RTS Parents' Newsletter

RTS Parents' Newsletter 06 January 2023

Head Teacher's Message

Welcome back!

I hope that you all enjoyed a relaxing festive break with family and friends. Although this has been a short week, by all means it has not been a quiet one. This week Year 11 students have been sitting their GCSE Mock Oral exams for MFL.

Elsewhere around school our new Enrichment programme has begun and students are hopefully experiencing something new and meeting and making new friends outside of their peer group. Our Enrichment programme is an aspect of RTS that we are exceptionally proud of and I am always struck by just how broad a range of talents and interests our staff have to offer students - this term activities on offer range from mendhi/henna, debating club, embroidery/needlework, callisthenics (strength training) to Parkrun and history makers (and this list is only half of what is on offer).

With the dark mornings/evenings still with us for a bit longer, please can you ensure that students are safe and can be seen - both on their bikes with lights, helmets, reflective strips/vests and also on foot - again reflective strips on coats can make such a difference.

Wishing you all a good weekend.

Ms K Dooley

Dates for the diary

INSET Days: Monday 20 and Tuesday 21 February 2023 - School closed to students for Staff training
Wednesday 22 February 2023
- FoRTS General Meeting, 18:00

Contacting the School

If you wish to contact the school, the School Office is open (term time only):

Monday-Thursday - 08:15-16:30
Friday - 08:15-15:00

Telephone: 020 8891 2985

Email: info@rts.richmond.sch.uk

Please use the Parents Communications Summary for guidance on types of query and where advice may be found/who to direct your query to.

Career's Corner

Can you help us?

On Thursday 23 February 2023 we will be hosting our very first Year 11 Careers Conference. We are looking for a range of different businesses and speakers to come and support us in delivering workshops, seminars and keynote presentations. In particular we would love to hear from you if you work within the health and social care industry. If you can help us please complete this form - https://forms.gle/Vryj78vJ8VjHS8AV7.

If you have any queries about our Careers programme, please hop over to our website here.

Christmas Jumper Day Update

Thank you to all those families who were able to support last year's Christmas Jumper Day - either by donating via ParentPay or the RTS Just Giving page; and/or by wearing a Christmas/Festive jumper. Both of these options are still open for donations and will close just after half-term so that we can pay in all monies raised to Save the Children. The UK Government will match all donations made to Christmas Jumper Day before 01 March 2023, so every penny counts as it will be doubled! To date we have raised (via both sites) just over £400 - so thank you for your generosity. Students looked great in their Christmas Jumpers/Festive colours and it really added to the atmosphere for Christmas Lunch!

FORTS NEWS

Happy New Year!

FoRTS hope you had a lovely time off and we wish you all a very Happy New Year!

Christmas Fair

The FoRTS and RTS Christmas Fair was immensely popular and there was a great vibe on the night with music, games and fantastic stalls, most of them run by our children. The night raised over £1000. We have been in touch with the school to set in motion this term's department bids so that money can be spent on your child's education and facilities.

Parent Forum and FoRTS General meeting - 22 February

The FoRTS General Meeting will be held on Wednesday 22 February at at approximately 6pm, further details nearer the time. We look forward to giving you further details on funds raised this academic year to date and plans on how they will be spent.

FoRTS Recruitment - We Need You!

We know we will be losing some of our wonderful volunteers as their children leave the school this summer, so we want to get planning early. If you have thought of volunteering your time or making a commitment to one of the FoRTS committee roles, this is a great chance to come along and experience first hand how rewarding it is. Maybe come to one of our events, volunteer to help out, or just get in touch for a chat. Any help is greatly appreciated. Please do give it a try. If you're able to give a greater commitment, both the Chair and Treasurer roles will be vacated at the end of this academic year, or become a committee member! Email FoRTS to find out more forts@rts.richmond.sch.uk.

School Uniform - Sales and Donations

We continue to collect and re-sell pre-loved uniform. Any clean, unwanted uniform in good condition can be taken into school reception. We aim to re-sell uniform at in-school events. If you would like to contact us about uniform, or think you can help at one of our sales, please email fortsuniform@rts.richmond.sch.uk. Unfortunately we are not able to carry out ad hoc sales or check stock for you as this is all held at school.

Shopping Online – easyfundraising and Amazon Smile

Like many charities, we raise funds as people shop online using easyfundraising and AmazonSmile. easyfundraising has partnerships with over 7,000 brands who will donate part of what you spend on their website. It won't cost you any extra, the cost is covered by the brand. It’s quick to sign up and if you set up a donation reminder, you will always be prompted when you are on a site where donations can be generated. If you have previously used these sites to support your primary school, please consider updating to become a supporter of Friends of RTS, just follow the links. Thank you.

Your FoRTS team,

Carey (Chair), Mark (Treasurer) and Carmelle(Secretary)

General: forts@rts.richmond.sch.uk

Uniform: fortsuniform@rts.richmond.sch.uk

Parking: fortsparking@rts.richmond.sch.uk

Voluntary donations: Peoples Fundraising

Safeguarding

If you have concerns in relation to a student at RTS or indeed with regards to your own child, you may want to contact Single Point of Access (SPA) which acts as a central information hub for all professional agencies in Kingston and Richmond.

Richmond and Kingston SPA

The SPA phone lines are now open as follows:

Monday-Thursday 08.00-17.15 and Friday 08.00-17.00 - the phone number during these times is 020 8547 5008
Out of hours: 020 8770 5000

Hounslow Early Help Assessment

Telephone number: 020 8583 6600
Out of hours: 020 8583 2222
Email: earlyhelp@hounslow.gov.uk

NSPCC:

Speak to a counsellor 24 hours a day, 7 days a week

Telephone number: 0808 800 5000, or text 88858
Email: help@nspcc.org.uk
Signvideo using British Sign Language (Mon - Fri, 9am - 6pm)

Local News - Please note RTS does not endorse items included as Local News

Telephone Support Service for Parents from Off The Record Twickenham

Off the Record Twickenham provides a telephone support service for parents & guardians of young people. Our experienced counsellor can offer an hour on the phone to discuss any challenges you’re experiencing, give support and listen. This can be particularly helpful when the young person is reluctant to try counselling. Our support can include looking at what you find challenging and/or ways you might support your child. What is discussed is confidential unless there is a concern about the safety of a child. Contact Off The Record Twickenham on 020 8744 1644, at counselling@otrtwickenham.com or find more information about supporting your child on our website https://otrtwickenham.com/parents/

Positive Parenting Project

Having conversations that matter

Parenting is all about relationship building and one of the main ways we build relationships is through conversations. Having good conversations with children and teens is not an added extra, it is the bedrock of parenting and essential fuel for child development.

And, sometimes, there are issues that we simply have to talk to our kids about - for their safety and wellbeing - even if we feel uncomfortable.

Starting good conversations isn't always easy, especially when we are tired or stressed or embarrassed or worried. Finding the right words can be tricky. This month's newsletter is full of tips and resources to make finding the best words and talking points much easier. We have resources for helping you start great conversations, tips on talking to children about the cost of living and a booklist for discussing financial hardship.

Plus advice on picking your way through tricky conversations about healthy eating and sex, bodies and relationships.

Secondary Parent Webinars Poster 2022.23. Education Wellbeing Service (2).pdf

Parent_and_Carers_Infographic.pdf

Hong-Kongers!

Hong Kongers - An exciting development from St Luke's primary school in partnership with Kingston BEATS to run four different Saturday clubs at St Luke’s.

practical self defence and fitness
sketching for beginners
lion dance
Cantonese drama club (just for Cantonese speakers)

These are primarily aimed at supporting Hong Kong born children to preserve their Cantonese and to maintain a link with their heritage but three of them are also open to non-Cantonese speakers to encourage integration. Please see the attached flyers for details.

New parents of all heritages are welcome to join the EAL friendship groups for both ESOL and social support. Contact their office manager for details. Multicultural Richmond also run lots of ESOL and community events including ESOL specifically for Ukrainians.

ESOL maths club.pdf

maths homework club.pdf

Living Support campaign

With more people being expected to come into hardship due to the rising cost of living in 2022, Richmond Council has developed a campaign to help de-mystify and de-stigmatise hardship support and to empower and enable residents to access the support they need.

You can help support the campaign by sharing the assets and social media copy below on your own channels.

Visit the Richmond Cost of Living Hub

Resources

The Richmond Cost of Living Hub has gathered information about lots of schemes, benefits and support services - both national and local - into one place. Residents can either browse the information on our website or use our helpful calculator, that will tell them exactly which scheme or support they may be able to access.

You can also sign up to email updates on cost of living support to receive useful information and tips straight to your inbox.

Where people cannot access the internet, we are encouraging them to ask a family member, friend or caregiver to help and look at the information for them. Alternatively, they can visit their local library and a staff member will be able to help them use a computer to find out what you could be entitled to.

Help for Households

The Government has launched the 'Help for Households’ scheme. The homepage brings together over 40 support schemes that the public can access, depending on eligibility, including help with:

Household costs
Energy Bills
Childcare costs
Income support
Transport costs

Additionally, a range of online tools will help citizens quickly and efficiently check the support they might be eligible for and how to access it.

Term Dates 2022-2023

Full term dates and Inset day information is available on the website:

Spring Term 1: Wednesday 04 January 2023-Friday 10 February 2023
Half-Term: Monday 13 February-Friday 17 February
Spring Term 2: Monday 20 February**-Friday 31 March
**INSET Days: Monday 20 and Tuesday 21 February

Parents' Calendar

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