VPS Newsletter

Welcome to Vauxhall's Newsletter:

Autumn 1 , Week 3: Friday 19th September 2025

Remember- All newsletters can be found on our school website, which includes links to archived newsletters.

In this issue...

Meet the Inclusion Team
Children's learning
Chrome Music Lab
Bike Bonanza
Scholastic Book Fair
School Uniform
Sporting Highlights
#WakeUpWednesday - Snapchat

+ our regularly updated Diary Dates, Term Dates, our weekly Headteacher Awards, Weekly Attendance & Punctuality figures and TT Rockstars.

Meet the Inclusion Team

Meet the Inclusion Team Parent Cafe.pptx

We are delighted to share more about the newest member of our school community:

My name is Yasmin Orchard and I am the family support worker at Vauxhall.

My role is to provide support and advice that helps to bridge the gap between school and home life, for you and your children. There are many organisations that can help with supporting your family’s well-being, and I can help you find them.

Family life can throw up many challenges. I can provide information and signpost to sources of support for SEN, mental health services and other outside agencies. Family support is available if you are looking for advice on how to establish routines for your child or with managing behaviour, for separation or bereavement services, for housing and applications for grants; at Vauxhall we will always do our best to support you.

You can find me in the school office on Mondays and Tuesdays, 9-4. Please feel free to come by and say hello or you can drop me an email, familysupport@vauxhallprimary.org.uk.

EYFS - Caterpillars & Butterflies

This week in EYFS, we have been reading ‘Super Duper You’ by Sophy Henn. We discussed what makes us special, drew ourselves and painted our favourite things.

Year 1 - Cheetahs

This week, the children were surprised to find that someone had been painting on the classroom walls! This exciting start introduced our new book in literacy, Cave Baby by Julia Donaldson. Inspired by the story, the children created their own colourful cave paintings, bringing the story to life through art and imagination.

Year 2 - Lions

🎵 Celebrating Musical Talent in Year 2! 🎶

This week, our Year 2 students have been immersing themselves in the vibrant sounds of South Africa through the song Hands, Feet, Heart. This upbeat and joyful piece, specially written for children, gave pupils the opportunity to explore South African culture while developing their musical skills.

Children sang with great enthusiasm and focus, showing real progress in keeping a steady beat and performing with confidence. Using glockenspiels, they learned to play simple melodic patterns in time with the music—an impressive step in their musical journey!

It was wonderful to see the class working collaboratively, listening carefully to one another, and taking pride in their performance. The joy and energy in the room were contagious!

We can’t wait to share more of their musical achievements with you as the term continues.

Year 2 Music.mp4

Year 3 - Eagles

Eagle Class has been enjoying an exciting literacy journey while reading Leon and the Place Between, a magical story about a brave young boy named Leon. In the book, Leon courageously volunteers to go into a magician’s box during a magic show and to everyone's surprise, he disappears into a mysterious and enchanting world called The Place Between.

To deepen their understanding of the story, Eagle Class brought the text to life through drama. In one of their lessons, they created freeze frames to show how Leon's brothers and sister might have felt when he vanished into the box and then reappeared! The class used these freeze frames to begin rehearsing and verbalising the thoughts, questions, and statements that the siblings might have had in that moment. They then carefully wrote these ideas into speech bubbles, making sure to use accurate punctuation. This activity helped them explore character emotions and develop their writing skills in a fun, imaginative way.

Year 4 - Leopards

This week, Year 4 have been getting hands-on in English with a special science-inspired project. The children carefully dissected flowers to investigate and identify the different parts, learning how each plays an important role in a plant’s life cycle. This activity is the starting point for an exciting project that will see the class planting seeds and observing how they grow over time. We look forward to watching their green fingers (and knowledge) flourish!

Year 5 - Ravens

Year 5 began their Victorian unit in History by taking part in a bitesize Victorian school day! During the lesson they were introduced to Victorian methods of teaching, which were not appreciated by the children! They had some times tables practice, handwriting practice and finished up by reciting poetry, and being introduced to Victorian school rules! The lesson concluded with the children comparing and contrasting Victorian schooling compared to modern day schooling. We also began our Art unit, looking at typography. The children began experimenting with writing their names using paper of different shapes and sizes. It is going to be a great year!

Year 6 - Tigers

During their PE lesson at The Oval , the Year 6 children had a surprise visitor. Eric Dusingizimana, the former Rwandan cricket captain stopped by and helped out with their coaching. Eric is also in the Guinness Book of Records for the longest continuous individual net session, having batted for 51 hours non-stop in May 2016 to raise funds for a cricket stadium.

The children were able to have a Q&A with him before he introduced them to some new throwing and catching techniques.

Chrome Music Lab

We're excited to share that Chrome Music Lab has been added to our school learning page!

This fun and interactive website allows students to explore music and sound through hands-on experiments. From creating rhythms and melodies to learning about sound waves and harmonics, Chrome Music Lab is a great way to spark creativity and curiosity about music—no instruments required!

We encourage families to check it out together at home.

School learning page

Chrome Music Lab

Bike bonanza

Our recent Bike Bonanza, hosted by Peddle My Wheels, was a fantastic event! Dr Bike was on hand offering bike checks throughout the day, while many children discovered new bikes and received expert guidance from the team, learning tips on riding safely and finding the perfect ride for them.

If your child enjoyed the event, or missed it and wants to find out more, visit peddlemywheels.com, where children can access bikes, safety guidance, and ongoing support to stay active and confident on two wheels.

A huge thank you to Peddle My Wheels and everyone who joined us for a fun and successful celebration of cycling!

Taking the Community Cargo Bike for a spin

Finding the perfect bike!

Expert friendly advice

Travelling Book Fair

We’re excited to welcome the Travelling Book Fair to our school from Friday 26th September to Wednesday 2nd October! Children and parents are invited to come along after school each day to browse a fantastic selection of books.

Enjoy a special offer: 3 for 2 on all books – a perfect opportunity to stock up on some great reads!

Please note: The book fair is card only, and Apple Pay will not be accepted.

We hope to see you there!

Book fair poster 2.pdf

School Uniform- Lost property

School Uniform/P.E Kit Reminder

Please ensure that your child/children wear school colours (with or without logo):

Navy blue sweatshirts/cardigans
Grey skirts/trousers
White polo shirts/shirts
Black school shoes NOT trainers
Tie and shirt (Year 5 & 6 only)

In addition, your child/children needs to wear school colours as part of their P.E kit (with or without logo).

Navy blue shorts/joggers
Navy blue t-shirts/hoodies
Navy/black trainers

For health and safety reasons only small studs no hoops or dangly earrings and no necklaces.

We’ve been able to return lots of lost items back to their owners, thanks to parents who’ve put names on them! It really helps us keep things safe and saves time. Without names, though, we end up with a pile of lookalikes, like the 25 identical age 6 jumpers from Sainsbury’s in lost property! 😂

Sporting Highlights

In-House Football League Update

What an exciting week in our in-house football league! In the girls' division, Year 5 claimed a fantastic victory over Year 6, with a member of Year 5 leading the charge and scoring the winning goal. After Week 1, the girls' league table stands as follows:

Year 5: 3 points
Year 6: 1 point
Year 4: 1 point

Meanwhile, the boys' division saw plenty of goal-scoring action, with some children from years 4 and 5 all finding the back of the net for their teams. The boys' league table after Week 1 is shaping up like this:

Year 6: 6 points
Year 5: 1 point
Year 4: 1 point

It’s clear the competition is heating up, and we can’t wait to see how the teams continue to perform in the upcoming matches! Keep an eye on the standings as the league progresses—who will come out on top?

#WakeUpWednesday

The 'WakeUpWednesday' guides empower and equip parents, carers and educators with the confidence and practical skills to be able to have informed and age-appropriate conversations with children about online safety, mental health and well-being, and climate change.

Each week we will post a relevant guide to support our school community's knowledge and understanding of how to keep safe online and new things to be aware of.

This week is a online safety focus 'Snapchat'. Please click on the PDF to enlarge it.

Archived #WakeUpWednesday guides

snapchat new.pdf

Weekly Awards

Rights Respecting Award

A big congratulations to this week’s Rights Respecting Award winners!

You’ve shown kindness, fairness, and a real respect for the rights of others. Your actions help make our school a safe, welcoming place for everyone. Keep being amazing role models — we’re proud of you!

Right Respecting Award Recipients - 12.9.25

Right Respecting Award Recipients - 19.9.25

Going for Gold Champion

Let’s give a huge cheer for this week’s ‘Going for Gold’ superstars!

It’s fantastic to see our Wall of Fame shining brighter each week with your brilliant achievements. A big well done to everyone who reached Gold—you’re doing an amazing job, so keep it up!

Going for Gold Champions - 12.9.25

Going for Gold Champions - 19.9.25

Times Table Triumphs!

This week our Times Table Rock Stars have truly impressed us with their amazing progress! A big cheer goes out to our Most Valuable Players (MVPs) — your commitment and determination are making a real difference. Keep up the practice, keep building your skills, and keep rocking those times tables!

Remember to encourage your child to practice every day for at least 5 minutes.

TIMESTABLES ROCKSTARS

Most Valuable Players - 12.9.25

Most Valuable Players - 19.9.25

Attendance & Punctuality

The Importance of Attendance

As a parent or carer of a school-aged child (from the term after their 5th birthday until the last Friday in June of Year 11), you are legally responsible for ensuring that your child

attends school regularly and on time.

Regular school attendance is key to student success. When children are present and engaged each day, they build stronger learning habits, deepen friendships, and feel more connected to our school community. Missing just a few days can add up quickly and impact progress.

We kindly ask families to help by:

Ensuring your child arrives on time each morning
Scheduling appointments outside of school hours whenever possible
Communicating with the school if your child must be absent

Together, we can support your child’s growth by making every school day count!

Whole School Target 95%

Dates for the Diary

☕MacMillan Coffee Morning- Thursday 25th September 2025

📚Scholastic Book Fair- Friday 26th September - Wednesday 1st October 2025

🎭Year 1 Class Performance- Thursday 16th October 2025

🤝Parent/Carer Meetings- Thursday 16th October 2025

❗INSET- SCHOOL CLOSED- Friday 17th October 2025

🚌EYFS Out- Wednesday 22nd October 2025

🌍Culture Day- Thursday 23rd October 2025

🚌Year 6 Out- Friday 24th October 2025

✨Last day of term- Friday 24th October 2025

Oval Learning supports as many people as they can within their school communities including children, young people, parents and carers. Click here to find out more and for low cost no cost family activities this weekend

Article 31 (leisure, play and culture) Every child has the right to relax, play and take part in a wide range of cultural and artistic activities.

2025 / 26 -Term Dates

Contact Us

Vauxhall Primary School, Vauxhall Street , London, SE11 5LG

Call us: 020 7735 4535

Email us: office@vauxhallprimary.org.uk

Website: https://www.vauxhallprimary.org.uk/

Any queries should be directed to the School Administrator

Any queries related to SEND please contact Rebecca Coombs, school SENCO.

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