Headteacher's Welcome

I have had a great last few weeks with so much keeping us busy.  A fantastic Christmas Fair started our festivities followed by Infant and Junior performances which are always spectacular.  I have been on two special and very different trips with children.  One to GLive to see 10 children perform live on stage with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and one to Google HQ where our children showcased their digital learning experiences.   The children were great ambassadors for our school and really shone.  Our children are great fun to work with and they always make me proud.

I have very many special fond memories of my time at West Ashtead and I now hand over the reins to Mrs Sarah Wells.  Thank you so much for all the support over the years.  I have thoroughly enjoyed myself.


Have a great Christmas and a relaxing New Year.

A West Ashtead Christmas Day!

We began our school Christmas Day with our annual Reindeer Run.  A huge thank you to the Sports Captains and Year 6 for helping the younger children run the course and showing them where to go. Thanks also to Ted H, a past pupil, who came back to help out and show the Juniors our Cross Country course. 

There was a fantastic array of amazing Christmas jumpers and all the children enjoyed themselves enormously, despite the wind and cold! 

We also had an amazing Christmas dinner, served to us by Mrs Hall and other staff members.  Thank you also to past pupils, Neil and Jemma for helping out.  It was delicious!  Thank you Anita and Tracey for cooking it for us! 

Extra Curricular

Children from Reception to Year 3 enjoyed a visit from The Pied Piper Theatre Company and Deafinitely Theatre.  They performed a fantastic retelling of 'Can Bears Ski?' by poet Raymond Antrobus and Polly Dunbar, which explains what it is like to be a deaf child in a hearing world.

Year 3 and 4 have greatly enjoyed learning the violin this term.  We showed what we had learnt to our parents in a fabulous concert!


This month, three Year 6 children enjoyed a visit to Google Headquarters in London to take part in the LEO PedTech Symposium - Changing Learning. Changing Lives. What happens when EdTech becomes PedTech?  The findings of a year-long research report by Dr Fiona Aubrey-Smith  and its implications for the future of education were shared and discussed. Along with children from other LEO schools, Florence, Jacob and Reggie got the chance to discuss how they use their Chromebooks to support their learning.   They shared their work and the apps they use with Head Teachers from other schools,  members of the DfE and Ofsted as well as people who work for Educational Technology companies.  A fantastic day was had by all.  

The full report can be found here - https://www.leoacademytrust.co.uk/2801/pedtech-impact-report 

Sports Roundup

In school we have been learning ...

Celebrations


We are so proud of all the Infants who put on a fantastic Nativity performance.  They sang beautifully and managed to remember all their lines and dances. What a festive way to end our Autumn term.   Well done also to the Juniors for a wonderful carol concert.  

On Friday 15th December, the whole school took part in our first ever LEO Arts Celebration. Every class was transformed into a gallery with work from all across the Arts - Music, Writing, DT and Art. The children were able to go to every classroom and view the progression of skills in these areas from Reception to Year 6.  It was a really lovely afternoon and we look forward to doing it again.

FOWA in the News

  FOWA Wrap-Up: Cheers to a Festive Finale and Exciting News Ahead! 

As we bid adieu to a whirlwind of festivities, we can't help but celebrate the incredible end to the year we've had! None of this would have been possible without the tireless efforts of our Friends of West Ashtead parent volunteers—your dedicated army of planners and doers. Thank you for making it all happen!

 Christmas Fair Magic!

Our Christmas Fair was a spectacular success! Families revelled in the Year 6 Christmas competitions, games, and the enchanting Elfridge's Gift Room, which raised an impressive £700 for their leavers fund.

 Festive Fundraising Triumph!

The collective efforts of the Christmas Fair, Market Stalls, Christmas Cafe, Christmas Tree sales, Santa’s Grotto, Raffle, and Tombolas resulted in a staggering £2,606 raised. Heartfelt thanks to our incredible FOWA Christmas Team for making the magic happen - James, Laura Jane, Lauren, Claire, Hana, Anna, Jo, Gavin, Zoe, Kirsti, Keely, Lisa and Ana! Plus, a special shout-out to Nana Edwina for sponsoring gifts for all 90 children in Santa's Grotto again this year and all the parent and teacher volunteers who helped on the day!

 Harvesting Success: Your Contributions at Work!

We're thrilled to share the incredible impact of your fundraising efforts this term! Thanks to the generosity of our parents, we've reinvested into the school, ensuring all our West Ashtead children benefit. Among the highlights, we've co-funded workshops like Yr 5 Greek Day, School Pond Workshop, and Y2 Great Fire of London. Additionally, a cosy new reading rug has been purchased for our little ones to sprawl out on and enjoy during story time. Your support truly makes a difference in creating enriching experiences for our students! 

 Surprises Await!

Exciting news awaits in the new year! A new FOWA Junior climbing frame will be a delightful surprise installed over the Christmas holidays—three months earlier than expected. Also, we're thrilled to announce co-funding for all School Workshops next term, covering various year groups' exciting educational adventures. Plus a new collection of reading books worth over £1,260 has been added to the school library for all children to enjoy in the new year!

 Farewell to Mrs. Hall

With a heavy heart, we bid farewell to Mrs. Hall, a true champion of FOWA. Her dedication and support have left an indelible mark, ensuring our fundraising efforts benefit every child across the school. We wish her a joyous retirement!

 Thank You to Our Community

A massive thank you to our class reps, committee members, parent volunteers, teachers, and every parent in the school. Your contributions of time and support have made our activities possible. May you have a restful and wonderful Christmas!

Cheers to a fantastic year-end and looking forward to more exciting ventures in the new year!

Friends of West Ashtead,

SCHOOL CALENDAR 

SCHOOL FUND

As a state school, our budget from the Surrey Local Authority is calculated on a ‘per pupil’ basis and, in inflation adjusted terms, has not risen commensurately with our costs for several years.  Despite considerable efforts by the school’s staff to rigorously control costs while maintaining high standards of educational quality, costs have risen. 

We are establishing a voluntary contribution fund to advance the education of pupils at West Ashtead Primary Academy by the provision of resources, equipment, teaching and facilities for education in addition to those provided out of public funds.  The voluntary contributions are essential if our school is to maintain its current standards and provision.  Our intention is that the fund has a specific focus, this year it is technology and specifically raising funds to upgrade our interactive boards. 

Request - what are we asking of you? 

Contributing to the fund is voluntary.  We’re aware that many families already contribute generously to the school through supporting the Friends’ initiatives.  This is an invaluable source of funding for us that has financed some fantastic additional resources for the pupils, such as iPads, our library, STEAM room and classroom resources.  We also know that not all parents are able to attend and support the Friends’ events and may wish to support the School in other ways. 

We are suggesting a donation of £50 annually per family.  You may wish to contribute less or more, annually or monthly.  Every contribution will go towards us being able to invest in additional technology to enhance our children's learning.  Parents can pay for School Fund online via our Arbor payment system,  go to Accounts - School Fund - Top Up Account.

We would like to thank you for your support. 

LEO LOTTERY

Help raise funds for the LEO Foundation by joining our lottery.

This year, funds raised by the LEO Foundation supported our LEO PRIDE Awards in EYFS, our ECB All Stars Cricket Development Centre for Year 2 pupils, Mandarin lessons for Year 5 pupils and our Year 6 Junior Citizenship Programme.

Your support is greatly appreciated and we wish you good luck!

To purchase a ticket please click here.

HELP US / SOCIAL MEDIA 

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Social Media 

To be kept up-to-date with all of the exciting activities, learning and events that the children are participating in please follow @WestAshtead and @LEOacademies on Twitter, @west.ashtead.primary.school on Instagram and WestAshteadPrimarySchool on Facebook. 

Our social media platforms are used when the KS2 children are away on residential trips - seeing how much fun the children are having makes missing them not quite so bad, the children definitely do not look like they are missing home!

Please note that we only share photos of children who have photo permission and we only ever use their first name.  Also, we do not keep the photos that we share so if you see a photo of your child that you would like you can save these onto your own device by clicking on the 3 dots on the photo and selecting save.   Also if you see a post that interests you, please can we ask you to share/retweet.

If you would like your child to be included in our social media posts, please ensure that you have consented to social media.  If you are unsure please look at your child's profile on the Arbor app and contact the school office if you wish to make a change.