Key Dates
Monday 23rd December – Monday 6th January
CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY
Monday 6th January
INSET Day - children are not in school
Tuesday 7th January
Children return to school
Friday 10th January
Inclusion Coffee Morning at 9:00 am
PSA Reception cake sale after school
Thursday 16th January
Beech class parent assembly 9:00–9:30 am
Wednesday 22nd January
Curriculum Evening at 6:30 pm
Thursday 23rd January
Heather class parent assembly 9:00–9:30 am
Friday 24th January
PSA Nursery cake sale after school
Sunday 26th January
PSA Lunar New Year Celebration
Key dates for this school year are published here. Some of these dates are provisional, and all dates are subject to change — please refer to this newsletter and communications via ParentPay for the latest information.
Click here for term dates for the current and 2025/2026 school years, including INSET days.
Reminders
INSET Day
Monday 6th January is an INSET day and the children are not in school. Their first day back after the break is Tuesday 7th January, when school will start at the usual time. The school office will reopen at 8:00 am on that day.
Lunches for the spring term will be available to order through ParentPay from Tuesday 24th December. There will be a Disney-themed day on Thursday 16th January and you can view the menu here.
Today we say goodbye to Ms Gouri - we will miss her, and wish her all the very best. In January, we will welcome Mrs Jones as our new Lavender class teacher.
Festive Fern Hill!
We finished the term on a very festive note! Congratulations to the children and staff for their fabulous concert performances, and thank you for joining us to celebrate your children and life at Fern Hill.
Today, Mr Scott presented his Headteacher Awards to the children in a whole school celebration assembly. The Team Point House winner was also announced (see below). The children have earned just shy of 15,500 team points this term, a real testament to their positive behaviour, attitudes to learning and sense of belonging at school.
Despite the length of this autumn term, the children have continued to model our values right to the very end and have certainly made the most of all the rich learning opportunities on offer both in and out of school. You can read about just some of the highlights here.
Thank you to all our families for their continued support of our home-school partnership. So many of you go above and beyond, helping in the classroom and on visits outside of school. A huge thanks to the Class Reps for all their efforts throughout the term, particularly the organisation of the class Christmas parties this week – the children had such a great time!
We hope you are all able to have a well-deserved break and look forward to seeing the children back at school on Tuesday 7th January, rested and ready for an exciting spring term.
Spark! 12 Books of Christmas
The longlists have just been announced for this year's Spark! School Book Award and any of these books would make fantastic Christmas presents. Please see the links below for the full list in each category. The Spark! shortlists will be announced mid-January.
Picture Books for Early Readers
Staff Book Club Recommendations
We have a staff book club that meets once every half-term, and we thought we'd pass along some book recommendations for parents as well...
‘Babylonia’ by Costanza Casati (historical fantasy)
Inspired by the only female ruler of the Assyrian empire, this captivating story reimagines Semiramis’s rise to power from humble origins, and beautifully blends meticulously researched details about the day-to-day life of Assyrians, with ancient history and mythology. A lyrical and immersive read.
‘Kala’ by Colin Walsh (crime thriller)
In 2003, a teenager called Kala Lanann disappeared without a trace from a small Irish village. Twenty years later, a body is found. When two more girls disappear, Kala’s friends must finally face up to what happened to her and stand up against the cycle of violence. A gripping literary page-turner about a community with a sinister secret.
‘Orbital’ by Samantha Harvey (literary fiction)
Packed with fascinating details about life aboard the International Space Station, ‘Orbital’ is a meditation on life, death and humanity. Although the six astronauts on board have an expansive perspective on the world, their lives are still tethered to their families and relationships on the ground. A haunting and exquisitely written tribute to planet Earth.
We hope you enjoy some fantastic Christmas reading!
Our next Coffee Morning is on 10th January and will focus on strategies to support your child with their emotional regulation. Mrs Stephenson will share best practice on zones of regulation, routine and consistency. If you would like to join us, please let us know via this linked form. We hope to see many of you there.
Maths Workshops
Thank you to all the parents who attended Mrs Lawn's workshops last week. The presentation slides and copies of the handouts are available to download here.
Team Points
At the end of every term, the number of team points each House receives is allocated based on their position (1st, 2nd, 3rd or 4th) each week of the term.
The overall winner this term is KINGSTON
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Kingston
4,110
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Coombe
3,546
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Richmond
3,880
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Hampton
3,928
Inspiration 