Newsletter - Friday 12th June 2026
- lfoster51
- 11 hours ago
- 13 min read
Issue 17 - Summer 2026
Proud to be ELSTON! Empowered, Listeners, Successful, Together, Open-Minded, Nurturing
Dear families,
Welcome back! I cannot believe we are now in the final few weeks of this school year. I hope that children enjoyed their half term. Mine certainly did - I did not come back feeling rested!
We've had such a busy first fortnight back and there are still plenty more events to come.
Year 1 children have completed their Phonics Screening Checks and Year 4 children have been busy with their Multiplication Tables Checks too. Well done to all children - we are very proud of you!
We welcomed new Reception families in this week to support preparations for September. All the information shared can be found here: Information for Reception Autumn 2026
Thank you to families who were able to support the book fair this term - all commission will be spent on books for the children to support learning.
Teachers are busy writing end of year reports and beginning to consider final teacher assessments for this year.
We've also got several fun events coming up including Father's Day events, trips and Year 2's residential. Keep an eye on dates which can be found at the end of the newsletter.
Apologies that we had to cancel sports days due to poor weather - we hope that they can go ahead in the next couple of weeks.
A reminder that school is closed on Friday 19th June for an INSET day.
Warm regards,
Miss E Foster
Headteacher
Attendance
We track attendance weekly and monitor any pupils falling below 96%. From time to time you might receive letters regarding your child's attendance. These letters are sent to many families and are sent regardless of whether you have contacted school or not to inform us of the absence.
Winter bugs are going around. If you aren't sure whether to send your child into school, this information may be useful: Is my child too ill for school? - NHS
Please could we remind families to inform school of any absences before 9am. There are several ways you can do this:
By calling the school office on 01902 558866. If you are calling before 8am, please leave a voicemail and this will be picked up and reasons for absence recorded on Arbor.
By adding reasons for the day's absence on Arbor's Parent Portal
By emailing attendance@elston.org.uk explaining the reasons for absence
If your child has a medical appointment, please bring them to school before and after wherever possible.
For more information, see our latest attendance newsletter here: Attendance Newsletter Summer 2026
This week, attendance has dropped to 94.6% - below the current national average of 94.9%. We'd love to see attendance improve and thank you in advance for your support with this. Year 3 have the highest attendance so far - well done!
Year group | Up to 12.6.26 |
Whole School (Without Reception children) | 94.6% |
Nursery | 88.2% |
Reception | 91.9% |
Year 1 | 95.0% |
Year 2 | 94.4% |
Year 3 | 95.2% |
Year 4 | 94.0% |
Year 5 | 94.5% |
Year 6 | 94.6% |
Punctuality is vital to ensure that pupils have a calm and organised start to the day, and can make the most of every minute in school! Our doors open from 8:45 until 9am. Anyone arriving after this time should enter through the dining room doors where a Late mark will be recorded. Please note that any pupils arriving after 9:30am will receive a 'U' mark which affects their attendance.
Personal Development
Our Year 6 pupils took part in Level 2 Bikability training, developing the skills and confidence needed to cycle safely on local roads. They showed great enthusiasm, responsibility, and determination, making excellent progress and demonstrating the importance of safe cycling habits for life.
Reception children had a fantastic time visiting Shrewsbury Theatre to watch The Enormous Crocodile musical. All the children were exceptionally well-behaved and were a true credit to the school throughout the trip. As we entered the theatre, the room was filled with bubbles, much to the children’s delight! The music began, the lights came up, and the show started. The mischievous Enormous Crocodile tried all his clever tricks, just as in the book, but our children were ready. Armed with foam peanuts, they eagerly “defended” themselves whenever the crocodile tried to gobble them up!
Thankfully, no children were actually gobbled, and everyone returned safely to school. The fun didn’t end there, children enjoyed a tasty lunch together in their classroom, chatting excitedly about the show and their favourite parts. It was a memorable day filled with laughter, excitement, and a love of theatre.
A group of our children enjoyed an exciting visit to the Big Bang Science Fair in Birmingham. The event gave children the opportunity to explore a wide range of hands-on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) activities, demonstrations and exhibits. Throughout the day, pupils engaged with interactive displays, met professionals from a variety of scientific and engineering careers, and discovered how science and technology shape the world around us. The experience sparked curiosity, encouraged problem-solving, and inspired many thoughtful questions about future careers and innovations. The children represented the school brilliantly, showing enthusiasm, excellent behaviour and a real passion for learning. We are proud of their engagement and hope the visit has inspired the next generation of scientists, engineers and innovators.
Teaching and Learning Opportunities
Children have been learning all about the fascinating history of Pop Art. They explored the work of famous artists such as Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein, discovering how their bold and colourful artwork helped shape the Pop Art movement. The children identified and discussed key features of Pop Art, including the use of bright colours, repetition, popular culture imagery and striking visual impact. They carefully analysed a piece of Pop Art, noticing how artists use repeated images and vibrant colour combinations to create eye-catching designs. To develop their own creative ideas, the children researched a range of images and gathered inspiration from existing Pop Art works.
Year 6 were visited today by our local PCSO, who spoke to them about staying safe and looking after their belongings as they prepare for the transition to secondary school. The session provided valuable advice and practical tips to help pupils feel confident and secure in their new environment.
Trudi also visited Year 6 to deliver a session on antisocial behaviour and knife crime. The session was delivered in an age-appropriate way and helped pupils understand how their choices and actions can affect themselves and others.
Our local PCSO talked to the children about:
What antisocial behaviour is and why it is harmful to the community
The dangers and serious consequences of carrying knives
How to stay safe and make positive choices
Where and how to get help if they are worried about themselves or others
The children were engaged throughout the session and asked thoughtful questions. This visit supported our PSHE learning and helped reinforce the importance of respect, responsibility and keeping ourselves and others safe.
Walk to School
A reminder that we are taking part in the WOW challenge to encourage children to travel to school actively!
Our sports ambassadors have awarded 330 Wow badges for May. Children can continue to carry out their active travelling and remembering to log this each day in class to earn their next badge. Children only have to do one active type of travelling per week to earn a badge. Don't forget to send photos of your children actively travelling to school to add to our gallery!
School notices
Parking
We've received complaints from local residents regarding parents parking at the start/end of the day and blocking people's driveways. Please may we remind you to park responsibly and avoid impacting on our local neighbours. Thank you.
Bikes/scooters
Please could we remind children not to ride bikes or scooters on school site before and after school. This is to prevent accidents and keep everyone safe at a very busy time of the day.
Dogs
Please can we remind families that dogs are not permitted on the school site, either on a lead or carried in arms. Thank you for your support with this.
Appointments / parking on staff carpark
We've recently seen an increase in requests for parents to pick up from the front of school at the end of the day. The staff carpark is extremely busy and parents are not permitted to park on there without agreement from school leaders. Please keep appointments to a minimum and park on Shelley Road carpark if you need to collect your child between 3 - 3:20pm. This is to keep everyone safe as children leave school.
Sports News
Our Indoor Sports hall Team participated in the Sport Hall Finals against 9 teams from across the Black Country. They competed in a range of track and field events. We were thrilled that the children managed to finish 3rd overall (top finishing school in Wolverhampton) narrowly beaten by a school from Walsall and Dudley.
Our Sports Ambassadors did a fantastic job of passing on the Wolverhampton Community Games Baton to St Anthony's Primary School. The baton relay restarts its journey around schools across Wolverhampton following the half-term break.
The children represented our school brilliantly and we are proud to be part of this community event and look forward to following the baton's progress as it travels around the city.
We took part in the Cricket City Championship, with 15 schools competing for the title.
The team topped their group, winning all 3 matches and finishing with an impressive average high score of 82 runs. This placed Elston 3rd overall out of the 15 schools, earning a place in the bronze medal match against the 4th-placed team. In a dramatic finish, Elston needed 8 runs from the final 2 balls. Finley held his nerve and smashed both deliveries for 6, sparking emotional celebrations at the end of an incredible match! This was another unbelievable achievement for the team, made even more impressive by the contributions of Armaan, Jaxson and Finley from Year 4, competing against older pupils. Every child was a credit to the school throughout the day, showing outstanding skill, determination and teamwork.
Well done, Elston – a fantastic achievement!
Elston children were in action once again against Rakegate Primary School, this time with our Year 1 and Year 2 teams taking to the pitch. Our Year 2 children secured a convincing victory, showcasing excellent passing, movement, and teamwork throughout the game. Ollie and Ryan were outstanding at the back, playing through the lines on numerous occasions to launch attacks. Roman, Chase, Harry, George, and Callum all contributed with an impressive collection of goals and assists, helping the team put in a fantastic performance.
Our Year 1 teams also enjoyed great success against a competitive Rakegate side, with one team winning 6–4 and the other claiming a 3–1 victory. There were plenty of goals, lots of teamwork, and, most importantly, smiles all round! We are incredibly proud to provide these opportunities for our children, many of whom had never played in a football match before. The confidence, effort, and enthusiasm they showed were wonderful to see.
Children from Elston Hall had the fantastic opportunity to attend the Birmingham Open at Edgbaston Priory Club. It was an exciting experience to watch elite male and female tennis players compete on grass courts at the highest level. We watched American Ashlyn Krueger with a rank of 29th in the world play against Australia’s Taylah Preston ranked 126th. The children were inspired by the skill, determination, and sportsmanship on display throughout the day. As a special bonus, the children also took part in a coaching session led by a professional tennis coach at the venue. They thoroughly enjoyed the session and had the chance to showcase their own tennis skills while learning new techniques. To top the day off we got to meet 78th rank Kamil Majchrzak from Poland who had just won his match on centre court. Well done to everyone who took part – it was a memorable day and a fantastic experience for all involved!
A huge well done to representatives from our netball team who took part in the netball finals held at WV Active. Having qualified for the event, the team played 7 very competitive matches with an extremely high standard of netball on show. We are immensely proud of the development of the team this year who have shown great dedication and have grown as a team. Well done to all the children who have represented school in netball this year.
A selection of Year 5 and 6 children took part in a Cricket Competition across the city!🏏
Elston started brilliantly, topping their group with two impressive victories. They beat Fallings Park 94-61 before going on to defeat Springdale 124-60, finishing the group stage with an incredible total of 218 runs across two games.
After a hugely sucessful group stage, they faced a very experienced Wolverhampton Grammar side in the final. In an incredibly tense match, Elston's outstanding batting and fielding skills shone through, helping them secure the trophy with a fantastic 87-70 victory!🏆
What an amazing achievement for a group of girls who had never played competitive cricket before. Their teamwork, determination and resilience were evident throughout the day, and they should be incredibly proud of themselves.
As always, we are so proud of you all!
This time it was our Year 4 team competing against schools from across the city.
The team finished in 1st place, achieving an impressive average of 106 runs throughout the day – an outstanding score and a testament to their skill and determination. Mr Green and Miss Evans could not have been prouder of the teamwork, sportsmanship and learning that the children demonstrated throughout the competition. They now go onto the next round, representing us against the best cricket teams across the county! Well done, everyone – what a talented group of cricketers! 🎉🏆🏏
Lunches
Our school menus can be found here: Lunches | Elston Hall.
We have a special menu on 18th June:
For parents who pay for school meals, please could payment be made the week before meals are taken to prevent debts accruing. Please be aware that, should your child's debt reach £30, then school will no longer provide school dinners until the debt is cleared.
Please can we remind families to cut up grapes if they are sent into school for lunch or snack time.
Staff News
We are delighted to announce that both Mrs Dean and Miss Holt have had their babies! Mrs Dean had a boy - Rudy, and Miss Holt welcomed a girl - Elsie! We are so pleased for them both and their families.
National Thank a Teacher Day
National Thank a Teacher Day takes place on Wednesday 17th June, an opportunity to recognise and appreciate the staff who work so hard to support our children in school every day. If you would like to send a message of thanks to any members of staff at Elston Hall (teachers, teaching assistants, office staff, lunchtime supervisors, club staff, site staff or senior leaders!), please complete the form below and your message will be shared directly with the member of staff you wish to thank.
Summer Club
Uniform
You may be starting to think about uniform for September! A reminder that our policy can be found here: 957aab_387b42d178814764935630f765384e60.pdf
Safeguarding
As part of supporting children's health, wellbeing and development, we would like to share the latest government guidance on screen time for young children. While technology can offer learning opportunities, it is important to balance screen use with activities that support children's physical development, communication, creativity and social skills. The guidance encourages families to ensure children have plenty of opportunities for active play, outdoor experiences, reading, and quality time with family and friends.
We encourage parents and carers to take a look at the information by clicking the link above for practical advice on managing screen time at home and helping children develop healthy digital habits from an early age.
Arbor
100% of our families use our Arbor Parent Portal! This enables payments to be made, messages to be received and key information to be updated.
Please could we request that families review the information to ensure that contact numbers and medical information are up to date. Please also ensure that all consents are complete so that staff know what permissions your child has. These include the publication of photographs and food tasting.
We require at least two emergency contacts per child. Please add on any contacts who you have given permission to collect your child and add this onto their information e.g. grandparents.
School will use email to send letters and in-app messages to send shorter reminders. Please enable notifications and check 'junk' to ensure emails are received. A reminder of our communication methods can be found here: Communication | Elston Hall
Key Dates
Please note, all dates are subject to change.
Inset days:
Friday 19th June
Monday 20th July
School will be closed to all pupils on these days.
Monday 15th June | Sports Day – Reception – 9.15am, Nursery am – 10.45am, Nursery pm – 1.45pm Reflexions: Transition – Parent workshop 2-3pm |
Wednesday 17th June | Year 1 Conkers Trip |
Thursday 18th June | Year 1 Father’s day events |
Friday 19th June | Inset Day – School closed to all pupils |
Monday 22nd June | Last week for After school clubs Year 4 Father’s Day events Y3 African drumming workshop |
Tuesday 23rd June | New to nursery parent meeting 3.30 |
Wednesday 24th June | Y6 Trip (all day) |
Thursday 25th June | Reception to Year 1 transition parent meeting 3.30 |
Friday 26th June | Rescheduled - Sports Day – Y4 – 9.15am, Y5 – 10.45am, Y6 – 1.45pm |
Monday 29th June – Wednesday 1st July | Transition sessions (am only) Reception – Y6
|
WC Monday 29th June | Transition week |
Tuesday 30th June | Rocksteady Concert |
Thursday 2nd July | Yr 5 trip to Safeside |
Monday 6th July | Last Y6 top up swimming session |
Monday 6th July – Tuesday 7th and Wednesday 8th - Thursday 9th July | Y2 residential |
Friday 3rd July | EYFS Colour Festival |
Thursday 9th / Friday 10th July | Y6 Summer Fete |
Friday 10th July | End of Year Reports sent home |
Thursday 16th July | Nursery graduation |
Wednesday 15th July | Y6 Leaver’s Performances |
Thursday 16th July | Y6 Leaver’s events (during school day & BBQ after school) |
Friday 17th July | End of academic year |
Monday 20th July | Inset Day – School closed to all pupils |
Please note term dates for next academic year:
2026 - 2027
School will be closed on the following INSET days:
Tuesday 1st September 2026
Wednesday 2nd September 2026
Monday 4th January 2027
Friday 28th May 2027
Monday 7th June 2027
Autumn Term 2026
Term Time: Tuesday 1 September 2026 to Friday 23 October 2026
Half term: Monday 26 October 2026 to Friday 30 October 2026
Term Time: Monday 2 November 2026 to Friday 18 December 2026
Spring Term 2027
Term Time: Monday 4 January 2027 to Friday 12 February 2027
Half term: Monday 15 February 2027 to Friday 19 February 2027
Term Time: Monday 22 February 2027 to Thursday 25 March 2027
Summer Term 2027
Term Time: Monday 12 April 2027 to Friday 28 May 2027
Half term: Monday 31 May 2027 to Friday 4 June 2027
Term Time: Monday 7 June 2027 to Wednesday 21 July 2027
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