Newsletter 23rd September

Chagford Pantry Logo Competition
Our friends at Chagford Pantry have asked if the children of Chagford and the surrounding area could help them to design the logo for the new service.
Starting very soon, Chagford Pantry will be a community food share and serve service with outlets up at St Michaels and at the school. You'll be able to drop off food which you have a glut of, pick up other peoples excess and essentials and work together to make the way we use food as a community more sustainable and less wateful.

The logo will appear on notices, signs and commuinications so it needs to be bold. I woul suggest using only one or two colours. The logo needs to speak of community, food and love. The winning design will be used for all the pantry business. The winner will recieve a prize and may be asked to officially open the pantry when it is officially launched.
Make your diesign on white paper so it can easily be scanned, mark it with your name and hand it to Elaine in the office. The deadline is Friday 30th September - that's Friday next week.

Parent/Carer Forum - 13th October
Mr Finch and the Local Stakeholding Board will be running a live, in person Parent Carer Forum after school hours on Thursday 13th October. We will make this late enough that people can attend after work. We will asking for your input on various aspects of the school, focussing particularly on the school's vision - Community, Challenge, Care - we will be trying to find out how well we have commuinicated our vision for the school, what it means to you, how you can challenge us to make that work better and how you can support us to make our vision really shine in the community. We will make this a fun, interesting and interactive evening. Do please mark that evening in your diary and find a way to come along so as many voices as possible can be heard.

​Three Hares Local Stakeholder Board
Liz Davidson & I (Mel Holyoak) would like to introduce ourselves to you all, as we have taken over as (Co) Chair of the Local Stakeholder Board (the governing body) from Emma Neath. The role of the LSB has changed over the last few years, and we thought it would be useful to you as parents and carers to know a bit about us as individuals, and the purpose of our role. Our intention is not to overwhelm you with information, but each week, we will aim to add to the school’s newsletter, introducing ourselves, the lead roles and what we’ve been up to (that will be of interest to you!).

This week, it’s introducing me & Liz. So a bit about me:

I’m a parent at Chagford School, and have lived in Chagford for the last 16 years. I have been a governor since 2019, and am also involved with the 1st Moretonhampstead Scout Group (as Treasurer), the local Parish Church Council, Chagford Sanctuary (our Homes for Ukraine support group) and Chagford’s monthly Celebration of the Earth events. You may recall our children dressed up as bees last term and sang a couple of joyful songs at St Michael’s! So, one of those people, with a genuine interest in linking and supporting the community in as many ways as possible. I also love running, so am often out and about exploring the moors, and trying not to get lost.

Liz says: “I'm a parent at South Tawton School and have lived in Okehampton for the past four years. I am also Co-Chair of the Parent Teacher Association at South Tawton School. Having taught in primary schools for almost 15 years, I really enjoy being involved in school life! It is always so inspiring to see young people learn and grow. Given how lucky we are to live in such a beautiful place I spend as much time as possible with my family on the beach or exploring the countryside.”

The role of the LSB is to act as the link between the Dartmoor Multi Academy Trust (DMAT), the parents & the community, and part of that means representing the interest of the community within the Trust, and representing the school in its community,. Liz & I are particularly keen to develop the community links in each of our three schools, and enhance parental engagement and communication. We hope that this weekly update is one way to make us more accessible to you - please do feel free to contact us – our details are below.

Next week, we will tell you about the Lead Roles within the LSB, and introduce someone else to you!

In the meantime, we sincerely hope that your children have enjoyed being back at school and that they are looking forward to the year ahead.

Mel & Liz [email protected] [email protected]

PTFA  Annual General Meeting
Please join us next Tuesday, 27th September, for the Chagford School PTFA AGM at 3.40pm at School. Children are welcome to come with you if they are happy to play quietly. 
There will be a brief overview of the things we achieved last year but we will mostly be looking to the future! There are many ways to be involved in the PTFA. It’s a great opportunity to get involved and help shape the way the PTFA supports the children at Chagford Primary. 
You should have also received a PTFA survey. It would be really helpful if you could take the time to have a look and return it to School by Monday 26th. 
Thank you.

The Best Small Film Festival In The World
The Chagford film festival 2022 will run from Monday September 26th to Saturday 1st October with an extraoridnary programme of movies that really does have something for everyone. Do check out the programme online here.The organisers know that times are ahrd and there can be flexibility in pricing for anyone struggling to make the books balance. Please just ask.

Do you know of someone in need? 
With fuel bills rising and the cost of living increasing we know that many people will be finding times tough. This is just as true for working families as it is for the unemployed. If you are worried about making ends meet do speak to someone. There is a hardship fund called the 'Joyce Stroey memorial Fund' which has money to hlep. You can speak to Mr Finch at school, the Vicar, Paul, or Mel Holyoak any of whom will be happy to listen and try to connect you to some support. If you know of a friend or family member who is struggling but who you think might not think to ask for help please have a word and direct them our way. This money is there to be used - it doesn't do anyone much good sitting in the bank.

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Attendance and Punctuality
Attendance this week was at 96.85% - that's not terrible but I'm never really happy unless I see it above 97% - I will officially celebrate next week if I can tick over that boundary.

Can I remind everyone that school starts at 8:50 a.m. when the bell is rung for the school to line up. We would really like to see everyone there ready for that time. The register closes a little after nine and after that time children are judged to be late. Joining class late means starting the day in a fluster having missed the morning work which is almost always practice and embedding previous learning - it really does make a difference and, in my experience, most children really hate walking into class late. We do our best to make sure they feel welcomed and never put on the spot but even so it isn't the right way for them to start their day. I'm hoping we can see a movement to more children arriving on the playground on time for a quick chat with friends and a bit of a play before the bell is rung and the day starts - I do think it will pay off in good spirits and a calm and orderly start to the day. I would really value your help with this.

​Ed Finch (Principal)