Latest News
For latest news, please check our Newsletter page. We also share regular updates through our main Facebook page and class Facebook pages. Please follow us on Facebook and request to join the private Facebook Page for your class to stay up to date.
On this page you will find our archived newsletters from previous years.
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Newsletter - w/c 03/02/2020
Fri 31 Jan 2020Dear parent/carer,
Please find below the weekly newsletter containing important information.
Years 3-6 Home Time
Thank you parents and carers for trialling the change to collecting children in Years 3-6 from their classrooms this week. Please keep in mind the following points:
- We will return to opening the main gate from 3:10pm. We have practised and it doesn't take longer than 5 minutes to walk from the opened gate to Mulberry Class which is the furthest classroom.
- Children can be collected from their classroom between 3:15-3:30pm. This allows parent/carers to collect siblings from other classrooms without having to rush or panic.
- At 3:30pm, teachers will bring those children yet to be collected to the Dining Hall for late collection. In other words, you are not late to collect your child if you fetch them at 3:20pm, for example.
- No parent/carer should be knocking on doors/windows before 3:15pm - our school day finishes at 3:15pm. Please leave the children to concentrate on any messages being shared by their teacher.
- No parent/carer should be entering classrooms without permission from the class teacher.
- On rainy days, please bring an umbrella to avoid getting wet.
- If you would like your child to leave their classroom and meet you on the front playground, you must give written permission to the School Office. For example, "I [Parent Full Name] give permission for [Child/ren's name/s] to leave their classroom. [Parent/Carer Signature] [Date]" and this can be written on a piece of paper or via e-mail to admin@hurstdrive.herts.ch.uk. Please note, if you give written permission for your child to leave the classroom, you are taking responsibility for their safety and well-being from the moment they exit their classroom.
Bikes and Scooters
Now that more children are bringing their bikes and scooters to school (which is a fantastic way for them to keep healthy and have fun) we need to ask all parents/carers to support us in keeping the playground a safe and happy place. At the busy times before and after-school please ensure if your child is using their bike/scooter that they are either walking alongside their bike/scooter until they are away from any crowds of people or are riding it slowly and making sure that they are looking out for others around them. Thank you in advance for your role in making sure we all remain safe.
Please note that on Monday 3rd February the children in Years 3 - 6 should not bring their bikes/scooters to school as the part of the KS2 playground that they usually use to ride them on at play time and lunch time will be out of bounds for the day. From Tuesday, all KS2 children are welcome to bring their bikes/scooters into school again.
Friends of Hurst Drive's Valentines Disco
The Friends of Hurst Drive have organised a Valentines Disco on Thursday 13th February 2020.
The disco for Years 1-3 will be in the hall from 3:15-4:30pm.
The disco for Years 4-6 will be in the hall from 4:45-6:00pm.
Tickets cost £5. Please make sure you've purchased a ticket from the School Office by Monday 10th February 2020 at the very latest. This allows the Friends of Hurst Drive to purchase the right amount of food and drink for the children.
Children in Reception will get to have a disco but this will happen during the school day so there is no need to buy a ticket.
National Hardship Programme
Greggs run a programme for families with financial difficulties.
They offer three grants: one grant for a family to receive a free fridge, fridge freezer, cooker or washing machine and two grants for families to buy school uniform up to a value of £50.
We are only allowed to put forward one grant for a family to receive a free white good and two grants for two different families to receive the uniform grant.
If you are interested in this, and believe you qualify as a disadvantaged family, please speak to Mr Short, Miss Bracken or a member of staff you trust.
Visit from a Storyteller for Reception & Year 1
On Tuesday 4th February 2020, children in Reception and Year 1 will have a visit from the puppeteer and storyteller Bronia Evers as part of National Storytelling Week.
Class Photos - Thursday 6th February 2020
Next Thursday is Class Photo Day. Please make sure your child comes to school looking very presentable and in full school uniform with a beaming smile on their face!
Attendance Competition
On Friday 14th February we will be taking 14 lucky children on a trip to 360 Play at Stevenage to celebrate their win! More details will follow in next week's newsletter.
After-School Clubs
We have had some spaces become available on the clubs below. Please book your child’s place on the SchoolGateway app or through our website.
Year 3 & 4 Times Table Rockstars – Miss O’Keeffe – Monday – 3:15 to 4:15pm
Year 5 & 6 Board Games Club – Mrs Page – Monday – 3:15 to 4:15pm
KS1 & KS2 Homework Club – Mrs Bye – Monday – 3:15 to 4:15pm
KS1 Book Club – Mrs Holliday – Wednesday – 3:15 to 4:15pm
Reception Story Club – Mrs Maldar – Wednesday – 3:15 to 4:15pm
Weekly Attendance
The whole school attendance for the week beginning 20th January is 96.8%
KS2:
Elm 98.8%
Oak 98.7%
Hawthorn 97.9%
Pear 97.1%
Mulberry 96.9%
Cedar 95.4%
Apple 95.1%
Cherry 93.4%
Birch 88.9%
EYFS/KS1:
Chestnut 100%
Walnut 98.9%
Beech 98.5%
Sycamore 96.3%
Willow 95.2%
Ash 94.5%
Dinner Money
Just a quick reminder that dinner money needs to be paid in advance on a Monday. Our preferred method of payment is on School Gateway. There are two options you can either pay £2.60 for a single meal or a weekly cost of £13.00 for five meals. If you are unable to pay on the School Gateway, please come into the office with the correct money in an envelope.
If you receive a dinner debt letter, please make sure this is cleared straight away to avoid your child having to bring in a packed lunch until the debt is cleared. Unpaid dinner debts could result in the cost of the school dinner charge being increased in the future which would be unfair for those parents/carers who always pay on time.
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Yours sincerely,
The School Office Team
Hurst Drive Primary School
01992 624099
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Newsletter - w/c 27/01/2020
Fri 24 Jan 2020Dear parent/carer,
Please find below the weekly newsletter containing important information.
A Change to End of School Collection
Starting next week, we want to trial parents/carers of children in Years 3-6 collecting their child from their classroom like parents/carers of children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 do already.
This will allow teachers and children to continue lessons right up to home time (because they won't have to pack up early to walk down to the front playground) and it will also allow teachers to speak to parents/carers without having to worry about one of their students going missing as the teacher will be standing at the exit so will know which children have passed them to leave with their parent/carer.
The gate will be opened at around 3:05pm for parents/carers to enter the school premises.
Any child not collected by 3:30pm will be taken to the Dining Hall where they will be recorded as a late collection. If you know you are going to be late, please arrange for a family member or friend to collect your child/ren, telephoning the school office to let them know, especially if that adult isn't on your child's pick-up list.
We will see how it goes next week and e-mail more instructions if needed.
NSPCC Number Day - Friday 31st January 2020
We are raising money for the NSPCC by taking part in their Number Day this year. On Friday 31st January 2020, the children are invited to wear any clothing that has numbers on – please feel free to be as creative as you like – for a £1 donation.
All of the children will be taking part in fun activities arranged by their class teacher on this day, please look and show your support on their Facebook page.
Reception Classes
Dear Reception Parents / Carers,
I will be offering reading support on a Monday afternoon (from 2:45pm) starting on Monday 27th January. Please come and speak to me if you would like to be added to the group and I will organise a date for you; spaces will be limited each week. Your children will be joining the session so you can see how you can support your child at home to become confident, fluent readers.
Kindest Regards,
Miss Benson
Weekly Attendance
The whole school attendance for the week beginning 20th January is 97% (National Average: 95.8%).
Class attendance is:
1st Place - Year 4 Cherry 100%
2nd Place - Year 6 Apple 99.1% & Year 4 Hawthorn 99.1%
3rd Place - Year 2 Beech 98.5%
4th Place - Year 5 Cedar 97.8%
5th Place - Year Reception Sycamore 97.8%
6th Place - Year 1 Chestnut 97.4% & Year 3 Oak 97.4%
7th Place - Year 3 Pear 96.8%
8th Place - Year 2 Walnut 96.5%
9th Place - Year 6 Elm 96.2%
10th Place - Year Reception Willow 95.3%
11th Place - Year 1 Ash 94.4%
12th Place - Year 5 Mulberry 92.9%
13th Place - Birch 91.1%
Congratulations to Cherry and Walnut class who will be able to choose their free time activity (the winning class is calculated on the number of children who have 100% attendance for the week).
Dentist Re-Visit
Due to the high volume of parents wanting their child to be seen by the dentist , they were unable to see every year group . Therefore, they have kindly arranged to come back on Monday 24th February to see all the children that did not manage to have their teeth seen at the previous visit.
Dinner Money
Just a quick reminder that dinner money needs to be paid in advance on a Monday. Our preferred method of payment is on School Gateway. There are two options you can either pay £2.60 for a single meal or a weekly cost of £13.00 for five meals. If you are unable to pay on the School Gateway, please come into the office with the correct money in an envelope.
If you receive a dinner debt letter, please make sure this is cleared straight away to avoid your child having to bring in a packed lunch until the debt is cleared. Unpaid dinner debts could result in the cost of the school dinner charge being increased in the future which would be unfair for those parents/carers who always pay on time.
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Yours sincerely,
The School Office Team
Hurst Drive Primary School
01992 624099
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Newsletter - w/c 20/01/2020
Fri 17 Jan 2020Dear parent/carer,
Please find below the weekly newsletter containing important information.
Vacancies at Hurst Drive Primary School
We are looking to fill three vacancies at Hurst Drive Primary School:
- a midday supervisory assistant, working on the key stage 2 playground from 12:20-13:40, Monday-Friday, term-time only;
- a learning support assistant, working with a child with special educational needs from 08:30-15:45, Monday-Friday, term-time only; and,
- a wraparound club assistant, working with Miss Thomas (After-school Club Leader) to run our Wraparound Care, working Monday-Friday, 3:30-6:00pm, term-time only.
Please come into the office if you would like a copy of the job description and person specification for each role, along with an application form.
If you or anyone you know is interested in applying, please tell them to complete the application form carefully, including writing the role you are applying for (e.g. Learning Support Assistant) and making sure they write their personal statement based on the person specification, before e-mailing to admin@hurstdrive.herts.sch.uk.
We will interview as and when we receive applicants until each position is filled.
Please note, each post is subject to safer recruitment measures which will include an enhanced criminal record check via the Disclosure and Barring Service along with the requirement for individuals to provide the names and contact details for two references.
Packed Lunches
A heartfelt thank you to our parents and carers for making such a big effort to ensure the children's packed lunches are healthy - we have seen such a quick and big improvement in the quality of packed lunches being provided.
Please note, to mirror what we expect in packed lunches, the school kitchen will be phasing out serving cakes and biscuits as options for dessert, choosing instead to offer fruit, yogurts, cheese and crackers and fruit jelly. Although our school lunches have to follow strict sugar allowances (i.e. very little sugar in the meals we serve), we want those children having packed lunch to see that what we expect of their packed lunches is also what we expect of our school dinners.
Thank you again for your support in this change. Hopefully this change to school lunches, along with our continued physical education, will mean that over the coming years, our participation in the heights and weights programme will show a reduction in the percentage of pupils who are overweight or obese by the time they leave Year 6.
Year 4 William Morris Gallery Trip
We are looking for 1 or 2 parents/carers from Cherry Class to attend the trip on 11/02/20 and from Hawthorn Class to attend on 12/02/20. Please see Miss Peffers or Mrs Ryan-Roberts if you are able to help. Thank you.
Chinese New Year - Special Lunch
We will be having a Chinese New Year Menu on Friday 24th January 2020.
There was an email sent out earlier this week with an attached slip. Please return the slip along with any relevant payment to the office by Wednesday 22nd January only if your child does not usually have a school dinner.
RED: Chicken Chow Mein
GREEN: Sweet and Sour Quorn with Rice
WHITE: Jacket Potato
Dentist Visit
Due to the high volume of parents wanting their child to be seen by the dentist today, they were unable to see every year group. Therefore, we will be arranging another date for the dental team to come back and see all the children that did not manage to have their teeth seen today. We will advise you of the date once it has been confirmed by the dentist, as they are taking time out of their busy working schedule to visit the school.
In the meantime if you have any concerns about your children’s teeth please make an appointment with your own dentist or you can contact the dental practice who came into the school on the details below.
Cheshunt Dental Centre
51a High Street
Cheshunt
Hertfordshire
EN8 0BS
Phone Number – 01992 643259
Dinner Money
Just a quick reminder that dinner money needs to be paid in advance on a Monday. Our preferred method of payment is on School Gateway. There are two options you can either pay £2.60 for a single meal or a weekly cost of £13.00 for five meals. If you are unable to pay on the School Gateway, please come into the office with the correct money in an envelope.
If you receive a dinner debt letter, please make sure this is cleared straight away to avoid your child having to bring in a packed lunch until the debt is cleared. Unpaid dinner debts could result in the cost of the school dinner charge being increased in the future which would be unfair for those parents/carers who always pay on time.
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Yours sincerely,
The School Office Team
Hurst Drive Primary School
01992 624099
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Newsletter - w/c 13/01/2020
Fri 10 Jan 2020Dear parent/carer,
Please find attached the weekly e-mail newsletter containing important information.
After-school Clubs
All after-school clubs start next week, including after-school tuition with teachers if your child has been chosen. Some clubs are full; however, there are still some places available for clubs for which parents/carers can book on the SchoolGateway app:
Mondays, 7:30-8:30am, Years 1 & 2 Sports Skills [Free]
Mondays, 3:15-4:15pm, Years 3 & 4 Times Tables Rockstars Club [Free]
Mondays, 3:15-4:15pm, Years 5 & 6 Board Games Club [Free]
Tuesdays, 3:30-4:30pm, Years 3-6 Spanish Club [£4 per session]
Wednesdays, 3:30-4:15pm, Reception Story Club [Free]
Wednesdays, 3:30-4:30pm, Years 4-6 Steel Pans [£5 per session]
Thursdays, 3:15-4:15pm, Years 3-6 Reading Club [Free]
We have places in Breakfast Club. Wraparound Care is mostly full however, there are sometimes spaces free so if you cannot book on the app, please telephone the school and ask to speak to Mrs Chamberlain (Office Manager).
Please remember, for those clubs requiring a payment, particularly Breakfast Club and Wraparound Care, we do need this payment in advance. If parents/carers do not pay, we cannot accept your children at the club. If you are having financial difficulties, please speak to a member of staff - we will always try our best to help.
Scooters/Bikes - Children in Years 3-6
Please note, children in Years 3-6 are allowed to bring their scooter or bike to school to use at lunchtime. They should wheel their scooter or bike round to the back playground and park it there.
Dentist Visit - Thursday 16th January 2020
Thank you to those families who returned the consent forms for their child/ren to have a check-up by a dentist in school. Remember, the dentist will not treat your child's teeth and gums in school, but the dentist will let us know if there are any issues with your child's teeth and gums so that you may be informed and organise for your child to go to the dental surgery for treatment.
Thank you again to the mother of a child in Year 2 for organising this.
Secret Readers in Reception
After the February Half Term we would like to introduce 'Secret Readers' to our Reception timetable (towards the end of the school day). Every two weeks, we would like a surprise visitor to come into class to simply read the children their favourite book. Secret Readers creates excitement about Storytime and promotes a love of sharing stories.
We would also like to focus on different cultures and professions. We will be asking our secret reader why reading was important in their chosen profession.
If you would like to be a Secret Reader please speak to your child’s class teacher, however, don't forget to keep it a secret!
Minibus Driver
We are looking for someone to drive our minibus, transporting children to and from school trips, sports matches and tournaments, and various other school outings.
If any parent/carer knows of someone who may be interested in this role, please ask in the School Office for a copy of the job description.
As you may or may not know, only those adults who passed their driving test before 1 January 1997 are able to drive a minibus without having to go through additional tests and training. Ideally we are looking for someone who could start soon so it is preferred that he/she have attained their driving test before that date. Also, for insurance purposes, we can only accept those with a clean driver's licence (i.e. no traffic convictions).
Dinner Money
Just a quick reminder that dinner money needs to be paid in advance on a Monday. Our preferred method of payment is on School Gateway. There are two options you can either pay £2.60 for a single meal or a weekly cost of £13.00 for five meals. If you are unable to pay on the School Gateway, please come into the office with the correct money in an envelope.
If you receive a dinner debt letter, please make sure this is cleared straight away to avoid your child having to bring in a packed lunch until the debt is cleared. Unpaid dinner debts could result in the cost of the school dinner charge being increased in the future which would be unfair for those parents/carers who always pay on time.
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Yours sincerely,
The School Office Team
Hurst Drive Primary School
01992 624099