Nash Mills CofE Primary School

School News

Friday 19th June 2026

Visit from the new Mayor of Hemel Hempstead

On Monday, we were delighted to welcome the new Mayor of Hemel Hempstead, Councillor Stevens, to our school. This was a particularly special occasion, as he shared that it was his very first visit to a school since taking on the role of Mayor.

During his visit, the Mayor spent time in several classrooms, meeting pupils and seeing first-hand the excellent work taking place across the school. He also enjoyed a meeting with our Year 6 House Captains, who represented the school brilliantly and spoke confidently about Nash Mills.

The Mayor then led a whole-school assembly, where he spoke about his role and the work he does within the community. The assembly ended with a Q&A session, where pupils asked a range of questions. These included queries about the size of his office and just how expensive the mayoral chain is!

We would like to thank the Mayor for taking the time to visit us.

Reception hit the beach!

A great day was had by all when Reception enjoyed a fun-filled trip to Ruislip Lido this week. The weather conditions were perfect, making it an ideal day for exploring and outdoor learning.

The children loved the woodland walk, where they discovered lots of exciting things about nature, including some fascinating facts about trees. They also took part in a fun true-or-false game before finishing the session with bug hunting and an exciting bug race.

The beach and splash park never fail to impress, and the children thoroughly enjoyed getting wet, sandy and having fun with their friends. There were certainly lots of tired children on the journey home, but we are sure they all slept very well that night!

A huge thank you to all the parents who supported the trip, and indeed all the Reception trips throughout the year. These experiences create lasting memories and are often the moments children remember most about their time in the Early Years. We simply could not provide these valuable opportunities without the help and support of our wonderful volunteers.

The Monster Football Kickabout!

Monster kickabout is a national event to get children into football, which coincides with the start of the men's football world cup this year.

Nash Mills hosted a World cup of it's own on Thursday afternoon! Children in Y3-Y6 came together to represent some of the nations of the world cup and compete in mini-matches. There was lots of talent on show and everyone got involved. It was great to see the teamwork and camaraderie from all children and even better to see those who had more experience really getting those who didn't, to take part.

It was a tense final between Sweden and Spain, which went to penalties, with Spain coming out as victors. Well done Spain!!

A highlight of the afternoon for many was a surprise visit from Kwadwo Baah, from Watford FC, who came to cheer the children on! A huge 'thank you' to Miss Hollis for organising our special guest!

The Scholar's Programme

A huge 'well done' to a group of our Year 5 pupils who, this week, completed the Scholar's Programme. This is a special project, run by a charity called The Brilliant Club, all about how we learn in different ways. During the project, pupils worked closely with a PhD researcher from the University of Sheffield to learn about a topic not normally part of our school curriculum. The children then took part in a research project, ending with a university-level assignment, which was marked and graded. We are pleased to share that all pupils passed with flying colours!

In a few weeks, the children have been invited to The University of London's SOAS campus, where they will find out a little more about university study, before graduating from the programme!

Well done to all who have taken part! We are very proud of what you have achieved.

Star of the Week!

Nursery

Nelly

For her wonderful phonics and mark making this week. Well done Nelly!

Reception

Pipin

For being a super helper in the classroom and working well with friends. We have really valued your tidying up skills this year!

Year 1

Hallie

For listening much more carefully and showing this in the wonderful progress in your work. Keep it up!

Year 1

Thaqib

For communicating with adults by showing them what he wants confidently. Well done!

Year 2

Beau

For working hard and proving to himself he can do it. Well done Beau!

Year 3

Ruby

For trying her absolute best in all lessons. She has become increasingly confident and more independent. Keep up the hard work.

Year 4

Sam

For his confident and cheerful approach to learning and his hard work to achieve his best.

Year 5

Logan

For working really hard and being responsible for his actions both in the classroom and outside.

Year 6

Adam

For being such a helpful and reliable member of the class, particularly when helping with the technical components in all play rehersals.

Times Tables Rockstars and Numbots!

This week's TTRS leader board is for improvement in Studio speed, This shows how much faster children are answering questions. The faster they answer questions - the more questions they can answer. Well done to our top 3!

Our Numbots leader board is for most correct answers in challenge mode, our top 3 have amassed a total of 686 correct answers.

Well done to all of our leaders this week.

Leader board this week

1st - Lana (Y2)

2nd - Ralph (Y1)

3rd - Clementine (Y1)

Leader board this week

1st - Joseph (Y3)

2nd - Austin (Y4)

3rd - Israel (Y3)

Attendance

It’s great to see attendance improve again this week, with some very strong performances across the school. A huge congratulations to Year 4, who achieved a fantastic 100% attendance—an excellent accomplishment! Year 5 followed with 96.3%, while Year 3 and Year 1 also had strong weeks at 95.7% and 95.6%. Year 6 recorded 95%, with Year 2 close behind at 94.8%, and Reception at 94.6%. Nursery finished the week with 90.2%.

Thank you to all families for your continued support—it's encouraging to see attendance moving in the right direction, and we look forward to building on this in the coming weeks.

Out of School Success

We always love hearing about the achievements of our children outside of school. This week, we would like to say a huge 'well done' to the various pupils and families who took part in the Hospice of St. Francis' Bubble Run! We understand that lots of fun was had and that the sun came out to make it a really enjoyable event.

Special mention to Noah in Year 4, who came 1st in the 5km race! Brilliant effort Noah!

Best Bedtime Reads...for the grownups!

As you know, reading regularly at home with your children is incredibly important. A good bedtime story is not only helpful in maintaining a strong routine in the evening, it also helps children to develop their imagination and vocabulary.

Each week, we will ask our staff what their current recommendations are for the best bedtime reads. We hope that it provides you with some ideas!

Mrs Lewis' book to share this week...

These books have transformed cleaning and washing in my house (sad, I know, that I get so excited about cleaning!!) Nancy Birtwhistle has so many tips; from cleaning bathrooms to whitening whites and so much more - and the best thing is they are all using natural ingredients so are much better for the environment (and cheaper than shop bought!). I thought that it would be worth sharing this with you, as I know how hard it can sometimes be to get the tough stains out of school uniforms!

A couple of examples:

A great way to remove stains on clothes is to wet the stain with cold water, then sprinkle on bicarbonate of soda. Add to that a few drops of eco-friendly washing up liquid and gently rub into the stain. Put in a sealed bag overnight and then wash as normal.
A tried and tested method to whitening socks - Add 2 tablespoons of washing soda, 1 tsp of sodium percarbonate to boiling water in a large bowl or sink. Once dissolved, top up with cold water and put the whites into it. Leave overnight and then wash as normal. It's very satisfying seeing the results!!

Toys from Home

Please remember that we encourage children not to bring in toys from home unless there is a special focus in class. We are seeing more things being bought in at the moment, which has lead to some disagreements between children.

World Cup Matches

We know that some of the children will be keen to watch the upcoming World Cup matches and recognise that this will cause difficult conversations in some households!

However, for the time being, we need to remind you that we will expect the children in school each day and on time as usual so would ask that there are not too many late nights over the coming weeks please.

Measles

We have been asked to share this message from the Hertfordshire Director of Public Health

The number of children with measles has increased since the start of the year, with most cases in unvaccinated children aged 10 years and under. Measles is a very infectious illness which can make children very unwell and sometimes leads to serious complications. Sadly, two children in England have died from measles in 2026.

In Hertfordshire we have had outbreaks of measles in some of our schools and cases of measles are increasing. I am therefore asking that parents take the following actions:

Check your child’s red book or the NHS App to make sure your child is up to date with their vaccinations.
If your child has missed one or both doses of MMR, please contact your GP practice to arrange an appointment.
You can also contact your local Community & School Aged Immunisation Service who run vaccination sessions for all ages. Details can be found here: https://www.hct.nhs.uk/service-details/service/hertfordshire-and-east-anglia-community-and-school-age-immunisations-35 /
If your child is ill and you are worried it might be measles, check symptoms of measles here: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/measles. If you need help, please phone your GP or 111 and follow their advice.

Please click here to read the latest parent newsletter from the Developing Specialist Provision Locally Team in Dacorum.

Upcoming Dates

22nd - 26th June - Y6 Residential Trip

23rd & 30th June - Opera Project in school

23rd June - Y2 Class Worship

25th June - Reception Coffee Morning

30th June - Y3 Class Worship

1st-3rd July - Y5 Residential Trip

1st July - Governors Resource Meeting

6th-8th July - Sports Week

7th July - Reports sent home

7th July - Y4 Class Worship

7th July - Y4 trip to Electric Umbrella at the Cathedral

8th July - Sports Day - 11am EYFS, 12pm rest of school

9th July - New class transition day

10th July - PTA summer disco

13th July - Art week

13th July - Music Concert 2pm

13th July - Full Governing Body Meeting

14th July - Y1 RAF Trip

15th&16th July - Y5&6 Production

17th July - Y6 Leavers Party

20th July - Whole School Church Service

21st July - Leavers' Assembly and last day of term. School closes for the summer at 1.30pm

22nd &23rd July - INSET Days

Good Shepherd Booking

Good Shepherd Club—to book spaces at Breakfast or After School Club, please visit

http://www.goodshepherdclubs.co.uk/

Logging Absences

Thank you to those who have now managed to log child absences on Arbor. It has really helped the office, meaning that we know where all of the children are more quickly in the morning. If The instructions on how to do this are set out below.

If your child is unwell, Hertfordshire Attendance team require that the nature of the illness is recorded, so please include this in your message (cough, cold, temperature, vomiting etc.). Please note that any absence requests for future dates will still need to made through the school office. In line with our attendance and safeguarding policies, a reminder to report your child's absence every morning, by 8.30am, until your child is well enough to return to school.

Step 1 -Click on Quick Actions button and then click Attendance followed by the green Log Absence button (top right).

Step 2 - Enter the absence details. If your child will be absent all day, there is no need to edit the start and end times that will automatically appear. If your child is ill, please ensure that you enter the nature of the illness and then press the green Log Absence button.

Step 3 - Once you have logged the absence, the school office will 'accept' it. Approved absences then appear in the Attendance tab of the Arbor App. It is not possible to edit an absence once it has been approved, so if you have any queries, please email the school office who will be able to help.

Pupil Premium

Did you know that your child may be able to receive additional support in school in addition to free school meals, if you qualify for certain benefits?

If you receive any of the following, your child may well be eligible for the Pupil Premium. This provides them with free school meals throughout their time at school, but also a range of additional things in school to help with their learning and engagement. If your child might be eligible, please visit the following site (https://www.hertfordshire.gov.uk/ufs/HCWH.eb?ebd=0&ebz=1_1717745705707) or speak to the school office who will be happy to help.

Income Support
Income-based Jobseekers Allowance
Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
Support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
The guaranteed element of State Pension Credit
Child Tax Credit (as long as you’re not also entitled to Working Tax Credit and you don't get more than £16,190 a year)
Working Tax Credit run-on (paid for 4 weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit)
Universal Credit (with annual earned income of no more than £7,400 after tax and not including any benefits you get).

The application process only takes a few minutes and we are more than happy to provide support if it is needed.

Clothing Bank

Thank you for your donations towards our clothing bank. If you have any old clothes following clear-outs, please drop things in. The clothing bank is emptied regularly so should be ready for more donations.

Members of the local community are more than welcome to use it too so please spread the word!

Nursery Admissions - September 2026

Please share with friends and family that applications to come and join our wonderful Nursery for the next academic year are about to close! Our Nursery pupils love coming into school each day to enjoy all of our fantastic facilities and benefit from the care of our dedicated Nursery staff who create a friendly, safe and stimulating learning environment.

In September 2026, we shall be admitting children born between 1st September 2022 and 31st August 2023 and are pleased to share that we offer either:

15-hour morning provision from 8.50am-11.50am

For working families in receipt of 30-hours government funding, daily provision from 8.50am-2.50pm, with the option to extend the day to 3.15pm for an additional cost of approximately £12.50 per week.

Please do encourage family and friends with Nursery-aged pupils to come and see us.

Final Thought

Continuing with our Ubuntu theme of 'honesty', today in worship we looked at the story 'Herman's Letter' in which two friends fall out due to a misunderstanding. Had they been more honest with each other and shared how they felt, a lot of upset could have been avoided.

This is such a common occurance - particularly in schools - where we do not always know the other person's point of view or the full story, which leads to confusion and conflict. Sometimes, when something happens that makes us feel upset, to take the time to step back and fully understand what has happened is really important.

If there is any upset this weekend, take a moment to consider whether everyone fully understands what is happening. It may help to get to the bottom of things more quickly!

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