June 13th 2025
We have lots to celebrate!
A huge thank you to all the parents who gave up their time to come and talk to the children during Careers Week. It was obvious just how much time and effort you had put into making sure the children would be inspired by what you were saying. The feedback from children and staff has been full of words like "inspiring", fascinating" and "interesting". I know that the children's eyes have been opened about what a wonderful range of opportunities there are for them. Reception had a visit from "Little City" where they learnt about lots of services and jobs that they will find in our local community.
After the joy of watching all the children perform poems as a class, we then had the individual and group performances. What a great standard we saw! So many children entered that we needed heats before we could get to the grand final. The judges were Miss Edwards, our Office Manager; Mr McCarthy, our Chair of Governors; and me. It was both a joy and a headache as it was so hard to narrow it down to the performances that would be put forward to the national judging; we got there in the end! We were so thrilled when Jack from Year 3 made it through to the national final! He gets an all expenses paid trip to London, and will perform on the stage at The Globe Theatre. We can't wait to hear all about it.
As always, we've been doing really well on the sporting front. Look at all this success in tournaments:
The year 5/6 B football team were runners up..
Year 3/4 High 5 netball - the A team were winners, with the B team runners up.
Year 3/4 football - the A team were winners, with the B team coming 3rd in their group.
Year 4/5/6 girls football - The A team were winners, and the B team (a very new team) gained valuable experience as we build for the future.
As I mentioned in the last newsletter, Year 6 had been writing their Rotary Club essays about what they want to be when they grow up. This is an annual competition for schools in the local area. We are really proud of Sophie who was the overall winner with her essay about becoming an RAF pilot.
We are so proud of how year 6 approached their SATs. They were cheerful, calm and ready to show the world what they can do! Whatever the results, every single child can say that they did their best, and nobody can ask more than that,
Now it's the turn of year 4 who have been doing their Multiplication Tables Check, and year 1 who are doing their Phonics Screening. Once again, we couldn't be prouder of how hard they have worked and the progress they have made.
We all love a good show and have been really treated by years 4 and 2. Year 2 were delightful in Tattybogle. It's so easy to forget that they are only 6 and 7 years old when they're performing so confidently. Year 4 entertained us with Cinderella, complete with heads flying across the stage, and some impressive wigs. They were amazing, and we're really looking forward to what they can produce as they head into upper school.
It's fair to say that attendance has been mixed recently. We've had some really good days, and some with very low numbers. Attendance matters - children who are not in school miss learning, and it can be hard to make that up. There is so much evidence to show that children's attendance has a huge impact on their exam results, and the foundations for that are in primary school. You can easily see your child's attendance by looking at the Arbor app. 96% and above is the ideal, low 90s% are a concern, and anything below 90% is considered "persistent absenteeism" and really needs addressing.
All the term dates for next year are on the website!
We have a lot of children coming into school with toys or items to keep on their desks. Please don't send them in unless it has been agreed as a SEND need with Miss Yarwood, our SENCo.
We have some teaching staff changes next year:
Many of you will know that Miss Wilkinson has another life as Reverend Wilkinson. She is thrilled to be taking charge of her own parish next year, which means she has to say goodbye to Cranbourne. She will be hugely missed as a teacher and Head of Upper School.
Miss Bannocks has been commuting a long distance for most of this year, having relocated with her family. We're very happy that she has seen the year out with us, but so excited for her in her new life.
Mrs Allen is keen to develop her teaching career by getting experience of other schools, so is off to pastures new. She has had many roles at Cranbourne over the years and we're so pleased to be supporting this next step.
We have been able to recruit really good teachers for next year, and will tell you about them in the next newsletter.
Next year I will not be in school on Tuesdays. The school will be in Mrs Grayson's very capable hands.
Rachel Semark
Headteacher, on behalf of the Cranbourne team
