The School Day

All Foundation Stage (Nursery and Reception) and Key Stage 1 children must be brought to school and collected by a responsible adult.

Nursery

Morning Session:    8:45am – 11:50am   Afternoon Session: 12:10pm – 3:10pm

Reception and Key Stage One 

Morning Session:    8:45am – 12pm   Afternoon Session: 1pm – 3:15pm

Key Stage Two

Morning Session:    8:45am – 12pm   Afternoon Session: 1pm – 3:20pm

Lateness / Absences

School starts at 8:45am. If your child arrives after the register is taken by their teacher, they will be marked as late in the register. Mrs Schofield monitors our registers on a monthly basis, and will follow up any frequent lates and absences, resulting in referral to the Inclusion Officer ultimately resulting in possible fines. If your child is poorly, please telephone the school office and let us know. If we have not heard from you by 10:00am the office staff will telephone you to ensure your child’s safety. Punctuality and regular attendance are important if your child is to make progress and develop friendships.  

Uniform

At Griffin Park we pride ourselves on the smart appearance of the children. We have a lovely, easy-to-wear uniform, which is available from Whittakers Schoolwear (Blackburn) at a fair price. 

Sweatshirt / cardigan - burgundy

Skirt  - burgundy tartan

Trousers / shorts -grey

Shirt / polo shirt - white

Black school shoes are to be worn. Boots can be worn in winter months for outdoors yet children must change into pumps or school shoes inside school.

 In the summer, girls may wear an alternative uniform of a striped or gingham red/white dress.

We expect all children to be dressed appropriately and to be clean and neat in appearance. Extreme hairstyles are not appropriate for school. Shoes should be suitable for the active times the children have in the playground (i.e. NOT with a high heel).

PE Kit

T-shirt - white

Shorts - black

Pumps

Trainers for Games

Outdoor PE kits 

Jewellery

Children are not allowed to wear jewellery at school.

The exceptions to this are a wristwatch and one pair of stud earrings which must be removed by the child during a Physical Education lesson, and kept in a safe place by them.

In the interests of health and safety, we strongly recommend that children do not wear any jewellery at all in school.

Additionally, we insist that children do not get their ears pierced during the school year – please do this at the beginning of the Summer holidays so that they can be removed for PE lessons in time for the start of the new term.

Being Healthy

Playtime Snacks

Children are encouraged to choose healthy playtime snacks. Younger children are provided with fruit at break, whilst the school kitchen provides snacks for junior children such as fruit.

Please do not send chocolate or sweets into school.

Lunchtimes

Children can stay for a school lunch and have a choice of meal; there are always salads available as well as nutritious hot meals, for your child to choose from. Parents who receive certain support payments / benefits may be entitled to free school lunches for their children and need to speak to the Education Department about registering for this. Children in Key Stage 1 are provided with school lunches. Children may also bring a healthy, balanced packed lunch.

School Nurse

We have a school health adviser who carries out routine checks for hearing and eyesight, and is available for advice on a range of matters throughout your child’s school career. Parents / carers are always informed and asked to sign a permission slip to allow this to happen. Parents are always invited to attend. Dental inspections also take place regularly.

Medical

Illness

When your child is ill please do not send them to school. It is important that you telephone school to let us know about the absence on the first day as soon as possible in the morning. If we have not heard from you we will need to telephone you, to ensure the safety of your children at all times. On your child’s return to school please send a letter explaining the reason for their absence. It is very important that we are able to contact you during the school day in case your child becomes ill or has an accident. Please make sure you tell us if the phone numbers where you live or work change. If hospital treatment is necessary doctors will not give treatment without parents/carers permission.

It is really important we have emergency contact numbers for you, so please ensure you always update us on changes in telephone numbers.

Medicines

If your child needs to take medicine, tablets, apply cream or drops, whilst at school you must fill in a form from the office to allow the teachers to do this. If it is an ongoing complaint a medical care plan will need to be completed alongside the School Nurse, the class teacher and our SENCo, Mrs Tones.

School - Home Communication

Parent/carers evenings

These take place regularly over the course of the year.

In Autumn and Spring terms, you will find out how your child/ren is getting on at school in a more formal discussion with their teacher(s), where you can see and contribute to the targets being set for your child/ren.

In the Summer term, after receiving your child/ren’s annual school report, there is a drop-in parents’ evening where teachers will be available after school for any discussions.

School reports

A full report is distributed once a year in the summer term, which gives your child's levels and their current targets.

Other meetings with staff

Our teachers are always pleased to meet parents and carers, however they are busy people, so be sure of getting the time that you need it is best to make an appointment with the class teacher. Unless it is an emergency, if you need to see Mrs Clayton-Young, please make an appointment first to make sure she is available by calling in or telephoning the school office.

Home-School Agreement

Parents and carers of new children, as well and the children and their teacher sign a Home-School Agreement, which clearly sets out what we can expect from one another.

Homework

At Griffin Park, we want homework to be meaningful and enjoyable. Through Key Stage 1 and 2, children are given spellings and maths facts to learn along with a variety of tasks that the Class teacher may send home to enhance your child's learning. Whilst some tasks can be completed independently, we expect a parent or carer to assist their child when necessary. From Year 1 to Year 6 children bring home a reflective journal as homework - tasks are set and your child can be as creative as they like. Homework remains an optional task for children at Griffin Park Primary School.

School Fund

We ask for donations from parents on a weekly basis of 50p which goes into our school fund. This helps to pay for many of the more exciting opportunities we give to our children. We would be very grateful if you could help us by supporting this tradition.

School Rules

We have school golden rules which everyone is school is expected to follow. Each class with their teacher then decides on their class rules.  

Mobile phones are NOT allowed at school.  If a child brings their phone into school by accident then they must give it to the school office for safe keeping until the end of the day. 

School Council

We have a school council made up of children from each year group who meet to give their views and ideas to support the running of the school. We have elections each year to elect the members.