Newsletter 08/05/26
cotham gardens primary school
weekly newsletter 08/05/2026
MESSAGE FROM THE HEAD OF SCHOOL
This week we have begun our series of class performance assemblies with Maple Class, who set the tone brilliantly. Their assembly was a joyful celebration of learning, delivered with enthusiasm and pride.
Every pupil was involved, demonstrating the importance of giving children a platform to speak and perform in front of an audience. Over the coming weeks, all other classes from Y1 upwards will have the opportunity to share their learning in this way, building towards our Year 6 end of year show—a highlight of the school calendar and a fitting culmination of their primary journey.
In addition to this, our Year 1 pupils have been busy working with the Shooting Fish Theatre Company to record their very own radio play. It has been wonderful to see how the children are embracing storytelling through voice, sound and imagination. Developing oracy skills at an early age supports learning across the curriculum and builds confidence that will serve children well throughout their lives. You can hear the finished product at the world premiere on Thursday 21st May at 2.45pm.
Looking ahead, our Year 6 pupils will begin their SATs next week. They have shown tremendous dedication in their preparation, supported by a committed and hardworking staff team. We are incredibly proud of their efforts and are anticipating our strongest set of results for many years.
In time old tradition, Cotham Gardens will be opening the gates early Mon-Thurs for Year 6 children.
No need to sign up, just come along from 8:20 to our free SATS Breakfast and Calm Club. We will be serving cereals, toast, fruit and pastries. Please bring your own refillable water bottle.
Entrance will be via the side gate next to the office - Mr Jarman will be there to usher you in and Mrs Bush and Miss Walters will be at the breakfast station ready to get your child set for the day. Doughnuts (fresh from Joe's bakery) will be served AFTER the tests each day.
Finally, thank you to all parents and carers for your positive response to last week’s request to ease office workload by completing forms, providing consents promptly and booking meals in advance. It makes a real difference to the smooth running of the school.
COMING UP NEXT WEEK
MONDAY 11TH MAY
YR6 SATS - Breakfast club from 8:20
TUESDAY 12TH MAY
YR6 SATS - Breakfast club from 8:20
Tennis: Hedgehogs class in the hall at 9:15
WEDNESDAY 13TH MAY
YR6 SATS - Breakfast club from 8:20am
Tennis: Hedgehogs class in the hall at 9:15
Kestrels class assembly - Gates open 14:45
FRIDAY 15TH MAY
YR6 AIP Pizza making workshop
YR6 Cricket - Walking to Shine
📜 GOLDEN CERTIFICATE WINNERS 📜
🌟ATTENDANCE WINNERS AND REMINDERS 🌟
This week’s Elmgrove class punctuality
winners are:
Rabbits with 100% - Well done!
This week’s Cotham Grove punctuality winners are:
Pine and Maple with 99% - Well done!
This week’s Elmgrove class attendance
winners are:
Honeybees 99% - Well done!
This week’s Cotham Grove class attendance
winners are:
Kingfishers 100% - Well done!
LUNCH BOOKING REMINDER: WE NEED YOUR HELP
We kindly ask for your help in confirming lunch choices every weekend for the week ahead. This is important even if your child plans to bring a packed lunch from home or is in receipt of free school meals.
When lunch choices aren't booked in advance, teachers have to confirm lunch arrangements with those children before they can start teaching, which wastes valuable teaching time every morning. Additionally, the kitchen faces challenges not knowing in advance if these children will require a school meal or not, leading to unnecessary food orders that may go to waste.
As previously communicated, if a child does not have a lunch booked on Arbor and does not have a packed lunch from home, the kitchens will only be able to offer an emergency jacket potato. Therefore, it is very important to book a lunch in advance to ensure your child receives their preferred meal choice.
Not sure how to book?
If you are unsure how to book a lunch choice on Arbor, please don’t hesitate to reach out to the school office, who are always very happy to assist - or click on this handy guide.
Unable to access Arbor on your device
If you are having problems accessing Arbor on your phone, tablet, or PC, please do not hesitate to book your lunches using one of the tablets available at either school office.
Thank you for your support.
📌 SAVE THE DATE FOR OUR NEXT COMMUNITY FORUM 📌
📍 Online Forum
📅 Date: , 19th May
🕘 Time: 6:00 PM – 6:45 PM
📍 Location: Online
Link will be shared on ClassDojo
📍 In-Person Forum
📅 Date: Wednesday, 20th May
🕘 Time: 9:00 AM – 9:45 AM
📍 Location: Cotham Grove Hall
🍕 AIP TASTING DAY - THURSDAY 21ST MAY 2026 🍕
In a change to the advertised menu, your child can choose from:
Meat Pizza (Halal option also available)
or
Cheese and Tomato Pizza
or
Jacket Potato
Please note, we are unable to amend a live menu on Arbor.
If your child would like the Meat Pizz a- you will need to select 'Beef Lasagne'.
If your child would like the Halal Meat Pizza- you will need to select 'Halal Beef Lasagne'.
If your child would like the Cheese and Tomato pizza - you will need to select 'Spaghetti and Meatballs' on Arbor.
CHILD SAFETY WEEK
Child Safety Week 2026 runs from Monday 1st to Sunday 7th June. Organised by the Child Accident Prevention Trust, this year's theme is 'Making Prevention Possible' building practical capacity for safety behaviour in families and the professionals who work with them. Please find below a parent pack, designed to empower families to make simple changes without feeling overwhelmed.
🐢LETS SEE WHAT YEAR 2 GOT
UP TO LAST WEEK! 🐢
Last week, Year 2 went on an adventurous trip to Noah's Ark Zoo Farm. They were amazed to see rhinos, zebras, giraffes, bears, lions, elephants, camels, guinea pigs, rabbits, gibbons, horses, a Nile crocodile... the list goes on! We were careful not to disturb the animals and this allowed us to get close to the giraffes and rhinos which was incredible! During our workshop, we listened to facts about animals and were amazed to see how long a giraffe's tongue is! We also learned that they are black/blue to avoid getting sunburned! The children were so respectful of the animals and held or stroked a giant African land snail, a Madagascan hissing cockroach and a South American guinea pig! One particularly memorable part of the day, was sliding out of an elephants bottom! Astoundingly, the elephant slide is the same height as the largest elephant ever recorded! With tired legs and empty lunchboxes, we headed home on the coach and spotted lots of familiar Bristol landmarks along the way. We had a great day out!
🪱 COME AND JOIN IN WITH LADYBIRDS BOOK CORNER 🪱
This week Ladybirds really enjoyed reading Superworm by Julia Donaldson. The class loved the rhythm, the rhymes, and of course Superworm’s amazing tricks. The children were full of excitement as they joined in with the repeated phrases and predicted what might happen next.
NURSE DROP IN SESSIONS
We still have spaces available for our SEND Coffee Morning on Tuesday 23rd June where the school nurse will be dropping in for some sessions with parents and carers.
please click on the date to book your lot:
Tuesday 23rd June 2026 - 4 tickets still available!
The sessions will be about offering support and information around topics such as emotional support and relationships, sleep, healthy eating, exercise, being healthy, smoking/vaping.
The sessions will be running between 9:00-10:00 and are held in the hall at Elmgrove. There are 4, 15 minute slots available per session and are offered on a first come, first serve basis. You will be able to join in with coffee morning whilst you wait to be seen.
If you do book a slot with the Sirona Nurse and are then unable to attend, please let us know in advance so we can offer out that sessions to another family.
📢 PTAF NEWS 📢
👟👟👟👟👟👟👟👟👟👟👟👟
The amazing Ms Smith and the awesome Miss Bayat are both going to be running the Bristol 10k in May.
Please sponsor them via the link below so the PTAF can work with the school to buy more Chromebooks to enhance the children’s ICT education
https://wonderful.org/fundraisers/79zWQ
🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉
PTAF SUMMER FAIR
FRIDAY 12th JUNE
3.30-6pm
We are so excited about bringing you our first after school Summer Fair. There will be a BBQ, non-alcoholic refreshments, face painting and lots of fun games.
As always we will need lots of help so watch this space for how you can get involved.
💰💰💰💰💰💰💰💰💰💰💰💰💰
YOUR SCHOOL LOTTERY
One very easy way you can help raise money is to buy a lottery ticket through our new school lottery system.
One winner from our school is guaranteed every week!
Click on the link below to buy tickets!
Join the Holiday Fun near you this May Half Term! Book by Sunday 17th May to receive 20% off using the code: Early Booker.
We have loved seeing so many children come along to Shine Holiday Clubs and look forward to welcoming more of you.
For children at any school from Reception – Year 6, days run from 09:00-15:30 with (early and late hours) available if you need them.
There are loads of different activities such as Forest Adventure, Make Musical - Matilda, Mega and Mini Mash Ups, Cookery, Crazy Science Creations, The Greatest Showman Dance, Creative, Mini Gymnastics with Cheerleading, Football Fundays, Soft and Hard Ball Cricket, Tri Golf and Athletics there really is a day your child will love.
Shine are Ofsted Registered so you can pay via Childcare Vouchers and the Tax-Free Childcare Scheme.
Click here to see what’s on; Henleaze, Horfield, Westbury on Trym to see what’s on and use the code Early Booker to get 20% off.
See you at Shine!
CREATIVITY CLUB
Tuesdays at Cotham Grove:
Our after school Creativity Club is bookable for terms 5&6 now. Devised by Emma from Chandos Atelier and delivered by professional makers with years of experience, it is an hour of creative exploration using art materials. Enriching and imaginative, they develop skills and resilience, teaching techniques and methods rather than giving follow-along instructions - perfect for creative kids and art adventurers!
https://www.chandosatelier.co.uk/bookings
“His creativity at home and his attitude to materials and projects has exploded, which includes scientific endeavours, inspired by your materials and attitude to creativity.”
COMMUNITY NEWS
Shine Saturday morning soft ball & hard ball cricket coaching
Shine are running weekly Saturday morning soft ball & hard ball cricket coaching at Golden Hill Cricket Club.
Suitable for children in Reception upwards, the U5's -U9's will be playing soft ball.
Book your place at Shine Squads | Children's Sports teams in Bristol | Saturday Cricket Coaching - Soft Ball
Open to children of any ability. With no kit needed, come and play cricket🏏
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