The Week Ahead weekly newsletter

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Growing Lives that Bear Fruit

This week...

    Quick Stop Notices 👀

    Mind the Gap Ministries [NEW]

    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.

    From the Governors

    Dear Parents and Carers

    First and foremost, I hope that you and your family are well and that you are keeping safe and dry in this somewhat wet and challenging weather.

    I wanted to take the opportunity to reach out to you in my role as Chair of Governors, working alongside a dedicated team of faith-filled governors, to talk about our passion and desire to serve and support our school community in a wide variety of ways.   

    The governing body works closely with Mrs Prothero and it is our role to lead and support the school across three key areas:

    • Ensuring clarity of vision, ethos and strategic direction;

    • Holding executive leaders to account for the educational performance of the school and its pupils, and the performance management of staff; and

    • Overseeing the financial performance of the school and making sure its money is well spent.

    One of the things that I am keen to focus on this year is strengthening the link between the governing body and the wider school community. I am very much aware that the majority of work that we do is unseen in the background and therefore it is hard for parents, carers and other members of our community to really know who we are and what we're up to.

    We are therefore planning a meet and greet morning at school in order to provide an opportunity to find out a little bit more about the governing body, who we are and what we do. If you are able to join us, then you are warmly invited to come along and it would be great to see you there.

    It will be a chance to hear a little from us and also to have some time to chat and get to know each other over a drink and some breakfast at school. The session is planned for Saturday 18th November 2023 from 9.30 to 10.30am.

    It would be really helpful to know how many people to expect on the day, so if it’s something that you are interested in joining us for, then please email chair@bxs.org.uk

    In the meantime, thank you for your continued support for our school and I look forward to meeting with some of you over a coffee very soon.

    Yours faithfully,

    Richard Shackleton

    New School bank details

    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.

    Mobile phone use
    This week we have had a number of mobile phone related incidents. 
     
    Some of these are happening outside of school, on Whatsapp, Snapchat and other social media and gaming platforms that are nothing to do with BCS, except they involve our students.
     
    I encourage you as parents to help your children navigate these accounts - we can easily help them with school based platforms, but can't monitor what happens at home. There is lots of guidance for parents 
     
     
     
     
    We are reminding all students that their mobile phones should be stored in bags throughout the day, and students should not access them at all . If any member of staff sees a child with a mobile device between 8:55 and 3:30pm, it will be confiscated, stored in the school office, and logged on our student information. It may be that we ask you as parents to collect the phones.
    Uniform Reminder

    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.

    Building Project / Parking
    Unfortunately the building project is now delayed until the end of November. The weather has played a big hand in this delay. We will keep you updated.
     
    Thank you for being flexible with routes around school and respectful parking so as to keep good relations with our neighbours.

    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.

    Political actions on VAT policy

    From the ICS:

    All schools should be in touch with local politicians to make them aware of the impact of Labour’s tax proposals. We encourage you to focus on the impact on your parents, local state schooling, and your school operations. Stress whenever possible your school’s public benefit work, and existing links to the local community – as well as any specialised provision. While we still expect to see the tax proposals in the next Labour manifesto, our combined efforts are necessary to provide the best possible basis for conversations with Labour if they form the next government.

    The ISC and associations are working at a national level to engage with the Labour VAT/charitable tax policy – but schools also have a vital role to play as local advocates. We are speaking to political parties, education groups, and unions – making them aware of the unintended consequences of the policy, but also the hugely positive role independent schools play in UK education. We are also highlighting the diversity of independent schools, the specialisms schools provide, and myth-busting about the true nature of our sector.

    Flu vaccination info

    Please see below information regarding this year's flu campaign. Please use the link and code appropriate to your child's actual school year group.

    Secondary, year 7 - 11

    Dear parent,

    Your child is now eligible for their Flu vaccination, as part of the National Programme for Vaccination.

    Please click the following link to complete an E-Consent form for your child to receive this vaccination:

    www.bradfordschoolimmunisations.co.uk/forms/Flu

    And this is the School code you will need: BF107461

    The online consent form link will close 3 working days before your school’s session date.

    Primary, year 1 - 6

    Dear parent,

    Your child is now eligible for their Flu vaccination, as part of the National Programme for Vaccination.

    Please click the following link to complete an E-Consent form for your child to receive this vaccination:

    www.bradfordschoolimmunisations.co.uk/forms/Flu

    And this is the School code you will need: BF107461A

    The online consent form link will close 3 working days before your school’s session date.

    Chromebooks for School and home

    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.

    Admissions
    Enrolments are at a ten year high right now. It seems that in Bradford, Christian education and a desire for something different for families is growing.  Many classes are now full, 12 being our optimum year group size, and 24 our largest class. 
     
    We do have some spaces in Reception, Year 1, Year 2 and Year 7 but are now full elsewhere in school.
    Parent Prayers
    Parent Prayers
    Understanding EDSM & GCSE Grades

    Second use uniform

    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

    Parent WhatApp Group

    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

    Journeys of Hope exhibition at Bradford Cathedral

    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...

    Recent Policy Updates

    Next Week →

    Monday

    9 - 10:00: Visiting speaker EYFS

    Tuesday

    11:30 - 15:30: Y9/10 students studying English Literature visit Great Victory hotel (Inspector Calls)

    Wednesday

    19:00 - 21:00: Parents of Year 8 are invited to an interactive workshop about their child's Bar Mitvzvah year. This is a 'must come' event, the first of five throughout the year. Miss Hutcheson, Mrs Bullen and myself look forward to hosting you at school.

    Thursday

     

    Friday

    👇🏻Dates for your diary👇🏻

    • 27th - 29th - Parent Consultations: more info to follow
    • 29th November - Flu immunisations - form sent out via email and more info in Quick Look Notices above
    • 30th November - Staff PD - school closed to students
    • 6th December - Staff and Upper School Christmas lunch
    • 15th December - School Christmas Fayre, details to be announced soon
    • 19th December - EYFS & Primary Nativity afternoon and early evening performances. Ticket details to be announced in November.

    🍕Lunches🍲

    6th December - Christmas lunch for Staff & Upper School (Y9, 10, 11) order form and payment details sent to students via school email.

    Primary & Middle School lunch for 6th December - Hot dogs.

    A separate form will be sent out for ordering closer to the time.

    MIS latest version: v1.191

    ⭐️Stars & Students of the week⭐️

    Primary School

    Love

    Ophelia for settling in amazingly.
    Nina for doing some super reading and knowing her tricky words.

    Peace

    Eirik for amazing work on his english Here we are book.
    Imani for beautiful illustrations on her Here we are book.

    Kindness

    Aanav for amazing work in Spanish
    Jessica for fantastic work in Spanish
    Bronze Award
    Ethan

    Middle School

    Y5

    Leah for outstanding work in history every week

    Y6

    Marley for huge progress in History

    Y7

    Noah for being very polite when walking through the corridor, only student to stop and wait and not push past

    Y8

    Hailey for reading around lessons in her own time because she wants to improve her progress. Coming prepared with ideas to share in English. Great initiative Hailey.

    Upper School

    Y10

    Xin-Ran for consistent effort shown in English Literature.

    Y11

    Jake: kicked the ball and unintentionally hit a younger student. He apologised and then looked after the student, handling the situation with maturity and compassion.

    Autism Provision

    Kaya for growing in confidence and working independently.

    🎓Classroom News👨🏻‍🏫

    Students read a poem at the St James’ Remembrance Service last Sunday

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    Acorn Class visit to Leeds City Museum

    The students were there to explore Ancient Egypt Artifacts.

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    🔗Helpful Links📱

    🙌🏻Fundraising📈

    It's free to sign up to and start supporting us with Give as you Live. Send our unique campaign links to friends and family so they can support us for free too!

    We can win upto £1500 free if 5 new people signup to our Give as you Live campaign before the 17th December!

    Click to enlarge
    Click to enlarge
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    £15 raised so far!

    To say it's only been a short time we've been apart of the Stikins campaign, this is an incredible achievement. Please continue to engage with this campaign. Thank you!

    Headteacher's Message

    Our Mission

    To provide a holistic Christian education for all and to inspire discipleship.

    Our Vision

    To be a Christian community in which everyone grows in character, faith, knowledge, understanding and wisdom.

    This year our school improvement plan includes Christian community development - a big part of our vision for BCS. This week I have witnessed a Christian community at work.

    I want to thank the community for pulling together, for the extra prayers, thoughts, the emails, the staff running around collecting evidence, governors who rearranged scehdules, staff who were observed on days off, and for all the additional effort this week.
    Mrs Garcia showed me a picture of a Spanish human tower - it so reflects the feel of the week. God was placed at the centre, and the community worked hard to keep Him there. Staff, students, governors, parents and churches surrounded us and lifted us in prayer.
    Thanks all, we got through the week!

    Thank you for your continued support of Bradford Christian School

    Have a Blessed Weekend!