Weekly Parent BulletinWeek of Monday 10 March (Week A)

Dear Parents and Carers, 

A typically busy week at NFS, with a large number of our students now observing Ramadan. Importantly, I will take this opportunity to share with you how we are supporting our Muslim families that are observing Ramadan, during any after-school events in March and April. The following support has been arranged, following conversations with some of our fantastic sixth form student leaders that are currently observing Ramadan: 

• A reminder that you can come to our after-school events at a time that accommodates your needs. For example, our options evening is a drop-in event. Pop in any time between 5:30pm and 7pm. Our Year 9 Parent-Teacher Meetings event runs 4-7pm, with parents/carers able to book appointments when it suits their needs.
• Led by some of our sixth form student leaders that are observing Ramadan, we will have jugs of water and dates for Muslim families, if you are in our school building at the time that fast can be broken.
• Again led by some of our sixth form student leaders that are observing Ramadan, we will have a prayer room available for Muslim families, if you are in our building when it is time for you to observe prayer.

We are very grateful to our sixth form student leaders for this support and, yet again, it illustrates to our whole community the wonderful work that they do. 

I hope you find the following bulletin messages useful and have a great weekend. 

Yours faithfully, 

Dr J Simpson

• Tue 11 Mar: Year 9 Options Evening (5:30-7:00pm)
• Mon 17 Mar: Year 7 PSHE Workshop with 'Equation'
• Mon 17 Mar: Bronze DofE Parent Information Evening (4:30-5:30) with Mr Garnham
• Tue 18 Mar: Year 13 Geography Residential Field Visit (until Fri 21 Mar)
• Wed 19 Mar: Year 9 Parent-Teacher Meetings (4-7pm)
• Thu 20 Mar: Maths Challenges (Year 9 and 10) organised by Miss Wignall
• Tue 25 Mar: Year 11 Parent-Teacher Meetings (4-7pm)
• Thu 27 Mar: Year 7 Walesby Educational Visit (residential) with Miss Weston
• Thu 27 Mar: Year 11 SEND Drop-Ins
• Fri 28 Mar: Year 7 Walesby Educational Visit (residential) with Miss Weston
• Mon 31 Mar: Year 8 PSHE Workshop with 'Equation'
• Tue 1 Apr: Parent Internet Safety Workshop (4-5pm) with Mrs Gray
• Wed 2 April: Year 9 Options deadline
• Thu 3 April: Year 9 Ambition Educational Visit with Miss Cockayne
• Fri 4 April: SEND Coffee Drop In Morning

Young Carers:

It is Young Carers Action Day on Wednesday 12th March.  The theme for this year is 'Give me a Break' which focuses on rest and respite for young carers. If your child is identified as a Young Carer then there will be lots of activies that they have access to.  If you think your child or another child may be a young carer due to the following:

Young carers take up support roles such as:  

• Cooking for the family. 
• Cleaning the house. 
• Doing the laundry and other household chores. 
• Getting someone dressed in the morning or ready for bed. 
• Feeding family members. 
• Looking after siblings – for example, by taking them to school, helping with homework or playing with them. 
• Collecting and giving medications. 
• Managing family finances. 
• Making phone calls to GPs and other professionals.
• Filling out forms and applications. 
• Providing a listening ear.  
• Helping to keep everyone safe.  

A young carer may not do all these activities, and a child doing some of these things will not always be a young carer. Many children will take on chores as an everyday part of family life, which can support learning and independence, but working beyond this may mean a child is a young carer. 

If you would like to discuss this further please contact Mrs Gray or Miss Marks to see what support we can provide you and your family. 

Attendance focus:

Our current attendance for the whole school is 95% which places us in the top 5% of schools in Nottingham.  Attending everyday is crucial as it allows children to not miss out on learning opportunities.  A key feature of our attendance conversations with students and parents is what does a child's percentage actually mean in terms of days of absence and we also look at the number of times a child has been absent since September.  We have provided you with your child's sessions absence data but what we would really like you to look at how many times they have been absent over the academic year.  

We share with students that attendance conversations will stay with them for their working life as companies will have return to work meetings when colleagues have been absent.  In addition, the number of absences will also be discussed over a 12 month period.  Please can you reiterate these conversations at home.

Below is a table which indicates the percentage attendance and how many days absence since September:

 

If you would like to discuss your child's attendance then please contact their tutor or Head of Year to see how we can support. 

Huge congratulations to the PD Dance Team who reached the Regional Finals of the Great Big Dance-Off, held at the Albert Hall, Nottingham. The team danced with real heart and worked their socks off to learn and perform a very polished dance. This year, our run ends at the Regionals, but what an incredible achievement and a great experience for all involved.

Miss K Singleton (Head of PE) 

We are incredibly proud of our U15 Girls’ Football Team, who have made history as the most successful football team in NFS history! Their remarkable journey in the National Cup saw them reach the quarter-finals—an achievement beyond all expectations.

After a first-round bye, the team delivered outstanding performances, securing victories against Stamford Welland Academy, Charnwood College Loughborough, and Princethorpe College Rugby. Their incredible run came to an end in a hard-fought quarter-final against Reach Free School Watford.

Though their journey ended there, their dedication, teamwork, and passion have set a new standard for school football. As a department and a school, we could not be prouder of what they have accomplished. Congratulations to all the players—your hard work has paid off!

#NFSFootball #MakingHistory #Proud

Mr J Goddard (Teacher of PE)