Communication

Dear Parent/Carer,

Welcome!

I am delighted that your child will be joining Chancellor’s in September and I look forward to welcoming them to the school.  

Confirmation of acceptance

It is very important that you confirm that you wish to accept your child’s place at Chancellor’s with Hertfordshire County Council (or your Local Authority if you are not in Hertfordshire). You can do this, by accessing your account online and following the instructions provided, or using the paper response form included with your allocation letter. The deadline to accept your child’s place is 17 March 2025.

If Chancellor’s was not your highest preference school, but you are happy with the allocation and no longer wish to pursue a place at any of your original higher preferences, you must let the Admissions and Transport team know immediately by opting out of the continuing interest process, otherwise you risk losing your place at Chancellor’s. To ‘opt out’ of the continuing interest process, please see the information on the Hertfordshire County Council’s website. Those without access to the internet can contact the Customer Service Centre for a ‘What Can You Do Now?’ leaflet on 0300 123 4043.

Induction

As you will be aware, we are committed to ensuring that our students receive the very best educational experience and leave our school with the qualifications and skills that are essential for their future lives.  We want your child to be happy and successful at Chancellor’s and we place a great deal of emphasis on the highest standards of pastoral care.  

In order for your child to make the very best start in September, we have organised a comprehensive induction programme.

• Firstly, during May, one of our pastoral leaders will visit your child’s primary school to meet them, their current Year 6 teacher and the other children who will be joining Chancellor’s. This will provide us with the opportunity to see your child in their own school setting, as well as the chance to speak in detail to the staff at your child’s primary school to help us ensure that the transition to Chancellor’s is a smooth one.

• In June, we will invite you and your child to attend an informal interview with a member of our staff. This will be a chance for us to learn more about your child and answer any questions that you or your child may have.

• On Thursday 10 July, we hope that your child will spend the day at Chancellor’s.  This will give them the chance to experience school life at Chancellor’s in readiness for September. On the evening of 10 July, there will be an opportunity for you to attend an information evening for parents and carers of Year 6 students.  At this event you will hear from a number of key staff and meet your child’s form tutor if they are available.

• Finally, we hope to organise a two day summer school for your child to attend, either at the start or end of the summer  holidays. There will be a cost,  which will be confirmed at a later date with a reduction for students and families who require it. More information regarding this will be sent out at a later date.

Next Steps

During May, we will email you some important information. This will include a link to give you direct access to Arbor, the school’s management information system, so that you can enter all the personal information for your child directly onto the school’s system. You will also receive a link to the Year 7 Transition site, which will hold the key information you will need ahead of your child starting at Chancellor’s in September.

All transitional communication and information will be sent via email. Therefore, please ensure you are happy for all information to be sent to the email address we currently have for you. If you would like for us to use an alternative email address, please email admin@chancellors.herts.sch.uk with your child’s name and the email address you would like us to use.

We're excited to share a short video for you and your child, brought to life by the enthusiastic voices of some of our existing Year 7 students. I hope it gives you a sense of being in Year 7 and at Chancellor’s! Please view this via our website HERE.

We want the transition from primary school to Chancellor’s to be as smooth as possible, so please do not hesitate to contact the school should you have any concerns or questions about the process.

I look forward to working with you in the coming months and years to ensure the very best for your child.

Yours sincerely,

David Croston

Headteacher 

Dear Year 6 Parent/Carer,

We are delighted to announce the launch of a dedicated transition website tailored specifically for the Year 6 to 7 transition process. This resource covers all the essential information you will require prior to your child starting at Chancellor’s. We encourage you to thoroughly explore this resource, as it contains answers to the majority of inquiries you may have.

Access to the site is available through THIS LINK, and it is also conveniently located on our website under Admissions/Year 6 - 7 Transition 2025/26.

It is important to note that, similar to last year, we will not be distributing any paper or hard copies of letters or information pertaining to the Year 6 to 7 transition. Instead, all communication will be conveyed directly to you via email or through our Transition Site.

We will be requesting your children’s information through our Arbor parent portal and will send out more information regarding this, at a later stage.

Should you have any queries regarding the aforementioned information, please do not hesitate to contact me via email.

Kind regards

Miss A Thompson

Admissions | Resources, Communications and Marketing Officer

Dear Parent/Carer,

Hope you are well. We are very much looking forward to welcoming your child at Chancellor's in September!

For students to have a taste of what life at Chancellor's will be like and to support the transition from Primary to Secondary school, we organise a two day schedule of activities in the summer.

Places are not limited and all students are welcome to attend. Please choose either the July dates OR the August dates, when filling in the form. (If you require support with payment and are Pupil Premium/Free School Meals, please contact me directly).

Please find the link below for the letter regarding the Chancellor's Summer School 2025 from Mrs Grant, Deputy Headteacher.

If you have any queries, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Mrs M Tsekouras

Senior Leadership Team Administrator

Letter - Summer School Parent Letter

Dear Parent/Carer,  

As part of the Induction Process, you and your child are invited to attend an informal interview with a member of our Pastoral Team. This will be a chance for us to meet you and answer any questions that you may have.

Your interview has been scheduled for: Date and time

All interviews should not take any longer than 5 minutes.

Please come to the School Reception at your given date and time, where you will be met and taken to your meeting.

Kind Regards,

Miss A Thompson

Admissions | Resources, Communications & Marketing Officer

Dear Parent/Carer,

We hope you are enjoying looking through the dedicated transition site and are finding it useful. As a reminder you can find the link for the transition site on our website

www.chancellors.herts.sch.uk/Admissions/Year 6-7 Transition 2025/26

Again this year we are not sending out any paper/hard copies of letters or information regarding Year 6 to 7 transition. We are also not sending out any forms to complete, we request that you update all the important information on the Arbor Parent Portal.

Arbor

We have now set up the Parent Portal/Arbor App, and created an account for you.

How to get started
1. Wait for your welcome email from us telling you Arbor is ready - you won’t be able to log in before (this will be sent to you by the end of today 04/06/2025)
2. Click the link in your welcome email to set up your password
3. Go to the App or Google Play Store on your phone and search ‘Arbor’
4. Click ‘Install’ on Android or ‘Get’ on iPhone then open the App
5. Enter your email, select the school, and then enter your password
6. Accept the Terms & Conditions and enter your child’s birthday

You can also access the portal via the website on a computer if you would prefer than the app.

If you have any problems with logging in please refer to this Troubleshooting Page where you can find most resolutions if you still cannot log in contact itsupport@chancellors.herts.sch.uk

For more information please see the Arbor help sheet on your dedicated site which can be found HERE, you will need to click on the Arbor section.

Important Student Information

We will be collating all student personal information via our Arbor Parent Portal App. Therefore it is vital you login in to your Arbor account (see below) and complete all the necessary information regarding your child by Friday 13 June 2025 (it may be easier to enter all this information on a computer rather than your phone).

Important Information we need:

• Student profile information (check name, date of birth, address etc), you will not be able to change the name or date of birth. If this information is incorrect please email thompsona@chancellors.herts.sch.uk and we will update this for you

• Enter at least 2 additional emergency contacts

• Check all contact telephone numbers and email addresses are correct

• Enter all relevant medical information, ensure this is completed with detailed diagnosed medical conditions

• Enter all dietary information (allergies etc.)

Please refer to the Arbor page on the dedicated transition site, where you can find all the areas of Arbor which you will need to update.

If you have any questions regarding all of the above information, please contact me by email.

Miss A Thompson

Admission | Resources, Communications and Marketing Office

Dear Parents/Carers,

Chancellor’s School continues to work in partnership with ILS (Independent Locker Solutions Ltd) to provide our students with secure lockers. A letter with details about the process for renting a locker can be found HERE.

All students are expected to hire a new locker at a cost of £30 per academic year. If you are in receipt of Free School Meals or anticipate financial difficulties with this, please contact our Finance Office (finance@chancellors.herts.sch.uk).

The option to hire a locker will be open from 10am on Wednesday, 4th June 2025.

If you have any questions please contact the Finance Office.

Thank you.

Yours faithfully,

Finance Office

Dear Year 6 Parents/Carers,

The Year 6 Interviews will be taking place this week and we are very much looking forward to meeting you and your child.

If you are yet to book your child onto one of the summer schools, please fill in the below online form as soon as possible. After the Year 6 interviews, bookings for Summer School will be closed.

Chancellor's Summer School Booking Form 2025

Best wishes,

Mrs M Tsekouras

Senior Leadership Team Administrator

Dear Parent/Carer,

GB4 Bus: Academic Year 2025 – 2026

The GB4 bus is run by Golden Boy Coaches on behalf of Chancellor's School. Please see the attached timetable for guidance.

We are delighted to inform you that despite the increased cost of living and high level of inflation, we have been able to secure the price of a seat on the GB4 bus for the next academic year for £1,345.00 per seat. 

This is an increase of 3% compared to last year’s cost (£1308.00) and I am sure you will appreciate this is a very reasonable increase when all other factors are taken into account. 

Every year we determine the cost of a seat by dividing the cost of the coach by the number of seats, and other than a small banking charge, do not pass on any administrative costs for the service. This price includes the cost of the bus pass, however, there will be a £5.00 charge for a replacement card. 

The price of £1345.00 is based on all seats being sold and the bus running at capacity. However, based on numbers using the service over the last few years we do not anticipate this being an issue, and due to the demand for seats, we normally have a small waiting list. 

Payment can only be made via ParentPay from 7am on Tuesday 15 July 2025. (New Year 7 Students - ParentPay Log In details will follow via post by the end of June. If you have not received these by 30 June 2025, please email finance@chancellors.herts.sch.uk and we will email them to you) Please do not try to make payment until 7am on Tuesday 15 July 2025 . 

We have scheduled the following payment plan: 

• 15 July 2025 – £450.00 deposit to confirm the intention to purchase and secure a seat on the school bus

• 9 September 2025 – Second instalment of £450.00

• 4 November 2025 – Final instalment of £445.00 will be due

We will confirm the final price towards the end of August on the basis of the number of families who have paid their deposit. 

This is on a first come first served basis, therefore once all seats have been confirmed by payment of the deposit there will be no other seats available. Seats cannot be reserved by any other method. We anticipate a very high demand for places so please do not delay in securing your place if required. 

If you are unsuccessful in securing a seat and would like to be added to a waiting list please fill in the online form below which will also only open for responses at 7am on 15 July 2025 (The link will not work before this date and time). 

GB4 Bus Waiting List 2025-2026 

Please do not phone the office to be placed on the waiting list. The online form must be completed for this. 

For any further information or assistance please email finance@chancellors.herts.sch.uk 

Yours sincerely,  

The Finance Department

Dear Parent/Carer

Student:

Chancellor's School uses ParentPay, allowing you to make on-line payments to school using your debit and/or credit card. You will be able to pay for items such as school trips, dinner money, music lessons and voluntary School Fund donations. You will also be able to view your child's meal choices. We hope you will realise the advantage of this payment method and how easy it is to use ParentPay. Your child need not bring money to school and you can make payments at a time convenient to you. A quick guide for parents can be found on the ParentPay website. Please be assured that ParentPay offers the highest security for online payments.

New to ParentPay?

Your secure online account can be activated using the unique activation username and password below; you will be prompted to change these and to keep them safe and secure as your Username and Password for future logins. Please visit www.parentpay.com and activate your account via the Account login area on the home page of the site.

Already have a ParentPay account?

If you already have a ParentPay account, you can simply login to that account and add your other children via the Add a child tab on your home page. You will need the following activation username and password to do this.

Username:                                                    Password:

Once you have activated your account you can make online payments straight away. We would also like to encourage parents/carers to sign up for email alerts so that if new payment items are added or your child's canteen account goes below a certain threshold, you can be notified and pay as necessary.

If you have any queries or concerns please do not hesitate to contact us at finance@chancellors.herts.sch.uk.

Yours sincerely,

Finance Office

Dear Parent/Carer,

As we prepare for the new academic year, we are currently in the process of organising form group allocations for our New Year 7 students.

We understand that both students and parents may have expressed preferences regarding friendship groups in their recent meetings with Chancellor’s staff. However, to ensure a fair and balanced approach for all, we are unable to accommodate individual requests for students to be placed in the same form groups as specific friends and so this information will not be considered.

Form groupings are carefully organised and based on a range of factors. We take into account any important information shared with us by primary schools, particularly where there are concerns that may impact a student’s wellbeing or transition to secondary school.

Please be assured that students will still have plenty of opportunities to see and socialise with their existing friends during break times and in clubs, even if they are not placed in the same form group.

We appreciate your understanding and support in this matter.

Kind regards,

The Admissions/Transition Team

Dear Parent/Carer,

I would like to take this opportunity to welcome you and your child to the Chancellor’s School community; I am looking forward to meeting you both at one of our transitional events over the coming weeks.

Secondary Transfer Day

On Thursday 10 July, your child will have the opportunity to experience a day at Chancellor’s School.  On this day, students will participate in lessons, be introduced to their Form Tutor, meet the rest of their year group and familiarise themselves with their new surroundings.  

Students will need to wear their primary school uniform, bring a packed lunch, a suitable bag and stationery. 

You will receive an email in the next week or so with more details and timings for the day.

Information Evening

On the evening of Thursday 10 July around 4.30pm, there will be an information evening for parents and carers of Year 6. At this event, you will hear from a number of key staff and meet your child’s Form Tutor. This will take place virtually and information for this will be sent out at the beginning of July.

If you require any further information or have any other questions, please do not hesitate to contact me at hoy7@chancellors.herts.sch.uk

I look forward to meeting you and your child during the Induction Process. 

Kind regards,

Mr Waldron - Head of Year 7 and Transition

Dear Parent/Carer,

We are pleased to share a special site we have created specifically for our incoming Year 7 students. We would be most grateful if you could share this site with .

The site includes helpful tips for starting secondary school, summer activities, and a welcome message from their new Head of Year. You can access the site via the following link: Year 6 School Student Guide 2025. It is also available on our school website under Admissions /Year 6–7 Transition 2025/26.

We kindly encourage you to explore the site with your child and support them in completing any tasks over the summer holidays. We hope they enjoy the site and find the information both engaging and useful as they prepare for this exciting new chapter.

Kind regards

Miss A Thompson

Admissions | Resources, Communications and Marketing Officer

Dear Year 6 Parent/Carer,

At Chancellor’s, we believe that students will benefit from carrying out regular and varied practical activities in Art, Design & Technology, Food and Textiles.

Whilst certain consumables are bought from school funds in order to fulfil the core curriculum requirements, we aim to provide students with the opportunity to tackle more challenging, substantial and enhanced ‘design and make’ tasks with the help of parental contributions.

We therefore ask for a one off contribution of either £80 or £50 that covers all of the cost of the additional resources needed for KS3.

If you are able to contribute £80 (which works out as £26.67 per year), this will cover all of the basic materials that your child needs and help pay for additional extra resources for enrichment tasks in the various subjects. If you can only contribute £50 (£16.67 per year), then this  will pay for the basic materials in Design and Technology, Textiles and Art. 

Please pay via ParentPay. You should have received a letter with your ParentPay login details and you will find on there the option to make these one-off contributions.

Please note that the voluntary contribution does not include the ingredients for practical food lessons. You will be asked to provide all of the key ingredients for practical Food sessions, although there will be occasions when students may need to access store cupboard ingredients.  In addition to this, it is beneficial for students to have the opportunity to taste food products and demonstrated dishes.

We thank you in advance for your continued support and the opportunities these extra funds provide.  

Kind regards

Mr Field - Head of Faculty, Technology

Miss Harris - Subject Leader, Art

Dear Parents/Carers,

World of Work Opportunities for Chancellor’s Students – Can you help?

A key part of education at Chancellor’s School is learning about the world outside school and to deliver this effectively we want to involve a wide variety of ‘real life’ professionals in our work related learning events. 

We are planning two key events for next academic year, which you or your employer might be willing in taking part in.

‘Chancellor's Careers Day’ Event -  (Jan 2026) date to be advised

• Half hour workshops for students in Years 9 -10.

• Would you consider sharing your personal career journey to inspire and inform our students about your career? (What you do and how you got there). We are looking for a diverse range of professionals who are passionate about their jobs. This popular event helps our students to make more informed choices about their future career, or consider options they had never thought of before.

Work Experience Programme - Dates to be advised

• A 1-day placement for a Year 7 student – Work Shadowing Day (Jan 2026)

• A 5-day placement for a Year 10 student (Jun 2026)

• A 5-day placement for a Year 12 student (Jun/Jul 2026)

• A 1-day placement for a Year 13 student (Jan 2026)

• Does your organisation take students on work experience? 

• Would you/your organisation consider hosting a Chancellor’s student?  

• Work experience is an invaluable introduction into the world of work and helps students develop key employability skills for the future. We are always on the look-out for new placements and carefully match students to employers. Employers tell us this is a great way to recruit future talent, and spread the word about their business. 

If you are interested in supporting our work related learning curriculum (or simply finding out more about any of the above events) we would love to hear from you!  Please provide your contact details by completing the questionnaire HERE and our Careers Coordinator will be in touch.

Yours faithfully

Mrs S Antwi 

Assistant Headteacher

Dear Year 6 Parent/Carer,

Secondary Transition Day – Students

On Thursday 10 July, your child(ren) will have the opportunity to experience their first day at Chancellor’s School.  Children will be introduced to their form tutor, participate in lessons and meet other members of their year group as well as having the opportunity to familiarise themselves with their new school surroundings.  

Your child(ren) will need to wear their primary school uniform, bring a packed lunch and have a suitable bag and stationery (pen, pencil, eraser and ruler). Children should be dropped off by the gate at the top of the turning circle at the following approximate times: 

• 8:45am – students from Hatfield, Cuffley and the villages

• 8:50am – students from Potters Bar

• 8:55am – students who live in Brookmans Park or any other towns not stated

We are staggering the arrival times as Pine Grove can become very congested with school-related traffic. Please leave sufficient time to park considerately and be prepared to walk the final stage of the journey, so that passing points are maintained on the road and road users are able to continue to move freely up and down the road. We ask you to be ready to say goodbye to your child and to return quickly to your vehicles. There will be various staff present to meet your child(ren) at the school gates and to help them as they arrive at their new secondary school! Please do not panic if you are running late, as we will make sure your child(ren) are able to join in with the activities as soon as they arrive at the school. 

Please can I also ask you to collect your child(ren) promptly at the end of their transition day at 2.15pm. Students will be dismissed from the school gates and, once again, school staff will be on duty to make sure everyone leaves safely. 

Biometric system

If you have agreed to your child(ren) using the biometric system, their thumbprint will be taken on the day, to be used in the school canteen in September (you can consent/or decline consent to the biometric thumbprint via the Arbor parent portal). If you have not given permission for your child(ren) to use the biometric system, a pin number will be allocated to them instead.

Medical information 

If you have not already done so already, please ensure your contact details and medical information for your child(ren) is up to date on Arbor prior to Thursday 10  July. This is to ensure we have the most up to date information in an emergency. If your child has a medical healthcare plan in place for conditions such as diabetes, allergies requiring an epipen, severe asthma requiring an inhaler etc. please email our medical administrators using admin@chancellors.herts.sch.uk prior to their arrival on 10 July 2025, stating FAO Medical Administrator.

Virtual Parents’ Information Evening

On Thursday 10 July at 4:30pm, there will be a virtual information evening for parents and carers of Year 6 children. At this event, you will hear from key staff. The email contact details that we have for you on Arbor will be used to send you the link to the virtual event, you should receive this no later than Wednesday 9 July 2025.

We are very much looking forward to welcoming you and your children to the Chancellor’s School community. 

Kind Regards

Miss A Thompson

Admissions | Resources, Communication and Marketing Officer

Dear Parent/Carer,

Hertfordshire County Council (HCC) have agreed to introduce a new Hatfield bus service numbered 843 and operated by UNO, which would be available to both bus pass holders and fare-paying students. It will replace the current E43 bus which has run this year. Information will be published on the UNO website in due course and the timetable is attached.

We would encourage as many students as possible to use this service as it promotes sustainable travel and independence as well as freeing up parents from having to make car journeys. To help HCC plan accordingly, we would be grateful if you could complete a short online survey indicating whether your child might use this service—either regularly or on a one-off basis. The weekly pass for a child is £23 if they have a Saver Card. More information regarding Saver Cards can be found HERE.

Click HERE for the online form.

Your response will help determine what size bus they will provide, so we would really appreciate you taking a moment to fill it in, even if your child would only use the bus occasionally.

Please can you complete the form by Friday 4 July 2025, so we can send the figures to HCC.

Thank you for your support.

Kind regards,

The School Office

Dear Parent/Carer,

Tomorrow (Thursday 10 July) at 4:30pm, there will be a virtual information evening for parents and carers of Year 6 children where you will hear from key staff. Mr Croston the Headteacher will start the meeting promptly at 4.30pm, therefore please can you be logged on and ready for the 4.30pm start.

The link to access this virtual event is below:

Y6 Transition Information Meeting Link

I hope you can all attend this informative online evening.

Kind regards

Mr Waldron

Head of Year 7