Hertfordshire Steps:

Please note that I will be running another Hertfordshire Steps information evening on Tuesday 18^th November between 5.30 pm and 6.15 pm. This follows the first information session which took place before half term. If you would like to attend, Please do ring the school office and reserve a place.

Severe Weather:

I have attached a reminder regarding, what to do if we experience severe weather conditions. It is also on our website, under ‘Parent Zone’ and ‘Important Documents’. We will always do our upmost to try and maintain normal school operating hours but due to some long taxi journeys, severe weather conditions may cause this to be to be difficult at times. As always if there were to be any changes, we would try and contact parents by:

• Using our website
• Using our Facebook page
• Telephoning you.

It is essential that we have current mobile and home numbers for you to make this possible. If you have made any changes to your contact details, I would be most grateful if you could inform the office at your earliest convenience.

Physical Education:

We place great emphasis on this area of our curriculum and are fortunate to be able to employ a full time specialist to deliver this. Mrs Whitaker is currently looking forwards to having a baby in the Spring term so we are currently working with a new member of staff –Mr Osobu, who will work with Mrs Whitaker during the rest of this term, with a view to taking over the PE lessons after Christmas.

Education Health Care Plans:

I hope that by now you have received documentation from Hertfordshire on this matter. As the next few years progress, some of our pupils will convert from statements to EHC plans. The new plans do look very different and they do try to ensure that both parent and child have a say in this process. For those pupils currently in years 2/4 and 6, they will convert when their annual review is due during this academic year. I hope to make this as smooth as possible, but with anything that is new, we will need to review this process as it takes place.

Assessments:

You may be aware that due to government reform this has led to a change on the way that pupils are going to be assessed during the next few years. Unless your son/daughter is in Years 2 or 6, they will not be receiving a level in the same as they have been during their time at Larwood. (This is in the form of a national curriculum number (2/3/4/5 etc. And a letter indicating how secure they are within the level –either a/b/ or c) This process has now stopped and we will be following the system set up by Hertfordshire which will help with the following:

1. Giving all pupils some clear, time related targets after work has been assessed. This will also help staff to plan for what pupils need to practice more or understand better during future lessons.
2. Moderating work at regular intervals to ensure that staff have a consistent idea of standards.
3. Moderating work with other schools at regular intervals- this will include other special schools and a mainstream school.
4. When pupils complete the end of Year 6, we aim to make sure they have a good idea of how they compare to other pupils. However, we also want to do this in a supportive and positive way.

As always, if you would like further information regarding any of these topics, please contact us.

Yours sincerely

S D Trimble
Headteacher