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Headteacher’s Newsletter – 27th March 2026

Written by Mrs McQueen on . Posted in Headteacher Newsletter.

Dear Parents/carers,

Cotswolds Art In Schools

This term, we have been fortunate to take part in an exciting  art project in partnership with Oxford Brookes University, CATS, and Art in Schools https://www.artinschools.org.uk/). Through this initiative, children at our school have had the unique opportunity to experience a wide range of artistic treasures—many of which are freely accessible in galleries across the United Kingdom.

Pupils have explored works by renowned artists such as Turner and Van Gogh, alongside pieces by lesser-known artists, broadening their understanding of different styles and periods. These artworks have been shared through fortnightly classroom exhibitions, presented as engaging PowerPoint displays.

The response from the children has been overwhelmingly positive. They have shown great enthusiasm, confidently identifying their favourite pieces and explaining the reasons behind their choices.

We look forward to continuing this inspiring project next term. Thank you to Mrs Thorsby for co-ordinating this work.

Easter Church Service

Thank you to everyone for joining us for the Easter Service yesterday. Thank you to Olly and Rev Kennedy from the church and Mrs Taylor and Mrs English for organising this. EYFS pupils made an Easter tray to understand why we celebrate Easter.

Y3 River Walk

To complete their topic this term on rivers, Y3 ventured to Glyme river.

Y5 Rainforest Adventure

Thank you to the PTA for contributing to the very exciting trip that Y5 took to the rainforest this week. They had learnt so much and were very excited on their retun. The staff commented on how polite our children had been throughout the visit, which was lovely to hear.

School Uniform

Summer uniform of shorts or a red checked dress can be worn after the Easter holidays. The summer dress should be worn with white socks not tights. Please remember that leggings and sports trainers are NOT part of our school uniform.

The Treehouse

The Treehouse is open next week and I know there are lots of children who are looking forward to some fabulous Easter activities. The Treehouse will run in June and throughout the summer too. If you would like a place to support you with managing childcare, do book. The Treehouse is run by our qualified school staff, who know your children really well. If you are in work currently and need childcare but finds the cost too expensive, please talk to us to see how we can support your child with a reduced place. Everything will be treated confidentially.

Attendance

Whole school attendance this week95%
Class with the highest attendance this weekYear 5 – 98.46%
Whole school attendance (year to date)95.9%
National average94.6%

Diary Dates

School Calendar

We hope you have a lovely Easter holiday and look forward to welcoming you back on Monday 13th April.

Kind regards,

Mrs McQueen

Headteacher’s Newsletter – 20th March 2026

Written by Mrs McQueen on . Posted in Headteacher Newsletter.

Dear Parents/carers,

iRock Children Raise the Roof!

What an incredible morning we had at the iRock concert! Our talented students showcased their musical abilities, bringing the school community together in a celebration of creativity. The atmosphere was electric, filled with the sounds of various bands performing a delightful mix of genres. Our children truly raised the roof!

Music Festival Winners

We are thrilled to announce that our Year 4 students have won the prestigious Catherine Harrison memorial award for Speech and Drama. This accolade recognises their hard work and talent in the performing arts. The competition was fierce, and our students stood out with their exceptional performances.

One pupil shared, “Winning this award made me feel like a real actor!” This recognition reflects our school’s commitment to fostering determination across all areas of learning. These experiences build resilience and show hard work can bring good rewards.

Holiday Club at The Treehouse

This is now open! If you would like your child to attend but may need support financially, we may be able to help you with this. Contact the school office for support.

Multi-skills

Year 2/3 worked hard on a number of activities relating to fundamental PE skills. They were exceptionally well behaved and participated brilliantly alongside children from other schools in the partnership.

Year 4 Assembly

What a fantastic assembly we had from Year 4, where students took us on an exciting journey into the world of volcanoes! Their creative presentations integrated geography and the arts, allowing them to express complex ideas engagingly. The assembly was filled with enthusiasm, and the catchy song they performed entertained while reinforcing their learning.

Students shared key points about how volcanoes are formed and their impact on the environment, impressing parents with their depth of knowledge. Assemblies like this are vital for developing public speaking skills and confidence. We encourage families to explore further topics related to volcanoes at home.

Absolutely Astounding Attendance

We are delighted to recognise our students for their outstanding attendance this term! Consistent attendance is crucial for academic success, and we commend those who have made it a priority. This commitment reflects their dedication to learning.

To celebrate this achievement, we have compiled attendance statistics highlighting impressive trends within our school community. Recognising these efforts fosters a culture of responsibility among our pupils. As we continue to promote a culture of attendance, we encourage parents to share strategies that help maintain good attendance at home.

Attendance

Whole school attendance this week95.25%
Class with the highest attendance this weekYear 3 – 98%
Whole school attendance (year to date)95.9%
National average94.6%

The last day of term is next Friday 27th March 2026 we finish at 2pm – After school clubs will not be running but Night Owls will be on as usual until 5pm, there will be no extra charge for the hour 2-3pm.

We return to school on Monday 13th April 2026 at 8.25am (Early birds will be open at 8am).

Have a lovely weekend and we look forward to welcoming you back on Monday.

Kind regards,

Mrs McQueen

Headteacher’s Newsletter – 13th March 2026

Written by Mrs McQueen on . Posted in Headteacher Newsletter.

Dear Parents/carers,

Year 5 Music Festival

Year 5 did us proud at the Chipping Norton Music Festival this week. They were not only praised for their
teamwork and beautiful singing but their exemplary behaviour as well. Follow us on Facebook and
Instagram to see the video.

Mother’s Day Event

Thank you to everyone who attended the Mother’s Day event today as it was such a success. Thank you to all the staff for supporting such creativity. We look forward to dressing up next Friday for Comic Relief and making ourselves look funny for money.

Nursery News

After a short delay, we have been given the opportunity to open our nursery to two year olds in September. If you are interested in this, please contact the school for further information. We will open this if there is demand.

If you have a child who is about to reach 3 years old and are looking for a school nursery place, we can
currently accommodate this as well. We are open 50 weeks of the year.

Statutory Inspection of Anglican and Methodist Schools Inspections (SIAMS)

Thank you to our governors – Linda carpenter and Rev. James Kennedy for supporting our school on
Tuesday and working with Mrs Taylor on our SIAMS report. Our Christian vision is very important to us and we use our school values every day.

Our vision is, ‘to provide firm foundations and create opportunities for everyone to be inspired and flourish within a supportive community demonstrating branches of wisdom, integrity, compassion, patience and joy’.

We demonstrate our vision and values through our story of the mustard seed. Please ask your children
about this and see what they can tell you. Our values are seen in the form of some memorable objects.

Funny for Money – Comic Relief Friday 20th March

Dress up funny for money – wear something silly, funny or daft (using what you made today!) to school for £1 donation.

Holiday Club at The Treehouse

This is now open! If you would like your child to attend but may need support financially, we may be able to help you with this. Contact the school office for support.

Parents’ Evening – Last chance to book

Parents’ Evening is on Monday 16th March and Wednesday 18th March are available to book online. This is the perfect the opportunity to find out how your child is doing in school.

Attendance

Whole school attendance this week96.64%
Class with the highest attendance this weekYear 4 – 99.23%
Whole school attendance (year to date)96.67%
National average94.6%

Have a lovely weekend and we look forward to welcoming you back on Monday.

Kind regards

Mrs McQueen

Headteacher’s Newsletter – 27th February 2026 

Written by Mrs McQueen on . Posted in Headteacher Newsletter.

Dear Parents/carers,

Mother’s Day Magic – Friday 13th March 2026

On Friday 13th March at 1.15pm we will look forward to inviting female representatives of our children to
our Creative Mother’s Day event. Please complete the google form so that Natalie in the kitchen knows
how many sweet treats to prepare and we can organise the family groupings. The feedback from last year’s event was so positive so we look forward to seeing you there.

Parents’ Evening

Parents’ Evening on Monday 16th March and Wednesday 18th March are available to book online. This is
the perfect opportunity to find out how your child is doing in school.

Holiday Club at The Treehouse

Our holiday club last week was a real success. The children flipped pancakes; baked cakes; made a beautiful Chinese dragon and had the most amazing time with all the gym equipment. Would you like to
join us for Easter? Holiday places will be available to book from next week.

World Book Week 2nd March – 6th March

A week full of exciting activities. More information will be available via Ms Hollander – our English lead via
Dojo. Your child will need their PJs, their favourite book, a cuddly toy and a blanket next Friday as we
snuggle down for some favourite story telling.

Attendance

I am always talking about the importance of school attendance and the impact good attendance has on
the outcomes of our pupils. We had made such amazing progress with raising attendance levels over the
past three years. Recently, this has changed. Not with all our families but we have a number of children
that are now classed as persistently absent, 90% or below and a significant increase in children closer to
90% than 95%. Some of this has been illness, at other times some pupils are choosing to have those extra
duvet days. We will look to continue our processes to promote good attendance and work with those
families where attendance is unsatisfactory. Being punctual is also vitally important for future generations.
We want our children to be successful on the next stage of their school journey. Please help us to help
your child by attending every day and on time.

Whole school attendance this week95.92%
Class with the highest attendance this weekYear 3 – 98.9%
Whole school attendance (year to date)95.9%
National average94.6%

Have a lovely weekend and we look forward to welcoming you back on Monday.

Kind regards,

Mrs McQueen

Headteacher’s Newsletter – 13th February 2026

Written by Mrs McQueen on . Posted in Headteacher Newsletter.

Dear Parents/carers,

Mrs Southeard writes: On Wednesday afternoon Orchard class learnt about Shrove Tuesday. We weighed out and mixed our ingredients and made our own pancakes. Everyone had a turn flipping their own pancakes before enjoying eating them!

We then donned aprons and hats and took part in some pancake flipping races!

Safeguarding and Mental Health Week

We continued this week to talk to the children about good decision making and what this means to everyone. Again, if you need to talk, please reach out to any member of staff or perhaps pop in to Emma Kennedy’s drop in sessions at the school gate on Mondays from 08.25am.

If you have a concern or would like further information about safeguarding, please contact:
Mrs. McQueen – Designated Safeguarding Lead
Mrs Taylor – Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead
Miss Wakefield – Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead

Working in Partnership

In order for Safeguarding to be most effective, it needs to be a collaborative effort involving multiple
sectors to protect children from harm. Alongside parents and carers, Education, Children’s Social Care,
health services, and the Police all play crucial roles in ensuring children’s safety.

Education: Schools and educational settings have a duty of care to safeguard children. They provide a
safe learning environment, monitor children’s wellbeing, and have policies and procedures in place to
identify and respond to potential risks.

Children’s Social Care: Social workers are responsible for assessing children’s needs and providing
support and protection, where necessary. They investigate concerns of abuse or neglect, work with
families to address issues, and may take legal action to safeguard children. It is important to remember
that, as Social Care is not about removing children from their homes- but supporting families to stay
together and thrive.

Health Services: Healthcare professionals, including doctors, nurses, midwives and health visitors, play
an essential role in identifying signs of abuse or neglect as well as providing medical treatment, support,
and advice to children and their families.

Police: The police are responsible for investigating crimes, including child abuse and exploitation. They
work closely with other agencies to protect children and bring perpetrators to justice. They can be used to
safeguard children in emergency situations and work closely with other agencies to share important
information.

By working together, these sectors can create a strong network of support to protect children from harm
and ensure their well-being.

Robot Wednesday

Mrs Hornsby has been working with Mr Allen from Kitebrook School every Wednesday lunchtime with a Coding Club. Mrs Hornsby is now in charge of our newly revitilised Facebook and Instagram pages. Her tech skills far exceed mine so please tag a long to see what is happening at St. Mary’s. Some of our Year 4 and Year 5 children have been having a fantastic time at Coding Club on Wednesday lunchtimes! Using Sphero robots, the children have been learning how to program commands to control movement, speed and direction. They have also explored how to make their Spheros display colourful images and play exciting sounds, bringing their creations to life. It has been wonderful to see their creativity, teamwork and resilience in action as they test and improve their codes. Well done to all of our enthusiastic coders – we can’t wait to see what you create next!

Mother’s Day Magic – Save the Date

On Friday 13th March at 1.15pm we will look forward to inviting female representatives of our children to
our Creative Mother’s Day event. You are invited to spend an afternoon with your children getting crafty.
This year, you will be making something funny for your children to wear the next Friday for Comic Relief. There will be an opportunity afterwards to eat cake and have a coffee or tea afterwards with friends and other families. We look forward to seeing you there.

Holiday Club

We look forward to seeing all of our children who have signed up for holiday club next week. There will be celebrations galore with Chinese New Year, Shrove Tuesday and portrait painting on canvas. It is set to be an exciting week. Please make sure that you provide a packed lunch and some snacks if you are joining us next week.

Wrap Around Care – Price Increase

Just a reminder that after half term the price will increase for Night Owls:
3-4pm £4.00
4-5pm £4.00
3-5pm £8.00
Prices for Early Birds will remain at £2.00 from 8am to 8.25am

Attendance

Whole school attendance this week93.4%
Class with the highest attendance this weekYear 3 – 98.26%
Whole school attendance (year to date)95.5%
National Attendance94.5%

Have a lovely half term holiday, although it could be a wet one and we’ll see you on Monday 23rd February.

Kind regards,

Mrs McQueen

Headteacher’s Newsletter – 6th February 2026

Written by Mrs McQueen on . Posted in Headteacher Newsletter.

Dear Parents/carers,

Rain, rain go away and unfortunately I can’t say come back another day unless it is a while away! The forecast is set to be like this next week so please ensure your child has a suitable coat and shoes.

Great sports skills at CNS on Wednesday

As always, the children of St. Mary’s were praised for their teamwork and superb behaviour. Life skills that are valued wherever you are in the world. Well done, everyone!

Year 5 workshop

We had a fantastic singing workshop on Tuesday with our visitors from the Chipping Norton Music Festival and the children sang really well! We will be taking part in the event with other schools on the 12th March in Chipping Norton Town Hall, during the school day and parents are welcome to watch the performance and details have been sent out on ParentMail.

Another Strive For 5 Winner

If you read at least five times a week at St. Mary’s your name is placed in the weekly book raffle. Kayla was a very lucky winner and got to read to Isla. Reading opens whole new worlds and gives us such great opportunities. We love a good book at St. Mary’s! What’s your favourite read?

Safeguarding

During Collective Worship, this week, we have been talking about Safeguarding and keeping ourselves safe. We talked with the children about trusted adults and the fact the children can talk to any staff member about a worry they may have.

If you have a concern or would like further information about safeguarding, please contact:

  • Mrs. McQueen – Designated Safeguarding Lead
  • Mrs Taylor – Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead
  • Miss Wakefield – Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead

SAFEGUARDING?

You will have likely heard the work ‘Safeguarding’ talked about at school or other settings, but not all parents are really clear on what it actually means or looks like for their child. In education settings, the term Safeguarding refers to the process of protecting children from harm. This includes protecting them from abuse, neglect, and exploitation. Safeguarding processes, polices and procedures are put in place to ensure that children are safe and happy, and that they have the opportunity to reach their full potential and thrive.

As a parent, you have a vital role to play in safeguarding your child. You are the first line of defence against harm. By being aware of the risks and taking steps to protect your child, you can help to keep them safe.

Safeguarding is not just about protecting children from physical harm. It’s also about protecting them from emotional harm. This includes protecting them from bullying, cyberbullying, and other forms of emotional abuse. Parents and carers also play an enormous role in teaching children about personal safety, online safety, and dangers they may encounter in their everyday lives and by being proactive, informed, and involved, parents can significantly contribute to their children’s safety and wellbeing.

WHAT DOES SAFEGUARDING LOOK LIKE?

Safeguarding is the proactive process of planning, minimising risk and putting into place strategies to keep children safe. As a parent, you will do this every day without even thinking about it- you hold your child’s hand as they cross the road, teach them about trusted adults and make sure that they are safe in all that they do – but it goes beyond that.

Schools and education settings will have policies and procedures that set out the measures in place to keep children safe, but how can you do this as a parent? For parents, safeguarding should be a combination of proactive measures and vigilant awareness, many elements of which we will complete naturally, but it is always useful to take a step back and consider how you are maintaining the key elements of safeguarding your own children:

  • Building strong relationships with your children
  • Teaching essential safety skills
  • Awareness of potential and changing risks that you children may encounter
  • Trusting your own safeguarding instincts
  • Adapting your safeguarding rules as your child grows and matures

Attendance

Whole school attendance this week94.06%
Class with the highest attendance this weekYear 4 – 97.6%
Whole school attendance (year to date)96.1%
National average94.6%

Get Ready for a Friday Treat!

Have a lovely weekend and we look forward to seeing you on Monday.

Kind regards,

Mrs McQueen

Headteacher’s Newsletter – 30th January 2026

Written by Mrs McQueen on . Posted in Headteacher Newsletter.

Dear Parents/carers,

Eco Warriors

Mrs Pike has started a new mission within St. Mary’s with our newly appointed Eco Warriors.

Learning Vision at St. Mary’s

Thank you to all those parents who completed the google form on Parentmail about our school vision. Let’s see if we can get every family family responding. We’ve had 34 responses so far and everyone is very happy to support the school. Thank you for your comments as well – your feedback is very useful.

Wrap Around Care

Night Owls is a place to have fun and relax. If you would like to access our holiday club, please add your child to ParentMail. The link for February half term will close next Friday. We are so looking forward to it. Lots of pancake making; a pancake race; arts and crafts; sports and that all important movie afternoon.

Super sewing

Cross-stitch eggs sewn beautifully by our creative crafters.

Joining a club, learning a new skill and making new friends is such a good way to spend an hour, after
school, on a Tuesday afternoon.

Get Ready for a Friday Treat!

Attendance

Whole school attendance this week93.03%
Class with the highest attendance this weekYear 3 – 98.7%
Whole school attendance (year to date)96.4%
National average94.6%

Have a lovely weekend and we look forward to seeing you on Monday.

Kind regards,

Mrs McQueen

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