Coldingham Primary School, Coldingham, Berwickshire, TD14 5NS              Headteacher :- Mrs L Sanders   tel 01890 771241
Email:-  LSanders@scotborders.gsx.gov.uk

COLDINGHAM PRIMARY SCHOOL HANDBOOK

2009

Dear Parent/Carer

I am pleased to welcome you and your child to Coldingham Primary School. I hope your Partnership with the school, will be a happy and satisfying one, enabling us to work together to ensure the very best education for your child.

This handbook provides important information about the school. Please feel free to arrange a visit. We will be pleased to show you around and answer any questions you may have.

Together with all staff members, I endeavour to ensure that our school is very much at the heart of the Community and that we do everything possible to make your child’s time here a worthwhile, enjoyable and rewarding experience.

On behalf of all the staff we look forward to welcoming you personally to our school.

Yours sincerely

 Louise Sanders                                                                                    

Headteacher

Coldingham Primary School

Telephone Number:    018907 71241

 

Fax. Number:              018907 71241

 

E.Mail:                         lsanders@scotborders.gov.uk

 

School Website:                     www.coldingham.scotborders.sch.uk

 

 

e-mail:                         lsanders@scotborders.gov.uk

 School Roll:                             55 plus 16 Nursery at Nov 2009

 No of Classes:                        4 – Nursery – Primary 7

 Stages Covered:                     Nursery – Primary 7

 In August 2009 Coldingham Primary School became a partner school with Cockburnspath Primary School where they share their Headteacher. As partner schools there are a number of benefits. There are opportunities for staff to work together to share expertise, the schools can share resources and the children to do different activities together. For more information on Shared Headships please ask for the SBC leaflet.

 We aim to provide leadership and management which

 ·         promotes the highest possible standards of achievement.

·         is committed to, and enthusiastic about whole school community health promotion.

·         demonstrates good interpersonal skills and is marked by a willingness to listen actively and to value the ideas and contributions of others.

·         is marked by courtesy, patience and demonstrates  respect for others.

·         works well with partners out with the school, knowing when to take the initiative and when to take a contributors’ supportive role.

All Scottish Borders Council schools and their staff are required to follow the Scottish Borders Child Protection Committee’s Inter-agency child protection guidelines and procedures.

Useful websites providing information on dealing with child protection issues for children, young people and their parents and carers are:

www.infoscotland.com/childprotection and www.childline.org.uk .  The sites also provide advice on what steps you should take if you have concerns on a child protection issue.

 The curriculum is continually developing and evolving to meet the needs of a fast changing society. All schools in Scotland follow a Curriculum for Excellence. It covers the following main curriculum areas of:

¨       Language

¨       Maths

¨       Science

¨       Social Studies

¨       Technologies

¨       Expressive Arts

¨       Religious and Moral Education

¨       Health & Wellbeing

 We are committed to keeping parents/carers informed and up to date by providing opportunities for talks and information sessions throughout the year.

 Assessment is the term used to describe the process of evaluating a child’s progress.  We are developing formative assessment at Coldingham Primary School.  This is assessment which directly affects the learning and teaching that takes place.  To this end we are involving our pupils in sharing what is to be learned.  We are involving pupils in self and peer evaluation and we provide pupils with meaningful feedback about how to improve and their next steps in learning.

 This session we are also developing learning logs which involve children assessing and recording their own progress and working with their teacher to move forward in their learning.

 Currently National Testing, along with class and group tests, is part of our summative assessment programme.  Learning Support also carry out screening of all pupils each year in reading and spelling.

 Your child will learn through a variety of different methods either as part of a class, group or as an individual. Increasingly there will be an opportunity for children to investigate, solve problems, to collaborate in groups and to work independently on tasks set by the teacher taking an increased responsibility for their own learning. Much of your child’s learning will be made more meaningful through planned topics, which link the curricular areas.  

 The language curriculum consists of 4 inter-related areas:

 Listening and Talking
Children learn to develop their language skills and thinking processes through listening and talking. We help them to improve these skills through a variety of collaborative activities, e.g. stories, drama and discussion.

 Reading
Reading begins in the nursery where children are introduced to a wide variety of stories, poems and picture books and progress through our structured reading programme in the early years of primary school. As children become more independent in reading they progress through the study of novels and information books.

 At all stages our aim is that children develop a love of books and read for enjoyment. This is encouraged by the provision of attractive school and class libraries as well as the opportunity to discuss and share books both at school and at home.

Writing
Writing grows from early drawing and painting where children are encouraged to communicate their ideas. As they learn to form letters they are taught how to use our language in writing for a variety of different reasons. Children are shown how to plan and draft their ideas before making a final copy. The skills of spelling, handwriting, punctuation and structure are taught progressively.

Mathematics involves much more than number. Equally important are shape, position and movement, measurement, handling information and the ability to solve problems. Emphasis is placed on practical experience so that children realise the importance of mathematics to everyday life and are able to apply what they learn to a variety of situations. At Coldingham the children use a variety of resources, and published programmes. 

 Each class has religious education, usually linked with other aspects of the curriculum. There is also a regular school assembly often with guest speakers. If any parent wishes to exercise the right to withdraw their child from R.E. activities, he/she should speak to Mrs Sanders.

As part of the curriculum children are asked to complete a certain amount of homework each week, this reinforces or extends work done in class. We hope that parents can support the work of the school by setting aside time to help their children with homework. Please contact the school if your child is experiencing any problems with the homework.

 These are held in March, when individual parents/carers have the opportunity for private discussion with their child’s class teacher. There will also be open evenings in November.  Any parent is welcome at other times to speak to the class teacher or Headteacher about any issue which concerns them. Please contact the school office and this will be arranged for you.

 We always welcome parents/carers into our school.  Please contact Mrs Sanders at either Coldingham or Cockburnspath school and she will make an appointment to see you.

Representatives from the upper school meet once a month to discuss issues important to them and their fellow pupils.  We recognize the value of giving pupils responsibilities in the life and decision making within the school.

The school uniform is navy or grey trousers or skirts, white or blue shirts and navy jumpers. Polo shirts, navy sweatshirts and fleeces with the school logo can be ordered through the school. P7 children wear royal blue sweatshirts.

Please mark all garments clearly with the owner’s name. This makes the return of lost property much easier.

Children should keep in school a PE bag with shorts, gym shoes or trainers and a tee-shirt. These can be taken home at holidays for washing.

If your child wears earrings we would be grateful if you would ensure that he/she is able to remove and replace them independently before and after P.E. lessons or alternatively they are not worn on days when the class takes P.E.

 Please also send in an old shirt for painting activities.

 We operate a system of promoting positive behaviour.

 All staff encourage good behaviour by using praise. The school has a number of ways by which pupils can be rewarded:

 Rewards

1. Daily encouragement/stickers

2. Weekly Golden Time

3. Points earning bronze, silver, gold certificates

4. Positive postcards home

Rules

School and class rules are displayed in classrooms and explained to pupils regularly. They are:

1. Do as you are asked first time

2. Keep hands and feet to yourself

3. Look after all property

4. Show respect by speaking and listening at the right time

 When a pupil chooses not to follow the school rules the following consequences result:

 Consequences
    1^st incident is a warning on the tracking sheet
    2^nd incident is number 2 on the tracking sheet and 5 min time out
    3^rd incident is number 3 on the tracking sheet and 5 min off golden time
    4^th incident is number 4 on tracking sheet and visit to Mrs Sanders
    5^th incident is number 5 on tracking sheet and phone call home

 ·             Any violent behaviour, bad language, graffiti goes straight to number 4 on tracking sheet
 ·             P1/2 - time out in Mrs Niedzwiedz’s class
            P3/4 - time out in Mrs Robertson’s class  
            P5/6/7-time out in Mrs Easingwood’s class

 Inter Agency Working is embedded in our practice of providing integrated support to all our pupils as appropriate.  The school works collaboratively with the Integrated Childrens Team – Behaviour Support Teacher, Learning Support Teacher, Social Work, Integrated Police Officer and with the Educational Psychologist to meet the needs of pupils.

Please tell us if you have any concerns. The school operates an Anti-Bullying Policy, which is systematically introduced through the Personal and Social Development Programme.  If you wish a copy of the Anti-Bullying Policy you are welcome to pick one up from the School Office.

 School Nurse
Coldingham is a Health Promoting School. Katrina Fairbairn works within the Eyemouth Area Schools and offers support with delivering the health curriculum to teachers; she also delivers the puberty and sex education talk to the P6 & 7 children. Katrina provides advice and support to our pupils and their families and can be contacted by telephoning Eyemouth High School on (018907 50363). She monitors the routine growth of pupils in Primaries 1 and 7 and monitors any health issues that have arisen at other times i.e. height, weight and sight. This is normally with consent, which is given in Primary 1, by the Primary 1 Health Questionnaires. If parents/carers have any concerns they can contact Katrina at the above number

Dentist
There is a Community Dental Service available.  Parents can contact this service by calling 01896 824525 initially (for emergencies please call 01592 740230 – evenings and weekends).  The school participates in a School Tooth brushing Programme, this includes all year groups, including pre-school and anti pre-school classes.

 Water
The children are encouraged to drink water throughout the day. Other drinks are not advised as they are bad for children’s teeth.

Head Lice
Unfortunately at different times of the year there are outbreaks of head lice. Parents/carers should ensure that their child’s hair is regularly checked for head lice. If your child is infected it is best to use the wet-combing method, please check all other members of the family! A leaflet is available in school which explains the wet-combing method.

 Accidents-First Aid
Minor accidents and First Aid are dealt with at school by trained First Aiders. In the event of a more serious accident parents/carers or the emergency contact is contacted immediately.(If they are unavailable the child will be taken to the health centre for medical attention).

It is essential that we have on record an emergency contact number for each child. It is important that this contact is obtainable during school hours. Please up-date us of any changes to this throughout the year.

 Medicines
Please inform the school if your child is on any medication. If prescribed medication requires to be administered during the school day please bring the medication into the School Office and complete a consent form. Alternatively parents/carers are welcome to come into school and give medicine themselves if they prefer. Non-prescribed medication i.e. cough medicine and Calpol cannot be administered at any time by staff.

 If your child needs to use an inhaler in school please complete the consent form at the office. For younger pupils inhalers are kept in the school office for safekeeping. Older pupils may elect to carry their own inhalers, with their parents/carers’ permission but please inform the school of this arrangement.

 School dinners are available at £1.65 per day. Packed lunches can also be eaten in the school.
 
Free meals are obtainable for pupils whose parents/carers’ incomes fall below a certain level.  Further details regarding free meals may be obtained from the school office.

If your child is unable to attend school, please contact the School Office between 8.45-9.00am on the first day and subsequent days of the child’s absence. The Scottish Education Department requires schools to report all absences. Please also notify the school of any medical appointments that your child must attend during school hours. Also please let school know if your child will be picked up by someone different.

The school is under direction from the Scottish Executive to mark all absences due to holidays as unauthorized. We strongly discourage the taking of holidays during term time as this can have a disruptive effect on educational progress.

Children have the opportunity to participate in a variety of activities after school e.g. Netball, Football, Rugby, Hockey and Treasure Seekers’ Club.

 Primary 6 and 7 pupils, along with children from Cockburnspath, have the opportunity to go to Kingswood win Northumberland for 4 nights to experience a wide range of outdoor pursuits and have a lot of fun!

 We welcome a number of invaluable parent helpers in school to help in different ways such as:

 ¨       Helping with extra curricular activities

¨       Helping with school outings

¨       Helping with making costumes for concerts

¨       Helping run the P1/2 activity area

¨       Helping with cycling proficiency courses

¨       Helping with gardening and the eco- club

If you would like to offer help in any way please call in to the School Office.

In August 2007 the Parental Involvement Act became effective, giving parents new rights and education authorities new responsibilities to ensure that parents can become involved in their child’s education.  All evidence shows that when parents are involved in supporting their child’s education, children do better.  The Act builds on the good work that has already been done by parents, schools, School Boards, PTAs and other groups.

The Act has three key themes:

 All parents are now automatically members of the Parent Forum at their child’s school.  As a member of the Parent Forum you are encouraged to support events and activities at the school, get involved in your child’s learning and to support our school’s Parent Council. The Parent Council/Friends of Coldingham Primary School AGM is held in September each year.

 A close liaison is kept with Eyemouth High School, which pupils from our school normally attend at the end of Primary 7. The High School is situated at the roundabout as you enter the town from the A1 and their telephone number is 018907 50363.

Transferring Educational Data about Pupils

Education authorities and Scottish Government have collected data about pupils on paper forms for many years.  We now work together with schools to transfer data electronically through the ScotXed programme. Thus Scottish Government has two functions: acting as a ‘hub’ for supporting data exchange within the education system in Scotland and the analysis of data for statistical purposes within Scottish Government itself.

Why do we need your data?

In order to make the best decisions about how to improve our education service, Scottish Government, education authorities and other partners such as the SQA and Careers Scotland need accurate, up-to-date data about our pupils.   We are keen to help all our pupils do well in all aspects of school life and achieve better examination results.  Accurate and up-to-date data allows us to:

·         plan and deliver better policies for the benefit of all pupils,

·         plan and deliver better policies for the benefit of specific groups of pupils,

·         better understand some of the factors which influence pupil attainment and achievement,

·         share good practice,

·         target resources better.

Data policy

The ScotXed programme aims to support schools and Local Authorities by supporting the collection, processing and dissemination of statistical information required for planning, management and monitoring of Scottish education services. 

A subset of this information is passed to Scottish Government for research and National Statistics publications.  Education data within Scottish Government is managed effectively by secure systems and is exploited as a valuable corporate resource, subject to confidentiality restraints.  As part of its data policy, Scottish Government will not publish or make publicly available any information that allows individual pupils to be identified, nor will data be used by Scottish Government to take any actions in respect of individuals.  Data is held securely and no information on individual pupils can or would be published by Scottish Government. 

The individual data collected by Scottish Government is used for statistical and research purposes only.  We hope that the explanations contained on the ScotXed website will help you understand the importance of providing the information.

Your data protection rights

The collection, transfer, processing and sharing of ScotXed data is done in accordance with the Data Protection Act (1998). We also comply with the National Statistics Code of Practice requirements and other legislation related to safeguarding the confidentiality of data. The Data Protection Act gives you the right to know how we will use your data.  This message can give only a brief description of how we use data.  Fuller details of the uses of pupil data can be found on the ScotXed website (www.scotxed.net).

Scottish Government works with a range of partners including HM Inspectorate of Education and the SQA. On occasion, we will make individual data available to partners and also academic institutions to carry out research and statistical analysis. In addition, we will provide our partners with information they need in order to fulfil their official responsibilities. Any sharing of data will be done under the strict control of Scottish Government, which will ensure that no individual level data will be made public as a result of the data sharing and that these data will not be used to take any actions in respect of an individual. Decisions on the sharing of data will be taken in consultation with colleagues within and outwith Scottish Government.

Concerns

If you have any concerns about the ScotXed data collections you can email the Senior Statistician, Peter Whitehouse, at Peter.Whitehouse@scotland.gsi.gov.uk or write to The ScotXed Support Office, Area 1B, Victoria Quay, Leith, EH6 6QQ. Alternative versions of this page are available, on request from the ScotXed Support Office, in other languages, audio tape, Braille and large print.

Want more information?

Further details about ScotXed are available on the ScotXed website,  www.scotxed.net., which contains a section on ‘frequently asked questions’ at https://www.scotxed.net/jahia/Jahia/lang/en/pid/220.

   Key to symbols: The symbol ## indicates that the data are not available.

 

 Key to symbols:

Asterisks (**) have been inserted instead of figures for some schools and categories:

·         Counts and percentages based on data for more than 0 but fewer than 5 pupils, because they could be misleading or lead to the identification of individuals.

·         In other cases, it is not possible for the school to have any data for the category, for example, cases where the relevant year group roll figure is zero.

The symbol (##) indicates that the school has recently opened or merged with another school and this information is not available.

 

Where schools have 9 openings per week, please note that all local authority and national figures are based on 10 openings per week, and so are not directly comparable.

 Key to symbols: The symbol (##) indicates that the data are not available or comparable with other years.

  Key to symbols: The symbol ## indicates that the data are not available.

 

Key to symbols:

Asterisks (**) have been inserted instead of figures for some schools and categories:

·         Counts and percentages based on data for more than 0 but fewer than 5 pupils, because they could be misleading or lead to the identification of individuals.

·         In other cases, it is not possible for the school to have any data for the category, for example, cases where the relevant year group roll figure is zero.

The symbol (##) indicates that the school has recently opened or merged with another school and this information is not available.

 

Where schools have 9 openings per week, please note that all local authority and national figures are based on 10 openings per week, and so are not directly comparable.

Key to symbols: The symbol (##) indicates that the data are not available or comparable with other years.

 
Key to symbols: The symbol ## indicates that the data are not available.

Key to Symbols:

Asterisks (**) have been inserted instead of figures for some schools and categories:

·         Counts and percentages based on data for more than 0 but fewer than 5 pupils, because they could be misleading or lead to the identification of individuals.

·         In other cases, it is not possible for the school to have any data for the category, for example, cases where the relevant year group roll figure is zero.

The symbol (##) indicates that the school has recently opened or merged with another school and this information is not available.

Where schools have 9 openings per week, please note that all local authority and national figures are based on 10 openings per week, and so are not directly comparable.

Key to Symbols: The symbol (##) indicates that the data are not available or comparable with other years.