Newsletters

Spring has sprung.......

What a busy and exciting term we have had! There have been many highlights. Here are a few...

🎸 iRock Assembly
We had a fantastic morning at our very first iRock concert, featuring the SJIS school band. The children showed incredible confidence and bravery performing in front of the whole school and their families. We are so proud of every single one of them — what superstars! ⭐

📚 World Book Day
World Book Day reminded us all that books are a key to knowledge, adventure, and inspiration.

We were especially proud of our Year 2 children, who welcomed Reception into their classrooms and read to them so beautifully. It was a lovely example of our children supporting one another — well done Year 2, and thank you to Reception for being such a wonderful audience!

We also loved seeing the children dressed as their favourite book characters. 
                                     “A book is a dream that you hold in your hands.”

🐣 Easter Bonnet Making & Special Visitor
The children have had a very busy week making Easter bonnets, and we also welcomed a very special visitor… the Easter Bunny! The children enjoyed an egg hunt and some Easter fun on the playground, alongside Year 3 from The Abbey Junior School. 

 🔴Red Nose Day

We were delighted to welcome a team from Amazon into school to celebrate Red Nose Day. They led a fantastic afternoon filled with crafts and games. The children had a wonderful time taking part, winning treats, and decorating their very own red noses ready for the big day.

We are also incredibly grateful to Amazon for their generous donation of a £250 voucher. This will be used to purchase new visualisers, which will support teaching and learning by allowing work to be shared clearly with the whole class via the interactive whiteboard. This will make a real difference in helping pupils see examples, model work, and celebrate each other’s learning more effectively. A huge thank you to Amazon!

📰Other news

The school has also undergone two important audits this term—one focused on safeguarding and the other on teaching and learning. I am delighted to share that both were highly successful. The staff and pupils truly did us proud; I couldn’t be more proud of everyone and of the dedication they show every day in making our school such a success.

Thank you, as always, for your continued support. 

                            🌼 Wishing you all a happy and sunny Easter! 🌼

Mrs O'Shea

Let’s Get Reading Together!

The Easter holidays are a wonderful time to enjoy reading together. Just a few minutes a day can boost your child’s confidence, imagination, and love of books. Whether it’s a cosy bedtime story or reading in the spring sunshine, these small moments make a big difference.

• Visit your local library for spring-themed books
• Listen to audiobooks in the car or at bedtime
• Let children choose their own books (choice increases motivation!)
• Draw your favourite character from a story
• Make a mini “spring storybook”
• Read in the garden, park, or on a picnic blanket
• Bring books about nature, animals, or seasons
• Let children retell the story using what they see around them

Well done to our reading competition winners for creating some fantastic bookmarks, which class teachers will now be using in their class reading books. Our winners celebrated their successes by having an ice-cream cone and an extra playtime with Mrs O'Shea.

To have 'good' attendance, the children need to be in school for 96% of the school year. 

Attendance Matters

This term's attendance Pirate Chest has been won by Snowdrops class.

Well done Snowdrops - you will all win a treat from our Pirate Treasure Chest!

Attendance is a priority concern as part of our commitment to safeguarding every child. We believe that children can only reach their full potential through regular, full-time education.

Why 96%?
Pupils with 96% or higher attendance gain a significant advantage — that’s at least 62 more hours of learning compared to a child with just 90% attendance.

Attendance will continue to be a focus this year. While messages about attendance can be challenging, we know that children with good attendance tend to have the strongest outcomes in their future.

We kindly ask all parents and carers to contact the school as early as possible if your child is going to be absent.
You can notify us via: 

• Telephone: 01327 702783 – Office hours are 8 am-4 pm, but leaving a voicemail is an option
• Email: admin@sjis.inmat.org.uk
• Dojo message to Mrs Harris in the office

If your child has a medical appointment, please inform the school office in advance.
Where possible, please provide appointment letters, cards, or confirmation messages so we can update our records accurately.

This term, our assemblies have focused on how we can keep ourselves safe in school. We have spent time discussing the “Hand of Trust” and identifying the trusted adults in our lives who help to keep us safe.

The children have each created their own Hand of Trust, and these have been shared during assemblies. We have also introduced safeguarding communication boards to support children in expressing any worries or concerns they may have.

We encourage you to talk through the communication board with your child at home, helping them to feel confident about sharing anything that may be troubling them.

Join the Friends of St. James Parents Association!

Would you like to make a real difference to our school community? Joining the Friends of St. James Parents Association is a wonderful way to get involved, meet other parents, and have fun while supporting our children’s education.

Phone: 01327 702783
Email: FOSJ@SJIS.inmat.org.uk

You would be very welcome if you would like to attend a committee meeting.

Please remember to order school lunches by 8.30 am. Dolce will send out charges if they are not ordered in advance. 

Our children look so smart in their school uniforms. We do have many items for sale, so please ask us if you need anything. 

We talk about road and pavement safety with the children. Support them in getting to school safely by using the zebra crossings.

Our school have a FOSJ account with Skitkins. These labels are indestructible for labelling all items- water bottles, clothes, bags. Please use these details: School fundraising number to add to orders is 19752, as we gain commission. 

The play equipment is not to be used before and after school. The equipment has to be supervised by a school staff member, which we do not have the capacity to do at the start and end of the school day.

If you know anyone who may be interested in joining our Poppies class in 2026 or 2027, please see the office for a form. We are already so busy for the coming years.