Family Information and PTA News 9th December 2022

Welcome to the Family and PTA news blog for Percy Hedley School.

Christmas is on the way and today students from across the school enjoyed Christmas discos, games and parties with Dreams on Moonbeams, the entertainment side of True Colours. Next week we have MOVing in a Winter Wonderland returning and there are various events for parents too. I look forward to meeting those who can join us for the parent events. Following on from Christmas Jumper Day, they are probably well fired up for the festivities and I hope it doesn’t cause too much disruption at home.

Information

16-19 Bursary.

I have now managed to record the session I held for parents explaining how the bursary will work this year and applications will be sent within the next few days. I would like to encourage those who are eligible to consider if this could help your child. We will be asking families of those signed up for the Post 16 residential trip who get the bursary to assign the contribution to the foundation to enable the trip to go ahead.

Have a look at the link below to see if your child/young person may be eligible:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/16-to-19-bursary-fund-guide-2022-to-2023-academic-year

Special Needs Jungle

I’ve read a few interesting articles here; the most recent on the failing reforms in the Children and Families Act 2014. I’ve included the link below for anyone interested.

 

‘Help for Households’ Campaign

In response to increasing prices and the pressures around the cost of living, the government has launched ‘Help for Households’ – a campaign to raise awareness of the support available amongst those that need it most. It gives clear information about the exceptional payments, energy support and existing support schemes available, so the public know what is available and where they can find help. Their homepage brings together over 40 support schemes that the public may be able to access depending on eligibility. Additionally, a range of online tools will help citizens quickly and efficiently check the support they might be eligible for and how to access it.

Visit  Help for Households – Get government cost of living support for more information

 

Toby Henderson Trust: Free training

This charity has some free training and webinars and you will find details on the link below:

https://www.ttht.co.uk/training-workshops-and-events/webinars/

They are also developing some training content and we really want to include the perspectives and insights from our amazing families. Can you help us by answering the question below and sharing your thoughts in the comments?

If you were speaking to someone who knew nothing about autism, what would you want them to know? You can share your thoughts on their Facebook post

 

Activities

Tim Lamb Centre Coffee Mornings

These may be of interest to parents/carers in the area or who drop off. It’s also a good opportunity to see what’s on offer if you have never been there. I can highly recommend their accessible outdoor space, the “Changing Place”, Sensory room and much more. Membership is £20 per annum per family, with a £3 per child admission to visit. A word of caution though; school holidays can be very busy so if this impacts on your child, contact them to see when it is likely to be quieter.

The link to their website is:

https://pathways4all.co.uk/tim-lamb-centre/

Centre for Life

Festive fun for just a fiver!

Get your glow on with new shows and activities inside the science centre! (*£5 per person).

Ends 8 January 2023.

Book here: https://www.life.org.uk/events/tickets?eventid=9225

 

Tim Lamb Centre:

Teens Christmas Party

We still have a few spaces remaining for our teenage Christmas Party on Friday 16th December 5-7pm.

This party is open to members and non-member teens with additional needs.

This party is staffed

The link to their website is here: https://pathways4all.co.uk/tim-lamb-centre/

 

Winter Trails.

I have shared a few in previous blogs but here is another. Dogs are welcome too!

 

Seaton Delaval Hall 

Winter Wanderer Spotters’ Trail

Wrap up and join us for a wintry trail around the gardens, find the festive stars and become a winter nature detective. There are dates available in December and January, although the last one for December is tomorrow. Normal National Trust entry requirements are in place, so it is free for members.

Times

December 2022

Available times
Date Time/s
9 10:00 – 15:00
10 10:00 – 15:00

 

January 2023

Available times
Date Time/s
1 10:00 -15:00
2 10:00 -15:00
3 10:00 -15:00
4 10:00 -15:00
5 10:00 -15:00
6 10:00 -15:00
7 10:00 -15:00
8 10:00 -15:00

The link is here: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/north-east/seaton-delaval-hall/events/03c459f2-5354-42ec-aa75-225cc92c1f51

 

PTA News.

I had a lovely call before half term from someone from the Community team at Waitrose who wanted to donate £1000 to us for the benefit of the children. They wanted information on how we might use it; so, I had a chat with them about our Outdoor Learning Space. Lots of great things happen there but the team is ambitious. The funds have been deposited and I’ll update you on what happens next.

Christmas Fair.

The PTA will have a stall at the KS4/Post 16 Christmas Fair on Wednesday 21st December to which all parents/carers are invited. We would like to do a chocolate tombola, so would appreciate any donations. These can be sent into school for my attention.

IQ Christmas Cards

The last few orders were sent out this week and I hope that those who ordered were happy with the quality. I have to say that I am very happy with the ones I ordered, and it gave my son something useful to do. I know that my family really appreciate anything which he has done.

PTA 100 Club:

If you haven’t joined the 100 club yet, I will have forms available at our Christmas events.

 

Have a good weekend and let’s hope it doesn’t snow too much

Eileen