Dear ALS Community,
I hope you all had some time to enjoy the snowy weather last weekend, it was lovely to see some of the wonderful snow creations that you kindly shared with our communications team and I hope it gave your family something different and fun to be excited over. It seems somewhat fitting that whilst Mr Preston is on paternity leave and we are following the news regarding when schools will reopen that we also have snow to add in to the mix, it certainly kept myself, Mr James and Mr Owen busy on Sunday when we were discussing weather reports, falling snow levels and how we could keep the site safe. Having already thanked the Operations Team last week I’d like to make a special mention to the Site Team who made sure everything was safe and ready for Tuesday.
You will have seen in the news that the Government have now announced schools will not reopen before 8th March 2021, we will continue to monitor this and we will make sure that everything is ready for when children are allowed back on site. In the meantime, the provision that we are currently offering, both remotely and on site for critical workers, will continue. If there is anything that we can help or support you with please do get in touch. I’d also like to take some time to thank you all for everything that you are doing, the constant state of flux is not easy for any of us and everything that you are doing is very much appreciated.
Our mantra for next week comes from Veritas: Live the school values; don’t just talk about them. Mr Preston frequently shares how strong both our school ethos and our school community are and for me this all comes from the fact that we all live the school values and that is what we believe in. I often hear children comparing the specific detail of our values, I also frequently see members of staff carrying out acts of kindness towards others, these are all simple examples of how the values and our ethos are constantly alive throughout school. Taking the decision to close the school site for Monday was not one that we took lightly but the number of parents that wrote back to share thanks and echoed their support for our decision was appreciated, this again shows how members of our community take the time to be kind, to be grateful and to be caring.
We have already had lots of entries for the Lockdown House Competitions, don’t forget to gets yours in for any of the categories. The deadline for entries is Friday 5th February and click here for more information on the various categories. If you have any questions about the competition please do get in touch with our Head of Houses on [email protected]. Mr Scott, Mr Dobson and Mr Hawkins are looking forward to seeing the last push of entries before Friday. Having seen the number of entries submitted so far, I can confirm it is very close with who will win this competition so there is everything to play for.
You may also remember Mr Preston mentioning previously that Stagecoach have entered into partnership with us at Arnold Lodge, they are currently operating as normal over Zoom and it is a great way to be together, learn new skills and socialise with children of different ages. Arnold Lodge children have been offered a free trial on Zoom, to try it out and see if it is for you - email [email protected] with any questions and to sign up.
As pupils continue to learn remotely, our Head of ExEn has put together some optional projects for senior pupils to get involved with to take them away from their screens. Here are some suggestions to take you through the next two weeks, after which more projects will be announced. If you have any questions about the projects and tasks please contact Mr Gear on [email protected]. A similar plan for Junior pupils will also follow after half term, more imminently however as it is Children’s Mental Health Week next week. Junior School pupils working remotely will receive a special delivery which you need to keep your eyes peeled for, I am looking forward to seeing all the activities that you get up to.
Mr Preston also returns to school next week and so normal service with the weekly email will resume, I’m sure he may be a little sleep deprived but he will be excited to share the entries from the Lockdown House Competitions.
Best wishes,
Mrs Sanj Dhadda | Operations Manager
January 29th 2021
