May half-term activities

A wide range of events and activities for children and families in the Reading area are now available to view on the Family Information Service directory. You can find:

• Activities in Reading during May / June Half Term 2022 including SEND Short Breaks | Reading Services Guide
• SEND Short Breaks (all ability activities & overnight breaks) | Reading Services Guide
• General holiday activities at: Search Results | Reading Services Guide

Our children’s centres have also revealed their half-term timetable which you can find at: https://brighterfuturesforchildren.org/for-parents-carers/under-5/childrens-centres/.  

Reading Borough Council has also issued a press release with details of free and low-cost activities on offer.

Scarlet fever and chickenpox alert

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) highlighted a recent increase in notifications and GP consultations for scarlet fever and chicken pox. This reflects seasonal trends, however both infections had been below usual levels since March 2020 due to lockdowns and other COVID-19 measures. The agency is warning this means there is a larger than expected proportion of children in Reception and school Year 1 who will be vulnerable to chicken pox. Please see attached template letter from UKHSA which contains guidance and advice.

Dear Parent and Carers,

We are finding that more parents/carers are coming to collect their child/ren early from their sessions, especially in the afternoon, this is disruptive for the children's learning and could potentially cause health and safety issues.

Whilst we understand that some families may need to pick their child up earlier due to collecting other siblings from schools we must stress the importance of the staff being available to provide quality teaching to the children and if parents/carers are constantly staggering pick up times they are unable to do this and keep the children safe.

Therefore in order to ensure the safety of the children and ensure that the children receive high quality education with minimum disruptions during their sessions, we kindly ask that if parents need to pick up their child early from their session that they do so at least 30 minutes before the session ends. As such, early collections must be as follows:

Morning sessions - for early pick up collect by 11am
Afternoon sessions - for early pick up collect by 3pm

If you are unable to collect by this time then unfortunately we will not be able to let you collect until the end of the session.

If you have any queries regarding this or have a reason why you are unable to do this then please come to speak to us.

Thank you for your support.

Please see below two Lunch Bunch documents which give details about The Lunch Bunch Sessions which are being run by the Salvation Army over the Easter holidays.

They will provide activities, games and a nutritious hot meal.

If you would like to attend, it is useful for them to have an idea of numbers for catering purposes please email janscott002@gmail.com or text 07939144002.

If you have any further questions or need help completing the registration form etc please speak to Helen.

This week is Children’s Mental Health Week (7-13 February 2022). This year's theme is Growing Together.

We’re encouraging children (and adults) to consider how they have grown and how they can help others to grow.

Growing Together is about growing emotionally and finding ways to help each other grow. Challenges and setbacks can help us to grow and adapt and trying new things can help us to move beyond our comfort zone into a new realm of possibility and potential. However, emotional growth is often a gradual process that happens over time, and sometimes we might feel a bit ‘stuck’.

As parents and carers, you play an important role in your child’s mental health. Check out our free resources for families below

https://www.childrensmentalhealthweek.org.uk/parents-and-carers/

If you are unsure or not confident on how to use Tapestry, please join us for this useful workshop

Afternoon of Wednesday 12th January 2022 - time to be confirmed

To register your interest please email admin@norcot.reading.sch.uk by noon on Monday 10th January 2021.

Please see the following information from Brighter Futures for Children regarding support available during the festive period:

Last year the Family Information Service created a dedicated page that listed essential services for parent carers and young people, around support available during the holidays.

Parent / carers fed back that they found the information really helpful during the long holiday break, many used the information to access food offers and mental health support.

Therefore to meet the needs of families they have done the same this year. 

FIS will continue to update the page as more information as it comes through.

The links to the page is below.

Christmas & New Year 2021/22 Local Services & Support Information | Reading Services Guide

Sent on behalf of Brighter Futures for Children

Emotional Wellbeing Support Parent Carer Workshops (BFfC)

Brighter Futures for Children are offering a range of workshop and training modules for parents and carers.

We can provide a wide variety of written and on-line resources for school staff, families and young people. These are available on request and via our website www.brighterfuturesforchildren.org and social media. The Family information service also provides support and signposting for families. www.readingfis.org

Monday 6^th December, Dr Yasmin Bador Educational Psychologists and Ian D’Souza, Primary Mental Health Worker, will be delivering a workshop on Parent Wellbeing and Resilience

• It starts at 12 – 1:30 on Teams
• Its free to attend and open to any parent
• The aim is to
  • Give a brief introduction into developing a compassionate mindset
  • Highlight the importance of being compassionate to yourself
  • Explore how we can be more compassionate towards ourselves and those around us
  • Think about ways of using compassion when parenting.

To book contact Wilma, Wilma.Williams@brighterfuturesforchildren.org – please provide contact name and number when booking a place.

There are more workshops available during 2022 – please visit the SEND Local Offer to find out more - Emotional Wellbeing Support Parent Carer Workshops (BFfC)

View the latest SEND Local Offer Newsletter

What to expect in the EYFS: https://foundationyears.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/What-to-expect-in-the-EYFS-complete-FINAL-16.09-compressed.pdf

Please see attached letter from Ofsted regarding an inspection of SEND provision in Reading. There is a link in the letter to take part in a survey and a link to submit your contribution.

Dear parents, carers and staff

A consultation has opened on the proposed formalising of an existing Early Years Social Communication Difficulty Resourced Base in Norcot Nursery School. Please click on the link below for more information where you will also be able to give your views by clicking 'online survey'.

https://consult.reading.gov.uk/children-education-early-help-services/norcot-early-years-scd-resource-unit-consultation/

With thanks

Katarina Bingham

Head of centre

The Lateral Flow Testing Risk Assessment and Full Centre Risk Assessment can be found in the Risk Assessment tab under the Covis-19 header above.

We have been advised by Beard Construction that building work at the old Norcot Community Centre site will start on November 2nd 2020. This is set to last for 52 weeks and will obviously mean that parking in this area will be even more restricted than it is currently.

We have spoken to the contractors to minimise the disruption to the Centre and have asked that our entrance be kept clear at all times for emergency services access and essential deliveries only.

This is not work that the Centre is in control of and therefore attach a letter from the contractors with contact details should you have any queries regarding the ongoing work.