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Principal's Welcome
Principal's Welcome
Dear Parents/Carers,
It has been a terribly wet winter, which makes it even more uplifting to see so many smiling faces arriving at school each morning—eager to learn and epitomising what it means to be a Happy, Positive Achiever.
This same message came through strongly during our recent visit from the IB Programme Evaluation team. While we await the final report, the positive feedback has been a powerful reminder of the outstanding curriculum we offer—supporting every child to develop as a global citizen, committed to creating a better world together.
The team praised our inclusive environment, where children are genuinely supported to meet their individual needs, alongside our whole-school commitment to delivering a consistently high standard of teaching and learning. The parent panel were fantastic and also highlighted something important for us to reflect on: many of the aspects of school life we value most—such as our character development through the Learner Profile attributes and Hartley’s Big Adventures—are sometimes so embedded that they can be taken as the norm. We know they are anything but, and they are only possible because of our highly driven pupils and the ongoing support and commitment of our parent community.
We will continue to look for ways to celebrate all that we do—through this newsletter, class pages, assemblies, and our Walk-In Wednesdays—so that the full richness of life at Leigh Academy Hartley is seen and shared.
Although it has been a short term, it has certainly been a busy one: singing at the O2, a range of careers talks, sporting events, museum visits, and Safer Internet Day. Looking ahead, 2026 is being promoted by the National Literacy Trust as the 'Year of Reading', reminding us once again of the crucial importance of strong reading habits. Whether children are learning their sounds in the early years, or striving to meet their targets in Accelerated Reader, let’s make sure we are All In—because that is what we do at Leigh Academy Hartley.
Wishing you all a wonderful half-term break. We look forward to welcoming pupils back on Monday 23 February.
Best wishes,
Mr Mitchell
Principal
Dates for the Diary
(Please note these are subject to change but we will inform you as soon as possible if this is necessary)
Monday 23rd February - Start of Module 4/Start of Clubs
Thursday 5th March - World Book Day / PTA Chocolate Fundraiser
Thursday 12th & Friday 13th March - PTA Mothers Day Stall
Friday 20th March - Comic Relief
Wednesday 25th March - Braiswick Class Photos
Monday 30th March - Last week of clubs (Parents invited in)
Wednesday 1st April - Open Classroom
Thursday 2nd April - PTA Disco / Last Day of Module 4. Normal time finish.
Module 5
Wednesday 6th May - Academic Review Day
11th-15th May - KS2 SATs Week
Hartley Sports News
I am also delighted to share this term's edition of Hartley Sports News which has been created by our amazing PE Team. This is a review of all the sporting opportunities that have taken place in Term 3. It’s an inspirational way to celebrate our sports teams and highlight the incredible opportunities available at Leigh Academy Hartley.
A huge thank you to all the staff who give up their time to help our bright stars shine, and to the pupils for providing us with so many nail-biting moments. Read on to find out more…
The PYP at LAH- how we link learning to the World of Work!
We have been extremely fortunate this term to continue to welcome a number of visitors to talk to the children about their careers and their world of work, including some of our parent community. As the children progress through the school, it is crucial that they understand the importance of their learning and begin to recognise how the skills and knowledge they are developing will help them in adult life. We are so grateful to you all for giving up your time to inspire our children- a huge thank you!
Nursery had a wonderful visit from our very own Mrs Kumar, who helped the children learn more about how we care for ourselves and others. She brought along some equipment to show the children, and they were fascinated to see how it can be used to check how our bodies are working.
The children particularly enjoyed listening to their own heartbeats and then listening to their friends’ heartbeats too. There was lots of excitement as they noticed how hearts can beat faster after moving around, and the children asked brilliant questions throughout.
Mrs Kumar also showed the children how to bandage an arm, and they loved practising carefully and kindly, learning how we can help someone if they have a small injury. A big thank you to Mrs Kumar for such a fun, hands-on experience that really brought learning to life.
A Visit from the Dentist!
A Visit from the Dentist!
Reception enjoyed a fantastic visit from Mrs Patel, our dentist, who taught the children all about oral hygiene, why it’s important to look after our teeth, and how to brush properly. She also shared what life is like as a dentist, and the children were full of brilliant questions as they learnt how dentists help us to keep our smiles healthy.
Year 4: Pets & Pests: the positives and negatives for our local ecosystems
Mr Luis came to talk to Year 4 about his job within Rentokil. He spoke to us about how pests and pets can have a positive and negative impact on our local environment. It was an engaging and informative session with lots of opportunities for questions and to question why pests are always seen negatively when they can have a positive impact in some cases.
He talked about how being an Inquirer and Thinker and a love of the outside world has helped him in his job.
Year 5: Jet Fuel Terminal Manager
Year 5 had an exciting visit from Mr Blacker, a Terminal Manager at a jet fuel terminal, who brought our Unit of Inquiry to life!
He told us all about his job and explained what jet fuel is, how it is made, and the kind of energy it provides. The children were especially interested to hear how the company he works for is helping the environment by recycling waste materials and turning them into jet fuel.
We were amazed to discover that a huge 35–40 million litres of jet fuel are used in the UK every single day, and Mr Blacker helped us understand how this fuel travels from the terminal all the way to airports.
It was a fun, engaging talk with lots of fantastic questions from the children, and a brilliant opportunity to connect our classroom learning to the real world.
Year 6: Evacuees Talk
Judith and Jack, two local residents, visited Year 6 to share their experiences as evacuees. It was fascinating to hear their stories and learn about the different destinations they were sent to. This was a really useful way to help us understand our line of inquiry: how conflict affects everyone in society in different ways.
If you would like to visit us and tell us about your world of work, please contact us!
Hartley's Big Adventures!
The PYP at LAH- how we bring learning to life!
Wherever possible, we aim to bring our PYP Units of Inquiry to life in order to make the learning real and relevant for our pupils: that could be through handling artefacts, visiting a museum, or inviting visitors into school to talk about their life experiences.
Year 1 Animal Workshop
We absolutely loved the experience of meeting such a wide range of animals, and it was a real highlight being able to handle some of them up close. Having that hands-on opportunity made everything feel far more memorable than simply reading about animals in a classroom or seeing them from a distance.
We also learnt so many fascinating facts throughout the session — from what different animals eat and how they survive in the wild, to how they behave, communicate, and protect themselves. What was especially brilliant was how confidently our pupils joined in, asked thoughtful questions, and made links to things they already knew. In fact, the animal expert was genuinely impressed by the depth of our pupils’ knowledge and curiosity, and it was lovely to see them so engaged and enthusiastic.
Year 2 Hartley Community History
A huge thank you to Mr and Mrs Alford for visiting us and sharing their wonderful knowledge of Hartley’s local history. They gave pupils a fascinating insight into how the area has changed over the last 50 years, helping them to understand how places evolve over time.
Mr and Mrs Alford kindly brought in photographs of the local area from years gone by, which brought their stories to life and sparked brilliant discussion. Pupils were especially interested in comparing what Hartley looked like then to what it looks like now, and thinking about what might have caused those changes.
The session also linked brilliantly to our learning about migration, exploring why people have moved into the area over time — for work, housing, family connections, and changing opportunities. It was a fantastic example of real-life learning, and the children were engaged, curious, and full of thoughtful questions throughout.
Year 3 visit the Horniman Museum, Dulwich
The children became thoroughly engaged in a workshop all about the Amazon Rainforest. This 'hands-on' experience allowed the children to see and touch taxidermy animals that you would find in a rainforest such as a spider, hummingbird, butterfly, snake skin, scorpion, armadillo shell and a caiman! The children thought this was fantastic to see these 'real-life' animals up close. Not only did they do this, but they learnt more about the Wei Wei Tribe of the rainforest and were able to handle traditional objects that the tribe use for their everyday life when cooking and dressing themselves.
After this, we took a trip to the aquarium where the children were able to see many varieties of small fish, including jellyfish (which some children said they had never seen before!) and seahorses. The children were very enthusiastic about telling us facts they already knew about some of the fish they saw. Also, causing a lot of excitement were the numerous varieties of poison dart frog that they could find in the Amazon Rainforest. Despite their bright colours some weren't as easy to spot as others.
This experience for the children has enhanced their cultural experiences and everyone thoroughly enjoyed the day!
Year 6 visited RAF Museum
Year 6 enjoyed an exciting visit to the RAF Museum, taking part in a range of hands-on workshops linked to their learning. Pupils had the opportunity to try on RAF uniforms and explore the bunker, bringing history to life in a memorable way. The visit was a fantastic experience and really helped deepen understanding of their lines of inquiry.
Stars for the Day- Young Voices 2026
Young Voices 2026 new (mp4On 20th January, 29 choir members from Years 4, 5 and 6 spent the afternoon at the O2 Arena rehearsing with 8,000 children from schools across the country as part of the Young Voices Choir.
The choir had signed up in October and from then, were dedicated by coming to weekly rehearsals. Leading up to the big day, they had 2 weeks where they met each day to ensure they were O2 ready!
The children (and adults accompanying them) performed amazingly on the night: they performed 10 songs to a packed O2 audience, ranging from a Marley Mash-Up, a Hairspray the musical Medley and a YV original song. The children had a fantastic day and it is definitely an experience that will stay with them for many years to come.
A huge thank you to Ms Bayliss for organising this wonderful opportunity and also for collating a fantastic video of the day's events!
PTA News
Attendance at our PTA meetings has gone from strength to strength this year, with increasing numbers at each one. Thank you to everyone who has shown such commitment and support by coming along.
At this term’s meeting, members voted on a variety of measures that will directly support and benefit our pupils. Our Valentine’s Day doughnut sale was also a huge success, and we’re looking forward to even more exciting events in the weeks ahead.
Celebrations Galore!
Celebrations Galore!
It has also been a term to celebrate the amazing creativity of our young artists. This term, we recognised outstanding contributions in Hartley’s Termly Art Competition, where pupils impressed us with their imaginative and inspiring entries in the style of Noriko Matsubara. Congratulations to Ava in Year 1 and Hugo in Year 4 who were selected as overall Key Stage winners. A big thank you to everyone who submitted their artwork this term- the entries were all so amazing- here are just some examples of the entries received!
It has also been a term to celebrate the amazing creativity of our young artists. This term, we recognised outstanding contributions in Hartley’s Termly Art Competition, where pupils impressed us with their imaginative and inspiring entries in the style of Noriko Matsubara. Congratulations to Ava in Year 1 and Hugo in Year 4 who were selected as overall Key Stage winners. A big thank you to everyone who submitted their artwork this term- the entries were all so amazing- here are just some examples of the entries received!
KS1 winner
KS2 winner
Our Accelerated Reader Winner was awarded to Kaylee in Year 3 who demonstrated outstanding determination and a love for reading by meeting her target with over 85% accuracy in her quizzes and exceeding her points target. A huge well done to all pupils who worked hard to reach their goals and showed a genuine passion for reading. A special mention for Beech Class who collectively read over half a million words this term, beating some of our KS2 classes! As we look ahead to Term 4, we encourage all our pupils using Accelerated Reader to aim high and achieve their targets!
Our Accelerated Reader Winner was awarded to Kaylee in Year 3 who demonstrated outstanding determination and a love for reading by meeting her target with over 85% accuracy in her quizzes and exceeding her points target. A huge well done to all pupils who worked hard to reach their goals and showed a genuine passion for reading. A special mention for Beech Class who collectively read over half a million words this term, beating some of our KS2 classes! As we look ahead to Term 4, we encourage all our pupils using Accelerated Reader to aim high and achieve their targets!
Attendance Term 3
Please have a look at our Attendance Policy to make sure you are aware of our procedures regarding lateness and unauthorised absences.
We have a number of classes who have done really well with their attendance, as you can see below:
Term 3 attendance data:
Well done to Rowan, Beech and Oak for achieving a fantastic 97.8% attendance this term.
Year to date attendance data:
Wellbeing Resources
Here are some links to helpful resources from Place2Be, to help you and your family:
Wellbeing resources for families
Helping your child prepare for Primary School
Helping your child prepare for Secondary School
Parenting Smart - advice on dealing with a range of challenges as a parent
Free School Meals
If your child is under 19 and in full-time education, you may be able to get free school meals for them if you receive certain benefits. The quickest and easiest way to check whether your child is eligible for free school meals and to apply is via the KCC website:
https://www.kent.gov.uk/education-and-children/schools/free-school-meals
If your child is already registered for free school meals, you do not need to reapply. If you’re not sure whether your child is already registered, please call the school and we can check our records, or you can contact KCC on 03000 416464.
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Check out our Facebook Page!
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