A Note from Our Head
Dear Parents,
It seemed fitting to start my celebration assembly today with Katy Perry’s ‘Fireworks’ song not only in honour of our Bonfire Party tonight, but also because I want every child at Castle Court to have their moment to shine. I believe that education should be about empowering children and giving them hope for the future. In a constantly changing and turbulent world, it is all too easy to feel overwhelmed by all the negative media stories which can leave us feeling powerless and rather insignificant. I am therefore passionate about ensuring that our pupils understand that one person can and will make a difference and that each one of them has the power and responsibility to be a force for good in the world. I want to encourage them to shine their lights brightly and inspire others to do the same.
Light has been an important theme this week as we have been learning more about Diwali and the country of India to reflect one of the Fundamental British Values of Tolerance and Respect. The whole school enjoyed an Indian inspired menu on Monday, and Years 3 and 4 had a fantastic Indian celebration afternoon culminating in a final Indian Dance Performance. I felt like I had been transported to Bollywood! We also welcomed Eloise Armstrong from the charity ‘Children on the Edge’ who gave a powerful and thought-provoking talk to pupils in Year 5 and 6 about their amazing work with street children in India. It certainly was a powerful reminder of just how lucky we are.
Year 2 pupils certainly lit up the room when they visited Forest Hill Nursing Home on Thursday. The children had chosen a favourite book to take with them and share with the residents. It was a magical experience for all involved and demonstrated the power of intergenerational experiences, which are an important part of our new CAVE programme.
On Thursday, Year 7 pupils were treated to a very special visit from Guy de Beaujeu, the Producer of Private Peaceful. He shared with pupils fascinating insights into the filming process which they will be able to draw on as they create their own film productions as part of their English work. It was also wonderful to be able to share with Guy the Private Peaceful films that our current Year 8s had produced as part of their work last year. I know that Guy was very impressed with the quality and creativity shown. Year 8 pupils enjoyed a trip to Poole Lighthouse to watch their production of Frankenstein as part of their English work on Gothic fiction.
Finally, to be the big event this evening. I am delighted to say that we have over 450 people attending our Bonfire Party. Coming together as a whole Castle Court family is always such a special occasion and I am delighted that many prospective parents and members of the local community, including the Mayor of Corfe Mullen, will be joining us. I hope it will be another magical moment which will live brightly in all our memories.
Wishing you all a wonderful weekend.
Mrs Katie Johnson Head
Head’s Awards are given out every Friday morning in assembly to children nominated by their class teacher or form tutor; the reasons for these are many and varied, including outstanding effort, overcoming difficulty, or helping a friend in need.
Huge congratulations this week go to:
RECB Quentin
RECS Kaydon
P1D Esme
P1Z Stella
P2A Isaac
P2G Mya
3D Archie
3M Jett
4D Hugo
4M Cordelia
5D Olivia 5M Emily 6D Brooke 6M Cleo
Henry
Louis
Carson
Gabriella
Artist of the Week
This week’s Artist of the Week is Sophia, with this wonderful surrealist self-portrait.
We’re sure you will agree that this is absolutely amazing, and certainly very surreal - well done, Sophia!
Academic and Pastoral News
Please find below details of upcoming scholarship deadlines and the corresponding assessment dates.
Deadline Assessment
Sport – 27th January 2025
Music – 28/29th January 2025
Bryanston 22 November
Art/IT/DT – 29th January 2025
Performing Arts – 30th January 2025
All Rounder – 30th January 2025
Academic – 31st January 2025
Academic – 10/11th February 2025
Art – 12th February 2025
Design – 6th February 2025
Canford 1 December
Drama – 5th February 2025
Music – 27/28th January 2025
Sport (boys) – 31st January 2025
Sport (girls) – 3rd February 2025
Clayesmore 22 November Week beginning 27th January 2025
Guy de Beaujeu, Producer of Private Peaceful by Michael Morpurgo, came in on Thursday to talk to Year 7 about how you turn a book (one of their set texts) into a film. He talked about the writing of the script, filming and life in the film industry.The Year 7s will now write and film their own scripts taken from scenes in the book. We were lucky enough to have Guy visit the Year 7s last year, and Guy spent time over lunch watching the films produced and discussing them with our current Year 8s.
A massive Thank You to everyone who sponsored our Year 1 and 2 children on their Sponsored Walk before half-term. We managed to raise an incredible £2448.32 for our chosen charities.
A special mention must go to Ayla in Year 2, who managed to raise an incredible £827 with the help of her family and friends.
This morning in assembly, Mrs Johnson was delighted to award School Council badges: huge congratulations to the reps for this term, who are:
Mrs Johnson also awarded our Year 8 pupils with their Leadership Badges this morning - we look forward to working with them over the course of this year and are very excited by the ideas that they have already voiced!
3D: Hannah 3M: Felix 4D: Grace 4M: Leon 7D: Mikayla
Thor 5M: Sophie
Charlie 6M: Cleo 7M: Michael
The Week in Sport
Tuesday: Mixed Tag Rugby vs Bryanston - Years 3&4
Year 3 played their first ever game of tag rugby and the year 4’s played their first tag rugby of the season against Bryanston prep on Tuesday. There was some excellent passing and teamwork on display and plenty of tries too. Some fantastic running with the ball in hand and excellent tackles throughout made sure all teams were successful and a great afternoon was had by the players and the spectators.
Wednesday: Boys’ Rugby and Girls’ Hockey
Boys’ Rugby
Congratulations to Rupert, Henry, Jack and Seb, who have all been selected for Dorset Cricket, and to Hattie for her selection for Dorset Hockey! We are very proud and pleased for you all.
13a vs Bryanston – Won 20-0, 25-5 & 25-0 12a vs Bryanston – Won U12/13 non-contact – played well and had a great game U11a - this team played at Canford Prep-Fest – Finished 2nd overall with 3 wins, 1 draw and a loss. The boys played some fantastic rugby and scored multiple tries throughout the tournament and considering the boys had only had 2 training sessions before the event, they did fantastically well to finish as runners up to Wallhampton, who they drew with in the group games.
Huge congratulations to Lochlan, who travelled to Sweden as one of eight boxers selected for the world’s biggest international amateur boxing tournament, representing his gym in Sturminster Newton. Lochlan shined under the bright lights and in front of 3000 people from many different countries, as well as a television audience, went on to win a Gold medal, as well as being crowned King of The Ring! Well done, Lochlan - we are so proud of you.
Team of the Week: Girls’ 1st Hockey Team
Girls’ Hockey
1st Team –played in the County Finals! The girls were fantastic in the group stages winning 3 and drawing 1 game: 0-0 vs Dumpton 2-0 vs Talbot Heath 1-0 vs Sherborne Prep 2-0 vs Parkstone Grammar
They finished as group winners and progressed to the semi finals to play Sherborne Girls School. In the semi final. Sherborne did not enter our D once and the girls created three fantastic opportunities to score but a combination of great saves and last ditch defending saw us miss out on converting. So after an hour of competitive hockey where the girls did not concede a single goal, the outcome would be decided by dreaded penalty flicks.
Things unfortunately did not go our way, and the girls exited the tournament 4-3 and agonizingly missed out on qualification to the regional finals. Even though the girls were extremely disappointed to miss out, they left the tournament knowing that no-one there could beat them in normal time and that the progression and hard work they have shown throughout the season has been phenomenal.
U13b vs Bryanston – Lost 3-2 U13c vs Bryanston – Won 2-1
U11a vs Bryanston – Drew 1-1
U10a vs Bryanston – Won 7-0 U10b vs Bryanston – Drew 2-2
Attendance Update
The Department for Education (DfE) has recently updated its statutory guidance on school attendance. This statutory guidance now applies to all schools, including those in the independent sector. Based on the revised guidance from the DfE, available here, we wanted to make you aware of changes to our Attendance Policy, which you can access by clicking here.
Key Information
:
Holidays
:
One of the biggest changes made by the DfE is that Mrs Johnson is no longer able to authorise holidays during term time. If you do need to request holiday for your child, please email Mrs Johnson directly (head@castlecourt.com) so that she is aware that your child will not be at school. Any time taken as holiday will be marked as unauthorised.
Authorised Absence
Pupils are expected to be in school each day by 8:30am for registration, with the first lesson of the day starting at 8:35am.
Please call (01202 694438) or email the school office (office@castlecourt.com) to report your child’s absence before 8:30am on the day of the absence (and each subsequent day of absence) and advise when they are expected to return.
If you send an email to your child’s tutor related to absence, please ensure that the school office is copied into this.
Please provide a brief explanation for the absence including an overview of symptoms so that we can monitor and spot patterns of illness across the school. This will enable us to better protect our community. Please avoid just putting ‘unwell’.
If a child is marked as not being present at school when the registers close at 9am, but we have not yet received a reason for absence, parents will be contacted to ascertain the reason.
Help and Support:
We understand that some pupils may face challenges that impact their attendance. If you do encounter any such challenges, please reach out to Mr Dunsford, our Deputy Head and Senior Leader responsible for Attendance, at pdunsford@castlecourt.com.
: Reasons for absence that we can mark as authorised under the new guidance include:
- Illness - when your child is unwell and unable to attend school.
- Medical Appointments - please notify us in advance of these and provide relevant documentation.
- Religious Observance - if this is the case, please submit a request in advance to Mrs Johnson at head@castlecourt.com.
- Exceptional Circumstances - significant or unavoidable events which could not have reasonably been scheduled. In family emergencies or unforeseen circumstances, please contact us as soon as you are able to do so to discuss the absence.
Note: the DfE do not consider the need for a holiday to be an exceptional circumstance.
Our CAVE Programme
This week has been a very busy one in the world of CAVE!
The theme for this week at Castle Court has been India Week. We began the week with a fabulous Indian menu. On Tuesday we were privileged to host Eloise Armstrong from 'Children on the Edge'. Eloise delivered an inspirational section assembly for our Year 5 & 6 pupils. The pupils engaged fully in the activities and asked some really interesting questions.
Following the assembly the pupils created Diwali candle lanterns, Diwali patterned fridge magnets and chalk stones (paper plates) which are traditionally placed outside the front door as a welcome with the candles and lanterns to show the festival of light. The pupils demonstrated a flair for creativity and really enjoyed the traditional outdoor Indian games.
Then on Thursday, our Year 3&4 children experienced a carousel of Indian-themed activities, including some Bollywood Dancing in the Hall!
A reminder to parents that Bikeability sessions start next week - if you booked your child on to one of these, please look out for a personal email reminding you of the date.
Year 2 pupils enjoyed a visit to Forest Hill Nursing Home on Thursday, where they were able to share their favourite books with the residents. Showing empathy and people care skills is a vital strand of our CAVE Programme.
On Thursday, our Year 8s headed off to Poole Lighthouse this Thursday to watch a new story inspired by the classic novel by Mary Shelley, written and directed by Seán Aydon. As we will be studying an adapted version of Frankenstein in the summer term, it provided the Year 8s with a wonderful opportunity to see this story line in action. The play provoked much thought about mankind and accountability, and we look forward to critically reviewing this when we study the text in class later on in this academic year.
Parent Notices
Use of Phones in Pre-Prep
When dropping off children to Pre-Prep, please note that the use of phones is not permitted, including when walking from the gate to the playground, and in the classrooms. Thank you.
Children in Need MUFTI Day: Friday, 15 November
We're very much looking forward to marking Children In Need Day on Friday 15th November - a week today! Children (and staff!) are invited to come into school in their home clothes, in return for a £1 donation. Please send your child into school with a donation to give to their form/class teacher.
Children in Need Day: Friday, 15 November - NURSERY ONLY
We are inviting the children to come in wearing their pyjamas to mark the occasion for Children in Need on Friday 15 November, and to wear odd socks too, as it’s Anti-Bullying Week!
Nursery Goodies Sale - Tuesday 12 to Friday 15 November
At Parents’ story time on Friday 15, from 3:15pm, we will be selling items (bookmarks, trinket bowls, glass lanterns and other goodies!) that we have been creating with Badgers and Cubs recently. You will be able to buy items each morning at drop off from Tuesday onwards in the Nursery classrooms. All proceeds will be donated to Children in Need; please bring cash.
Years 3 and 4 Toy Sale: Thursday 14 November
Years 3 and 4 will be running a Toy Sale on Thursday 14 November, the proceeds of which will go to support our School Charities. We would be grateful if the children could start looking out toys, books and games that they no longer use and are in good condition to be sold on. Any items for the sale can be brought into school from Monday 11 November.
Roadworks on the A350
From 18 November, essential gas works will be taking place in Sturminster Marshall, involving road closures on the A350 in both directions. Please click HERE for more information.
Mr Mills continues to run Karate & SelfDefence classes for children and adults aged 7 and up (Y3+) on Saturday mornings 9am–10:20am in the Sports Hall. For more information or to book a free try-out session, please contact him on bdemills@yahoo.co.uk or bmills@castlecourt.com.
Bushido Wado-Ryu Karate Club | https:/ /bushidokarate.martialartsuk.org | Find him on Facebook/Instagram/YouTube using: @dorsetkarate
He is also running a Little Ninjas taster session for children in Reception to Year 2 this Saturday 9 November from 99:45am. Please register your child for this if you are interested, by contacting Ben on 07801 730097.
Christmas Sports and Crafts Camps
Did you miss the School Photos this year?
Paul Manning will be running these from 16-20 December at school, from 9am to 3:30pm every day. For more details and to book, please contact Paul on manning_paul_ @hotmail.com
Save the Dates
Biathlon Events
The local upcoming qualifiers for the regionals are 10November at Leweston and 24November at Millfield. If your child wishes to attend, please sign up and pay a membership using this link.
Poole Grammar Christmas Fayre
Poole Grammar are holding a Christmas Fayre from 11am-4pm on Saturday 30 November, with lots of stalls, food and live music!
Christmas Pottery Painting
This will take place on Thursday 28 November from 8.45am – come along, do some painting and nibble on mince pies with coffee! Book here.
Years 1 and 2 Christmas Craft Activity
Parents of children in Years 1 and 2 are warmly invited to join their child in an exciting Christmas Craft activity. This will take place at the Art and Design Centre, down from the Walled Garden.
Year 2: Tuesday 3rd December, 09.00-09.45am
Year 1: Tuesday 10th December, 2.15-3.00pm (Year 1
Parents: If you wish to take your child home afterwards, this is acceptable. If you would also like to collect siblings, please check this is OK with their form tutor well in advance and inform your Year 1 teacher).
Performing Arts Presentation
Christmas Sugarcraft Workshop
Mrs Glenn will be running a Christmas Sugarcraft Workshop for Parents on Wednesday 4 December from 8.30 to 10.30am in the DT room. The price is £30 per head, to include a hot drink, seasonal nibbles and all resources. Please contact Mrs Glenn on lglenn@castlecourt.com for more details and to secure a place. For details of other workshops run by Mrs Glenn, please see her website: lyndyloulearning.wixsite.com/ lyndyloulearning
Wreath-Making Workshop
A wreath-making workshop for parents will be held on Thursday 5th December at 8.45am. Foliage will be provided from the grounds, alongside mince pies and coffee! To book, please use this link
This term's Performing Arts Presentation will be on Monday 2December at 4.30pm in the school hall. The presentation will involve pupils from Years 5 to 8 and will include performances by both senior dance groups as well as performances by pupils who take private dance and drama lessons. You will be contacted by email nearer the time to confirm that your child will be performing.
School Calendar
We have some exciting events lined up over the course of the coming weeks, including trips and Sports fixtures.
Next week, beginning Monday 11 November:
Day Date Time Details
All Week Anti-Bullying Week
Mon 11 Nov 10:45am Whole School Act of Remembrance
ISEB Testing
Tues 12 Nov
2pm Girls’ Hockey & Boys’ Rugby vs Wallhampton (Years 3&4)
4:45pm Year 6 Parents’ Evening
Weds 13 Nov 2pm Girls’ Hockey & Boys’ Rugby vs Wallhampton (Years 5-8)
Fri 15 Nov
Children in Need Day - No Uniform - £1 donation LAMDA Exams
4:30pm Years 3-5 Music Festival in the Hall
The following week, beginning Monday 18 November:
Points of Contact
Class Teachers / Form Tutors:
Reception Mrs Brewer | Mrs Speer
Year 1 Mrs Dobson | Mrs Zachariades
Year 2 Mr Antell | Mrs Glenn
Year 3 Mrs Baugniet | Mr Bambrey
Your first point of contact for day to day questions and enquiries related to your child(ren) is their tutor or class teacher.
Year 4 Dr Lippiatt/Mrs Deards | Mr Laidler
Year 5 Mr Mills/Mrs Vivian | Mrs Miller/Miss Sinclair-Smith
Year 6 Mrs Rule/Mrs Major | Mr Fermor-Dunman/Mrs Hoey
Year 7 Mr Jordan/Mrs Harmer | Mrs Lea/Mr Cheadle
Year 8 Mr Phillips/Ms Thompson | Mrs Gallop/Mr Smith
Section Leaders:
Pre-Prep Mr Antell
Years 3& 4 Mr Laidler
Years 5&6 Mrs Munns
Years 7&8 Ms Thompson
Heads of Department:
English Ms Thompson
Maths Mrs Miller
Tues 19 Nov Year 7 Geography Trip to Poole
2pm Girls’ Football & Boys’ Rugby vs Dumpton (Years 3&4)
8:30am Durlston Festival - U11 Boys’ Rugby
Weds 20 Nov
To report an absence, please call the School Office on 01202 694438, or send us an email. Day Date Time
2pm Girls’ Football & Boys’ Rugby vs Dumpton (Years 5-8)
Thurs 21 Nov 4:45pm Year 5 Parents’ Evening
Bryanston & Clayesmore Scholarship Registration Deadline
Fri 22 Nov
8:15am Parent Prayer Meeting in the Boardroom 4:30pm ABRSM Informal Concert in the Hall
Parents’ Evenings
In addition to the Parents’ Evenings diarised above, please see below the dates of further Parents’ Evenings which will be held later on this half-term:
Year 7 Monday 25th November 4:45– 7:30pm
Year 8 Monday 9th December 4:45– 7:30pm
If you wish to make an appointment to see Mrs Johnson, please email hmsec@castlec ourt.com
Science Mrs Gallop
History Mrs Rule
CAVE Mrs Hoey
Music Mr Smith
Geography Mrs Hoey
Sport Mr Fermor-Dunman
DT Mr Phillips
Art Miss Sinclair-Smith
SENDCo Mrs Harmer
Nursery:
Badger Cubs Mrs Genge | Mrs Tomblin
Badgers Mrs Bartlett | Mrs Wilson
The Nursery Manager is Miss Hixson
Leadership Team:
Mr Dunsford Assistant Head (Pastoral)
Mr Edmond Assistant Head (Operations)
Mrs Hoey Head of CAVE
Mrs Munns Director of Teaching and Learning
Mr Norris Bursar
Mrs Robson Admissions and Marketing
We look forward to seeing many of you tonight for our Bonfire Party!
