Newsletter - Friday 23rd October 2026

15 minutes ago

7 min read

Issue 4 - Autumn 2026

Proud to be ELSTON! Empowered, Listeners, Successful, Together, Open-Minded, Nurturing

As we reach the end of a busy first half term, I would like to thank our children, families and staff for their hard work, support and commitment since September.

The Autumn Term always feels a long one, but our children have done us proud. They have shown resilience, embraced new challenges and settled brilliantly into their new classes and routines.

Personally, I would also like to thank our families, children and staff for the warm welcome and support they have shown me. You have helped make my first half term at Elston feel incredibly settled, and I am very grateful to be part of such a wonderful school community.

This half term has been filled with many successes and memorable experiences, including the launch of our Daily Mile, our Harvest Festival Celebration Assembly, exciting learning opportunities across the school, our well-attended EYFS workshops, and a fantastic Year 6 Residential, to name just a few. These highlights represent only a small snapshot of what has been a busy and successful half term, helping our children grow in confidence, develop new skills and create lasting memories.

Thank you also to all families who attended last week's Parent Consultation Evenings. It was wonderful to see so many parents and carers joining us to celebrate their child's progress and achievements. We are delighted that 87% of parents attended this autumn term's consultations, which is an excellent level of engagement and reflects the strong partnership between home and school. We hope those who were unable to attend were able to make alternative arrangements with staff so that these successes could also be shared.

We look forward to welcoming everyone back for a busy and exciting second half of the Autumn Term. It may only be October, but before we know it - the Christmas carols will be upon us….!

I hope you all enjoy a well-deserved half-term break.

Thank you for your continued support.

Mrs Wood

Headteacher

Personal Development

Wellbeing Ambassadors Training

Our Wellbeing Ambassadors have continued their training with the Wolves Foundation to become 'Health Champions'. They have been busy planning their campaign linked to mental health and wellbeing that they will launch after half term. Wellbeing Ambassadors Plan Mental Health Campaign

TechTigers After School Club

We have a limited number of places remaining on our new TechTigers after school club that will launch after half term. These remaining places are now available for children in Y3 to book. For more information or to book your child's place, visit the website. After-School & Holiday STEM Clubs, West Midlands | Tech Tigers

School notices

Secondary School Admissions

During the beginning of September Y6 parents will have received a letter from Wolverhampton City Council explaining that you will need to apply for Secondary School for your child by Saturday 31st October.

The letter contained your child's UID - Unique Pupil Identifier, you will need this to apply online. If you did not receive a letter please call school.

If you have not already done so, please submit your child's application for Secondary School as soon as possible. If you have any queries please contact school.

School Crossing Patrols

We have received further concerns about drivers failing to stop at the school crossing patrols and drivers being impatient when children are crossing. Please support our School Crossing Patrol when driving around school and the surrounding areas.

Parents' Evenings

We were delighted to welcome representatives from Miquills (catering), Reflexions, Family Hub, Places Leisure, School Nurses, Moreton School, Ormiston New Academy and Aldersley High during our parents' evenings. Thank you to those who attended, 87% of families attended meetings during the week. A letter has been sent to any families who were unable to attend to provide a further opportunity to discuss your child's learning. Our next parents evenings will take place during the spring term.

Safeguarding

PCSO Visit

PCSO Trudi has been visiting school recently to deliver a number of session with children across school. Y2s session was linked to trusted adults and people who help us. This week our Y3 and Y4 children were reminded about ways to stay safe online. They discussed the difference between real and fake images. The NSPCC have further information on this for parents on their website Keeping Children Safe Online | NSPCC

A Mental Health First Aid Kit for Parents

Please see the link below for support for parents

Mental health first aid kit for parents: Who to ask and what to do - BBC Bitesize

Curriculum

Our classes have been busy with a range of learning opportunities. Our Y6 children developed their understanding of the human heart in science with some practical activities Year 6 Science

Our Y2 children have been using their art skills to make a real life sculpture Year 2 Art

Finally, our Y3 children had a wonderful time at their visit to Tanglewood! Despite the rain, they threw themselves into a range of activities to develop their understanding of their history topic about the stone age.

Sporting News

Boys Football

Our boy's football teams have been busy working through their fixtures with both our A and B teams playing matches at The Royal school. Our first team secured a 7-1 win against the Royal with details that can be found on our website ⚽ Elston A vs The Royal Final Score: 7–1 🔥

After taking the lead in their match, our second team sadly went on to lose 4-3 in their match against the Royal B team ⚽ Elston B vs The Royal B

Well done to both teams for their dedication and commitment.

Girls Football

Our girls football team have again been proudly representing Elston Hall in recent weeks. Firstly, they took part in the Blakemore Cup held at the Sir Jack Hayward Training Ground. The girls played brilliantly and progressed to the semi-finals where they sadly lost in a penalty shoot out. 💚 A TEAM TO BE PROUD OF! 💚

The girls also played their first league match of the season at home against St Anthony's which ended in a convincing 7-0 victory. 🔥 ANOTHER BRILLIANT PERFORMANCE FROM OUR GIRLS! ⚽️👏

We were also delighted to host a special girls football training session supported by Tom Varty from the Wolves Foundation and Wolves Women First Team player Tammy George. Tom and Tammy have been visiting school over this autumn term to work with children on the 'Wolf Wise' programme but took some time out from this to oversee a session with our aspiring footballers! A wonderful opportunity for our girls! 🐺⚽ What an amazing experience for our girls! 💛🖤

Daily Mile

We have been delighted to launch the Daily Mile at Elston Hall. We were joined by James from the London Marathon Foundation who spent the day in school delivering assemblies, training the Sports Ambassadors and launching the daily mile with classes. More information can be found on the website The Daily Mile Launches at Elston Hall!

Wider Sporting Opportunities

Well done to a group of our KS2 children who attended the Baseball Festival at Aldersley. The children had the opportunity to develop their understanding of Baseball and learned a range of skills including batting and fielding. ⚾ KS2 Baseball Festival! ⚾

A further opportunity took place at Aldersley for some of our keen footballers from Y2 - Y5. The children did a range of activities and drills with some matches being played at the end. ⚽ A Fantastic Afternoon of Football! 💚

2026 - 2027 Key Dates

School will be closed on the following INSET days:

Monday 4^th January 2027
Friday 28^th May 2027
Monday 7^th 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

Monday 26^th October – Friday 30^th October	Half term – School closed to all pupils
WC Monday 2^nd November	After School clubs resume
Monday 9^th November	Year 6 - Height and weight checks (school nurses)
Tuesday 10^th November	Year 6 –Height and weight checks (school nurses)
Monday 16^th November	Anti-bullying week
Monday 16^th November	Reception Open Evening 3.45-4.15pm
Wednesday 18^th November	Vaccination UK – Flu Vaccine programme Reception to year 6 – catch up session
Thursday 20^th November	Reception Open Evening 4.00-4.30pm
Tuesday 24^th November	Rocksteady Concert 2pm
Monday 30^th November	Last week for after school clubs
Thursday 3^rd December	Nursery Christmas Performance 9.15am & 1.30pm
Thursday 3^rd December	Reception Christmas Performances 10.15am & 2.30pm
Friday 4^th December	Y3 Christmas Performance 9.15am & 1.30pm
Friday 4^th December	Y4 Christmas Performance 10.15am & 2.30pm
Monday 7^th December	Swimming for Class 17 starts (12 weeks)
Monday 7^th December	Reflexions: Year 2 class pupils: Feelings and moods focus.
Monday 7^th December	Y1 Christmas Performance 9.15am & 1.30pm
Monday 7^th December	Y2 Christmas Performance 10.15am & 2.30pm
Tuesday 8^th December	Y5 Christmas Performance 9.15am & 1.30pm
Tuesday 8^th December	Y6 Christmas Performance 10.15am & 2.30pm
Wednesday 9^th December	Christmas Dinner day / Christmas Jumper day
Thursday 10^th December	Reception Christmas trip to Statfold Railway
Thursday 17^th December	House point reward
Friday 18^th December	End of term
Monday 4^th January	Inset Day - School closed to all pupils
Tuesday 5^th January	School reopens to all pupils

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.

Year group	Up to 16.10.26
Whole School (Without Reception children)	95.94%
Nursery	90.85%
Reception	92.37%
Year 1	95.18%
Year 2	96.52%
Year 3	95.21%
Year 4	96.4%
Year 5	96.02%
Year 6	96.32%

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.