Dear Parents and Carers / Annwyl Rieni a Gwarchodwyr,

A rather chilly week nears its end, but I’m pleased to say that even though the frosty weather has curtailed some play times and lunchtimes this week, it certainly hasn’t stopped it being chocked full to bursting with activities. All the children loved the very Christmassy, snowy trip to the reindeer farm and the fantastic Junior shows on Thursday were a storming success. Foundation Learners ‘strut their stuff’ next week as we bring this, lengthy, term to a close.

North Hills Reindeer Farm

The children had a lovely, festive time at the reindeer farm on Wednesday. The weather could not have been more appropriate and it was a real treat to see the faces of the children when they were nose-to-nose with the reindeer. Their behaviour was, as you would expect, superb and a little bird has told me that we were the best-behaved school to visit. I’m not at all surprised, but very proud of all the children. Many thanks again to parents and carers far supporting the trip and to the Rhos St PTA for subsidising the cost. A trip to definitely repeat in future years.

Christmas Concerts
The Junior Christmas concerts were held on Thursday and all the children shone in both performances. Lovely singing, dancing and great acting skills on display, we are incredibly proud of all of the children for their hard work and dedication which showed through so clearly in their sterling performances. A huge thank you to Mrs. Davies and her brilliant Junior team for their hard work in preparing the children and organising everything so well, and to the fab Rhos St PTA for providing the refreshments. Tuesday 20th December is the turn of the Foundation Learners to perform for you all. We are all very excited to see, what I’m sure will be, a wonderful show. Doors open at 1:30pm for the matinee and at 5:00pm for the evening performance on Tuesday. Additional parking is available at Ruthin Football Club.

Roof Repairs
Despite the cold weather Pen y Bryn Joinery have been valiantly continuing with the repairs to the roof. They are intending to complete our works and remove the scaffolding before moving on to Ysgol Pen Barras. We will, fingers crossed, be returning in the spring term to a scaffolding-free school!

Universal Free School Meals – Yr. 1 Roll-Out
From the new Spring term 09/01/2023 onwards the Universal Primary Free School Meal offer will be extended to include Year 1 pupils i.e. all Reception and Year 1 children will be offered Universal Free School Meals. This is another important step in reaching the shared ambition of ensuring no child goes hungry while in school. All Reception and Year 1 pupils in Denbighshire schools will be asked on a daily basis whether or not they would like to access a school meal. They will be able to opt in or out without having to pre book and the meal will be provided free of charge. Further information on UPFSM is available on the Denbighshire website www.denbighshire.gov.uk/education. If you are eligible to receive Free School Meals because you receive a qualifying benefit, we recommend that you apply for Free School Meals as you will also be eligible for the school uniform and equipment grant. To find out more, including what the qualifying benefits are and how to apply, visit Denbighshire County Council’s free school meals page: https://www.denbighshire.gov.uk/en/education-and-schools/grants-and-funding/free-school-meals.aspx Please rest assured that if your child is currently in receipt of free school meals and/or any other associated benefits, these will not be affected.

Scarlet Fever / iGAS
Please can I request that school is notified if your child has received a diagnosis for Scarlet Fever or invasive group A Streptococcus (iGAS) as we have a duty to inform Public Health Wales of any confirmed cases. In order to minimise transmission within the school, I would further request that children who are in the process of being tested should not attend school until they have a negative test result or 24 hours after commencing antibiotic treatment. Many thanks for your support in this important matter.

Kick-It Sports
Kick-It Sports are offering a Christmas/New Year Sports session running at Rhos St on Tuesday 3rd of January 9:00am – 2:00pm, for children 4 – 12 years old. Please find attached a poster with the details for the session. You can book a place for your child on the course by following this link: https://bookwhen.com/kickitsports

Toy-Box Appeal
As we approach the end of this school term we are extremely mindful of the challenges faced by many families in these challenging difficult times. At this time of year staff at school occasionally receive very kind gifts from parents and carers. There is, of course, no expectation at all of this, but staff are extremely grateful for the generous gesture. This year school staff have requested that any parent or carer wishing to give a gift instead donate to the North Wales North Wales Superkids Toy Box Appeal –registered charity: 1159804. This appeal is looking for donations of new toys for disadvantaged families. Information can be found here about the campaign: https://www.northwalessuperkids.co.uk/toy-box-appeal Donations of new toys can be left at the Ruthin Co-op store. Many thanks.

Achievers
This week’s brilliant achievers are: All of the Reception class, Finley, Verity, all of Yr. 3, all of Yr. 4, all of Yr. 5 and, guess what, all of Yr. 6! Louie shared his Taekwondo certificate and Eva shared her Karate trophies. We were also treated to a lovely violin recital from Jessica.

Yours sincerely / Yn gywir,

Andrew Davis, Headteacher / Pennaeth