year 2 Starlings Khadijah for her great attitude to learning.
Year 2 Swifts George for always trying his best.
Year 2 Swifts Laraib for writing interesting sentences using compound nouns.
Year 3 Jays Oistin for creating a fantastic Usain Bolt poster in English.
Year 3 Jays Pearl For being a fantastic role model and always trying her best.
Year 3 Redwings Toby for always having a fantastic attitude to his learning.
Year 3 Redwings Zac P for being a really kind friend this week.
Year 4 Owls Max D for completing all his work this week and helping others.
Year 4 Owls Maya for engaging in conversation and listening carefully to the elderly in the care home.
Year 4 Nightingales Aria for amazing handwriting and EPOW.
Year 4 Nightingales Ruby for being an incredible friend to all and showing our school value of kindness.
Year 5 Eagles Charlie for an excellent attitude towards his learning.
Year 5 Eagles Madison for always having a positive attitude in class.
Year 5 Hawks Max for his fantastic work in maths lessons.
Year 5 Hawks Alex for demonstrating a kind and caring nature.
Wednesday 8th July 2026
Rescheduled KS2 Sports Day from 12.30 (parents welcome)
Tuesday 7th July 2026
Year 6 Production 6pm
Thursday 9th July 2026
Whole school 'move up' morning
Hertfordshire Year 6 Transition day
Friday 10th July 2026
Year 6 'Take over' day
Monday 13th July 2026
KS1 DENS afternoon workshop
Tuesday 14th July 2026
Year 6 Pizza and Splash for pupils
Wednesday 15th July 2026
Open Classroom Afternoon for all year groups (parents welcome)
3.20-4.30
Thursday 16th July 2026
KS2 Choir Summer Showcase 09.15 (parents welcome)
Friday 17th July 2026
Whole school Kindness Day - Non uniform, please wear bright colours!
Year 6 trip to Ninja Warrior School Trip
Tuesday 21st July 2026
Year 6 leavers assembly 09.00 (parents welcome)
Last day of Summer term (school closes at 1.30pm)
Wednesday 22nd July 2026
INSET DAY (school closed to pupils)
Thursday 23rd July 2026
Occasional Day (school closed to pupils)