We've had a lovely last week of term and have got ourselves right into the festive spirit despite some rather challenging circumstances! The week began with a wonderful performance of 'Hey You!' with all the nativity characters and some wonderful singing, dancing and acting too. Well done to years R, 1 and 2. We'd like to say a big thank you to Alex Thomas who filmed and edited the production so beautifully. Thank  you to the many parents (and grandparents!) who have got in touch to say how much they enjoyed watching the performance online.

We have everything crossed that the two weeks off for the holiday will be enough to give everyone a chance to get better so that we can be back to full numbers of pupils in school in January. However, if your child does become ill over the holiday, please do get a PCR test and report the result to me by emailing [email protected] I need to continue to report cases to the county council during the holiday and would also like to know how everyone is. The number of children isolating at the moment are as follows:
Y2 - 1, Y3 - 1, Y4 - 11, Y5 - 2, Y6 - 7 We also have 3 members of staff who have had positive cases: Mrs Dennis Y2 and Silje and Sharon from pre-school. Happily, no one is feeling too ill and I'm sure you'll join me in wishing them all a speedy recovery. 

We had great fun in our Christmas clothes at our Christmas dinner on Wednesday. Through the crackers, jokes, hats and music, some of the sprouts even got eaten! 
Bookings for next term's new menu from our new provider are now available on your school gateway accounts. Please encourage your children to try these new meals - I think they'll be pleasantly surprised!

We hope you managed to catch some of the singing the children performed this week. A very big thank you to Mrs Dunn for organising this,  and to all the children and staff who worked hard to practice and perform so beautifully. 

I can't pretend that our Christingle service on the playground wasn't a little chilly, or that the candles would stay lit in the wind, however, we made the most of what we could do and had a lovely service with plenty of readings, singing, an address from Rev. Mark and another treat Ukulele performance from Y6. Thank you all all the staff and pupils for taking part so fully in this and every event this term. 

It's been a wonderful term despite some disappointing cancelations and changes of plans due to Covid. Through it all, everyone has kept smiling, kept working, kept positive and kept looking after each other. I couldn't ask for any more from a school community and am so grateful to be a part of South Tawton Primary School. I wish you all the very best, happiest and healthiest Christmas possible and look forward to seeing everyone back in school on Wednesday 5th January. 

PTA News 
We want to say a huge thank you to you all for supporting all our events this term. We've raised a fantastic amount which we will continue to use to further enrich our children's school experience. 
Wishing you all a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year.

Christmas Colour Hampers.
This was an amazing event and we were so impressed by everyone's enthusiasm donating and selling tickets. Congratulations to Year 6 who sold an amazing 438 tickets!! With Year 1 not far behind!  An incredible effort by everyone. The ticket sales have raised over £2000!
Kings Arms Big Fat Quiz of the Year
Our friends at the Kings Arms in South Zeal are having their big end of year quiz on Wednesday December 29th. This is always a really fun event for all and they have kindly chosen the PTA to be their benefitting charity this month.
In exchange we really need a few volunteers to help out on the night, collecting in quiz sheets, counting up scores etc. If you can help, please get in touch at [email protected] ASAP.

Easyfundraising
Last minute Christmas shopping online? (And planning your January sale shopping online too?) Please don’t forget to use easyfundraising when making your purchases online. Nominate us as your chosen charity and retailers will donate a percentage of your purchase to us at no extra cost to you.
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Date of next meeting - Monday 10th January 2022- 8pm - all welcome! Email [email protected] to be sent the zoom link.

 
Dear Stakeholder,
 
Revised proposal to build a nursery unit for Little Beacons at South Tawton Primary School
 
We are writing to let you know that we are in the process of submitting a planning application for the construction of a nursery unit within the grounds of our primary school. Following the stakeholders’ consultation in September, we have revised our plans to house the preschool within an extension of the existing school building.

Please click here to view the plans.

Please click here for the full consultation letter.

In a week where most communications have centred around Covid19, it's lovely to take a moment to look at all the lovely work and activities that are happening in school. From the little elves working in Santa's workshop at preschool, outdoor learning in YR, festive computing in Y4, through to Y6's fabulous air raid shelters, it's safe to say that staff and children are keeping calm and carrying on! Remember, you can read more about all these stories in each class's blog page. 

Unfortunately, those newsletters where I was able to report no new cases in school seem like a distant memory. This week has seen our cases rise quickly and we currently have 18 cases in school. Of these, 13 are in year 4, 3 in Y5 and 2 in Y6. 

All children who are off will have work available for them to do if they feel up to it. If you require this and have not yet received it, please let us know. 

As always, if your child has any symptoms of a cough, high temperature or loss/change of taste or smell, please book them a PCR test and keep them off school until a negative result is returned. Please let the school know the result of any tests: positive or negative. Parents of children in Y4, as your child has likely been in close contact with a positive case, as a precaution, please get a PCR test within the next couple of days if you have not already done so. 

To minimise any spread of infection, we have made the decision to return all classes to year group bubbles as was the case in the last academic year. All classes are now playing in their own zones at break and lunch to minimise close contact between year groups and we are ensuring social distancing between classes in the dining hall.  

Other measures being followed include all children being required to sanitise their hands on entering and leaving classrooms, staff undertaking daily lateral flow tests and only essential visitors being allowed on site. Staff are wearing masks in communal areas, we are increasing ventilation in classrooms and increasing the cleaning of high touch areas. 

We are very grateful for your continued support to keep everyone safe and would like parents/carers to wear masks during morning drop off and afternoon collection as well as observing social distancing.  

Whilst whole school assemblies have stopped, we will still be having a Christingle service, but this will take place in small groups in classrooms. This service is a lovely experience for the children, and we hope that you will also enjoy the Christingles they bring home at the end of the day. 

The hotly anticipated KS1 nativity show will be recorded and made available to you.  
We are very much looking forward to our Christmas dinner and Christmas jumper day next Wednesday and are fully intending to have a lovely, cheerful Christmas week full of fun and excitement for the children.  

Many thanks for your continued support, please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Christmas is nearly here – only one week to go until the holidays! But we still have lots of great PTA activities going on.

It’s not too late to enter the raffle and win one of these amazing hampers! Please bring in all your sold raffle ticket stubs and money by Monday 13th December.
Please remember to write on the back of raffle stubs the colour of the hamper/s you would like to win. You can enter as many times as you would like! The coloured hamper which has the most tickets sold will receive a reward!
The draw for the hampers will be on Wednesday 15th December 2021. Good luck everyone!

​Christmas Packs
Looking for something fun to do in the Christmas holidays? How about getting one of our fun Christmas activity packs! These are now available from your child's teacher for £3 each. Numbers are limited, so be sure to get yours early!
King Arms Big Fat Quiz of the Year
Our friends at the Kings Arms in South Zeal are having their big end of year quiz on Wednesday December 29th. This is always a really fun event for all and they have kindly chosen the PTA to be their benefitting charity this month.
In exchange we really need a few volunteers to help out on the night, collecting in quiz sheets, counting up scores etc. If you can help, please get in touch at [email protected] ASAP.
We also need donations of wine, chocolates and other raffle prizes. We appreciate we have been asking for a lot of donations recently, but remember all process feed directly back in to enhancing our children’s experiences at school.
Bag2School
A great big thank you to everyone who donated their unwanted clothes for the Bag2School collection last week. It was our best response yet and we raised £141.
Easyfundraising
Doing lots of Christmas shopping online? (And planning your January sale shopping online too?) Please don’t forget to use easyfundraising when making your purchases online. Nominate us as your chosen charity and retailers will donate a percentage of your purchase to us at no extra cost to you.
You can read details on how to sign up for this below:

Date of next meeting - Monday 10th January 2022- 8pm - all welcome! Email [email protected] to be sent the zoom link.

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This week saw two external checks on school systems. On Monday, we had a visit from the NSPCC to carry out a safeguarding audit and make sure that we are doing all we can to keep our pupils safe at school, online and at home. The auditor was delighted by all that he saw and said, "If my children were the right age, I'd want them to come here.' What a lovely endorsement!

On Thursday, we had a Devon County Council Health and Safety audit. Again, everything was found to be in place and the auditor was happy with all of our procedures and risk assessments. 

Our SENDCo, Miss Bennett, has had a few email changes recently and is concerned that some emails from parents may not be reaching her. Please discard any old addresses you may have and contact her on [email protected]
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On Wednesday 15th December, we invite all children to wear their Christmas jumpers and most Christmassy outfits. The children do not need to wear uniform on that day, but we would like them to dress as Christmassy as possible. You do not need to buy a Christmas jumper especially for this day, but can add glitter, Christmas decorations or tinsel to any clothes. 

From next week, we will have a Christmas post box in school for the children to send each other Christmas cards. Please ensure that all envelopes are clearly marked with the recipients name and class so that we can ensure that our elves can make all deliveries successfully.

At this time of year, children often like to bring in presents for their friends. Please could all gifts be exchanged outside of school time to avoid any pupils feeling left out or upset by this.

Please click here to read the latest news from Okehampton Library.
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Christmas Wreaths
A big thank you to Hannah and Nancy for working so hard over the past weeks to put the wreath kits together. It was a fantastically fun and creative evening which raised great funds for our children. Thank you to everyone who joined in.

Coloured Hampers
The hampers look fantastic…...

​Thank you for all your delicious and inventive donations.
You have one week left to sell as many tickets as you can! Remember - the coloured hamper which has the most tickets sold will receive a reward! More tickets are available from the PTA, your teacher, School Office or South Zeal/Sticklepath shops.
Please remember to write on the back of raffle stubs the colour of the hamper/s you would like to win. You can enter as many times as you would like! Ticket stubs and money must be returned to your child's class teacher no later than Monday 13th December 2021.
The draw for the hampers will be on Wednesday 15th December 2021. Good luck everyone!

Bags to School
Do you have unwanted clothes, accessories, home linens or soft toys getting in the way at home? Why not donate them to our Bag 2 School collection?!
 
Drop Off Site:
The Pavilion, South Zeal
 
Dates for Drop Off:
Sunday 5th December ~ 4-5pm
Monday 6th December ~ 3-4pm
Tuesday 7th December ~ 8-9am

​Christmas Packs
These will be available from your child's class teacher from Monday for £3 each. Crammed full of activities to keep everyone busy and entertained during the holidays.
King Arms Big Fat Quiz of the Year
Our friends at the Kings Arms in South Zeal are having their big end of year quiz on Wednesday December 29th. This is always a really fun event for all and they have kindly chosen the PTA to be their benefitting charity this month.
In exchange we really need a few volunteers to help out on the night, collecting in quiz sheets, counting up scores etc. If you can help, please get in touch at [email protected] ASAP.
We also need donations of wine, chocolates and other raffle prizes. We appreciate we have been asking for a lot of donations recently, but remember all process feed directly back in to enhancing our children’s experiences at school.
PTA 100 Club
Year 2 did November's draw last week and the following numbers won:
5 Tristan Grimes
52 Steve Whiteley
82 Jamie Yates
Congratulations!


There are still some numbers available so if you would like to join the 100 club then please email [email protected] for more information.
 
Next meeting
Thank you to those who came along, albeit virtually, to our meeting on Monday. It was a very productive meeting and we are cooking up some fun fundraising ideas for next term. We are always looking for new ideas and new people to join us!
Date of next meeting - Monday 10th January 2022- 8pm - all welcome! Email [email protected] to be sent the zoom link.

For help, support and information if you are worried about depression and anxiety in children, please visit the NSPCC page by clicking here.

Please click here for the latest Covid19 update from Devon County Council.