Heathlands Church of England Voluntary Controlled Primary School, West Bergholt Parent Portal

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Date: Friday 13th February 2026

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Dear Families,

As we reach the end of another busy half-term, I want to take a moment to reflect on the many positive things happening across our school community.

Our refill shop was a real success again. Thank you to everyone who supported it. A special thank you must go to Mrs Patterson and our Eco Council for their hard work in setting it up and running it so professionally. It was wonderful to see our pupils leading the way in promoting sustainability and responsible choices.

Sport continues to be a strength of our school, and I am grateful to Mr Minter for organising and leading such successful events over the past two weeks. Well done to all the children who have taken part — particularly those who have braved the rain and wind to represent our school with enthusiasm and determination. Your resilience and team spirit make us proud.

I also had another very productive meeting with our Pupil Governors. They shared thoughtful ideas about activities at break and lunchtime and are keen to explore ways to further improve our school. It is always encouraging to see our pupils taking such pride in shaping and improving their school.

When we return from half-term, we have an action-packed five weeks ahead with trips, visitors, experience days and many exciting opportunities for the children. There is much to look forward to.

Wishing you all a restful and enjoyable half-term break.

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Reporting Absence

A polite reminder that if your child is absent from school, parents and carers must report this by telephoning the school office and leaving a message on the answerphone.

Please do not report absences by email, as these may not be seen promptly and could delay our safeguarding procedures.

Thank you for your support in helping us ensure all children are accounted for safely each day.

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Dear Families

World Book Day 2026 is approaching, and we will be celebrating this in school on Thursday 5th March 2026.

Dress Up / Dress Down Day:

We would like to invite the children to come into school dressed as a character from their chosen book, in their pyjamas or in some comfy clothes – there is absolutely NO expectation to purchase a fancy dress outfit; the most important thing is your child is ready for a day celebrating the joy of reading!

Special Lunch:

There will be a special themed menu, created by our wonderful kitchen staff. Allergies will be catered for. Details to follow after half term.

Optional Home Learning Activities:

To help celebrate the children's love of books, we would like to invite the children to complete one of the following activities:

Book Diorama. The children should use a shoe box to create a scene from their chosen book. The children will be able to view and guess the book being depicted.

Book in a bag. The children should collect a selection of items which act as clues for their chosen book. These will be displayed and the children will have an opportunity to guess the book.

Toilet Roll Characters. The children should use the inner tube from a toilet roll (or kitchen roll) and turn them into characters from their chosen book. These will be displayed and the rest of the school will have the opportunity to guess which book they are from.

There is no obligation for the children to complete any of these activities. Any completed creations should be brought into school on Wednesday 4th March so they can be displayed ready for World Book Day.

Family Story Snuggle Time:

We know how important reading with our children is and would like to invite you in to read with your child in school. You can bring your chosen book or choose one from the class library and snuggle up and read with your child. There will be two opportunities to do this 9-9:30 and 2:30-3:00. If you wish to take part in this, please complete the Microsoft Form.

We hope that you and your child will enjoy celebrating reading with us and can’t wait to share with you via Class Dojo what else we get up to on World Book Day 2026.

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