Happy Half Term!
Thank you to everyone for supporting our Rainbow Tombola Day today.
It's a busy term for our PTFA. All parents are automatically members of the PTFA - the committee are always grateful for any help with events and can be reached by email: pontllanfraithprimaryschoolpta@gmail.com They also have a presence on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/pontprimaryptfa/ & X (formerly Twitter) https://x.com/Pontschoolpta
Non Uniform Days: shoes & jewellery
We were caught by surprise this morning with something that's never been an issue before: quite a few children came to school wearing sandals & crocs. Just for future reference on non-uniform days, please stick with 'proper' shoes that cover toes and cannot slip off , ideally trainers. The same safety points remain during the school day weather we are in uniform or not. The same would apply to jewellery.
INSET Days
NB Dosbarth Enfys, our Trinity Fields Satellite Class, follow the same INSET days as Trinity Fields, not Pontllanfraith Primary School.
Friday 23/5/25 (but not Dosbarth Enfys)
Monday 2/6/25 (but not Dosbarth Enfys)
Monday 9/6/25 we are open but Dosbarth Enfys are closed for INSET
Monday 21/7/25 INSET for Pontllanfraith & Trinity Fields
Welsh Government have announced an additional training day again for 2025/26. We have yet to set these dates. However, it can be confirmed that the mainstream school will be closed for their first INSET on Monday 2/9/25.
Sports Days
All the information you need is linked here. Please read and share information with others (grandparents etc) attending Sports Day so that it runs smoothly. It is important that you read it, for example, we do not allow spectators onto the back yard or field whilst the children from Dosbarth Enfys (our Trinity Fields satellite class) are moving from the taxis, across the backyard and up to their classroom.
Water bottles
Please ensure your child has a water bottle in school everyday (sports top to reduce spillage, not expensive and no squash). There are a number of children not bringing bottles to school. We do not have the budget to sustain disposable cups nor the capacity to wash up hard cups for anything other than the odd occasion when children have forgotten. Children going to the water fountain throughout the day is disruptive. Your support is much appreciated!
Eco Day: Monday 9th June
Next half term we will be renewing our Green Flag. Eco Committee have met and asked if we can hold an Eco Day, where everyone wears something green and takes part in activities that will contribute towards our reaccreditation.
Other key dates
All dates for the term can be checked on our school website (and this includes which weeks clubs are running). However, important dates to remember:
Instagram: pontllanfraithprimary
Some of you have already spotted that we are moving over to Instagram from Twitter. We weren't getting much traffic on Twitter and don't want to move to Facebook which as a platform tends to invite comment and debate.
Our Instagram page is used to celebrate and share some of the lovely moments that we have in school each week. We haven't advertised it yet as we have all been trialling it over the last couple of weeks, working out how to collaborate and which settings to use. We won't be using separate accounts for each class, instead we'll all post to the one account. Like Twitter, we will not be using it for communication (so please don't message us, send an email instead). We've turned off comments but would appreciate 'likes' to know that are posts are seen and appreciated.
A reminder that primary school aged children should not have Instagram accounts as they are under 13. If you have an Instagram account with your children's names on it, but it's actually attached to your email as and adult, please ensure you email us to let us know, otherwise we will assume that it is a child who has started following us and report the account.
Trips & Workshops
Last academic year we sought your views on school trips and wider curriculum experiences e.g. workshops. This included seeking your views on costs and parental contributions at a time when we are facing budget cuts and school fund is low. This was discussed with the parent forum before we planned for this academic year.
The number of responses was very low, but we decided a trip or workshop a term, considering the children's age, class topic and other expenses parents may be experiencing (e.g. the Y6 residential / swimming). We asked about the types of places your children should visit over the course of their time in primary school and this has helped us prioritise trips linked to topics. We specifically asked should the pantomime trip be continued as we'd had some parents say that they didn't support it (the answer was an overwhelming yes). We asked about costs and affordability. Parent Forum suggested that we start to advertise the full cost and a suggested minimum donation for swimming and we have adopted this approach for the last two years. We've been looking into trips and workshops that are grant funded, with some success.
Trips & workshops this year
Your feedback counts
So we'd really appreciate some quick feedback again: what's worked well (multiple choice questions) and the option to contribute your thoughts: what else would you like us to consider before we plan next year? Please complete survey linked here.
Class Organisation for next year
A final call for any parental views. Please email your child's current class teacher before the end of half term. Please remember this is for those going into Year 3 up.
We consult with children when we organise the junior classes to try and ensure everyone is with at least one friend they have chosen. We can't promise to ensure this but we certainly try very hard! The children draw around their hands, put their own name on their thumbs, and then put the names of four friends on the remaining fingers.
This year we will be asking children to complete their 'hands' at home with parents to ensure parents know who they have chosen. This task will be completed after half term. The date staff will meet to begin the process of class organisation is the 19th June.
Classes are likely to be announced on Friday 11th July. It will not be before that as late transfers will impact on the organisation.
Following consideration of the survey responses with parent forum, we hope to include two additional transition sessions and will consider the types of activities these will include for children remaining with the same teacher. Please note these are dependent on the diary remaining clear for those days as we cannot run transition sessions if staff are not in school and we also need to plan activities for the outgoing Year 6 pupils.
For information about class organisation and to see our updated policy, revised last term following consultation with parents, staff and governors, please see our website page, linked here.