The Week Ahead weekly newsletter

As a school we have decided to close our HSBC bank account, and have opened a new account with the Cooperative Bank.

The new account details are as follows:

Bradford Christian School

Sort code 08-92-99

Account no 63154896

As our HSBC account will be permanently closed in January,  we would be grateful if you would arrange to change your fee payment to the new account as soon as possible.

Sorry for any inconvenience this may cause you.

2.0 Wearing of Uniform
2.1 Students should wear school uniform unless:
• It is a day for PE in their year group in which case they should wear their PE kit to school
• It is the day that upper school can choose to wear their own clothes. (Friday)
• It is a charity or end of term wear your own clothes day
• The specifics of a school trip do not require the wearing of uniform which will be conveyed to parents in a
letter.
• There is an agreed justification why a child should wear an amended uniform e.g. SEND
3.0 Jewellery
3.1 On health and safety grounds we request children not to wear jewellery in our school.
3.2 The exceptions to this rule are:
• ear-ring studs in pierced ears (one piercing in each ear)
• Medical identification bracelets may be worn by children who have significant medical problems e.g.
Diabetes or epilepsy.
We ask the children to remove these objects during PE for health and safety reasons.
3.3 The school advises parents who wish their children to have their ears pierced to do so at the beginning of the
summer school holidays.
4.0 Hair Styles
4.1 Hair colour should be a natural colour and not an ‘extreme’ haircut e.g. tramlines, stars, shaved heads (No
shorter than a number 2), extreme patterns ‘V’ styles, Mohican cuts etc.
4.2 Pupils with long hair should tie it back for safety reasons especially if requested to do so in science or cooking.
5.0 Nail Polish
5.1 Students should not wear nail polish in school.
5.2 Students who come to school wearing nail polish will be asked to go to the office and remove the nail polish
using remover provided by the school.

This is a reminder about parking sensitively. We have received a complaint from a Wealdhere Street resident about a driveway being blocked again. A campaign to have yellow lines added to the streets around school is underway, which is an extreme response and one we hope to avoid. Please make sure you do not block a drive, do not block a corner and do not mount a kerb when you park your car. The council have instructed neighbours to photograph any cars parked badly and to report them to the police and to the council. It would be great if there was nothing to report.

You may be aware that school has now provided each student from year 5 to 11 with a Chromebook to use in school. These are allocated to individual students, who are responsible for looking after them, recharging them at the end of the day, and transporting them between lessons. In Year 5 all students receive a brand new machine.

Most schools charge a significant deposit for use of Chromebooks or alternative technology. We have decided against this, recognising it is an additional cost at a time when money is tight.

Most of our students are careful and responsible with Chromebooks, and they make it through their middle school and upper school years without a problem.

However, recently we are noticing a small number of students who are not taking appropriate care of their Chromebook. We can not afford to replace them when they are dropped, get wet, or get lost. A new screen is almost the cost of a new Chromebook. We are now expecting students to carry their Chromebooks in their bags to and from lessons.

From now on, we plan to make a charge to families if a student damages their Chromebook. This will be a flat £100 toward the cost of a replacement.

We do recognise that not all damage is the student's responsibility, and we will work hard to understand the cause of any damage before charging you. We understand that there may be wear and tear from daily use.

Thinking of getting your child a Chromebook for home? Check out our recommendation in this short article. Which Chromebook?

Google Classroom Clarification

If you are used to checking your child's google classroom summary of homework, all staff will use HOMEWORK in capitals as a prefix before the task. All other posts will refer to work undertaken in class.

Mrs Wells is extending the second use uniform to include coats for those who need them. If you have unused coats and in good condition that you can donate to this, please hand into the office or email suzannewells@bxs.org.uk

There is a WhatsApp group for parents in primary and middle school. If you would like to be added to the group, please message Rachel Baxfield on 07568 074586. Thank you

Bradford Schools and Colleges of Sanctuary would like to invite you to a special event being hosted at Mind the Gap on Wednesday 6th December to come together and celebrate Bradford's rich history in welcoming people seeking sanctuary and hear from those who have found refuge in our city.

Bradford City of Sanctuary have partnered with Mind the Gap and filmmaker Tom Harmer to host a screening of The Sanctuary Seekers of Bradford, premiered at Pictureville earlier this year. There will be family-friendly activities and refreshments from 3:30pm; a free buffet from 5pm; a screening of the film at 6pm followed by a Q&A with filmmaker Tom Harmer, people with lived experience and representatives from local organisations.

To book your tickets and for more detail about the running order, click on our Eventbrite booking link. A flyer is attached so do share this invitation with relevant individuals, families, colleagues and organisations.

Feel free to email me or info@bradford.cityofsanctuary.org with any further questions.

During October and into November, Bradford Cathedral is hosting an exhibition of Ugandan Asian migration stories, alongside stories from the Windrush Community. These two exhibitions – which are sponsored by the University of Bradford – open up dialogue between different journeys of hope from two communities who continue to tell important, positive stories of Bradford’s own black history, as well as stories of migration to the city of sanctuary. Read more...