Wishing all the families, friends and members of our school community a great Christmas and a Happy 2017

Dear Parents and Carers,

The final newsletter of 2016! It’s always a good time to reflect on all that we continue to achieve and our

targets for next year. Just within the past few months I can think of so much to be proud of; the arrival of

our new Year 5s, Focus Days, Osmington Bay, theatre and pantomime trips, open evening, countless

charity fundraising events to name but a few of our achievements over the Autumn Term.

Last week we took over 250 pupils (in five coaches!) to Yeovil for the ‘Peter Pan’ Pantomime. This is the

second year we’ve done this and, again, the excellent conduct of your children made this a really fantastic

experience. The show was great, however, for the second consecutive year, we were made to feel a little

sorry for Mr Boyland who again was ‘butt of the jokes’ for some of the cast!

As I write this newsletter, children next door are rehearsing for the Christmas Show on Thursday evening.

Schools are always special places to be at this time of year and I am privileged to be the Headteacher of a

school that has young people that have such a wonderful sense of fun and enthusiasm but also know

when the time is to stop.

Finally, as we come towards the end of another calendar year, can I take the opportunity to, once again,

thank everybody for the support they give the school. Swanmead has had another successful year and we

are all very proud of our achievements. One thing that is always consistent, and has been crucial towards

our prosperous year, is the backing of the school’s parent community. Through all the challenges, it is

always made easier knowing that you continue to back me and my colleagues in how we try to provide

the best for our young people.

Wishing you all a Happy Christmas and I look forward to writing to you again in 2017. A reminder that we

return to school on Tuesday 3rd January 2017.

Mark Walker Headteacher

Telephone: 01460 52431 Facsimile : 01460 55305 e-mail: Swanmead@educ.somerset.gov.uk Web Address: www.swanmeadschool.co.uk

Parents’ Newsletter – Autumn Term 1.6 Friday 16th December 2016

Swanmead Community School Ditton Street Ilminster Somerset TA19 0BL Headteacher: Mr Mark Walker

The Swanmead ‘Festive’ Pen

Christmas at The Minster

From acting, musical performances and singing, our Year 5s did a terrific job hosting the event yesterday

at The Minster. Many thanks to the parents that came to join us for our annual Christmas service. Always

good to have so many of you join us for that special event and we are, as ever, very grateful to The Rev

Nigel Done for allowing us to celebrate Christmas in the magnificent Minster building.

Christmas Jumper Day

Thank you to parents who helped their children support our ‘Christmas Jumper Day’ today. Many of our

staff and pupils swapped sweatshirts and cardigans for Christmas jumpers in order to raise money for

‘Save the Children’. Children brought in contributions from their piggy banks and we will be sending off a

cheque to the charity ‘Text Santa’. Some dodgy jumpers on show but well worth it!

Minster Christmas Tree Festival

We’re all really proud of Freya Hannant-Lewis, Millieanne Higgins,

Ryan Larcombe, Kodie Bennett and Henrietta Gullidge (not pictured)

who have been our school ambassadors for supporting the annual

Christmas Tree Festival up at the Minster Church. With help from Mrs

Arnold, the children designed and decorated the Swanmead tree. The

team also sold raffle tickets to pupils and staff during breaktimes.

Following the festival and raffle the children managed to raise £38.73

for Secret World in Highbridge. This is a specialist rescue, rehabilitate

and release centre for injured animals. Thank you Freya, Millieanne,

Ryan, Kodie and Henrietta for representing the school so well and all

your hard work on this.

Recognition of Excellence

Recognition of Effort

Loren Wilkinson – Science Charlotte Wellman – Science

Mimi Ward – Science Emily Truong – Science

Charlotte O’Neill – Science Holly Lewis – Science Evelyn Lee – Science

Loren Wilkinson – Maths Evie Lee – Maths

Mimi Ward – Maths Emily Truong – Maths Holly Lewis – Maths Leo Rich – Maths

Ben Hickman – Maths Alice Gibbins – Maths Joe Sainsbury - Maths

Jamie Winchester-Hine – Science William Wright – Science

Cameron Walters – Science Liam Small – Science Sam Phillips – Science Lily Phillips – Science

Jennifer Pearson – Science Charlie Lefeuvre – Science

Joshua Lamb – Science Poppy-May Howlett-Turner - Science

Sophie England – Science Jackson Dabanka – Science

Molly Conway – Science Aurora Connett – Science

Jamie Winchester-Hine – Maths Jackson Dabanka – Maths Loren Wilkinson – Maths

Amelia Francis – Maths Nyah O’Nions – Maths

Harry Thompson – Maths Rebecca England – Maths James Howlett – Maths Lachlan Rice – Maths

Luke Theobald – Maths Ollie Upshall – Maths Sofia Vrabie – Maths

Isabella Watts – Maths Jemma Arnold – Maths Hannah Horner – Maths Phoebe Lomas – Maths

Marcus Freeman – Maths Charlotte O’Neill – Maths

Kelsey Paul – Maths Noah Tolman – Maths

Aurora Connett – Maths Molly Conway – Maths

Josh Lamb – Maths Evie Lee – Maths

Mimi Ward – Maths William Wright – Maths

Ellie Ash – Maths Keeley Brown – Maths Megan Cornish – Maths Ben Hickman – Maths Alfie Nippard – Maths Shayla Male – Maths

Accelerated Reader Certificates Platinum Award

Max Jaffé Archie O’Neill Nancy Pattisson Caitlin Parsons

Gold Award Annie Ashdown Aurora Connett Max Jaffé Hattie Luffman Kieran Mackay Archie O’Neill Nancy Pattisson

Sam Phillips Emily Truong Jasper Clements Frankie King

Silver Award Annie Ashdown Joseph Baker Noah Baker Katherine Bolland Anya Briggs Jasper Clements

Aurora Connett George Conway Judah Cooke Max Jaffé Frankie King George Lewis Hattie Luffman

Kieran Mackay Archie O’Neill Charlotte O’Neill Caitlin Parsons Nancy Pattisson Sam Phillips Gracie Plant Connor Swain Emily Truong Leyla Tunç Joseph Sainsbury Caelan Urquhart

Bronze Award Annie Ashdown Joseph Baker Noah Baker Aaron Biscoe Katherine Bolland Anya Briggs

Hugo Clemas-Turner Jasper Clements Harley Collins Aurora Connett George Conway Molly Conway

Judah Cooke Sophie Dowling Isabel Fowler Rhianna Gater Bethany Gillard Flora Godfrey Martha Godfrey Brynley Griffiths Freya Hannant-Lewis Molly Harris Sydney Ingram Max Jaffé

Frankie King Lexi Knowles Charlie Lefeuvre George R Lewis Holly Lewis Robert Lock Hattie Luffman William Lune Kieran Mackay Belle Miller Laura Miller Kaito Nakayama Archie O’Neill

Charlotte O’Neill Caitlin Parsons Nina Pas Nancy Pattisson Jennifer Pearson Lily Phillips Sam Phillips

Gracie Plant William Purton Harrison Reeve Joseph Sainsbury Nikola Saladiak Oliwer Saladiak Heulwen Simpson Liam Small Connor Swain Angel Taylor Star Taylor Keira Timson Emily Truong

Leyla Tunç Aidan Upshall Caelan Urquhart Bella Viggers Elizabeth Webb Lewis Cotterrell Marcus Freeman Rachel Locke Emma Spooner

Luke Theobald Kaitlynn Thomas-Day Charlotte Wellman

Numeracy Ninjas

Numeracy Ninjas – Grand Master – Crayons Prize (15 x Black Belts)

Mimi Ward

Numeracy Ninjas – Grand Master – Touch Pen Prize (12 x Black Belts) Joshua Key

Numeracy Ninjas – Grand Master – Ruler Prize (9 x Black Belts) Kieran Mackay

Numeracy Ninjas – Grand Master – Pencil Prize (6 x Black Belts)

Lily Broom Charlie Poole Molly Conway

Numeracy Ninjas – Grand Master (3 x Black Belts) Jackson Dabanka Loren Wilkinson Emily Truong Sam Phillips

Frankie King Thea Henderson Bethany Gillard

Numeracy Ninjas – Black Belt

Sebastian Miller Frankie King Harrison Kelly Lily Wheeler

Isabelle Lawrence Owen Charles Lily De’Ath Max Jaffé Hattie Luffman Leyla Tunç Drew White

Christmas Dinner

Hats off to our caterers in the kitchen for providing us with Christmas dinner for almost 200

hungry Swanmead people on Wednesday.

Singing at Muchelney House and the Christmas Concert

Pupils from all year groups turned up in force to Muchelney House to entertain the

town’s senior citizens. A variety show of singing, pantomime and music was on the

menu for the Muchelney residents and they appeared to certainly enjoy themselves!

Christmas Concert

The school community enjoyed

the ever popular Christmas

Show last night. Some tear-

jerking performances, beautiful

singing and comedy moments

sent the Swanmead community

home feeling far more

Christmassy than when they

arrived!

Sports News

Girls Hockey

The term has seen really positive attendance at hockey club for our Year 7 and 8 children. It is very

encouraging to see the girl’s improvements and great to hear that some of them are joining local hockey

clubs to continue to develop their skills and ability.

Results;

Mixed Hockey (Yr 7/8 teams)

Holyrood

Lost 7-3

Won 7-4

Maiden Beech

Year 7 won 4-1

Year 8 won 4-1

KS2 Hockey

It was great to see our Year 5 and 6 children in action a

couple of weeks ago at the Chard Area Hockey Festival at

Holyrood Academy. The results didn’t quite go in the favour

of our Swanmead hockey juniors but all enjoyed the

experience (some for the first time) to pull on the Swanmead

jersey and represent their school so well. Pictured are the

team preparing for action with Mr Lees.

Girls Cricket

Over the course of the term Swanmead have been part of the ‘chance to shine' cricket programme that

encourages girls to participate in cricket. Since September, we have had Andrew Skidmore from the Somerset

County Cricket Club come in once a week to help run a cricket club. We have entered a couple of Year 5/6

and Year 7/8 tournaments and are looking forward to our first friendly for the Year 7/8 girls in January.

Upcoming Sports Fixtures for early 2017

Wednesday 4th January

3.15 p.m. - 4.45 p.m. Yr 7/8 Girls’ Indoor Cricket at Holyrood Academy.

Monday 30th January

3.15 p.m. Yr 5/6 Cross-Country at Kings College, Taunton.

Thursday 2nd February

Girls’ Indoor Cricket Yr 7/8 - 'chance to shine tournament' at

Hazlegrove School.

Games start at 3.30 p.m. - back to school for approx. 6.30 p.m.

Year 8 Wind Turbine Workshops

Supported by students from the University of West of England, Year 8 pupils worked to design and build

simple wind turbine blade systems. All designs were tested in class to see who could light up an LED, and

whether anyone could charge a mobile phone with their turbine. Forces, angles and material properties were

central to the design process, in a hands-on exploration of physics and engineering.

Year 6 Cardiff Experience 2017 Three-day residential trip from Monday 6th – Wednesday 8th February 2017

Parents’ Meeting

Wednesday 25th January – 5.30 p.m. – School Hall This meeting has been arranged to go through the details of the trip.

All are welcome and encouraged to attend.

Wednesday, 11th January 4 p.m. – 7 p.m. Year 6 Parents’ Evening

Thursday, 2nd February 4 p.m. – 7 p.m. Year 7 Parents’ Evening

Thursday, 9th March 4 p.m. – 7 p.m. Year 8 Parents’ Evening

Wednesday, 22nd March 4 p.m. – 7 p.m. Year 5 Parents’ Evening

Parents’ Evening Dates

Please make a note of the Parents Evenings taking place in the Spring Term

A Note from Ilminster Warehouse

Due to a series of thefts, the Ilminster Warehouse gates will be locked outside of opening hours - generally

8.30 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. This is going to start in the very near future.

Parish News - St Mary’s Ilminster & St Mary’s Whitelackington

Our community friends wish to promote the following Christmas events;

Angel Wing Craft Session

On Wednesday 21st December we will be hosting a community creativity

workshop in the Minster Rooms between 11 – 1pm. Please come along and

make your angel wings ready for our Christmas Eve crib service and help us

to make some beautiful decorations for the church. This FREE craft event is

open to everyone in the Ilminster community. Snacks and drinks will be

provided. For more information, please contact Tracey Hallett on 07854 489753.

‘Fear Not’

The Minster Church would like to invite as many people as possible to join us on Christmas Eve for our Crib

Service at 5.30pm - it would be wonderful if both children AND adults alike were to wear white or come

dressed as angels to help us with this year’s theme – ‘Fear Not’.

Diary Dates

Christmas Holiday – Monday, 19th December 2016 – Monday, 2nd January 2017

JANUARY 2nd Monday Bank Holiday 3rd Tuesday First day back of the new term 10th Tuesday 6.45 p.m. SCOFF Meeting – Room 5 11th Wednesday 4 p.m. – 7 p.m. Year 6 Parents’ Evening 25th Wednesday 6.15 p.m. Rotary Club Youth Speaks Competition 26th Thursday 5.30 p.m. Meeting of The Governing Body – Room 5 FEBRUARY 2nd Thursday 4 p.m. – 7 p.m. Year 7 Parents’ Evening 3rd Friday 7.00 p.m. SCOFF Quiz – Hall 6th Monday Year 6 – Cardiff Trip 7th Tuesday Year 6 – Cardiff Trip 8th Wednesday Year 6 – Cardiff Trip 10th Friday INSET

Half Term – Monday 13th February 2017 – Friday, 17th February 2017

Triple P Parenting Group

This ‘Positive Parenting Programme’ is one of the only evidence-based parenting programmes available, with over 25 years of proven

clinical research to back it up.

A free 6 week course for parents & carers

Dates: February 22nd, March 1st, 8th, 15th, 22nd & 29th

Time: 9.30a.m. – 12.noon

Venue: Wadham School Community Lounge,

Crewkerne

For more information on this course and to book your place,

please contact Parent & Family Support Advisers, Lesley

Cable on 07825 054 695

or Jane Czerniak on 07818 580 632

A parent’s comment: “This course has been so valuable in helping me to

rebuild a relationship with my children and for supporting me to parent

in a confident, calm way”