April 2015 Dear Parents and Pupils The spring term seems to have flown by, which is often a sign that you’re enjoying yourself. Once again the Westley pupils have made me very proud. Their performances in music, drama, art and sport never cease to astound me. Their talents seem to have no bounds and their enthusiasm for learning makes Westley a very happy place to work. The year 6 pupils are progressing well towards their SATs in May and the whole school is looking forward to activities week. It’s a great time to be part of the Bury St Edmunds All-Through Trust as we work together to ensure that pupils reach the highest standards. I am pleased that we are once again oversubscribed for September. More Able Art Day Headteacher Some of our More Able artists spent a day with Alfie Carpenter, a professional artist, who specialises in collages. The pupils who took part thoroughly enjoyed the day. “It was great to have the chance to work with such a talented artist. He gave us the confidence to try things that were out of our comfort zone.” The small picture shows Betty Hoggar’s landscape. Public Speaking The Westley team performed superbly to win the Rotary Club Public Speaking Competition held at County Upper School. A big well done to Riley Stevenson, TJ Holton, Emily Matthews, Nicky Lucchi, Ciara McMenamin-Dye and Betty Hoggar. Thank you also to Ms Lallaway and the successful County Year 9 team who helped coach the pupils. Dates for your diary th Gardening Group The group went on a visit to Waitrose where they got the chance to see how the fruit and vegetables get to the shelves. They also took part in a quiz and got the chance to taste some fruits and cheese. The staff at Waitrose were fantastic and were very complimentary about our pupils. 28 April – Hilltop meeting for year 6 parents 11th May – SATs week 18th May – Activities week 25th May – May half term week 5th June – PTA Disco 18th June – Year 5 Kentwell Hall trip 23rd, 24th and 25th June – Peter Pan production 7th July – Summer Music Concert 10th July – Transfer Day 10th July – Year 8 Prom 14th, 15th and 16th July – Year 8 Westley West End Production 22nd July – Last day of term Staff News Mrs Luke will retire at the end of the year. She has been at Westley for over 24 years during which time she has inspired hundreds of children to develop a love for History. She is a fantastic teacher who is able to bring lesson to life with costumes, drama and a passion for her subject be it Art, English or History. Mrs Luke will be able to spend more time with her horses but I’m sure we will still see her in school from time to time. Mr Murray also retires at the end of the year. He has not been here quite as long as Mrs Luke but he has certainly made an impact in the time he has been here. We wish them both well for the future. Mrs Hart has joined the leadership team as an Assistant Head. She has also taken on the role of head of year 7. She is already having a very positive impact in both roles. New—Grab and Go Available from 14th April Filled Baguette Vegetable Sticks Cake or biscuit Fruit or drink £2.30 Show My Homework This is a great site for you and your children to catch up with any missed homework. If you haven’t signed up yet please contact the school if you need help. www.westley.showmyhomework.co.uk Congratulations to: Lorna Ingate who won the spring term Maths Challenge. Katie Horne, Boo Mc Entee and Rachel Stott who competed in the book mastermind competition. Jack Matthews and Michael Collier who finished as runners-up in the Cospace competition and have qualified for the world finals in China. See photograph to the left. Cameron Gibson who was part of the BSEATT team in a National Maths event finishing 8th in the country. Music Well done to all the those who took part in the Spring Concert. The quality of playing was fantastic and it was great to see so many pupils on stage for the first time. The BSEATT Music Action Day culminated in a brilliant performance titled ‘Once Upon a Time’ at the Apex with 200 pupils from the Trust schools performing music that they had written to accompany Roald Dahl’s Revolting Rhymes. The following pupils have achieved these music grades: Name Ben Flux Rosie Masterman Sarah Bartrum Shelby Barton Abigail Hobbs Zak Brook Betty Hoggar Hannah O’Connor Rory Kettle Instrument Violin Violin Clarinet Violin Violin Clarinet Flute Bassoon Flute Grade 1 1 2 1 1 2 1 2 1 Level Distinction Merit Merit Merit Distinction Merit Distinction Merit Merit Comic Relief Thank you to all those who helped raise £670.32 to help those in less fortunate positions. The picture below shows pupils trying to eat doughnuts without using their fingers. Boo McEntee raised over £150 by being silent all day while other children baked cakes, bought noses or paid £1 to make their face funny for money Arts Award 16 Year 8 pupils got the chance to graffiti the school walls as they designed and created this superb picture under the watchful eye of graffiti artist Kevin Parker. Lost Property A big thank you to Mrs Aris who has been coming in every week to wade through and sort all the lost property. Please remember to name any items that your child brings into school. Uniform As the weather gets warmer please remember to keep your uniform looking smart. Skirts should not get any shorter and shirts should still be tucked in. Can pupils also remember that you will only be allowed on the field if you have an alternative pair of shoes/trainers. Litter Sadly we are seeing more and more litter around school. New bins have been ordered to stop the seagulls from raiding them but it is important that we keep our school environment clean and tidy. School Car Park Please can parents not use the school car park to drop off and collect pupils as it is very congested at the beginning and end of the school day as the buses arrive. The only exceptions are: if you are using the disabled parking bay; if you are collecting from an after school club or you are dropping off for an early morning club. PTA The PTA have been very active raising over £3000 since the start of term with 2 discos, the Christmas Bazaar and a superb ‘Westley’s Got Talent’. Their efforts have meant that the school has been able to get its own 17-seater minibus. It’s already well booked up by staff to provide exciting opportunities for the pupils. The photograph shows the ’Westley’s Got Talent’ winners. This is a brief analysis of all the major achievements at Westley over the Winter months. Each year seems to get busier and busier. Hockey U13 Boys – 3rd in Bury festival U13 Girls – 3rd in Bury festival Football U13 Boys – won their mini league but lost in Suffolk quarter finals U13 Girls – won their mini league, but lost 2-0 in Suffolk semi-final to East Bergholt U12 Girls – Suffolk 5- a- side champions U12 Boys – Runners up in West Suffolk 5-a-side finals U11 Boys – Bury champions - 5th in Suffolk U11 Girls – 7th in Suffolk finals U10 Boys – winners of Bury festival Rugby U13 Boys – Runners up in West Suffolk Festival and 5th in Suffolk U12 Boys – West Suffolk champions and 5th in Suffolk Netball U12 Girls – won all league matches and qualified for West Suffolk finals after Easter. U11 Girls – Bury High 5s champions & qualified for Suffolk finals in June. U10 Girls – Finished 2nd in South Lee tournament and 2nd in Bury High 5s Table Tennis U11 Boys – Finished 4th in the County finals U11 Girls - Finished 5th in the County finals BSEATT Evening of Dance Over 50 Westley pupils took part in the Trust’s Evening of Dance at County Upper. It was a fantastic way to finish the term. Very uplifting. Athletics U13 Sportshall athletics Girls – Bury winners (6th in Suffolk) Boys – Bury runners-up U11 Sportshall athletics Boys – Bury winners Cross Country Suffolk event at Royal Hospital School Boys U12 Y5, 6 &7 – 2nd in team event Girls U12 Y5, 6 & 7 – 2nd in team event Basketball U13 Boys – Suffolk runners-up and have qualified for West Suffolk final. U13 Girls – Suffolk 4th place. Playing Thurston in a West Suffolk final. U12 Boys – 3rd in Suffolk U12 Girls – Suffolk County Champions U11 mixed team – Bury Champions and County Champions. Clubs The summer term clubs list will be published shortly on the website but I would like to outline the early morning and afterschool clubs that are run by Westley staff or out of School agencies: Monday – Early morning tennis coaching 7.30am Tuesday – Y5 & 6 early morning Basketball 7.30am Thursday – All years early morning Badminton club 7.30am All years Street Dance Club 4-4.45pm All years Cycling Club 3.45-5.00pm Friday – All years early morning Running Club 7.30am All years pay & play Tennis 3.45-5.00pm *Please note, tennis, cycling & running club incur a charge. There will be a free taster session for Street Dance and hopefully if there is enough interest, a club will start soon The final week of the Spring term shows up how many things have happened Tues 24 March – County U13 Rugby final. Y5 netball tournament at South Lee. Weds 25 March – Y6 & 7 boys football festival v St Louis/Horringer/Howard. Y5 girls Bury High 5 netball. Thurs 26 March – U11 Y5 & 6 Suffolk Basketball final. Academy Trust Dance Festival. Y5 Boys football festival v St James/Horringer/Howard/Hardwick. Fri 27 March – U12 Y5, 6 & 7 Suffolk basketball finals – Boys & Girls. A very, very busy final week!
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