23rd October 2026
What a wonderful half term it has been. Our children have worked so hard and have achieved so much over the last eight weeks. I am very proud of every single child in this school for their achievements this half term. I have loved seeing great work, kindness, enthusiasm, curiosity and creativity every single day. A huge thank you to Alveston's amazing teaching team. They care so deeply for the children and together make Alveston the wonderful community it is.
Thank you for being so generous with your Harvest Festival offerings this week. We held a simple service in school but this was definitely for the best as the rain came in hard at the time we were due to walk to church. Thank you for being so understanding and supportive of this decision. Our parents and families are another part of what makes Alveston so very special and your support and kindness on Wednesday was so appreciated!
I hope everyone has a lovely half term break. I wish you all a rest and a refresh before the Christmas season starts next half term. I'm sure lots of children will enjoy Halloween festivities next week - please stay safe.
See you on Monday 2nd November.
Jess Newitt, Headteacher
Half Term Cup Winners!
Reception ~ Felix
Year 1 ~ Zuzanna
Year 2 ~ Ruben
Year 3 ~ Lara-Rose
Year 4 ~ Ella
Year 5 ~ Ben
Year 6 ~ Beatrice
Well done, everyone, for shining so brightly! What an achievement!
Team Cup Winners
Congratulations to this week's team cup winners, Charlecote Greens! And a big "WELL DONE" to anyone who earned team points this week.
Percentage Attendance Levels by Year Group - 2026/27 (to date)
Reception - 97.8%
Year 1 - 98.3%
Year 2 - 97.6%
Year 3 - 97.8%
Year 4 - 97.7%
Year 5 - 96%
Year 6 - 97.4%
Overall School Total - 97.5%
While the UK government sets an expectation of 100% attendance, good attendance is generally considered 95% or higher, with 97% or above regarded as very good/excellent.
Attendance Percentages Explained:
- 97-100%: Very Good/Excellent attendance
- 95-97%: Average/Good attendance
- 90-95%: Cause for concern
- Below 90%: Serious concern / Persistent absence (PA)
Above is our first OPAL bingo score card for this academic year!
How it works: each class is tasked to donate the pictured items to school to enhance our OPAL play provision. The first class to cross off all of their items wins an extra OPAL playtime! Please raid your homes, sheds and the charity shops for any goodies. As always, we appreciate any and all of your donations. Thank you!
Alveston C of E Primary School recognised for inspiring girls in computing
Alveston C of E Primary School has been awarded the I Belong: Encouraging Girls into Computer Science certificate by the National Centre for Computing Education (NCCE), recognising our commitment to making Computing an inspiring, inclusive and welcoming subject for girls. The award follows our completion of the national I Belong programme, which supports schools in understanding and addressing the gender gap in Computer Science through evidence-informed strategies and practical approaches. Despite growing opportunities in technology, girls remain significantly under-represented in Computer Science, making up just 22.8% of GCSE entries in 2026. We are proud to receive this recognition and are committed to helping change this picture, starting right here at our primary school.
Our Computing Lead Teacher said: “With technology playing an increasingly influential role in our world, I am proud and happy to help ensure that its future workforce is as diverse as the communities it serves, and that girls play an active and leading role in shaping its future.”
One of our Key Stage 2 pupils, Isla B, said: “Because every job uses technology, it's important for girls to learn Computing.”
And Grace T let us know why she loves working with technology: "I enjoyed making a website about climate change and taking part in Technovation."
This award marks an important step in our ongoing work. Through creative computing experiences, opportunities to develop confidence and initiatives such as Technovation, which focus on using tech to make a positive difference in the world, we want every girl at Alveston to recognise her potential and know that she belongs in the world of technology — not just as a user, but as a creator, innovator and leader.
Adelle Hollis
Year 5 Teacher | Computing Lead
My Happy Mind
Year 4 thoroughly enjoyed exploring their character strengths in this week’s My Happy Mind lesson. The children discovered how our different characteristics make us unique and loved giving themselves a ‘how full?’ rating for each one. This helped them recognise that we all have different strengths and qualities. We all learnt how our characteristics can develop and change over time through neuroplasticity! Such a big word, but Year 4 have been fantastic at understanding and using this impressive vocabulary!
Autumn Exploration
Happy Harvest from Reception! The children have been exploring the season of autumn by reading, 'Leaf Man'. They also explored autumn leaves through leaf rubbing and creating different leaf creations. The class also made scarecrow faces to celebrate harvest as we read, 'The Scarecrows' Wedding'. This has been a wonderful time for learning about the changing season and our celebration of Harvest!
Scooter Safety
This week, Year 2 took part in an engaging online lesson all about staying safe on their scooters. They learned how to carry out the ‘L-check’ to make sure their scooters are safe to use, what to wear to protect themselves and how to stop safely while riding. They also explored the importance of pavement politeness - thinking about how to be considerate of pedestrians and share public spaces safely. It was a brilliant opportunity for the children to develop their road safety knowledge and learn how to enjoy scooting responsibly!
Busy Bees in Year 3!
Year 3 have been very busy with their new history and art topics. In history, the children created a "toilet-roll timeline" where each sheet represented 1,000 years. They went back approximately 300,000 years to ‘pre history’ to help try and visualise just how long ago this was!
In art, the children used shapes to draw in detail. They did a fantastic job using various art pencils to add detail to their drawings of shells.
In computing, the children have been working on composing and replying to emails. This week they added an attachment. Lots of hard work - well done Year 3!
Thank you from our Friends!
The Friends of Alveston would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who supported our first ever silent disco. There wasn't much silence, to be fair! With three different channels on the headphones, there were plenty of song choices for the children to enjoy, making for an electric atmosphere with dance moves and singing a-plenty! A lovely feature to the disco were the colour-changing headphones allowing the children to see what their friends were listening to. The Friends were met with a round of booing when the KS2 disco finished which they took as a sign that everyone had a fantastic time and didn't want the fun to end. The Friends look forward to hosting another in the future. A whopping £597.68 was raised so a huge THANK YOU to everyone who supported the event, and to our fantastic volunteers. We couldn't run these events without your help and support.
Please see details below for our upcoming wreath-making event. Grab your friends and book on now for fantastic festive evening of Christmas wreath making on 26th November:
Tickets: £40 per person
Includes a free drink and sweet treat
Doors open at 7:00pm
Wreath making starts at 7:30pm
Over 18s only!
Tickets can be purchased at: www.pta-events.co.uk/friendsofalveston
Other dates for your diary:
- Monday 2nd November – Friends of Alveston AGM
- Friday 6th November – Crazy Hair Day
- Monday 30th November – Christmas Light Switch On
Have a wonderful half term!
Friends of Alveston
Be Bright, Be Seen this Halloween!
If you're planning on trick or treating, or just going out and about this Halloween, please consider taking a torch or glow sticks, or adding something reflective to your outfits; anything to make it easier for others to see you. When out and about, please be aware of your surroundings. If you can, stay on well-lit paths, and if there is no pedestrian crossing nearby, cross the road near a streetlight so that traffic can see you more easily.
Be bright, be seen this Halloween!
Free Breakfasts for Families at Morrisons Cafés
This year, all Morrisons Cafés across the UK will be offering a free Kellogg’s breakfast every day throughout every school break. Families can enjoy favourites like Corn Flakes or Rice Krispies with dairy or non-dairy milk, plus a free piece of fruit - providing a simple, balanced start to the day when many parents feel the extra pressure of holiday routines and rising food costs. Find out more here.
Community Interest
We post community events and projects on our website under 'Our Community'. For more information about activities open to you, your family and your local community, please do check the pages regularly:
You can also find a list of the FoodBank's "MOST WANTED" items right here. Please do take a look and help to support those in need in our local community.
General Reminders
Parking at Drop-Off and Pick-Up
We are so lucky at Alveston that the Football Club allow all our parents who drive to school to use their car park for drop-off and pick-up. This makes it safer for all our children. Please continue to use the Football Club car park. Please note: Parking is only available if there are spaces free and we can only park in the allocated bays. Once all the marked bays are full each day, parents will need to find alternative parking when dropping off and collecting their children. Please do not park in any other areas of the car park going forward. Please do not park on any double-yellow lines for pick-up or drop-offs. Please also ensure that you do not stop or park within the zig-zag "Keep Clear" markings at the main entrance to school. This area is marked to keep the flow of traffic moving and to ensure the safety of all pedestrians.
Sickness and Absence
Please let the school office know each day your child is absent from school by calling 01789 293412, option 1, and leaving a message. You may also email parents3002@welearn365.com. You do not need to contact us daily if your child is sick/vomits. Absences for sickness/vomiting will be recorded 48 hours from the end of the day your child was last sick (i.e. if sick on Sunday, come back on Wednesday; if Tuesday come back on Friday).
Medicines in School
We cannot accept medicines in school without a prescription label and a medical form completed by a parent or carer. Please ask the school office for more information and/or a form via:
parents3002@welearn365.com
We cannot accept medicines in school without a prescription label and a medical form completed by a parent or carer. Please ask the school office for more information and/or a form via:
parents3002@welearn365.com
Important Dates* to Remember
Key dates for Autumn Term (2) - and other upcoming key dates over 26/27 - are shown below.
* Please note that all dates published are subject to change/cancellation - please check this page and/or the website calendar regularly:
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HALF TERM 26th to 30th October 2026 |
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Autumn Term (2) |
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Celebration / Star of the Week Assemblies |
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6/11, 13/11, 20/11, 27/11, 4/12, 11/12, *14/12 (* Half Term Cup) |
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Teacher-Led Clubs – 4 weeks |
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w/c 9th November to w/e 4th December 2026 |
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2/11 |
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Children return to school |
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2/11 |
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Friends of Alveston AGM |
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3/11 & 4/11 |
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Parents’ Evenings [3:30-6:30pm] |
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6/11 |
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Crazy Hair Day |
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11/11 |
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Y2 & Y6 Remembrance Walk to War Memorial [event sheet sent on 21/10] |
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12/11 & 24/11 |
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Open Mornings [for Reception 2027] |
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Upcoming Key Dates |
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30/11 |
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Christmas Light Switch On |
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7/12 |
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Christmas Plays: KS1 & Reception Rehearsal |
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8/12 |
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Christmas Plays: KS1 9:05 / Rec 2:30 |
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9/12 |
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Christmas Plays: Reception 9:05 / KS1 2:30 |
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16/12 |
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Christmas Dinner + Christmas Jumper Day |
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17/12 |
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Christingle [2:15pm] |
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18/12 |
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Christmas Panto / last day in school |
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END OF TERM 21st December 2026 to 4th January 2027 |
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4/1 |
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INSET DAY – NO CHILDREN IN SCHOOL |
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5/1 |
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Young Voices Concert |
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6/1 |
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Final Open Morning for Reception 2027 |
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7/1 |
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TTRS Day [Y3/Y4/Y5] |
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HALF TERM 15th to 19th February 2027 |
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23/2 & 25/2 |
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Parents’ Evenings [3:30-6:30pm] |
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9/3 |
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Learning Time Together [2:30-3pm] |
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24/3 |
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Y3/Y4 Easter Performance [4pm] |
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25/3 |
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Easter Service [2:15pm] |
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26/3 |
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Public Holiday – no children in school |
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END OF TERM 29th March to 9th April 2027 |
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12/4 |
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INSET DAY – NO CHILDREN IN SCHOOL |
