The KS2 children showed excellent team work and stamina on Friday afternoon with all four classes taking part in cross country relay competitions run by OCRA. I'd like to say a huge well done to everyone who took part for putting in so much effort whilst running and for supporting the other runners throughout. It was a lovely atmosphere and great event. For those children in years 4, 5 and 6 who surprised themselves by enjoying it, there are still spaces at cross country club which starts this Tuesday.

All other clubs (apart from sewing) also start this week. Please sign up for these through your school gateway accounts. 

I'm pleased to report that numbers are remaining low across the school as we continue to work hard to minimise the spread of the virus. I believe that we currently have just two children who are positive and will be isolating next week. These children are in year 2 and year 6. 

As ever, please help us to keep the children safe by not sending your child to school if they have any of the Covid19 symptoms. 

Salary - £17,842 per annum pro rata (NJC Grade A)
​Location – South Tawton Primary School 
Job Term – Permanent / Part-Time  
Hours – 12.00pm to 1.30pm Monday to Friday (Term Time Only) 7.5 hours per week (Or any combination of these days as requested).

About the role:
South Tawton Primary School are looking to recruit a Mealtime Assistant to ensure that the lunchtime supervision of children is adequately covered. The successful applicant will need to supervise, assist and encourage the children with the daily meals and undertake playground duty promoting positive relationships and play.
 
 We offer:

• A Trust that is committed to our people and their development and wellbeing.
• A warm and friendly environment with possibilities to inspire our children.
• Dedicated, supportive and friendly colleagues.
• Employee loans and assistance programme.
• Leading edge technology.
• A generous pension scheme.

 
We are committed to safeguarding and protecting the welfare of children and young people. A Disclosure and Barring Service Certificate will be required for all posts and be subject to enhanced checks as part of our Prevent Duty.
​
For further information on this role and to make an application, please visit Vacancies - Dartmoor Multi Academy Trust (dartmoormat.org.uk)

We have recently updated our attendance procedures across Dartmoor Multi-Academy Trust. The link between a child’s attendance at school and improved outcomes and life chances is well documented. We want to help all children and young people to fulfil their potential and get the most out of their education.
In line with our policy and government expectations all schools have the following procedures:
· If a child’s attendance starts to drop the school will speak to the child/parent and discuss the reason for absence and any support needed.
· After 10 sessions of absence, you will receive a first attendance letter (there are 2 sessions in the school day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon).
· After 15 sessions of absence, you will receive a second attendance letter and you will be invited to have a meeting to discuss how we can best support your child to attend school more often. You will also be offered an Early Help meeting.
· If your child’s attendance does not improve you will receive a third attendance letter and the Education Welfare Officer (EWO) will be informed.
Of course, there will be unavoidable absences for illness or medical appointments, but we want to minimise these where possible. Pupils and families will not be penalised for legitimate non-attendance due to Covid 19.
No term time holidays will be authorised unless there are exceptional circumstances. Every day in school counts, even a small drop in attendance can lead to a child missing a significant part of their education.
Please do not hesitate to get in touch with school at any time if you have any queries around attendance expectations and procedures.

Thank you to all those who have donated gifts for future raffles and Christmas clothing that has been outgrown. We will continue to collect these items so please give all donations to the school office or to a member of the PTA!

The 2 Challenge
How about joining us for our 2 Challenge THIS WEEK on Wednesday 2nd February (2.2.22). Please can the children bring in at least 2 coins with the number 2 on (2p, 20p or £2) but feel free to bring in more if you'd like! The teachers will collect the coins and weather permitting children will make them into a giant number 2 on the playground, and let's see how much we can raise from all the 2s!

​School Disco
Back by popular demand, we are holding a disco on Friday 11th, so get out your glad rags and your dancing shoes! Please return your permission slips and money by Wednesday 9th February !
It will be the same format as last term but with an additional slot for the preschool class:
3.00pm - 3.25pm Preschool
3.30pm - 4.30pm Reception, Year 1 and Year 2.
4.45pm - 5.45pm Year 3 and Year 4.
6pm - 7pm Year 5 and 6
 
Dates for the diary – more information to follow!
 
Pancake day – Tuesday 1st March
 
Break the rules day – Friday 1st April
 
Ground Force Day – help to tidy up the school grounds Saturday 30th April
 
Our next meeting will be on Tuesday 15th February via Zoom and we will send a link around closer to the date. If you'd like to get involved then email [email protected]
As always thank you for your ongoing support from all on the PTA.

​Applications for financial support are invited from young people, aged under 25 years, who live in the parishes of Belstone and Sticklepath.

The objective of the Charity is "To promote the education (including social and physical training) of persons who are under the age of 25". Eligible people, or organisations, can apply to the Charity for a grant to help with the expenses of items which meet the objectives of the Charity. Grants have previously been approved for music lessons and sport/dance training fees, but the Charity will consider all appropriate areas of educational expenditure.

Applications can be made by such residents regardless of their, or their family's, financial circumstances.

Applications must be made by 31 March 2022 by way of an application form which can be obtained from the Clerk. Please contact Lois Rowlands on 01837 840367 or email [email protected] to request a form or for further information. The application should be made by the applicant themselves, rather than their parents, where this is appropriate, and should be for future costs to be incurred.

Social media and online safety - NSPCC

• Creating a safe environment
• Online communities
• Livestreaming
• Recording a live session
• Legislation and guidance

Using social media safely with children and young peopleThere are lots of benefits for children and young people when using social media. This includes staying connected with friends and family, enabling innovative ways of learning and creating new ways for them to express themselves.
It can also have many benefits to organisations, for example:

• staying in contact with children outside of face-to-face meetings, activities and events
• providing specialist support to children, such as counselling and therapy
• promoting events
• livestreaming activities and running online sessions.
• creating online groups, forums and communities.

But there are risks when you’re using social media to communicate with children.
Online risksChildren may be exposed to upsetting or inappropriate content online, particularly if the platform you’re using doesn’t have robust privacy and security settings or if you’re not checking posts. This content might be sexually explicit or it might be harmful in other ways, such as radicalisation, bullying, or content that's upsetting.
Children may be at risk of being groomed if they have an online profile that means they can be contacted privately.
Children’s posts or profile information may expose personal information and put them at risk. For example, they may talk about their home life, feelings, or thoughts they’ve been having. There may be information that makes them identifiable such as locations of events they are taking part in or visual clues in photographs. Perpetrators may use this information to groom, abuse or exploit children.
Perpetrators of abuse may create fake profiles to try to contact children and young people through the platform you’re using, for example an adult posing as a child. They may also create anonymous accounts and engage in cyberbullying or trolling. People known to a child can also perpetrate abuse.
On many platforms, children can be contacted anywhere and at any time through private messaging or notification alerts. This means it’s harder for them to escape from abusive messages or upsetting content that they are tagged in.
> Read about protecting children from grooming
> Find out more about cyberbullying
> Find out more about protecting children from online abuse

For more information, please view the document below, or click here.
​

​The 2 Challenge
How about joining us for our 2 Challenge on 2nd February (2.2.22). Please can the children bring in at least 2 coins with the number 2 on (2p, 20p or £2) but feel free to bring in more if you'd like! The teachers will collect the coins and weather permitting children will make them into a giant number 2 on the playground, and let's see how much we can raise from all the 2s!

​School Disco
Back by popular demand, we are holding a disco on Friday 11th, so get out your glad rags and your dancing shoes! If you have not received a letter yet you should do so early this week.
It will be the same format as last term but with an additional slot for the preschool class:
3.00pm - 3.25pm Preschool
3.30pm - 4.30pm Reception, Year 1 and Year 2.
4.45pm - 5.45pm Year 3 and Year 4.
6pm - 7pm Year 5 and 6
 
Dates for the diary – more information to follow!
 
Pancake day – Tuesday 1st March
 
Break the rules day – Friday 1st April
 
Ground Force Day – help to tidy up the school grounds Saturday 30th April
 
Our next meeting will be on Tuesday 15th February via Zoom and we will send a link around closer to the date. If you'd like to get involved then email [email protected]
As always thank you for your ongoing support from all on the PTA.

I'm delighted to let you know that (hopefully!) we should be at full numbers tomorrow without any cases of Covid19 in school. The risk assessment has been changed to reflect new guidance on isolation as follows:

From Monday 17 January, people who are self-isolating with COVID-19 will have the option to reduce their isolation period after 5 full days if they test negative with a lateral flow device (LFD) test on both day 5 and day 6 and they do not have a temperature. For example, if they test negative on the morning of day 5 and the morning of day 6, they can return to their education or childcare setting immediately on day 6.

The first test must be taken no earlier than day 5 of the self-isolation period, and the second must be taken the following day. All test results should be reported to NHS Test and Trace. If the result of either of their tests is positive, they should continue to self-isolate until they get negative results from two LFD tests on consecutive days or until they have completed 10 full days of self-isolation, whichever is earliest.

Anyone who is unable to take LFD tests or anyone who continues to have a temperature will need to complete the full 10 day period of self isolation.

Further information on self-isolation for those with COVID-19 is available here.

Guidance on what to do if you receive a positive LFD test result has also changed. Please note that this guidance only applies to people with no symptoms. Anyone with symptoms of Covid19 is still advised to get a PCR test.

Confirmatory PCR testing following a positive result on a lateral flow device (LFD) will be temporarily suspended from Tuesday 11 January. This means that for all education and childcare settings, staff and students who have tested (either at home or through ATS) and reported a positive LFD result will no longer be advised to get a confirmatory PCR test.

This change is informed by public health advice. With high COVID-19 rates, the risk of a positive LFD result being false is very small. We therefore don’t need to ask people to do a confirmatory PCR unless they:
· have symptoms (in which case they need to follow the stay at home guidance, self-isolate and order a PCR test)
· wish to claim the Test and Trace Support Payment
· have been advised to take a PCR test because they are in a clinically vulnerable group
· have been advised to do so as part of a research or surveillance programme

Education and childcare settings are not expected to trace contacts of a positive case as this will remain the responsibility of NHS Test and Trace. 

After school clubs will begin again on 31st January and run for 6 weeks. The teachers running the clubs will open the booking system for these clubs and send you information when you are able to book your children in. The planned clubs can be seen below but these may be subject to small changes or additions.

We have recently updated our attendance procedures across Dartmoor Multi-Academy Trust. The link between a child’s attendance at school and improved outcomes and life chances is well documented. We want to help all children and young people to fulfil their potential and get the most out of their education.
In line with our policy and government expectations all schools have the following procedures:

• If a child’s attendance starts to drop the school will speak to the child/parent and discuss the reason for absence and any support needed.
• After 10 sessions of absence, you will receive a first attendance letter (there are 2 sessions in the school day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon).
• After 15 sessions of absence, you will receive a second attendance letter and you will be invited to have a meeting to discuss how we can best support your child to attend school more often. You will also be offered an Early Help meeting.
• If your child’s attendance does not improve you will receive a third attendance letter and the Education Welfare Officer (EWO) will be informed.

Of course, there will be unavoidable absences for illness or medical appointments, but we want to minimise these where possible. Pupils and families will not be penalised for legitimate non-attendance due to Covid 19.
No term time holidays will be authorised unless there are exceptional circumstances. Every day in school counts, even a small drop in attendance can lead to a child missing a significant part of their education.
Please do not hesitate to get in touch with school at any time if you have any queries around attendance expectations and procedures.

Please park considerately in the village and do not park directly outside the church. This is a designated 'No Parking' area as cars parked here significantly reduce the safety of children coming to and from school. Car parking is available at the recreation ground and the King's Arms. Please help us to keep your children safe by using these car parks. 

Please be advised that Thursday 20th January is Census Day so we will be changing the menu to a special Census Day Celebration menu to encourage more children to try the new school dinners. The menu is as follows.

Hot dogs served with chips, peas and BBQ sauce followed by a Rainbow Vanilla Sponge.

If your child is currently booked for a home packed lunch on this day and you'd like them to have a hot meal, please let the office know and we can change this for you. 

Parents – Your school needs YOU!
There is a vacancy for one parent governor to join the Local Stakeholder Board at the Three Hares.
Local governors are a vital part of the Dartmoor Multi Academy Trust’s connection with schools and community, and parents are an important voice within the governance structure.
To qualify as a parent governor, you must have at least one child on the roll at any school within the Three Hares hub, and must be eligible under the national governing body rules.
Nominations are now open, until close of business on Friday 27th January 2022.
All nominations will then be put forward to a parent vote, which will take place electronically.
The nomination form must be completed in full, and can be obtained by emailing the Clerk to Governors: [email protected]

For an informal chat about the role of parent governor and the responsibilities of the local stakeholder board, please contact the Chair Emma Neath: [email protected] or the Clerk to Governors: [email protected]

Thank you for your interest, and we look forward to receiving your applications

This week, the whole of our Trust have launched the, 'It's Not OK' campaign across all the schools to say no to all forms of sexual violence and sexual harassment. In SCARF/PSHE lessons, children have talked about different ways they are kept safe in school as well as the characteristics of positive relationships. Over the next few weeks, we will revisit the NSPCC Pants Rule and ensure that our children know who they can talk to should they feel uncomfortable or unsafe at any time. 

The 2 Challenge
How about joining us for our 2 Challenge on 2nd February (2.2.22). Please can the children bring in at least 2 coins with the number 2 on (2p, 20p or £2) but feel free to bring in more if you'd like! The teachers will collect in the money and weather permitting will make them into a giant number 2 on the playground, and let's see how much we can raise from all the 2s!

School Disco
Back by popular demand, we are holding a disco on Friday 11th, so get out your glad rags and your dancing shoes! 
It will be the same format as last term with Year R, 1 and 2 from 3:30 - 4:30, Year 3 & 4 from 4:45 - 5:45 and Year 5 and 6 from 6:00 till 7:00. It will only be £2.50 per child which includes drink and a pack of crisps! Permissions slips will be in book bags this week.

Our next meeting will be on Tuesday 15th February via Zoom and we will send around a link around closer to the date. If you'd like to get involved then email [email protected]

Thank you so much for your ongoing support from all on the PTA.

Happy New Year!
It's been lovely to have all the children back in school this week after the Christmas break. I do hope that you all had a lovely Christmas and New Year and any plans weren't too disrupted by Covid. 
I'm pleased to let you know that case numbers amongst our community seem to be very low and, on Friday, we only had two confirmed cases amongst students - neither of these children have been in school this week. Our new student teacher, Mr Wilkins who will be in Y4 this term, has unfortunately had a positive PCR, but we are expecting (fingers crossed) that all other staff will be in this week. 

Our latest risk assessment can be found on the website here. There are very few changes from the previous version except for the new government guidance to change the rules of isolation in the event of a positive case. Anyone who has a positive test result can now leave isolation and return to school if they have two negative lateral flow test results 24 hours apart on days 6 and 7 following infection ([providing they no longer have symptoms). Please note that day 1 is counted as the day after symptoms begin.

Please rest assured that we are continuing with enhanced cleaning, ventilation and hand sanitisation and will be doing all we can to stop any spread of infection. Please help us in this by not sending your children to school if they have any covid symptoms or are unwell in any way. Please also make use of available lateral flow tests to ensure that your and your family remain negative. 

Thank you all for your continued support. We have everything crossed for a happy, healthy term.

Parents of children in years 2-6 will have received an email about a new coding club to be run at school by an external provider. Due to the numbers of children who were interested, I have managed to secure an additional session on Fridays. We will be in touch later in the week to let you know which session your children has been invited to (this can be swapped by arrangement if Fridays are not convenient). If you have not yet sent in the form or payment, but would like your child to take part, please return these tomorrow.

There is a vacancy for one parent governor to join the Local Stakeholder Board at Three Hares.
Local governors are a vital part of the Dartmoor Multi Academy Trust’s connection with schools and community, and parents are an important voice within the governance structure.
To qualify as a parent governor, you must have at least one child on the roll at any school within the Three Hares hub, and must be eligible under the national governing body rules.
Nominations are now open, until close of business on Friday 27th January 2022.
All nominations will then be put forward to a parent vote, which will take place electronically.
The nomination form must be completed in full, and can be obtained by emailing the Clerk to Governors: [email protected]

For an informal chat about the role of parent governor and the responsibilities of the local stakeholder board, please contact the Chair Emma Neath: [email protected] or the Clerk to Governors: [email protected]

Thank you for your interest, and we look forward to receiving your applications

We want to say huge thank you for all your amazing support.  Last term you raised over £4,000 which is incredible! You can see some of the great things we spent it on in the attached newsletter.

We'd like to ask if anyone received gifts for Christmas (or birthdays) that aren't quite to their taste, or if you received 2 similar gifts, please could you donate them to the PTA to use as raffle prizes in future fundraising events!

We are also collecting Christmas jumpers/tops if you are having a sort through and want to donate!

Please give all donations to the school office or to a member of the PTA!!


Our next PTA meeting is on Monday 10th at 8pm via Teams - all welcome! If you'd like to receive the link for the meeting please email us on [email protected].

Thank you so much for your ongoing support from all on the PTA.