Principal's message:
As the weather seems to be getting colder, I wish to remind you that should the weather deteriorate to such an extent that it is quite severe, we may need to close the school. This decision is never taken lightly, and students should not decide for themselves that school is ‘closed’. When deciding whether to close the school, the following are taken into consideration:
- Which buses, if any, are running (this decision is made by the bus companies and not the school)
- Whether sufficient staff will be able to get to school to supervise pupils safely
- The probability of conditions worsening, so making journeys home very difficult, e.g. buses being cancelled
If we do need to close the school, we will make an announcement on the school website and send a message via Edulink to parents. We would ask parents and pupils to refer to the website, rather than telephoning the school. The announcement will be clearly visible on the home page of our website. When reading this information, please check the date carefully. It is unusual for us to know the day before that the school will definitely be closed and the decision about closure is usually made by 7.15am at the latest.
If a decision is taken to close early, following consultation with bus companies and, if appropriate, the Local Authority, a bulletin will be posted on the homepage of the school website confirming the time the school will close. We will send a message to parents via Edulink. Please ensure that we have up-to-date records, so we can rely on reaching all parents by this method.
As we draw closer towards the end of the term, I also wish to draw your attention to a number of events that are taking place:
- Thursday 7th December: Year 11 Parents evening - it is crucial that all parents attend with their child
- Thursday 14th December: Christmas Lunch and Christmas Jumper Day (this should be worn over school uniform)
- Thursday 14th December: Christmas Concert 6.00pm
- Tuesday 19th December: 12.00pm closure
I wish you all a restful weekend.
Marika Farrugia, Principal
Our focus on high expectations extends to all aspects of school life, and it is a tribute to so many girls who come to school regularly, on time and dress in their full uniforms, complying with our uniform policy. It is important that, as winter has now set in, they come to school in coats or jackets. Hoodies are not part of our school uniform and should not be worn to school. Our school's Uniform Policy is on our website and has been communicated to all of you via the Head of Year letters. The policy not only extends to the uniform, but also to hair colour and jewellery. I thank you all for supporting us in ensuring that we uphold that policy.
We also ensure that students are not distracted in enjoying school life in all its facets, by their mobile phones. The policy is that we do not want to see or hear a mobile phone, otherwise they are confiscated. It also ensures that we are able to keep students as safe as possible while they are in school. We have had a recent incident where one of our student’s received messages, while she was at home, by someone she did not know under the disguise that they obtained her details through one of her friends. This was clearly not true. The girl sensibly reported this to us.
It is important, therefore, that you regularly discuss with your children the need to be careful with whom they communicate with through social media. If they receive messages from individuals they do not know, that they should communicate that with yourselves or with us, so we can report it. The following website support parents on how to keep children safe online. Please do take a look.
https://saferinternet.org.uk/guide-and-resource/parents-and-carers/phones
Our preferred method of communication is via Edulink, please use this link to login.
A group of year 8 students attended an IET Challenge Day at Queen Anne's School this week.
Students from the schools attending the event worked in teams to design and create a working prototype with a least one electrical part. They all had jobs within their team, such as project manager and accountant.
It was a great opportunity for the students, taking on different roles and finding out about engineering. Our students particularly enjoyed designing, creating and making the prototype: working as a team and doing a hands on activity They didn't enjoy when it didn't work but were glad they worked out why! They were also proud of the fact they overcame their nerves to present their ideas and their prototypes to the other teams.
NEW TERM : NEW MENU
FROM 1ST NOVEMBER 2023
All meals are provided by Chartwells - a school meal consists of a main meal and a dessert for £2.78 a variety of snacks and drinks are also available.
Chartwells operate a cashless till system, operated by biometrics. The accounts are topped up online using a secure website called ParentPay, if your daughter is eligible for free meals, £2.78 is credited to her account each day. Your daughter will be provided with her ParentPay login details on her first day at Reading Girls' School. You can find more information about ParentPay on their website http://www.parentpay.com. The school office is also happy to help with any enquiries.
Follow the link for details of the school menu.