Nash Mills CofE Primary School

School News

Friday 20th June 2025

Reception's Day out at the Beach

Reception enjoyed their last school trip of the year today with a day out at Ruislip Lido as part of their beach topic. The day was hot with temperatures in the late 20s, but we were all well-prepared with lots of water and sun cream!

After a very exciting coach journey, we walked to the Lido through the shaded wooded area and split into two groups - one group to do some woodland activities and another to make the most of the beach area and splash zone. We had some very wet children! We had lunch in a calming woodland setting. The children really embraced each activity, which was wonderful to see. A fantastic day of fun and learning! Mrs Wilson.

Year 2 take on London!

This week, our Year 2 children enjoyed a truly exciting and memorable trip to London. Travelling by train, the children were full of wonder and excitement as they watched the world whizz by on the journey into the city.

Once in London, we set off to explore some of the capital’s most famous landmarks. The children were thrilled to see Number 10 Downing Street, Big Ben, the London Eye, Buckingham Palace, and St James’s Park—just to name a few! Their enthusiasm and curiosity were a joy to witness, and many confidently shared facts they had learned in class, impressing staff and members of the public alike.

A highlight of the day was our time in St James’s Park, where the children enjoyed a well-earned break. They had the chance to explore, play, and even spot the famous pelicans that live in the park! It was a fantastic opportunity for them to connect with nature in the middle of such a busy city.

Throughout the day, we received several lovely comments from members of the public who praised the children for their outstanding behaviour and positive attitude. They represented Nash Mills fantastically and were a credit to their families and our school.

A heartfelt thank you to all the parents and carers who supported this visit and trusted us to take their children into central London. It was a valuable and enriching experience, and we are so pleased the children could enjoy it together with their friends.

Year 5 Frisbee Event

On Monday Y5 participated in a DSSN organised frisbee event versus lots of other schools. This was a slightly different format to many other sports events, as the children had to self referee and score the opposition - it was all about spirit of the game and fair play. It was a new sport for most of the children and it took a while to get the hang of the throwing technique (and the wind!) but the children did amazingly and represented our school values brilliantly, showing respect and good sportsmanship throughout.

Year 3 Maths Challenge

On Wednesday afternoon, four children took on the Herts for Learning Maths Challenge! It was a competitive event against other schools testing their mathematical knowledge as well as their teamwork, organisational and logical thinking skills.

Within the heat, the children had two or three minutes to answer a question and record their answers, ready to be sent off to mark.

The children did amazingly well and we are still awaiting for the results of our heat, and to hear if we made it into the final!

PTA Update

Thank you to all who collected sponsorship for our Bubble Run which took place before half term. The total raised was just over £2000 which, whilst being lower than in previous years, helps us move closer to purchasing our next exciting project; VR headsets for learning. We hope to be able to complete this soon and the next event, our annual outdoor Disco 'Nashtonbury', will help us to get there. Please see adjacent flyer for information about this.

Attendance

This week’s attendance scores are in, and we’re thrilled to celebrate some fantastic achievements! A huge congratulations to Year 4, who achieved a perfect 100%—what an incredible way to set the bar! Year 3 continue to shine with another strong 98%, and Year 2 follow closely behind at 97.1%. Nursery also had a great week, reaching 96%, and Year 6 maintained a solid 96.3%.

Year 5 came in at 95.2%, while Year 1 and Reception saw slightly lower figures at 93.7% and 92.6%, respectively. While there’s always room to grow, we’re proud of everyone’s efforts and commitment to being in school.

Let’s keep up the momentum—every day in school means more learning, more laughter, and more time with friends. Let’s aim high again next week!

Staffing Update

Before half term, we shared the plan for staffing with you for September. This is shown again below and is largely the same. We are pleased, however to share that due to us having a larger than normal Nursery class, we will also be welcoming Mrs Gunawardana to the team. Mrs Gunawardana has been helping Year 1 each week this year so already knows the school well!

Nursery: Miss Webb (M&T), Miss Archer (W-F), Mrs Holmes & Mrs Gunawardana

Reception: Mrs Wilson, Mrs Levy & Mrs Armitage

Year 1: Miss Brewer & Mrs Akhtar

Year 2: Mrs Nicholls (M,T,F), Miss Jones (W,Th) & Mrs Cambridge

Year 3: Miss Lyden, Mrs Jakeman & Miss Hatting

Year 4: Mrs Barrett (M-W), Mr Shane (Th-F), Miss Fraser

Year 5: Mrs Lewis & Miss Finnis

Year 6: Mrs Ofosu & Miss Hollis

Times Tables Rockstars and Numbots!

Our TTRS leader board this week is improvement in Studio Speed, this is the game mode that gives children their Rock Status so the faster the speed the closer they are to becoming a Rock Hero! Well done to our leaders.

Our Numbots leader board reflects the number of levels passed with 3 stars, well done to our leaders.

Mr Shane

Leader board this week

1st - Joseph (Y2)

2nd - Melo (Y2)

3rd -Lexi (Y2)

Leader board this week

1st - Austin (Y3)

2nd - Betsan (Y6)

3rd - Fred (Y4)

New School Website

Those of you who have had a chance to visit our website this week may have noticed a new design. We hope that you like it!

Please do bear with us whilst we tidy up some of the links on the new site; most of the content has moved across without a hitch, but there have been one or two problems to iron out!

Star of the Week!

Nursery

Myla L

For her enthusiasm during carpet time. Myla always joins in and is keen to learn, especially in phonics. Well done Myla!

Reception

Clementine

For great focus this term. It’s really paid off in your reading and writing—what a brilliant improvement! Keep up the hard work Clementine.

Year 1

Lana

For growing into a confident, kind, and hardworking learner! She is becoming a bright and sociable member of our class who always tries her best. Keep it up Lana!

Year 2

Melo

For being absolutely fantastic on our trip to London! You showed great excitement, brilliant behaviour, and a big smile as we explored the amazing sights—from Big Ben to the London Eye! You made the day extra special with your curiosity and joy. You’re a true London explorer and a superstar student Melo!

Year 2

For their outstanding behaviour and enthusiasm on the unforgettable school trip to London! From the awe-inspiring sights of Big Ben and the London Eye to the grandeur of Buckingham Palace, you represented your school with pride, curiosity, and joy. You were a credit to your teachers, your school and yourselves!

Year 3

Lily-Roma

For her persistent determination, as well as her kind and friendly demeanour. Keep it up Lily-Roma!

Year 3

Maths Challenge Group - Chinmaye, Emine, Freddie, Noah

For their outstanding resilience, teamwork and determination to complete the tasks. Together, you faced obstacles with positivity and persistence! Well done!

Year 4

Duha

For being such a brilliant representative of Year 4 on the trip to London this week. You have built some brilliant friendships in the class already and are a fabulous addition to the Nash Mills family.

Year 5

Camden

For his confidence with his learning, taking responsibility for his work and really focusing in all subjects.

Keep it up Camden!

Year 6

Jessica J

For her attention to detail and thoughtful use of tone and contrast to produce a stunning monochrome landscape.

Well done Jessica!

Upcoming Dates

24th June - Y1 Class Assembly

24th June - Y4 Electric Umbrella event at St Albans Cathedral

25th June - Reception Coffee Morning

26th June - Nursery Coffee Morning

26th June - Y1 Trip to RAF museum

30th June - 4th July - Sports Week

1st July - Y4 Class Assembly

3rd July - Sports Day and Picnic - 11am EYFS and 12pm KS1 and KS2

4th July - PTA Summer Disco

7th July - Reports sent home

9th-11th July - Y5 Residential Trip to Phasels Wood

10th July - Pupils in new Classes in school. Y6 to their new secondary schools.

14th-18th July - Art Week

14th July - Music Performances

15th&16th July - Y5/6 production 'Oliver with a Twist' - 2.15pm

17th July - Church Service

17th July - Y6 Leavers Party

18th July - Leavers Assembly

18th July - Last day of term - school closes at 1.30pm.

21st-23rd July - school closed for INSET and Occasional Days.

School reopens for the new school year for Years R to 6 on Thursday 4th September. The Nursery class reopens on Monday 8th September.

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.

The school carpark is open between 7am and 6pm on weekdays. Members of the local community are more than welcome to use it too so please spread the word!

Final Thought

Yesterday marked Clean Air Day; the UK's largest campaign against the impact of air pollution. There are many things we can do to help reduce the amount of air pollution we create, from walking to the shops instead of driving or making sure that lights are turned off when we leave the room or not leaving the TV on standby.

Are you able to make a pledge to make one, two or three small changes which will help?

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