Dear Parents and Carers,

Welcome back to a new school year and the autumn term 2024! We are delighted to welcome you all back to St. Giles’ School for what promises to be an exciting and productive new term. We hope you and your families had a restful and enjoyable break, filled with wonderful memories.

A special welcome goes out to our new children and their families who are joining us. We are thrilled to have you as part of our school community, and we look forward to getting to know you all better. Our dedicated staff are here to ensure that your child’s transition is smooth and that they feel supported and valued from day one. Start of term for all students is Wednesday 4th September 2024 at 9am.

Staffing

I would like to introduce you to our two new teachers. I would like to extend a very warm welcome to Miss Natasha Sahai and Miss Anisa Salim. Natasha will be the new class teacher of Blue class. Anisa will be the new class teacher of Gold class.

School Day Timings

Please note that the school day starts promptly at 9am. We ask that all children arrive on time so that they can settle in and begin their learning with their peers. The school day ends at 3.30pm, and we kindly request that you ensure your child is picked up promptly at this time.

Key Dates for Your Diary

We have several important events and activities planned for this term, and we encourage all families to take note of the following dates:

• Student Photograph Day – Thursday 12th September 2024
• Coffee morning – Tuesday 17th September 2024 – ‘Meet the Headteacher’ – 9.45am to 11.00am
• Parents/carers evening – Wednesday 16th October 2024 – 4pm to 6pm
• End of Autumn half term 1 – Friday 18th October 2024

Further details about these events will be shared closer to the dates, but please mark your calendars now!

Attendance and Absences

Regular attendance is vital to your child’s success at school. We aim to ensure that every child reaches their full potential, and attending school consistently plays a significant role in this. If your child is unwell or unable to attend school for any reason, it is crucial that you inform the school office by 8:00 AM on the day of the absence with the reason and date of return to school if you know this. You can do this by emailing and/or calling the school office on absence@st-giles.croydon.sch.uk /0208 680 2141 We also encourage you to avoid scheduling holidays during term time, as this can have a negative impact on your child’s learning and overall progress.

Admissions policy

Our Admissions policy is, as always, available for reading on the school website.

Changes to Personal Details

Please let us know as soon as possible if any of your contact details have changed over the summer. This includes your address, telephone numbers, emergency contact details, any changes to your child’s health or any other changes of which we should be aware. We must have at least two people to contact in case of an emergency during the day, a third is always welcome if you can provide one. With this letter we have sent the following documents to support in this matter and give you information on other points:

a) Home School Agreement 2025 – can all parents/carers complete this and return this by the return date.
b) Allergy and Lifestyle Notification form and medical diet request
c) Data Protection Privacy Notice
d) Pupil Data information form
e) Permissions form letter

We ask that you return appropriate documentation to the school office by Friday 13th September 2024 and/or if there are any changes.

Parent/carer and School Communication

We value the healthy partnership we have between school and home. As well as the day-today informal conversations between you and your child’s teacher/key member of staff, the
main form of communication is the home schoolbook. We encourage parents to make use of the home schoolbook that your son/daughter has. If you write to your child’s class teacher/key member of staff, please be aware that they will always endeavour to reply to your message in the home schoolbook as soon as possible. We ask parents/carers to check the home schoolbook each night as this will give important information about your child’s school day and may give information about learning/appointments, etc coming up.

Friends of St. Giles’ Association

The Friends of St. Giles’ School Association work extremely hard to organise events and enhance the children’s experiences in school. We are grateful for as much support as possible and the Association is always keen to welcome some ‘new blood and enthusiasm’. Please email the Friends Association, on Jcampbell15.306@lgflmail.org if you are interested in becoming a member this year or would like to join the association of parents/carers and staff. The 17th September 2024 ‘coffee morning’ from 9.45am to 11.00am will be focused on re-launching this association and we look forward to seeing as many parents/carers at this event as possible.

Parent/carers governors

There are also opportunities for parents/carers to become governors at St. Giles’ school. Over the next month correspondence will be sent out to all parents/carers about this opportunity. Further information about this opportunity will also be explained at the 17th September 2024 ‘coffee morning’.

Online Safety

Finally, as the nights begin to draw in for Autumn and some of our children inevitably spend more time on computers and other devices, I have copied some useful links for parents about online safety. I hope you find them useful:

• Internet Matters – a not-for-profit organisation set up to empower parents and carers to keep children safe in the digital world. Their support for parents includes a range of downloadable guides covering subjects such as transition to secondary school, Vlogging & livestreaming, online gaming and cyberbullying
• NSPCC – includes a range of resources to help parents keep children safe when they’re using the internet, social networks, apps, games and more
• Parent Info – from CEOP and Parent Zone, Parent Info is a website for parents covering all of the issues amplified by the internet. It is a free service which helps schools engage parents with expert safety advice, endorsed by the National Crime Agency’s CEOP command. This website provides expert information across a range of online harms
• Parent Zone – offers a range of resources for families, to help them meet the challenges of the digital age, including parent guides on the latest digital trends and platforms.

Contacting St. Giles’ school

To support you and your son/daughter in communication with the school and NHS Tulip, NHS SALT, NHS Occupational Therapists and NHS Physiotherapist teams I draw your attention to the following school contact numbers. Please call the school number 0208680 2141 and then dial the appropriate extension number. These are below:

Report a student absence – 1
Main office – 2
Finance office – 3
Headteacher – 4
NHS Tulip Nursing team – 5
NHS Physiotherapist team – 6
NHS Speech and Language Therapist Team – 7
NHS Occupational Therapist – 8
School Business Manager – 9
Family Support worker – 0

Alternatively email the school office on office@st-giles.croydon.sch.uk or NHS teams directly (numbers are on the head of this letter).

We are looking forward to a fantastic term ahead, filled with learning, growth, and exciting opportunities. Please do not hesitate to reach out to us if you have any questions or need support. We value our partnership with you and appreciate your continued involvement in your child’s education. Thank you for your ongoing support. Let’s work together to make this term a great success
for all our children!

Warm regards,

Stephen Hehir
Headteacher – St. Giles’ Schoo