Key Communications 2023

Dear Year 6 families,

We are really excited to be welcoming you all to the Noadswood family and wanted to share with you a few important details:

Tutor Groups
We are meetng with your children's year 6 teachers this month and constructing tutor groups. At the end of June you will receive an email confirming your child's house and tutor group.


Uniform:
Our full list of uniform can be found here: https://www.noadswood.hants.sch.uk/admissions/year-6-moving/uniform-and-equipment

Uniform


Please note there are several options for purchasing uniform:

  • Skool Kit - From Saturday 1st July until Friday 7th July new Noadswood parents will get 10% off of their uniform purchases for that week.
  • Noadswood's Parent Staff Association (PSA) will be hosting a second-hand uniform. From 5-6 pm on transition evening on Wednesday 28th June, the PSA will be selling second hand uniform. We ask that families make a voluntary cash contribution (please note we cannot accept cards or give change) of their choice for any items they may wish to purchase. Our PSA stall will be set up at the back of our school hall. We look forward to seeing you there!
  • We’re extremely mindful of the cost of living increases coming on top of all of the other challenges of the past two years. If you have any financial concerns regarding the of our uniform please email finance@noadswood.hants.sch.uk and we will try our very best to help.
  • If anything regarding our uniform is unclear please email Dan Rowling, our Assistant Headteacher who will happily answer any queries - drowling@noadswood.hants.sch.uk

Moving Up Days

All pupils will be joining us for two 'Moving Up days.' - we cannot wait to welcome you!

When are the 'Moving Up' days?

Wednesday 5th and Thursday 6th July.

What time should my child arrive?

We ask that pupils are in our school hall by 8.40 am. If you intend to drop your child to school, there is only limited access to the school site and so we ask that you park considerately for our neighbours. Members of Noadswood staff will be waiting at our main school gate with a friendly smile, ready to welcome your child and to help navigate them to our school hall. 

What will my child be doing?

The 'Moving Up' days are a wonderful opportunity to get to know our school. They will be welcomed by our Headteacher and senior team, as well as their heads of year and their tutor. We will be helping your child to get know our school, they will experience lessons and inspirational talks throughout the two days.

What should my child wear?

We ask that pupils arrive in the school uniform that they wear at their current school. We ask that pupils wear trainers as some of the activities will involve PE.

What do they need to bring?

  • A packed lunch please, as year 6 pupils will not yet be set up on our system to purchase food. Please note if your child is in receipt of a free school meal, Noadswood will provide this. (Please note we ae a nut free school so please do not pack nut products.)
  • A snack 
  • A water bottle (This can be re-filled at lunch and break)
  • Their pencil case

What time should I pick my child up?

Please arrange a meeting place with your child as parents will not be allowed on school site, we will walk year 6 off site to our gates at 2.40.

What happens if my child has a medical condition?

Our school nurse, Jean Cookson will be contacting families with serious medical condition prior to our 'Moving Up' days. If you have a specific concern, please do email Jean directly at jcookson@noadswood.hants.sch.uk and she will arrange a mutually convenient time to talk to you. On the day, if your child has medication, they need to bring this in a clearly labelled bag that they keep with them throughout the two days. Please also do ensure you've logged onto Arbor from the links we have sent and begin populating any medical conditions.

My child has a SEND need, how will they be supported?

Our SENDCo Liz Hyland is meeting with all schools this month so that we are aware of any specific needs. We will ensure that your child ha the appropriate support needed to help them have a fantastic first few days at school. If you have any specific requests, please do email lhyland@noadswood.hants.sch.uk and she will be happy to arrange a time to discuss any concerns. If your child attends Redwood, Chris West will be in contact to discuss what your child's day will look like.



Transition Evening - Wednesday 28th June 2023

This will take place in our school hall, please don't worry if you don't know where this is, we'll have plenty of staff on hand to direct you. This is designed for parents and carers only. It is an opportunity for you to meet our Headteacher, Kathryn Marshall, the transition team and your child's head of year 7. On this evening we will detail all of our exciting plans to help your child have the best possible start to secondary school, as well as providing you with the opportunity to ask any questions you may have. Do bring cash as our mighty PSA will be on hand to sell drinks. Prior to attending this please do check out our welcome booklet

Welcome


And our dedicated 'Moving Up' webpage which we hope will answer many of the questions you may have: https://www.noadswood.hants.sch.uk/admissions/welcome-year-6
 


Summer Camp

All families who have signed up have received an email confirming their child's place. Do check your junk and spam boxes for any movingup@noadswood.hants.sch.uk emails that may have found their way there. If you have any specific questions please do contact our dedicated movingup email and we'd be only too happy to assist. We have a super few days planned full of fun filled activities, designed to really help us get to know your child.

When is Summer camp?
 
24/07/2023 and 25/07/2023. 
 
What times are Summer Camp?
 
We ask pupils to arrive through our main school entrance (clearly signposted) and staff will be there ready to direct them to our school hall. 
 

Timings: 

Event: 

9-9.20 

Arrival 

9.20-10.35 

Activity 1 

10.35-11 

Break  

11-12.15 

Activity 2 

12.15-1.00 

Lunch  

1-2.15 

Activity 3 

2.15Departure
 
What will my child be doing?
 
They will be rotating around 3 fantastic sessions each day, from PE, to cookery, to crafting and bucket list writing- to name just a few!
 
What should my child wear?
 
They should wear active wear as there will be PE based activities. There will be a variety of activities, some of these will be inside and others outside and so their clothing should be mindful of the weather. e.g a hat if its sunny and a coat if its chilly or raining.
 
What should my child bring?
 
A bottle of water and a packed lunch (please ensure your child's lunch does not contain nut based products). If your child has asthma or a specific medical condition that requires medication, we will ask you to ensure that they bring this with them each day in a clearly labelled bag.
 
How will my child be grouped?
 
We will try where possible to group pupils based on their new tutor groups, this will allow them the opportunity to see friends and meet new ones.
 
Our team of teachers and learning support assistants cannot wait to welcome your child to our Summer Camp
 

Day Trips and Residentials

We hope that you are all well. I am writing to you to give advance notice of a residential trip we will be running for all of your children in July 2024. Details TBC.
 

MFL Language Choices

Dear Parent/Guardian,

I am writing to you as a parent of a year 6 child coming to Noadswood School in September, to explain the opportunities available in Modern Foreign Languages at Noadswood for your child.

On entry, pupils are able to learn either French German or Spanish. The language your child studies in year 7 will continue in year 8, in order to ensure they gain the necessary language skills to enable them to deepen their skills and study a language further in the future.

There is also an opportunity for pupils to study a second language in year 8, depending on their ability and progress made in year 7. If you have yet to let us know your choice if there is a strong reason as to the specific, please do get in contact with us.


Lockers

ILS provides lockers for Noadswood School students. The lockers are owned by ILS and are available for students to rent on an annual basis. Rental costs are £45 per year allowing use from September through to July.

Please note all bookings terminate at the end of the school year in July. We apologise but there is no discount for lockers booked late in the year.

 

The locker size is as follows:

Height:  595mm

Width:   300mm

Depth:   450mm

 

To guarantee a locker please book online at our website www.ilsschools.co.uk 

Please note we are a separate entity from the school and all dealings will be directly with ourselves.

Lockers

Lockers for September 2023 - July 2024 will be available online from June 1st 2023. Lockers are subject to availability and all available lockers are shown online.  


Arbor Parent Portal

Please do look out for out Arbor email to get you logged onto our system, and begin populating it with consents, permissions, medical information and contact details. Thank you to everyone who has done this so far. If you haven't received an invite, please do contact us via movingup@noadswood.hants.sch.uk

Arbor

Marchwood Bus

Communication to our community, including Year 6 who live in Marchwood:


Thank you all for the responses about the bus situation. As we mentioned in the previous communication, because Noadswood is technically out of catchment for Marchwood, Hampshire are not required, nor are they able to, provide a dedicated mode of transport for us. We also know how poor Bluestar have been about communicating or taking our concerns seriously.

This has led us to seek a private coach company to offer a service. We've enquired, and would like to use this form as a way to show interest in pushing this service forward.

Logistics and specifics would need to follow, but in principle the bus would go to and from Marchwood, with some stops on route, at the start and end of the day. Very roughly the bus supplied would be around £150 a day for a vehicle which can accommodate around 20x students (around £7.50 for travel each day).

If this remains something that interests you, and numbers dependent, we'll continue in trying to make this a service. 

Many thanks as ever,

David 


Moving Up Evening

Dear parents and carers,

We cannot wait to welcome you to our moving up evening, aimed at parents and carers rather than year 6 pupils. It will be a great opportunity to hear from key members of our leadership and pastoral teams about the ethos of our school, our curriculum, uniform specifics, how our pastoral system works and an opportunity for any questions you may have.

The event is split into two sessions, depending on your child's house (which will be emailed to you at the same time as this message). The timings on Wednesday 28th June 2023 are:

 

Schedule – Anderwood and Deerleap House

5.50pm – arrival to hall

6.00pm – welcome by Kathryn Marshall with some of our wonderful Year 7 students and information about our curriculum by Matthew Hewitt

6.30pm – LRC / Drama Studio for pastoral information from Helen Loveday, DSL and uniform with Dan Rowling, behavioural lead including a Q&A session with Noadswood House Leaders

6.50pm – event finishes

 

Schedule – Knightwood and Wilverley House

7.00pm – arrival to hall

7.10pm – welcome by Kathryn Marshall with some of our wonderful Year 7 students and information about our curriculum by Matthew Hewitt

7.40pm – LRC / Drama Studio for pastoral information from Helen Loveday, DSL and uniform with Dan Rowling, behavioural lead including a Q&A session with Noadswood House Leaders

8.00pm – event finishes