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

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Friday 25th September 2026

Dear Families,

It has been another busy and happy week at Heathlands, and there is lots to look forward to.

This coming Monday afternoon we will be holding our Harvest services. Harvest is a lovely time to stop, give thanks for all we have, and think about how we can share with others. We look forward to celebrating together.

On Monday evening, Mr Saunders, Headteacher at Honywood, will be giving a talk to Year 6 parents about applying for and moving on to secondary school. The talk is not just about Honywood; it will be useful for all Year 6 families, whichever schools you are considering. Last week I went to a meeting about the rising cost of bus travel for children from West Bergholt going to secondary school. It made clear how important it is for families to have good information early on, including how their child will get to school each day, so you can make informed choices. I would encourage as many Year 6 parents as possible to come along.

In the next fortnight, Year 6 will be heading off on their week-long residential. It is always a highlight of the school year and a real chance for our children to shine their lights, whether that's trying new challenges, strengthening friendships or growing in confidence. We can't wait to hear all about it.

Thank you to all the families who have been parking respectfully around the school. I've walked around at drop-off a few times recently and can see a real improvement, so thank you. It makes a big difference to the safety of our children and to our neighbours.

Please do read through the points below, as there are some important updates.

I hope you all have a lovely weekend and lok forward to seeing you next week.

Mr Crawley

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Congratulations to Mrs Howells!

We are delighted to share the lovely news that Mrs Howells is expecting a baby and is due in February. We wanted to let you know as we begin making plans for her time away.

We are all thrilled for Mrs Howells, her husband, and Noah, and I know you will join me in sending them our warmest congratulations.

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Parent Consultations

Our autumn parent consultations are coming up in October, and we will again be using School Cloud so that you can book your appointments online. Once the system is set up, we will send you a date by which to check that you can log in, followed by the date and time when bookings will open.

This year, all class teachers will hold their appointments at the same times on the two evenings:

Tuesday 20th October, 3:30pm to 7:00pm,
Thursday 22nd October, 3:30pm to 5:30pm

This should make it easier for families with more than one child to book appointments back to back. The dates are also listed in the calendar and upcoming events section below.

Our New Staff

We'd like to remind families of the staff who joined the Heathlands team in September:

Mrs Henriksen is a class teacher in Willow Class and teaches on Thursdays and Fridays.
Mrs Hinds is a class teacher in Olive Class and teaches on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. She is with us for a few months, until Mrs Gidden returns from maternity leave.
Mrs Holyman is one of our Higher Level Teaching Assistant (HLTA) and covers classes across the school throughout the week.

Thank you to everyone who has already made them feel so welcome. Please do say hello if you see them around school.

Cycling to School - Worries

It's lovely that so many of our older children are choosing to cycle to school. However, some parents have raised concerns about children cycling dangerously, both on the Heath and on the roads around school. Today I spoke with some Year 6 children about staying safe and showing our Core Values when they are out in the community, just as they do in school. We would be grateful if you could talk about this at home too. Please remind your child to ride sensibly, take care around pedestrians and traffic, and wear a helmet. As the mornings and evenings get darker, please also check that bikes have working lights. Thank you for your support in helping everyone get to and from school safely.

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Music Mark

We are thrilled to share that the Greater Essex Music Hub has awarded Heathlands the Music Mark of Recognition for Dedication & Improvement. The award celebrates the value we place on music in school, and it was given to us in recognition of our work rather than through an application or assessment, which makes it especially meaningful. Thank you to our staff, especially Mrs White, and to all our children, whose enthusiasm for singing, playing and performing makes music such a joyful part of school life. Well done, Heathlands!

Parent Focus Groups

This year we are launching Parent Focus Groups. They give families the chance to get involved in the life of the school and to help us think through issues and opportunities as they come up.

Our first focus group will look at home-time arrangements. We'll meet one evening to talk through ideas together in a positive, constructive way and to look at how we might improve the way children are dismissed at the end of the day.

All suggestions will then be taken back to the Senior Leadership Team to consider.

If you would like to take part, please send me a Class Dojo message by the end of next week, so that we can agree a date/time to all meet.

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Mr Turver

Going the extra mile to understand my child’s needs and showing patience and kindness in how he supports them. His thoughtfulness has made a real difference

Sam and Louie - Year 6

Helping find a cap that fell off my bike and checking my bike was ok.

Mrs Santos

Mrs Santos always treats my child with kindness and respect. He always talks about his interactions with her at lunchtime as she goes above & beyond!

Charlie C - Cedar

Today, just prior to demonstrating his much improved reading, Charlie held the door open for a member of staff. This showed Respect for others AND Kindness.

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from 05 Oct until 09 Oct

from 26 Oct until 30 Oct

26
October

Heathlands Fireworks Display

All Day

07
November

School Remembrance School

All Day

11
November

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11 Sep 2026

Colour Run - July 2026

Thank you!!

11 Sep 2026

Parent Governor - We Need You!

We are looking for a parent governor to join our Governing Board

11 Sep 2026

PTA - We Need You!

PTA AGM — New Chair and Secretary Needed

04 Sep 2026

Heathlands Fireworks

🚨 Can You Help Us Spread the Word? 🚨

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I'd like to draw your attention to a series of creative writing workshops for 7-11 year olds. All are at Colchester Library, and are free of charge and bookable in advance.

Create your own superhero - this Saturday, 19 September, at 10.30am

Playing with poetry - Saturday 3 October at 10.30am

Creating characters - Saturday 17 October at 10.30am

Spooky stories - Saturday 31 October at 10.30am

The Storycoaster - Saturday 14 November at 10.30am

Make your own zine - Saturday 28 November at 10.30am