Newsletter - Friday 8th May 2026

lfoster51
2 hours ago
10 min read

Issue 15 - Summer 2026

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

Dear families,

I hope you enjoyed the bank holiday weekend.

We've had another busy fortnight in school with lots of exciting learning taking place! Thank you for everyone's efforts today, celebrating David Attenborough's 100th Birthday. I've seen some fantastic learning going on around school!

Year 6 will sit their SATs tests next week. I wish them every success! Thank you to families and teachers for all efforts to support pupils to get ready for the week ahead. Year 6 pupils have worked very hard over the last few months and we are so proud of their efforts.

We've just two weeks left until half term with lots to look forward to including Year 4's visit to Conwy.

Thank you, as always, for your continuing support.

Have a great weekend,

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 remains at 94.7% - below the current national average of 94.8%. 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! Nursery and Year 3 saw attendance increase - keep it up!

Year group	Up to 7.5.26
Whole School (Without Reception children)	94.7%
Nursery	89.1%
Reception	91.9%
Year 1	95.1%
Year 2	94.4%
Year 3	95.2%
Year 4	94.1%
Year 5	94.5%
Year 6	94.8%

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.

Attendance Video

Our pupils have made a video about the importance of attending school - please watch it by clicking the link above!

Personal Development

Computer Club

Our children have been having a fantastic time in Computer Club using Studio.code.org to explore the world of coding. Through fun, interactive activities, the children have been learning the basics of coding while developing problem-solving, creativity, and teamwork skills.

Science Club

The children discussed what would happen if we put hot water onto a plate of skittles and they thought that the sugar coating would dissolve, leaving the trail of colour. We went outside to understand why the skittles would make a rainbow path and the children learnt that it was because the sugar wanted to diffuse to an area with less sugar, which meant that it would travel in a straight path towards the middle of the plate. We went back inside and designed how the skittles would be arranged on the plate, then tested it out. After we had seen the patterns that were made, we used the remaining skittles to make two other patterns. The children chose a square and a star. We then tested these and loved seeing the results!

Teaching and Learning Opportunities

Celebrating 100 Years of Sir David Attenborough

Today, we celebrated the 100th birthday of Sir David Attenborough. During the day, the children learnt about this inspirational man through a range of engaging activities. We used the occasion to focus on our writing skills, with children across the school writing in a variety of genres linked to the work and achievements of this amazing man. Have a look to see what we have been up to! Keep checking the blog for more photos!

Year 3 Egyptian Day

Year 3 kicked off their new topic with an exciting Egyptian Day! We have been focusing on hieroglyphics, exploring the fascinating world of ancient Egyptian writing, and even creating our own symbols. As part of the day, we went on a scavenger hunt, searching for answers to questions all about Egypt. It was a fun way to learn and explore the mysteries of this incredible civilization! A big thank you to Amber, who kindly brought in some Egyptian artefacts from home to share with the class. It was amazing to see real-life objects from such a historic culture up close.

Rainforest Workshop in Year 4

Year 4 were thrilled to welcome Rainforest Dave to school to kick off their new thematic learning project, Under the Canopy. From the very start, he had the children captivated – and would you believe he’s visited a rainforest over 60 times! During the day, the children had the incredible opportunity to meet and even hold a Madagascan millipede and a tarantula. What an unforgettable experience for everyone!

Walk to School

A reminder that we are taking part in the WOW challenge to encourage children to travel to school actively!

Walk to School | Elston Hall

Sports Ambassadors would love even more photographs of children actively travelling to school - this could be walking by themselves or with a sibling/ friend or using a bike or scooter. If the picture can feature their wow badges then even better! These pictures will be used in school and on our website to show our active travelling. If you'd like your child to be featured, please email photographs to office@elston.org.uk with the subject 'Walk to School'. Thank you!

School notices

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.

EYFS area

Unfortunately, we have had to dispose of several resources, including bikes and scooters, because they were being damaged before and after school. These items are intended for children's learning during the day.

To protect remaining equipment, we will be closing Reception area gates before and after school. Please remind children (and younger siblings) that outdoor resources, including nursery equipment, should only be used during school hours (9:00 - 15:20).

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.

Parking

Please see the following information from the City of Wolverhampton Council:

We are continuing to experience significant issues with parents and carers parking on restricted areas during school drop‑off and pick‑up times. Unfortunately, despite previous engagement efforts, the situation has not improved.

‘Until now, our Civil Enforcement Officers have approached drivers observed parking in contravention and requested that they move their vehicles before issuing a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN). Increasingly, drivers are relying on this warning and continuing to park unlawfully until instructed to move. These restrictions must remain clear at all times to ensure the safety of pupils, parents, and carers.

‘To address this ongoing issue, we will be changing our enforcement approach. Any vehicle parked in contravention of restrictions near schools will now receive a Penalty Charge Notice immediately, without a prior request to move. If a driver leaves the location after the issuing process has begun, the PCN will be issued by post to the registered keeper of the vehicle.’

Matthew Bowden

Senior Parking Service Officer

Email: parkingservices@wolverhampton.gov.uk

City of Wolverhampton Council

Sports News

Year 5 & 6 Shine at Wolverhampton Swimming Gala

8 children from Year 5 & 6 competed in a swimming gala held at The Royal School in Wolverhampton. The children competed in individual and relay races against 10 other teams. Overall, the boys team finished 5^th and the girls team finished 3^rd demonstrating excellent teamwork and determination. A special well done to Evie who won gold in the 50m freestyle and our girls team (Evie, Penny, Ella & Zara) who won silver for their relay. A great effort from all of our team!

Lunches

Our school menus can be found here: Lunches | Elston Hall.

A reminder that school lunches will be different on Thursday 14th May. If you haven't already informed us of your child's sandwich choice, please complete the form sent in the letter on 29th April. Thank you.

We have a special menu for Census Day on 21st May:

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

Mrs Dean is expecting her second child and will soon begin maternity leave! Her last day with us will be Friday 15th May. Miss Holt will also be starting maternity leave soon, with her last day being Friday 22nd May. We wish them all the very best and look forward to meeting their new arrivals!

SEND

IASS May '26 E- Bulletin

SEND Coffee Morning & Information Event with Rachel Watson - Wolverhampton Outreach Service and Family Hubs · Eequ

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 19^th June
Monday 20^th July

School will be closed to all pupils on these days.

WC Monday 11^th May	Y6 SATs Week
Monday 18^th May	Y2 SATs week Y6 Top up swimming sessions start (selected pupils)
Monday 18^th May – Wed 20^th May	Y4 Conwy residential – no extra curricular clubs this week
Monday 25^th May – Friday 29^th May	Half term – school closed to all pupils
WC Monday 1^st June	After School clubs continue
Monday 1^st June	Y4 MTC window Year 6 Bikeability
Tuesday 2^nd June	Year 6 Bikeability
Wednesday 3^rd June	Year 4 Bikeability
Thursday 4^th June	Reception Trip to Theatre
WC Monday 8^th June	Y1 Phonics Screening window
Monday 8^th June	Sports Day – Y4 – 9.15am, Y5 – 10.45am, Y6 – 1.45pm Reflexions: Transition - Year 6 Children’s workshops
Tuesday 9^th June	New Reception Parent meeting 3.30 KS1 hall
Wednesday 10^th June	New Reception Parent meeting 3.30 KS1 hall
Thursday 11^th June	New Reception Parent meeting 3.30 KS1 hall
Friday 12^th June	Sports Day – Y1 – 9.15am, Y2 - 10.45am, Y3 - 1.45pm
Monday 15^th June	Sports Day – Reception – 9.15am, Nursery am – 10.45am, Nursery pm – 1.45pm Reflexions: Transition – Parent workshop 2-3pm
TBC	Nursery trip
Wednesday 17^th June	Year 1 Conkers Trip
Thursday 18^th June	Year 1 Father’s day events
Friday 19^th June	Inset Day – School closed to all pupils
Monday 22^nd June	Last week for After school clubs Year 4 Father’s Day events
Tuesday 23^rd June	New to nursery parent meeting 3.30
Wednesday 24^th June	Y6 Trip (all day)
Thursday 25^th June	Reception to Year 1 transition parent meeting 3.30
Monday 29^th June – Wednesday 1^st July	Transition sessions (am only) Reception – Y6
WC Monday 29^th June	Transition week Y6-7
Tuesday 30^th June	Rocksteady Concert
Thursday 2^nd July	Yr 5 trip to Safeside
Monday 6^th July	Last Y6 top up swimming session
Monday 6^th July – Tuesday 7^th and Wednesday 8^th - Thursday 9^th July	Y2 residential
Friday 3^rd July	EYFS Colour Festival
Thursday 9^th / Friday 10^th July	Y6 Summer Fete
Friday 10^th July	End of Year Reports sent home
Thursday 16^th July	Nursery graduation
Wednesday 15^th July	Y6 Leaver’s Performances
Thursday 16^th July	Y6 Leaver’s events (during school day & BBQ after school)
Friday 17^th July	End of academic year
Monday 20^th 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 1^st September 2026
Wednesday 2^nd September 2026
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

Community Links

Free All Stars Cricket at Fordhouses Cricket Club

I’m delighted to let you know that Fordhouses Cricket Club will be running a FREE All Stars programme this summer. All Stars Cricket provides a fantastic first experience for all children aged 5-8 years old where they’re guaranteed 8 weeks of jam-packed fun, activity and skills development. The programme is designed to introduce children to the sport, teaching them new skills, helping them make new friends and have a great time doing so. Children who have never taken part in All Stars before will receive a personalised t-shirt, bat, ball and backpack.

Below are the links/QR code to book onto the programme which will begin on Tuesday, May 5th from 6pm for 8 weeks.

All Stars Cricket (5-8 year olds)

QR code to book –

Link to book – https://ecb.clubspark.uk/Book/ca8ba35e-6443-4007-8949-91a4268055d0?venue=fordhouses

Discount code – VLYZB

Staffordshire Cricket

Proud to be part of Elston Hall Learning Trust