Achievement | Diversity | Respect
Keep us posted - It would be great if parents/carers could let the school know of any student achievements outside of school. We would like to find out what students are doing in their own time and celebrate their achievements.
Email us: weeklymailing@cotham.bristol.sch.uk
Week commencing Monday 16 December 2024 is Week A
Standing Items are located at the bottom of the mailing
Dear Parents and Carers,
Please find our weekly mailing which I hope you will find both useful and interesting!
With very best wishes for a relaxing weekend.
Kindest regards,
Ms Jo Butler, Headteacher
Email sent to Reception
"Thank you for a well organised parents evening for Year 10. I really appreciate all the support regarding supporting my child with helpful websites and resources. Also the ease of booking the appointments."
Parent of Year10 student
Thank you
We have our first big STRIDE Student Voice event on Monday 16 December 2024. This is where students from across the school are specially selected to stay behind at the end of the school day to talk to their teachers about their learning- what they enjoy and what could be even better. This is an incredibly important and valuable event to improve teaching and learning at Cotham. If your child has been selected, you will receive a letter and text message.
Now in its seventh year, the Bristol Teen Book Award encourages young people from across Bristol to nominate their favourite recently published books. All of the books are in the library NOW. Students who read and review one or more of the books will be entered into a Library Lucky Dip to win a prize!
Two of the authors nominated are coming to Cotham in March to talk about their amazing books, so please encourage your child to join in. See the links for more information.
BTBA WEEKLY MAILING 1 
Enjoy the break by READING lots and lots of great books over the holiday. Come to the library and take books out to read over the break OR log onto our ePLATFORM LIBRARY which has free online books, with over 2000 to choose from. And remember the READATHON. There is plenty of time for you to join in. If you have forgotten to get your form, no problem! Just make a note of all the books/magazines etc you read over the holiday and let Ms Payne know. Please click on the links for more information.
2024 weekly mailing eBOOKS holiday WEEKLY MAILING READATHON 2024 25 Last day of the the term - Friday 20 December 2024
Non-uniform day; students can wear a Christmas jumper if they would like to, and are asked to contribute a suggested donation of £1 for charity.
There will be no break service for food from 10:45-11:05.
Students will leave school at 12:00.
Students who receive a free school meal will be provided with a packed lunch which can be collected from K Block canteen after 12:00pm.
Children’s flu vaccination (nasal and injection) catch-up clinics are available for Year 7-11 students who did not receive their vaccinations at school. Please book an appointment here.
If you have any queries please contact the Immunisation Team directly on 0300 124 5515 or email sirona.sch-imms@nhs.net
As the end of term approaches, we wanted to remind you about the lost property items currently at Student Reception. If your child has lost anything, please encourage them to check before the end of term.
Any unclaimed items will be donated to charity.
We are excited to share information about a fantastic opportunity for your child during the upcoming winter holidays: Your Holiday Hub. This programme, funded by Department for Education, offers a wide range of exciting activities and nutritious meals for school-aged children eligible for free school meals. It's a great way to keep your child engaged, active and well-fed during the break.
To find out more information please visit their website.
If you are reporting the absence of your child, you must notify attendance on a daily basis. Please fill out the Year 7-11 absence form which is on our website. Absence must be reported by 9.00am, otherwise it will result in an absence message still being sent home. If there is no response to the message, a follow up letter requesting reason for absence will be sent home.
Year 7 had an amazing time at the Hippodrome yesterday where they watched Goldilocks and the Three Bears. They walked down to the Hippodrome in 20 minutes without any problems and went straight to their seats. They were dancing, singing and interacting with the show really well. It was lovely to see. Their behaviour was impeccable.
Well done everyone!!!
Congratulations to Paola (8RBI) who answered all three gothic book questions brilliantly and was chosen from the lucky dip!
Ms Kennedy - Perfect score on present tense verb ending vocab challenge! BRAVO Han, Zack, Fin, Rachel and Paola!
This Friday we had a Christmas quiz in Year 9. The Year team and tutors have chosen five students in each tutor group based on their attendance and behaviour.
We had a really fun time and the students won a prize for themselves and another one for the rest of the tutor group.
Thanks to everyone who has participated!
For those ones who did not have an opportunity to be part of the quiz this time, don't worry! We will have another Winter quiz at the end of Term 3.
Miss Catalina
Congratulations to all of the students who picked up awards in our Year 9 Winter Awards:
Big shout out to all the champs below:
Khalid, Isla, Zoe, Luqqman, Kayah, Umeyma, Petra, Rahaf, Felix, Cass, Yumna, Rand, Kaziah, Souber, Ksyusha, Edie, Zara, Qamar, Aliyah, Olivia, Janaan, Marcus, Manisha, Aakifah, Mersina and Kotha
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Please see attached the Bristol Bordeaux Exchange 2025 - Expression of Interest letter for Year 9 and Year 10 students currently studying French.
If you have any questions, please contact Mrs Kennedy at kennedys@cotham.bristol.sch.uk.
Expression of Interest - Bordeaux Bristol information sheet 2025.pdfA huge shout out to all Year 10 students who took part in the CUE Theatre performance on Monday evening. It was fantastic to see brilliant performances in both singing and acting!
Mr Arnold
Please see the message from the Parent Prom Committee.
In June 2025 pupils in Year 11 at Cotham School are having a Prom to mark the end of their GCSEs. It’s the end of an era and an opportunity for the whole school year to celebrate their achievements over the past five years, before stepping into their lives as young adults.
We want to ensure that any student who would like to attend Prom is able to, so the Prom Committee is raising funds to enable us to subsidise ticket prices.
We are writing to you, as a respected local business, to ask if you are able to contribute a prize or a gift voucher for our school raffle. Not only would you be making a valuable contribution to the children attending our wonderful local state school, some of whom are newly arrived as refugees from Ukraine, but you would also be promoting your business to the whole school community.
More information can be found in the attached letter.
Save the Date—PROM will be on Wednesday 25June 2025! More information to follow.
Year 11 Prom - local business 061224 Well done the Year 11 Drama Stars of the week.
Anais - team work skills
Rio - a great lesson on Wednesday
This week in our assembly we celebrated positive behaviour and achievements in our Winter awards assembly. Congratulations to Selena who has the most achievement points in Year 11. Murbarak who was recognised for doing the right thing every day. Aiyana who has made fantastic progress with attendance. Congratulations to the students who were nominated by their tutors for being great students, doing the right thing every day. Well done to all of Year 11, you are a fantastic year group.
Period 6 will continue this term.
We have noticed that attendance has slipped. Period 6 is compulsory. If your child was selected for Period 6 last term they will continue with the same timetable up until Christmas.
Period 6 intervention programme will resume on Tuesday 07 January 2025. A new selection of students for Period 6 has been made by subject teachers which will run in Terms 3 and 4. You will have received a letter with the details if your child has been selected.
If for any reason they cannot attend please let Mrs Arnold know.
Researchers from King's College London are retuning to P16 next week to carry out phase 2 of their colourism research. They are recruiting young people to complete a 15-minute questionnaire about their experience of colourism. Students will get a £10 voucher to thank them for their participation. Please encourage your young person to talk to Ms Skinner if they would like to participate.
On the lead up to the winter break, please encourage your young people to access the food bank upstairs in Charnwood. We have a range of tinned food and hygiene products available.
Business and Professional Women UK (known simply as BPW UK) is a women's organisation founded in 1938 which has a strong record of advocacy in employment, finance education, health and human and legal rights.
Last week, three of our Year 12 students participated in the Business and Professional Women (BPW )Public Speaking competition. This competition takes a lot of courage, as the students have to improvise their contributions. It was the first time Cotham had participated and we were up against an experienced side; although we did not go through on this occasion, the judges commented on how brilliantly our students did and how close it had been. So a huge well done to Miruna, Ziham and Widad, who represented Cotham so impressively.
Post 16 lessons will end at break time on Friday 20 December, this is the same at RGS.
The Plough in Easton are offering free family vegetable boxes on Tuesday 17 December. There is no judgment on 'eligibility criteria' for this. They are inviting anyone who would benefit from this to apply. Applications close on Monday 16 December 2024.
Our Year 9 Food Science students have been honing their culinary skills by creating Choux Pastry. This technical dish is made with precise instructions and science to follow to create a delicate pastry dough filled with fresh cream and paired perfectly with chocolate for that sweet treat this time of year. We're impressed with their results and dedication to the craft. Well done Year 9!
Our Year 7 students have been busy designing and making birdfeeders as part of their Design Technology curriculum. They learned to safely use machinery and equipment while exploring materials and their properties. The birdfeeders feature roofs made from durable thermosetting plastic. This hands-on project encouraged teamwork, creativity, and an understanding of safety protocols in the workshop. We’re proud of their hard work and the skills they’ve developed!
A reflection on Year 7 skills over this term, learning the fundamental skills of art- the building blocks of line, tone, pattern and colour. These building blocks have formed the foundation for their artistic expressions, allowing them to develop their unique styles and techniques.
Well done Year 7!!!
WOW 3.pdfI am thrilled to announce that we will be hosting our first Inter-House Staff Game, where staff will have the opportunity to represent their house (Omega, Delta, Sigma, and Gamma). This exciting event will take place on the 19th of December, 2024, in the sports hall. The meeting time is 3:10 pm, and we will start at 3:20pm. Let's come together and make this event a memorable one. Looking forward to seeing you all there and cheering for our houses!
Congratulations to Gamma house for securing the highest attendance for week 6 of Term 2.
Be on the lookout for Mr Buchanan's end-of-term letter. It will share details about the Bristol Education Partnership this term.
With Christmas nearly here and with some children receiving new technology or related games, here is a quick reminder of the importance of setting up appropriate parental controls.
Games/Consoles
Check age ratings: look at the PEGI rating of any new games.
Remember, PEGI rates the gameplay so whilst it is important to review age ratings, you must also check to see if it has any communication elements.
If a game does allow your child to communicate with others, then adjust or disable the settings as appropriate to your child.
On the device itself, set up applicable controls such as restricting spending limits and managing who they can communicate with.
Follow the links below to find out how to set up Parental Controls for some devices here:
PS5: https://www.playstation.com/en-gb/support/account/ps5-parental-controls-spending-limits/
Nintendo Switch: https://www.nintendo.co.uk/Hardware/Nintendo-Switch-Parental-Controls/Nintendo-Switch-Parental-Controls-1183145.html
Tablets/Smart phones
Set up parental controls on the device to prevent purchases, restrict content viewed and adjust privacy settings. Furthermore, remember to check any apps your child requests to check that they are suitable for their age. Follow the links below to find out more:
iPhones/iPad: https://support.apple.com/en-gb/105121
Android Device: https://support.google.com/googleplay/answer/1075738
Why is it important?
Parental controls are important to help provide a safer experience for your child by reducing/preventing access to inappropriate content, cyberbullying, communication with strangers and restricting purchases.
Further information
You can find out more about parental controls here:
Users of this guide do so at their own discretion. No liability is entered into. Current as of the date released 01.12.24.
