Dear parents and guardians,
I hope that you have received Mr Notman’s welcome letter and, as we near our first full week back at school, I would now like to formally welcome you to the 2020-21 academic year at Stover Preparatory School.
It has been wonderful to have the children back in school again after such a turbulent Summer term. They have settled back into school life amazingly well and the way they have adapted to the new procedures and operating structure has been nothing short of remarkable. These have included sanitizing and washing of hands much more regularly, altered classroom layouts and routines, their separate corridors and washrooms, new play areas and enjoying their lunch in Turkey Hall! I am very proud of them as I am sure you are too.
Many thanks to all of you for embracing the new drop off and pick up guidelines. You will note that we have installed new pedestrian crossings for the children, please can you be mindful of these when driving around the site as well as not parking on them when dropping off or picking up. Recent changes to government guidelines, the rule of 6, also means that it is not possible to mingle as parents after drop off and at pick up, please also be mindful of social distancing at these times. If you are unsure of any of the recently introduced changed school operations, then please do contact us.
We are fortunate to be welcoming many new children to the Nursery and Prep School this term and I am certain that all of the new pupils, and parents, will feel very much at home in the near future. I personally look forward to getting to know you all better as the term progresses. New staff have joined us, with Mrs Aslett in Year 2, covering Mrs Wilson, and I would like to echo Mr Notman’s best wishes for Mrs Wilson and her growing family at this exciting time, and Mrs Cooke will be supporting pupils across Reception – Year 2 this year, as well as continuing her wonderful work in Nursery.
As usual, and perhaps even more so during these times, we will be making best use of our wonderful Stover site by being outdoors, this will include learning in our outdoor classroom and across the grounds, taking part in a wide range of sports and activities and making best use of our Forest School. Consequently, please can you make sure the children bring their (named) waterproofs, wellingtons and coats with them to school. We have been very lucky with the weather so far, but I always fear that some rain is just around the corner.
It has been great seeing how many pupils have still been keen to take up the opportunity to join an after-school club in their respective school bubbles. We very much appreciate that plans can change and, therefore, please can I ask that if your is child signed up to attend a club, but will not be attending, that you contact Mrs Martin in order that she can inform the relevant member of staff. Please also contact Mrs Martin on 01626 354505 should your child not be travelling home on the bus that they usually travel on.
In order that we have given the pupils enough time to settle, we will be arranging the Stover Prep School Parent Teacher Consultations on Monday 28th and Tuesday 29th September between 4:00-7:00 p.m. These will take place after school and into the early evening, providing an early opportunity for you to virtually meet with your child’s class teacher to discuss how your children have settled in to this new academic year. Sign-up sheets and further information will be distributed over the next 2 weeks. We will continue to work in partnership with you as families, but, unfortunately, the vast majority of this will need to be conducted virtually until guidelines enable us to do things differently.
In this letter, I would normally include multiple key dates for your diaries, including parent events, fixtures and school events such as Harvest festival, Nativity, Carols in the Courtyard and the wonderful Carol Service. Unfortunately, due to the current pandemic, the vast majority of these events will be unable to take place in their former guise. Where possible, we will supplement these events for an online version and we will contact you in advance when these are planned.
Should you have any queries, as the terms continues, then please do contact the class teachers directly and if you would like to discuss anything with myself then please email me and or make an appointment with Mrs Martin, I am very keen and happy to meet with you all.
We will of course be in contact should government guidelines alter in the future and as and when they have an impact on the running of the school. Many thanks for your ongoing support.
I wish you all a very pleasant, safe and enjoyable Autumn term.
Kind regards
Ben Noble
Head of Stover Preparatory School
