Welcome to Holystone Primary School. This brochure is intended to give parents an understanding of the way our school functions and the high standards that we endeavour to achieve. We believe our ethos is encapsulated by the children’s chosen school motto “Together we enjoy, discover and learn”.

In May 2010 we were visited by OFSTED and again judged to be an "Outstanding School” – this was our second successive outstanding OFSTED grade. The staff and governors are very proud of our achievements and we strive to continuously improve further. The quality of teaching and learning is consistently outstanding and the children in our school make excellent progress. We currently hold a range of awards that reflect the very high quality of curriculum and care we provide – Artsmark Gold, Basic Skills Award, Healthy School Award, Investor in People Award, Activemark and ICT Mark.

From a small First School housed in a Victorian building, the school has been considerably extended in recent years and now has a capacity for 420 children plus the Nursery. In January 2005 a new extension was built which is used as a classroom and also for our Steel Pan Orchestra. Three additional classrooms and a staff room have also recently been added as the school continues to grow. We currently have 14 classes throughout the school – 2 Reception classes can accommodate 60 children in total, with two classes in each year group beyond this from Year 1 to Year 6, again accommodating up to 60 children per year group.

The school grounds are extensive; there is a yard for Nursery, one for Reception & Key Stage 1, and another for Key Stage 2. In addition to this there is a large field which has a football pitch marked out. The outdoor space is an area which we will look to improve further over the coming year.

One of the school’s many great strengths is its staff who provide an interesting, varied and high quality curriculum. Our excellent teaching staff are supported by equally talented support staff who work with children, giving valuable support to teachers and children. We strive for very high standards in all that we do and provide support for those who need it. These high standards were confirmed by Ofsted in 2010 who stated “Holystone Primary School "is an outstanding school where every child does matter. Pupils flourish both academically and personally in this extremely caring and well organised environment" (the report is available on request or from www.ofsted.gov.uk). Beyond the regular curriculum, there are also a number of clubs and activities taking place regularly, these include; Football, Rugby, Tennis, Badminton, Choir, Gymnastics, ICT, Steel Pans, and Dance. In the Summer Term our older pupils participate in a residential trip. They spend a weekend at the Robinwood Outdoor Activity Centre in Alston. Year 6 pupils also have the opportunity to relive a Victorian Christmas at a residential in the Lake District. We believe in fun at Holystone, and we hold a number of "fun days" across the year, for example French or other cultural days, Science Day, May Day, Super Hero Day and an X Factor day..

Sport plays a very significant part in school life. As well as Sports Day there are numerous football and rugby matches as well as athletics and team games. Our children have taken part in the North East Children's Cancer Run for several years and this has now become an annual event. Music is equally important. The Holystone Choir is very successful and has been invited to sing at many prestigious venues including the Sage Gateshead and The O2 Arena in London. The Steel Pan orchestra also provides our children with excellent musical opportunities.

The school also has a strong link with Procter & Gamble. They support our annual Science Day.

The curriculum for children aged between 3 and 11 is organised into three "Key Stages". The Foundation Stage is Nursery and Reception, Key Stage 1 covering Years 1 & 2 and Key Stage 2 covering Years 3 to 6.

At the end of all key stages there are statutory tests, the results of which are given to parents. The key stage 2 tests are published nationally, 2001 was the first year for published results for our school. Further information about our results are available from the school office.

English
History
Mathematics
Geography
Science Art
Information & Communication Technology
Music
Design Technology
Physical Education
French

Additionally children are required to be taught Religious Education. We have programmes of study for each key stage and for each subject, which describe the type and range of performance pupils are expected to demonstrate at particular levels. As a school we decide the themes to be used to cover the programmes of study and the relevant attainment targets.

Whilst Religious Education is not part of the National Curriculum it is taught using the agreed syllabus produced by North Tyneside LEA. We aim to develop children’s knowledge and awareness, not only of themselves, but also of other people, the natural world and religious practices. It is the schools aim to develop the child's confidence in themselves and their abilities, to promote caring and sharing relationships with families and friends. We encourage caring for the environment throughout the seasons, and also enable children to take part in certain celebrations so that they can become aware of the customs of other countries or religions. The North Tyneside agreed syllabus provides guidelines for each age group in school and covers a variety of topics. We have regular visits from local community and religious leaders to lead collective worship and their visits are popular with the children. We have a theme for the assembly each week. Stories from children's literature and the Bible are used as part of assemblies. Prayers, hymns and songs are also incorporated. Parents may choose to withdraw their children from both Religious Education and the acts of worship if they wish. They would need to inform the Headteacher in writing of this.

This is taught across the school during PSHCE lessons or where questions arise often as part of Science lessons. The school nurse gives more detailed talks to the older children and is available for "drop in" sessions for the children to discuss any issues they wish to raise.

The children can be admitted after their third birthday, providing there is a place available. Most children attend a full year in the Nursery, starting in September of the year before they start Reception. Unfortunately, due to the popularity of our Nursery we are sometimes not able to allocate places to all those who apply. The criteria guidance for places is available from the school office. Our nursery provides an excellent start to children's education; it was highly praised in the last Ofsted inspection. Evidence suggests that children attending a nursery do well with their education in later years. To get the best for your child she / he should attend regularly, except of course during illness. We have a separate nursery booklet, which will give you more information. Parents are invited to visit the nursery prior to taking up a place and those on the waiting list will be contacted when a place becomes available. The morning session is from 8.35am to 11:35am, and the afternoon session is from 12.25pm until 3:25pm. To ensure the smooth running of the Nursery please ensure that your child arrives and leaves on time

As indicated above we see the parent's role as vital and building a partnership with you is essential. We offer many ways to help build good links between home and school:

• Workshops for parents and children in the days prior to starting
• A phased introduction in early days to ensures that children settle quickly.
• Regular newsletters which keep parents informed and give the key learning experiences for that week.
• Individual files, which record the children's achievements over their time in nursery. At the end of their time in nursery parents are free to buy the file at cost price should they wish to keep it.
• Parent evenings are offered in the autumn and spring terms, with a written report in the summer term.
• Open / fun days in school which parents are encouraged to attend.

Children start Reception the academic year in which they become five. This means that they must have had their 4th birthday on or before 31st August in order to start school in September. This requirement is laid down by central government and is one all schools must follow.

It is important that children have a happy start to their time in reception and we make a great effort to ensure that this is the case. Prior to children starting we try to arrange opportunities for them to meet the teacher they will be with in September. The first week in the Reception class is part-time; this helps children get used to school and prevents them becoming too tired. For those children who are finding settling into school life difficult we are happy to discuss extending this "staggered start". Parents are given more details of this nearer the time. From the second week children usually stay full-time. However if your child is finding full days or full weeks a problem please let us know as soon as possible.

The curriculum that your child receives in Nursery & Reception is laid down by the government and is called the "Early Years Foundation Stage". The curriculum provides a continuation of their education from nursery and aims to give them a fluid link between one stage and the next. The main basis of the Early Learning Goals is learning through play, exploration, experimentation and investigation. Children work through a range of steps to meet the early learning goals by the end of reception.

The school has a Parent Teacher Association which all parents are encouraged to join. Many different events take place and parents are invited to help. Any money raised is used to fund specific projects in school. These projects are selected by the PTA and make a very valuable contribution to school life and children education.

Teachers can be spoken to in the morning and they are situated either on the entry doors or in their classrooms from 8.45am – though we ask that only simple messages or queries are discussed prior to the school day. If you wish to have a longer conversation with your child's teacher this is the moment to arrange a time. Longer or more in-depth conversations can only take place at an arranged time, which would usually be at the end of the day. We do encourage parents to make contact with the teacher if they have concerns, in our view this is better than waiting and perhaps worrying at home. We find most concerns can be resolved very quickly and usually just require some exchange of information.

There are two Parents Evenings a year, usually in the week before half term and a written report is given out in the Summer Term. All teachers keep careful records about your child's progress and they are happy to discuss these with you at these meetings. The school sends home Information letters on a regular basis and a fortnightly newsletter. We are happy to email these to parents if they give us their email address. Additionally these newsletters are displayed on our web site www.holystoneprimaryschool.co.uk. The information letters are designed to tell parents about things that are happening in school. From time to time we also issue questionnaires with the intention of finding out parents views on a range of subjects. We appreciate the time taken to fill in such questionnaires; results are very valuable to the continuing development of the school.

Ensuring that each child achieves their potential is a very high priority for Holystone Primary. We believe that it is the right of every child to have access to a broad, balanced and differentiated curriculum regardless of gender, race, and educational ability. Special educational needs are identified and assessed in line with the Code of Practice issued by the Department of Education.

We aim for the early identification of needs so children can be given specific help as soon as possible. This can sometimes take place in the Nursery, or further up the school. Parents are encouraged to let the school know if they are worried about any area of their child's development; the evidence is overwhelming that the sooner the child is given extra help the better. There is also significant evidence to show that Nursery education makes a significant difference to children's achievements on entry to school.

Within the first seven weeks of starting our Reception class all children are assessed. Parents will be invited to talk to the teacher and get feedback about their individual child's baseline assessment. By the first half term in reception we will have identified those children who need some extra help and will start to give them appropriate support. This will be discussed with parents; the extra work will be largely in the form of language or reading games with the teacher, teaching assistant or another adult. Teaching Assistants work with children throughout the school in to raise standards in Literacy and Numeracy. If children have specific needs that cannot be met within the school, parents will be informed and help sought from outside agencies.

We have a strong focus on challenging and extending our more able children. Using a range of indicators, we identify children from each class as being Gifted and Talented.

If parents have concerns we encourage you to speak to school at the earliest opportunity. We are committed to achieving the very best for all of our pupils.

All children in school are given homework. We see homework as important for a number of reasons:

• Parents have an opportunity to work with their children and see how they are progressing.
• Children have the opportunity to further practise and develop their skills.
• Children have an opportunity to develop their study skills.

For the youngest children their homework is only intended to last for a few minutes a few times a week. By the time children enter Year 6 they will have homework most days with the expectation that this would amount to several hours a week. This is in line with Government recommendations. Homework may include:

• Reading
• Handwriting practice
• Games
• Research
• Mathematics
• Comprehension
• Writing
• Spelling

Some of the homework set will follow a theme across a half-term which may be closely related to the topics being delivered in class that half term.

It is important that parents help and encourage their children with this work and ensure that it is completed. We see significant differences both in attitude and in attainment from those children who regularly complete their homework. When children find homework difficult please help them with it but try not to do it for them! Our homework policy is available on request from the school office.

Children may enter school from 8.45am each day. If you need to see the teacher, the end of the day is best; however, teachers are available in their classrooms from 8.45am or you can give a message to the teacher on door duty who will pass it on. The teacher marks the register at 8.55am and children arriving after this time are marked in late. If children are late more than a few times a letter will be sent home to parents. It is very important that teachers are able to start the day promptly and that children are encouraged to be in school ready to work on time. It is parents' responsibility to ensure that this happens.

The children have a 15 minute playtime during the morning followed by a one-hour break at lunchtime. If the weather is suitable the Key Stage 1 children will go out for a ten-minute break in the afternoon, on a rainy day they will have a short break during which they can go to the toilet. The day finishes at 3:15 p.m. for Key Stage 1 children and at 3:20 pm for Key Stage 2. Parents are asked to wait in the yard outside their children's classroom when collecting their child at the end of the day. Key Stage 1 teachers will ensure that the person collecting the child is there before letting the child go. Key Stage 2 children are released into the yard but are told to return to the teacher if there is no one to collect them - unless they have permission to go home on their own.

We ask parents not to use the school car park as it becomes extremely congested. The only exception to this would be disabled drivers who should apply in writing to the Headteacher for a pass to use the school car park. Parking can be a problem in the vicinity of the school; this is true for most schools. Parents are asked to exercise consideration for local residents when parking and are specifically asked not to park across resident’s drives or on grass verges. Some children use buses to travel to and from school and parents are encouraged to travel with their children on these buses. Nexus provide a concessionary travel pass for children under the age of 11. Forms are available from Nexus. Whichever way children come to school it remains their parent’s responsibility to ensure that they get to school on time and behave on the way to and from school.

Playtime is very important to children and we make every effort to ensure that they are safe and happy. We have three yards and a school field. One of the yards is for the Nursery class and has many resources for them to play with. It is completely fenced and the children are not able to leave the yard except to return into the school building. There is also a yard for the Key Stage 1 children and another for the Key Stage 2 children. This very extensive play space allows children to play games that they choose with considerably reduced risk of bumping into older or younger pupils. We try to make space available for children to play football but they are not allowed to take over the yard. Leather balls are not allowed. When the weather is dry children are able to use the field. We also have a variety of toys available for children to play with including skipping ropes and bats and balls. Behaviour is generally very good in the yard with very few incidents.

Children are free to choose between school dinners and packed lunches. Meals are cooked on the premises and served in the hall of the old building. The meals are of a high quality and there is a choice for the children. Children who are having packed lunches also use this hall. Children are asked to choose to stay for either packed lunch or school dinners for a week at a time. The Headteacher regularly monitors behaviour during the lunchtime break both in the yard and in the dining hall, again very few incidents occur. We ask that parents try and provide a “Healthy Packed Lunch”. A suggestion would be Sandwiches, Raw vegetable e.g. carrot sticks , Yoghurt, Biscuit or piece of cake or fruit winder or cereal bar , Portion of fruit, Water or fruit juice to drink.

Dinner money should be paid on the first day of the week and is £9.00 for the week (£1.80 a day). Children stay for lunches for a full week at a time. We encourage parents to pay for longer periods where possible for example a half term or term, as this is generally simpler for everyone. If you are paying by cheque the cheque should be made payable to "North Tyneside Council". Lunch money should be placed in a green payment envelope and posted in the box on the wall of the bin bay. The box will only be open until 1p.m. each day. Spare envelopes are available in every classroom. Parent's who wish their child to have milk should send in £9 for the whole year. This payment should be placed in a blue envelope and put in the box with lunch money. This payment must be made in advance of each term. School staff are unable to handle money relating to dinners or milk, all payments should follow these procedures.

If your child is unwell and unable to attend school please telephone us on the morning of the first day they are absent – a voicemail facility is available to record absences, please leave a brief message stating child name, class and reason for absence. The school telephone number is 0191 200 7426. Absence is monitored and the parents of those children who are missing a lot of school will be contacted. If we do not have a note or a message from you we will contact you on the first day of absence. Failure to identify a reason for absence will result in the child being marked as an "unauthorised absence" and this will be shown on their report. This is a legal requirement.

If your child is unwell please ensure that they are fully fit before returning to school. The last reported year 2009/10 the schools attendance figures was 96%.

We ask parents, wherever possible, to avoid taking holidays during term-time as it causes disruption and children miss out on important aspects of their work. If you have to take holidays during term times the most we are allowed to authorise is ten days in one academic year. The Governors have agreed that leave will not be authorised when a child has an absence figure of more than 8%. We ask parents of Year two and Year six children to avoid taking any holidays during term-time, particularly the spring and summer terms.

A very important aspect of our effort to improve children's work, attitudes and behaviour is our positive reward system. When a child has worked well, tried hard or done some good work they are awarded a "Merit". This is a small gold sticker which goes on their sweatshirt. When they have enough Merits they are awarded a "Well Done Certificate", this is presented in assembly. As the year goes on children accrue more certificates and when they have five they will receive a "Golden Well Done". These are presented in a special assembly by a variety of important people: the Chair of Governors, The Director of Education, Declan Donnelly, Father Christmas and the Mayor have been invited in the past. Parents are invited to attend.

We aim to maintain a happy, safe and secure school where all adults and children are involved and valued and feel that they have an important part to play in school life. We base this on a positive approach to behaviour outlined above. There are sanctions for unacceptable behaviour and our policy distinguishes between minor offences and serious offences. Behaviour in the school is very good and is a very high priority for the school. In a recent statement the Governors said;" Good behaviour is at the heart of any good school". Bullying is not tolerated in the school. If you have concerns about behaviour you should contact your child's teacher immediately.

All year groups have 2 classes, this is referred to as "2 form entry". In all classes in Key Stage 2 we "set" which enables the teachers to focus more closely on the needs of the children and enable us to offer some specialist teaching. The maximum number of children in Key Stage 1 classes is 30. We have a number of Teaching Assistants who help out in all classes across the school

From time to time we ask parents for a "voluntary contribution" in order to enable an activity to take place. Given that getting children out into the community is a high priority for the school it is not possible for us to fund all of these trips without parental support. No child will be stopped from participating in an activity because of a lack of parental contribution but on some occasions events may have to be cancelled when there is insufficient support. Additionally the PTA helps to fund the school. Any parent who feels able to support PTA would be very welcome. Information is given in the Newsletters about PTA meetings and events. Extra-curricular activities such as clubs are not normally charged for, but from time to time the cost of resources, for example in cookery, may be asked for.

The safety of your child whilst in our care is, of course, our first concern. Children are well supervised at all times and we make every effort to ensure that our premises are safe. With young children it is very difficult to keep track of every accident or event. When a child reports an accident staff will listen and if they feel it is appropriate, ask a first aider to examine the child. Accidents may happen and we have qualified first aiders amongst the staff. When children have a significant accident (normally when there is an obvious bump or wound) it is recorded in the Accident Book and a note is sent home. In the event of more serious incidents parents are contacted and for this reason it is vital that emergency contact slips are kept up-to-date. As mentioned previously, for the safety of children, parents are asked not to use the school car park at any time during the school day except when collecting a child who is unwell and then you may use it for a short period. If parents notice any items that they feel may be unsafe please inform the school.

In order to ensure the safety of all children we do not store or administer medicines to children unless there is a specific medical reason to do so, for example, antibiotics to be taken 4 times a day. Most other medicines can be administered by parents before and after school and at bedtimes. However in the case of children who suffer from ongoing problems such as hay fever or asthma which may require medication to be stored and administered on the premises, we will be happy to help if we can. Please contact the school and fill in a 'medicines form' from the office. Note. Parents who have children with asthma must ensure that their children are able to use their inhalers themselves. It is also parent's responsibility to ensure that these are checked and cleaned regularly and kept in good working order. All inhalers should be clearly labelled with your child's name and class.

Children should not bring money, mobile phones or sweets to school. When it is children’s birthdays some parents wish to give a small gift to other children in the class, any sweets given in these circumstances are sent home with the children

Children are often photographed during activities and these photographs are used in displays around the school. At this stage the Governors are happy for parents to take photographs of performances in school for their family but they may not be published (e.g. put on a web site or in a newspaper) in ANY way.

We ask parents sign a permission slip to allow use of photos on school website and if we have press coverage. Whilst we hope all parents do this you have the right to choose not to have your child’s photos used for such purposes.

All children in our school wear school uniform. It is a grey skirt or trousers, a light blue polo shirt and a navy-blue sweatshirt, grey, black or white socks / tights and black shoes. The sweatshirts and polo shirts are available from our supplier Emblematic which is situated on the industrial estate opposite ASDA. They also supply our P E kit of navy-blue shorts, light blue T-shirt and black sand shoes. The trousers and skirts can be obtained from a variety of sources including ASDA. Year 5 & 6 pupils wear a tie, which is obtained from the school office or Emblematic. Parents are asked to mark all their children’s clothing as items can easily go missing.

The Governors have also introduced a dress code which asks parents to ensure that their children do not have hair which is coloured, patterned, shaved or dyed in any way. This would include colours outside the normal range, bleached or patterned hair.

For safety reasons we do not allow the wearing of jewellery and makeup, other than watches and items that have religious significance. If children have pierced ears they are allowed to wear small plain studs only and these must be removed for all P.E. activities. Children must be able to do this for themselves, as staff are not allowed to put in or take out earrings for children. If you wish to have your child's ears pierced please do so at the start of the summer holidays so earrings can be removed on their return to school. If this is not done children must be excluded from P. E.

Head lice are a problem in all schools and parents should check their child’s hair at least once a week. School health no longer carry out inspections and it is up to parents to be vigilant. If you need advice on how to deal with head lice your doctor will be able to help or you can contact the school nurse – Jane Cruddace, her number is available at the office and she holds regular drop-ins sessions. Additionally the school has a leaflet available on display in the foyer.

There may be occasions when you are unhappy or unsure about some aspect of school life. Our advice is always to talk to someone as soon as possible, as most issues can be resolved quickly and easily. Where ever possible speak to the person most directly involved, for instance if you are concerned about your child's reading talk to your child's teacher. The end of the school day is the best time for an extended discussion with teachers. If you are not satisfied with the outcome of your initial discussion with the teacher or member of staff please arrange a time to see the Headteacher. We would regard these as queries and not complaints. If you talk to a Governor they will normally pass the information onto the school to deal with. If after speaking to both the teacher / member of staff and the Headteacher you are still unhappy you are free to use the Complaints Procedure which is available from the school.

As a school we are proud of our good relationships between parents and staff. Parents have an important part to play in helping us with establish such good relations. We aim to treat parents with respect at all times and feel as staff we also deserve to be treated with respect.

In line with all schools, we do make parents aware that the school has a clear policy, which states that we will not tolerate parents being rude or harassing any staff in the school. You will see a notice on all classroom windows reminding parents of this. If necessary, schools have the legal power to remove a parent’s right to come onto school premises.

We do ask that parents are mindful of the amount of a teacher’s time they are taking. The staff of this school work extremely hard and their time is precious; whilst we will always try to listen to any concern, we do ask that parents try not to take up too much time.

There are a variety of leaflets available in the foyer as are copies of our last inspection report

An important part of school life is giving pupils further responsibilities as part of their development as good citizens. As soon as children start in our nursery we encourage them to take responsibility for their work, their possessions and for clearing up after themselves. By the time our pupils are in Year 5 or Year 6 they are ready to take on some jobs and responsibilities which make a significant contribution to the smooth running of the school. The school has a School Council, which is a small group of the older children who are elected by Key Stage 2 children. They meet on a regular basis and put forward ideas for school activities or changes to the school building. For example they suggested a non uniform day with the proceeds going to Comic Relief and asked for picnic tables which we then bought. Currently they are designing playground markings to try to encourage creative play.

Provision is available for before and after school care for children in the Nursery to Year 6 classes. The club, an independent organisation and run by a committee, operates from the mobile classrooms on the KS1 yard. It is a busy and successful club and was praised by OFSTED in 2010 for the standards achieved. Bookings are made directly to the club on 07946 514273. The club provides services over most holiday periods

The school makes considerable efforts to get children out into the community and to bring people from the community into school. We see this as an opportunity to develop children's awareness of the values and strengths of others who they live amongst. We have a link with Procter & Gamble and staff from there took part in our French Day and have been involved in teaching French in school. They have also led a project in which our children met with a product designer and then went on to design and print the packaging for their own "product". This was a fabulous opportunity, which would normally, only be available to much older children.

We are a growing and popular school. We currently have over 430 pupils on roll including our Nursery classes

You can download a copy of the School Brochure for 2011-2012 as a PDF Document (1,602Kb)