Dear Parents and Carers,
I still can’t quite believe we are at the end of term. This year has been a very challenging year whilst we all battled through covid lockdowns and home schooling, but it has gone so fast! The challenges we have faced as a school community this year have been faced together and I am so proud and grateful to work as part of such a supportive community.
Our children have been truly remarkable yet again this year, they have amazed us more than ever before. They returned from a significant period of time at home in lockdown and demonstrated resilience, positivity and commitment to their learning. We are so, so proud of them and the progress they have made during such a difficult year. I’d like to take this opportunity to say a huge thank you to the fabulous team of staff we have at Derwendeg, they have been truly amazing again through a very difficult year, we are so lucky to have each and every one of them.
September is still looking very unclear for us, however, there is some information below regarding our covid procedures in September, albeit limited at this stage. I will be in touch before the children’s return.
We hope you have a wonderful summer. We’re looking forward to September and seeing what new challenges the new academic year has in store for us! Whatever they are, we will face them together.
Take care, everyone,
Mrs Wangiel
This half term’s value is:
ASPIRATION
Heroes of the Week
This week’s heroes are:
Dosbarth Coch: Billie and Nile
Dosbarth Oren: : Millie and Thea
Dosbarth Melyn: Preston and Leo
Dosbarth Gwyrdd: Jace and Grace
Dosbarth Glas: Kesha and Renee
Dosbarth Porffor: : Maizie and Mollie
Dosbarth Enfys: All of Dosbarth Enfys!
We’d also like to say a huge well done to those children receiving a Headteacher certificate and a Mathletics award. Well done to all of our certificate winners, we are very proud of you all!
Covid-19 Update
The Covid-19 guidance for September 2021 has now been released from Welsh Government. However, the guidance is very ambiguous and leaves a lot of unanswered questions.
For at least the first few weeks of term, many of our current covid-19 restrictions and procedures will remain the same as they are now.
Below is an outline of what we know at this stage:
Isolation:
Any children displaying any of the 3 symptoms of covid are required to be tested and the whole household isolate until the result is received. Close contacts of positive cases are still required to isolate for 10 days.
Breakfast Club and After School Clubs:
The reintroduction of breakfast club and after school clubs is still unclear at this stage. This will be reviewed with Local Authority in September.
Face Coverings:
Parents and carers are still required to wear a face covering when dropping off and collecting the children. Staff members are no longer required to wear a face covering in classrooms but will be required to in communal areas of the school.
Entry and Exit Procedures – September 2021:
We are no longer allowed to have staggered start and entry times. As a result, we will return to our usual times of 9am – 3:15pm.
The gates will be open at 8:50am to allow for pupils to filter in and we will continue with allocated gates for Foundation Phase and Key Stage 2. More details to be released.
I will of course continue to keep you updated as the situation progresses and will be in touch with further detail ahead of the children’s return on September, 6th.
Leavers’ Song
To our Year 6 leavers and Mrs George, we wanted to share this song with you to remind you never to forget us and to wish you luck on your next steps.
We will miss you! Enjoy!
INSET Days Reminder
Thursday, 2nd and Friday, 3rd September will be INSET days for Derwendeg Primary School and the school will be closed to pupils. Our children will return to school on Monday, 6th September.
Summer Reading Challenge
We all love a good book, and what better way than to take part in the Caerphilly libraries summer reading challenge. There’s lots of ways to get a book, you can order online or visit the library. All you need is a green library card.
Visit the challenge page:
https://summerreadingchallenge.org.uk/news/general/wild-world-heroes-intro
PDG Access Grant
Welsh Government have announced that the PDG-A (Pupil Development Grant Access) will continue to be extended to additional school years for the financial year 2021/22.
All families who are currently eligible for free school meals and entering Reception, Year 1, 3, and 5 in Primary Schools in September 2021 will receive a rate of £125
For Year 7 in Secondary Schools a rate of £200, and years 8, 9, 10 & 11 in Secondary Schools the rate is £125
Funding for looked-after children is available in every school year. (No application process required as direct payment will be made to the eligible families)
For 2020-21 Welsh Government amended the terms and conditions of the grant to allow families to use the funding to assist with purchasing laptops or tablets to help children when learning from home, Welsh Government will continue to apply this amendment for 2021-22. However they advise families to contact their child’s school/setting to discuss loaning equipment before purchasing.
There will be an on-line application process to be accessed via the Caerphilly website which will go live Monday 2nd August 2021
Online Safety
As I’m sure you were, I was angry and saddened to see the online abuse that some of the England football team received online following their loss in the Euro 2020 finals. This week’s online safety guide focuses on kindness online and understanding the impact of our words on others. Please discuss the importance of kindness online and in real life with children.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1fSWbP76f1bhmiou8sLL5CW2ryG_n5wwY/view?usp=sharing
Big Talk (Please discuss with your children):
This week’s topic is… What would you like to get better at this summer?
Upcoming Dates
Thursday, 2nd and Friday, 3rd September – INSET Days (school closed to pupils)
Monday, 6th September – Children return to school
