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Welcome Back
And a warm welcome to all our new pupils and parents as we start a new school year together. It has been wonderful to see all the children so excited to be back in school - eager to share their summer holiday experiences and happy to see their friends again. They all look so smart in their uniform. Thank you.
Mrs R Langley - Headteacher
Uniform
Please see points below which should help you when ordering uniform in the future:-
- Order early - DO NOT leave it too late
- Uniform is now on display in store
- Click here for a direct link to the Monkhouse website and our uniform page
- The website can also be accessed by going to: Monkhouse.com, and clicking on Find my School in the top search bar, the school can be found by choosing the letter V or by keying in Venerable Edward Morgan
- Click and collect to the school is set up for Wednesday. This service is totally FREE and included with every order are FREE return labels, you will be notified by text /email so you will know when your parcel is ready for collection, parcels will be handed to the children to bring home with them.
- The website will also give all the opening times, address, phone number, email address etc, in the summer they open on Sundays as well, there is loads more information on there to help you.
- Monkhouse (Forresters), 14/16 New Street, Mold, Flintshire, CH7 1NZ, Tel no 01352 756636, email address: mold@monkhouse.com , store manger: Lea Morriss.
We ask that all children wear the uniform and encourage them to maintain a good standard of clean and tidy dress in school. The uniform is designed to be practical, maintainable and good value for money. Parents are asked to ensure that all items are labelled clearly with their child’s name. All children are expected to wear black school shoes and not trainers. Children can come to school in PE kit on PE days (for pupils in KS2 this is a Tuesday). Trainers can be worn on these days. For safety reasons we ask that the children do not wear jewellery in school and it is important that children are properly dressed for physical activity.
Attendance
We want every child who comes to Venerable Edward Morgan to be happy and feel like they belong to our school family. In order to achieve this pupils need to attend school as often as they can.
Poor attendance can have a negative impact on your child’s self-esteem and friendship groups. Poor attendance will also have an impact on your child’s progress through the curriculum. They can’t make achievements against this curriculum if they are not here.
So …Why does every day attendance matter? Well… here is some data to highlight the impact poor attendance can have.
- Half a day off in a week = 90% attendance
- 1 day off in a week = 80% attendance
- One and a half days off in a week = 70% attendance
- 2 days off in a week = 60% attendance
However, we do understand that there are times when attendance is not possible. We put these into 2 categories. Authorised and unauthorised.
Authorised absence
If your child is unwell we would expect you to make the judgement as to whether they would be well enough to attend school. Please let school know on the first morning of any absence so school can record the correct attendance mark promptly. If they are unable to attend school then they will have an “I” recorded to signify they are off ill. We can also give a recording of “M” for a medical appointment. However, we kindly ask, where possible, that all medical and dental appointment are made after school hours or during school holidays. We would expect, again where possible, pupils to be able to come to school before and after their appointments.
We do like to help where ever possible and so if your child has more than 10 days (20 sessions) absence the school may contact you to see if there is anything we can do as a school to help you.
Unauthorised Absence
If a child does not attend school and we do not receive notification as to why from either a phone call or letter, then it shall be recorded as unauthorised. Late after registration is also counted as an unauthorised absence, if no reason is provided. Any incident of 10 sessions missed through unauthorised absence will be investigated by the school and may result in a referral to the education inclusion team.
Request for Leave of Absence
It is possible to request leave for your child for a special occasion or holiday.
The decision as to whether the absence can be authorised lies solely with the head teacher. Parents do not have an automatic right to withdraw pupils from school during the school term for a holiday. The head teacher will make the decision and may include the following contributory factors:
- Time of year
- Length of time
- Overall percentage of attendance
- Impact on the child’s learning
You are able to request up to 10 days absence which must be done where possible at least 28 days before the period of leave. The head teacher will then assess each case on its own merits and report back to you detailing as to the reasons why the request has been approved, or indeed, unapproved.
There are other circumstances where absence may be approved, some of which will not affect attendance, such as Educational and/or residential visits, educated off site etc…
Punctuality
Being on time for school is another way you can support your child being ‘School Ready’. For some children arriving late when the class routine has started can be very unsettling and can have an impact on the rest of the day. Children really hate being late for school. It can make them anxious and upset about attending school. If you have problems in getting your child to school on time you must let the head teacher know as soon as possible.
Our school gates open at 8:45am and the bell rings to signal the start of the school day at 8:55am. It is advisable to have your child in school for 8:45am. If you need to drop your child off earlier we have a breakfast club which starts at 8:15am and pupils in Reception to Year 6 are able to attend. Please ask in the office how to book. Lateness can add up to a lot of lost learning.
I hope this helps you understand why attendance and punctuality is so important to us at Venerable Edward Morgan – but more importantly why it is important for your children.
Tuesday
TUESDAY is PE day for all Juniors - Year 3 to 6 - pupils can come to school in their own PE Kit
- Any Football Kit
- Joggers / Leggings / Shorts and a T-Shirt / Sweatshirt
- Appropriate Trainers
- Bottle of Water
Please make sure pupils are adeqauetly dressed for the weather - sunhats & suncream for hot weather - long sleeved tops and long trousers for cold weather.
Thursday
From Thursday 7th September 2023 Dosbarth Ash and Year 1 and Year 2 will start Football Lessons with The Racecourse Community Foundation (Wrexham AFC). Each Group will need to come in PE Kit on Thursday's for the rest of this half term (up to and including 26th October 2023). Please read above for PE Kit required.
Find out more about The Racecourse Community Foundation (Wrexham AFC) here.
AmaSing
We are delighted to continue to offer an after school AmaSing Creative Arts Club which will be open to Year 2 to 6 on a Tuesday after School. AmaSing is an award winning Arts organisation and Charity foundation that works with thousands of young people, families and communities to support wellbeing through arts.
In our 1 hour club which will take place in school your children will work with an AmaSing professional arts specialist to have fun experiencing a range of different art forms including music, dance, art and drama. These inspiring sessions will support their confidence, self esteem and creativity. This year we also have some exciting performance opportunities coming your way!
The club will be a cost of £5.25 per session and will need to be paid on a half-term basis at £36.75. Starting on Tuesday 12th September 2023 for 7 weeks finishing on 24th October 2023.
Please click here to register, pay and fill out information needed for your child to be able to take part in your school club.
If AmaSing cancels clubs they will issue a refund or credit note for future clubs and camps.
PK Sports Coaching
Mr Kelly also returns on Tuesday 12th September 2023 to continue with his PE lessons for Juniors.
He will bring with him letters and forms for parents to complete for his After School Club. Look out for those forms in your pupils bags.
The National Schools Singing Programme
We are really excited to have been chosen by the Diocese to take part in The National Schools Singing Programme.
The National Schools Singing Programme is for all Catholic dioceses in the UK, to create or enhance their own music programmes for children educated in state schools. This initiative is founded and supported by the Hamish Ogston Foundation.
As part of the programme, Mrs Jeanie Larkin, Choral Director for the Diocese of Wrexham will be in school once a week to work with pupils in year 2, year 3 and 4, delivering this exciting music programme.
Visit the website here
Holiday Dates
Autumn Term 2023
- 1st September 2023 - Staff Training
- 4th September 2023 - Staff Training
- 5th September 2023 - School Opens
- 11th September 2023 - Nursery starts
- 27th October 2023 - School Closes for October Half Term
- 6th November 2023 - School Opens after October Half Term
- 21st December 2023 - School Closes for Christmas Holidays
- 22nd December 2023 - Staff Training
Spring Term 2024
- 8th January 2024 - School Opens after Christmas Holidays
- 8th February 2024 - School Closes for February Half Term
- 9th February 2024 - Staff Training
- 19th February 2024 - School Opens after February Half Term
- 22nd March 2024 - School Closes for Easter Holidays
Summer Term 2024
- 8th April 2024 - Staff Training
- 9th April 2024 - School Opens after Easter Holidays
- 6th May 2024 - School Closed for MAY Day Bank Holiday
- 24th May 2024 - School Closes for May Half Term
- 3rd June 2024 - Staff Training
- 4th June 2024 - School Opens after May Half Term
- 19th July 2024 - School Closes for the Summer Holidays
Inset Days
- FRIDAY 1st September 2023
- MONDAY 4th September 2023
- FRIDAY 22nd December 2023
- FRIDAY 9th February 2024
- MONDAY 8th April 2024
- MONDAY 3rd June 2024
Assembly Dates
Class assemblies for the Academic Year 2023/2024 will take place on Friday Mornings at 10am
- Dosbarth Beech 20th October 2023
- Dosbarth Oak 17th November 2023
- Dosbarth Maple 2nd February 2024
- Dosbarth Ash 19th April 2024
- Dosbarth Willow 14th June 2024
- Dosbarth Cherry 28th June 2024
Important Dates/Events coming up
SEPTEMBER
- 11th - Nursery Pupils Start School
- 15th - Flu Vaccinations for Pupils in Reception to Year 6
- 22nd - The Leader visits to take Year Reception Photo for the Paper
- 25th - Full Governors InAugural Meeting at 6pm
OCTOBER
- 2nd - Bookings Open for Progress Evenings (taking place on 24th & 26th October 2023) please book online here
- 13th - Show 'n' Share Morning - 8:45am to 9:15am - Parents come in to class to see what their children have been working on
- 20th - Pupil Interim School Reports go home to Parents
- 24th & 26th - Pupil Progress Meetings - Please book online here
- 27th - School closes for October Half Term
NOVEMBER
- 6th - School opens after October Half Term
- 13th - Odd Socks Day to mark the start of Anti-Bullying Week
- 17th - Own Clothes Day for Bottles and Toiletries or £1
- 24th - Own clothes Day for Chocolate or £1
DECEMBER
- 1st - Own Clothes Day for Cakes or £1
- 1st - Friends of the School Christmas Tree Festival
- 6th - Year 3/4 Carol Concert at the Blessed Sacrament, Connah's Quay from 6pm-7pm - this is a provisional date and further details will follow
- 12th - Foundation Phase Concert - 2pm
- 14th - Upper KeyStage 2 Concert - 2pm
- 15th - Show 'n' Share Morning - 8:45am to 9:15am - Parents come in to class to see what their children have been working on
- 20th - Christmas Jumper & Christmas Dinner Day
- 21st - PJ's & Hot Chocolate Day - School closes for the Christmas Holidays