Hi everyone,

Term is really going now, and that’s when I like it most! Busy and people are sorted! We have lots of trips going on, an important message about term-time holidays, some great articles on PfA, the Sensory Motor Group, Prevent and other things, Christian and Beth’s class have been busy – and of course some great Stars of the Week!

Plus the usual favourites from the Ducklings, Makaton, Wellbeing, Literacy and all the gang. I hope you find something to enjoy. There is also Eileen’s blog, the school website and all the foundation stuff too. Otherwise have a lovely weekend and we’ll do it again on Monday – only better! All the best and thanks for your continued partnership.

Our annual Scholastic Book Fair began on Wednesday and is with us until Tuesday, 30th September. We hope that it will receive its usual, wonderful support and offer everyone the chance to either buy books for immediate use or for a future occasion. Every book bought will add to the commission that the school can spend on new titles for our library. Following the last fair, we were able to order free books worth hundreds of pounds!

During the fair, each class will be given a chance to visit and select titles that appeal to them. These preferences are taken home as a guide to what you might buy. There is, of course, no obligation to make any purchases. To get your books, simply send the cost in to school and the books will be sent home on the same day. Should any title sell out, we can order further copies that will arrive when the fair is collected. Here’s hoping for another enjoyable period of reading, gift-buying, fundraising and reminding ourselves of the importance of books.

Rosie and Sinead certainly enjoyed browsing!

John S

😊 from John & the PHS Team 😊

How it works

• 3 Super-Steering Groups deliver our Key Drivers through our curriculum

• The Key Drivers are Communication, Wellbeing and Independence

• The Groups are Literacy, Physical Development & Personal Development

• Literacy

Becky, our Literacy Specialist Lead, leads a team that improve all aspects of literacy, including writing, oracy, reading, phonics, books & the library! Here Becky is giving us an update on writing.

TEACHING WRITING

Just before the summer holidays the Department of Education released their ‘Writing Framework’, giving schools guidance on how to teach writing, and all that is involved in that. We had already been focusing on writing last year as one of the areas for development in our action plans, and we’ll continue that this year.

There are a lot of skills involved in writing, but at PHS we like to think about writing very broadly, and ‘writing’ will look quite different in different classrooms. This might mean use of technology or traditional paper and pen, it might mean mark making, sensory exploration or cause and effect – but one thing that is true across all our classrooms is that writing, or output, is often shaped by what we read or the stories we experience.

This week we wanted to show you one of our favourite parts of our library, the ‘Reading inspires us’ Gallery. It is super important that students feel our library belongs to them, and this allows us to showcase their work in amongst the works of published authors and illustrators – our nod to inspiring a love of reading AND writing! The pieces inside the frame will change every few weeks, and can be evidence (photos/explanation), art, handwriting, symbols, text – anything that is inspired by reading! So far we’ve featured photos of sensory stories, a student newspaper, eye gaze literacy tasks and a short novel – we can’t wait to see what will feature in the future!

Happy Reading!

• Physical Development

Everything that is in the world of Physical Development, including physio, hydro, MOVE, PE, HI, VI, OT and other key areas for us, including Outdoor Learning, the John Muir Award & many other aspects. Steph oversees this! But this week let’s hear from Nina!

MORE ON THE SENSORY MOTOR GROUP!

Here are some lovely pictures of Teddy, Aurora and Harry working hard in our Sensory-Motor Group. They did fantastic work this week!

Our Sensory-Motor Group is a fun and engaging way to develop gross motor skills whilst incorporating sensory activities. Each session is carefully planned to help build important movement skills like balance, strength, and core stability. Using sensory-rich equipment such as the swing, soft play, and trampoline, the students are encouraged to explore and move in ways that feel safe and enjoyable. Alongside the physical activities, we also weave in learning tasks, like spellings, sorting colours and shapes, space and planets, and incorporating numbers and letters—making each station – a chance to grow both physically and educationally.

• Personal Development

One of the best things about the school and one of the most important for our pupils, PD covers PSHE, Wellbeing, Careers, Social Moral Spiritual & Cultural, Online Safety, Behaviour & similar areas. Jo pulls it all together

WORLD FIRST AID DAY!

In the Upper School assembly this week, we marked World First Aid Day and reminded ourselves about how to help people if they are ill or injured

Everyone was very attentive and Dominic and Ella were able to give accurate, polite answers.

PSHE STARS!!!

Wellbeing

A message from the Wellbeing Team…

We’re happy to announce the launch of our Upper School “Cuppa Club,” every Friday lunchtime! This informal get-together invites students to enjoy a hot drink while connecting with others. Each week, we’ll discuss two guiding questions:

“Can you share something positive from the past week?”

and

“Can you share something that didn’t go too well this week?”

This structure helps students reflect on their week and creates a space for them to share their experiences.

We hope that “Cuppa Club” will help students feel connected and heard. To keep things fun, we’ll end each session with a light-hearted question—like last week’s

“If you could have a superpower, what would it be?”

which conjured up some interesting answers and areas for discussion, as well as a few laughs! We welcomed five students to our first club and can’t wait to see more join us in the future for a cuppa and a chat!

PE with Nathan!

Nathan has started the term off at a great pace already and has set up all the clubs that will be running for now. It’s great to have these clubs so that everyone can find the thing that they really like. Now Nathan has got a whole load of dates in his diary, so let’s hear from him

The official dates have been released for the Newcastle Foundation Girls, Boys and the Participation league and we have discussed and arranged the teams and started individual lunch training clubs this week.

The training clubs times are as follows

Girls Team training on Wednesdays between 12:30-1

Boys Team training on Thursdays between 1-1:30

Participation League training on Fridays 1-1:30

Myself – Nathan – will be going through the importance of setting the Percy Hedley Standards of following the TREDS (Teamwork, Respect , Enjoyment, Discipline and Sportsmanship) along with practising different football drills and skills along with some fun games.

The last few seasons have been a huge success, winning but more importantly being able to show improvements and progress each year.

We can’t wait to get this season started 🙂

Trip of the Week – Christian’s Class!

What a nice class Christian has! Would you like to see what they’ve been up to and see some pictures? Of course you would – I would too!

Christian’s class are enjoying looking after the fish tank at reception as part of Preparation for Adulthood and Independence. Jay, Emily and Christopher went to Gosforth Park Garden Centre today and chose 6 ‘Balloon Mollies’. Jay chose black and white ones, Emily and Christopher chose some beautiful bright coloured ones. Next time you are in the reception area please have a look and tell us if you like them.

Archaeology and Dendochronolgy! Yeah! That’s what I’m talking about!

Russell has a great new class this year – we heard about Logan last week and this week it’s all a bit like detective work!

In Upper School, we enrich the curriculum with a range of options each week

One of our Post-16 groups is learning about archaeology, the first time that the subject has been taught

This week, our archaeologists have been learning about the use of tree rings to find the age of wooden objects.

Here are Noah, Jayden and Leighton matching events in recent history to the corresponding tree rings as they learn about dendrochronology.

Beth’s Class!

Beth’s class is definitely great – it’s always good to hear from her and about what they are doing – plus they always have great photos! What is Beth saying?

3BE all love to cook! We have been exploring the ingredients we need to make pancakes. Some of us love to get messy and mix the flour and egg to make a sticky batter, some of us don’t like the wet textures. Open ended, low demand exploration of food ingredients lets pupils decide how to engage and to what extent, and as they are free to explore in their own way, pupils can make discoveries and self-direct their learning. And I’m sure you can see on their faces how much fun and engaging it is!

Behaviour for Learning (BfL)

Aylisha and Corin have developed the BfL Team and are working on supporting our pupils all the time, in all situations. They’ve been joined by Nicola and Nat, Sarah and Andrea this year to make a really important team for the school. Let’s hear from Corin now about what they’ve been doing this week

Supporting Positive Behaviour at School: Staff Training Update

We’re excited to share some recent developments in how we’re continuing to support positive behaviour and wellbeing across our school community.

This week, our newly qualified NAPPI (Non-Abusive Psychological and Physical Intervention) trainers have begun delivering training sessions to staff. These sessions are designed to equip staff with practical, respectful strategies for managing behaviours that challenge in a safe and supportive way. Regular training will now be rolled out to relevant staff members, helping us maintain a consistent and compassionate approach across the school.

In addition, a member of our Behaviour for Learning (BFL) team has recently begun a nationally recognised qualification in Positive Behaviour Support (PBS). This training will deepen our understanding of PBS principles and help us further develop evidence-based strategies that promote positive behaviour and emotional wellbeing for all students.

The BFL team continues to play a vital role in supporting both staff and students, working closely with individuals and teams to create a calm, inclusive, and nurturing learning environment.

We believe that strong partnerships with parents and carers are key to supporting positive behaviour. If you’d like to learn more about our behaviour support strategies or how you can reinforce them at home, please feel free to get in touch

If you have any questions or queries please do not hesitate to contact the BfL Team

• holland@percyhedley.org.uk
• orr@percyhedley.org.uk
• 📞Call us:0191 216 1811

Early Years – The Ducklings!

Well, our Ducklings have entered their second year as a class in the school, and they seem to be going from strength to strength. It’s great to get these updates and pictures. Let’s hear from Kerry and the team about their week…..

We have had lots of new experiences within Early Years over the past week

Last Friday we experienced all the seasons in one during our outdoor learning session. We all enjoyed dancing in the rain and listening to it hitting the roof of the hut. The hailstones were really cold and hard, so we all hid under the shelter until it finished. We splashed in puddles and used the sticks to make waves

We then came back into the class and added the chocolate to our no bake Oreo bites which we had made the day before and chilled overnight

Alli and some of her peers visited the new library on Tuesday during our new weekly slot. All the activities were utilised from the bead frame to the seats, bean bags and cubby holes. George chose a “Thomas” book that he took home to read with his family

Our morning routine is going well, and the children are enjoying starting the day with doh disco, it has become a particular interest to Hayden who likes to sit in front of the screen and follow the instructions. We are following our interest and extending our learning within the provision. Aimee has been enjoying the song “one girl in the ring”, when playing outside she found the hula hoop and moved it around her body and member of staff sang the song, lots of lovely smiles from Aimee and requesting more. Our current topic is “all about me” Rowen made a great face correctly placing the features to the blank face

Join us next week to see what we get up to

Preparation for Adulthood with Hannah

PfA is a key part of the School Improvement Plan. Let’s hear below what Hannah & the PfA Team have been working on – and it’s a goodie this week!

Our new reporting system:  What it means for you

At Percy Hedley School, we strive to ensure that you are kept fully up-to-date with your child or young person’s progress.  We do this through:  parental consultation; daily interactions via home-school diaries, phone calls and emails; end of year reports; informal activities, such as coffee afternoons.  Of course, we also host the statutory annual reviews every year, which are so important for our students, as it is this system which allows us to understand their needs and ensure that the appropriate provision is made for them, and that this is captured in the legal paperwork. The Autumn Term is a particularly busy time for Annual Reviews, so this seems like a good time to share this information with you.

You will be aware that we have introduced a new reporting system in school.   We have done this with a number of reasons in mind.  Firstly, we want to be as clear as we can be about your child’s needs, the provision required to support them through their school life and beyond, and the outcomes that will help them to live life in as full a way as possible.  Here are some of the changes you will see:

• ETCH plan – this clearly shows your child’s progress towards their outcomes over the course of a year in each area of need.  It also outlines their provision, which closely matches Section F of their EHCP. 
• SEND AR update form – this outlines your child’s very specific needs, and will be updated on an annual basis, if any changes are necessary.  The information in this form closely matches Section B on the EHCP
• Parental Contribution form – this has changed to ask you to reflect on your child’s next steps, and specifically on the four pillars of Preparation for Adulthood.  This information supports discussions around how they could:  live as independently as possible; be as healthy as possibly; be as included in the community as possible; access work and education for as long as possible.  From these discussions, at the Parent Visit, we can set realistic outcomes to support these aspirations, even from the earliest years.  We really value your contribution to these documents as they help us shape and provide appropriate provision.  We are always happy to discuss your aspirations for your child’s future, and Parent Visit is the ideal time to do so, so please have a think and talk to your child/young person before returning them to school, so we can get things just right for them. 

We are in the process of creating an Annual Review guide to support this work, which will be designed to help you make choices around preparation for adulthood. We really appreciate your time and effort in participating in this very important aspect of your child/young person’s life. 

Keep an eye on the website, too – updates to the PfA section, under Parent/Carer Resources are coming soon!

If you would like to speak to someone about something PfA-related, please feel free to contact

• Hannah Fuller – PfA Lead
• Eileen Robinson – Family Liaison Officer
• Louise Finlay – Careers Lead

We look forward to meeting and planning with you over the coming year

Find out more about Preparing for Adulthood below:

And finally…

Eileen and I receive things from time to time from researchers, students & the like who are looking into things to do with our work. We always try to support them. This one is from a researcher very well known to me, so if you at all feel like spending a few minutes on it, then please do.

…..from John & the Team here at PHS

*******

Our Key Drivers

Communication, Wellbeing, Independence