Newsletter

Local Charity – Live Unlimited

At Holly Park we support three different charities each term. This term we are going to be supporting a local charity. The charity is Live Unlimited. Live Unlimited is a charity that provides opportunities and support to Barnet’s looked-after children and young care leavers, empowering them to live their best lives. On Wednesday 19th November we will be supporting this charity and asking children to come to school dressed in a mix of purple, green, blue and orange in return for a £1 donation to the charity on School Money. Thank you.

Cultural Day

Last Friday we had a lovely Cultural Day. The children in each year group looked at a different aspect to do with cultural heritage. Each year group had a theme to discuss and explore based on an aspect of cultural heritage:

Nursery – FOOD from different cultures
Reception – FAMILIES from different cultures
Year 1 – STORIES from different cultures
Year 2 – CELEBRATIONS from different cultures
Year 3 – ART from different cultures
Year 4 – DANCE from different cultures
Year 5 – CLOTHING from different cultures
Year 6 – MUSIC from different cultures

Parent Cultural Tea Party

It was lovely to see some of our Holly Park parents attend the cultural tea. A big thank you to those who brought along food from their culture. There was a great spread for everyone to taste.

Remembrance Day

On Tuesday 11th, we observed a silence in school. In assembly this week there was a poem about what the poppy symbolises. We also talked about Percy Llewellyn Evans who was a teacher at Holly Park who died in WW1. Our Year 6 House captains went to the local war memorial with members of the community.

PTA House Point Jars Competition

Next week the PTA are having a PTA House point jars competition. Win house points for your house by entering the competition. Bring in a jar, cup or covered pot filled with small toys and/or sweets, with your name and House written underneath. Each entry will get 5 house points and the 5 best entries will get an extra 10 house points! Bring these into the office from Monday 17th – Thurs 20th November. The filled jars will be used on a stall at the Christmas Fair.

Parent workshop – Marking & Feedback

Marking and feedback is a crucial part of teaching and learning; it is how we assess pupils’ understanding, decide on next steps, address misconceptions and celebrate their successes. If you would like to understand Holly Park’s marking policy and to know more about the range of strategies and processes that we have in place to support pupils’ learning, then please come to a presentation Ms Sampson is giving on Monday 1st December at 9am.

Parent Governor Spaces

Following the end of the four-year terms of office for some parent governors in November/December this year, we will have spaces for some new parent governors to join us. Being a part of the Governing Body would give you the opportunity to help to shape the strategy that underpins the Holly Park ethos in which your child is learning. Holly Park has an opportunity now for four parents who wish to join. Formal applications and a candidate statement will be needed in due course. However, if at this stage you would be interested to find out more about the role and the commitment needed please contact me (Mrs Pelham). I would like to offer you the opportunity to talk more about what the role entails. There is more information at the end of this newsletter.

Success Outside School

Demmi and Bronagh ran in the London Youth Games last week. Bronagh came 33rd and Demmi came 39th. The Barnet girls team came 3rd overall winning a bronze medal.

PTA Jazzy Jumper Day

Jazzy Jumper Day will be Monday 1st December. In return for wearing a Jazzy Jumper, the PTA would be delighted if children could bring in Christmas Chocolates for the chocolate tombola.

PTA Christmas Fair

The Christmas fair will be after school on Friday 5th December. Please save the date. If you are able to volunteer with the set up that afternoon

PTA Christmas Shop

The PTA Christmas Shop will be open on the mornings of 15th and 16th December. This is an opportunity for children to secretly buy gifts for parents or carers at school. Look out for more information about signing up to this from the PTA.

Attendance

Whole school attendance for the last week was 96% Well done to Year 2 Rowan Class with the best attendance at 100%.

Dates

Monday 17th November Meeting for Y5 parents – Y6 residential in 2026 9.00am
Tuesday 18th November Y5 Juniper Class assembly 9am
Wednesday 19th November Local Charity day – Live Unlimited
Wednesday 19th November Consultations for KS1 & KS2 4-6.30pm
Thursday 20th November Consultations for KS1 and KS2 4-6.30pm
Friday 21st November INSET DAY

Being a school governor

What is the governing body? The governors are a group of people who act as supportive and challenging friends to the school, ensuring there is a strategic direction to decisions made by the school leadership team.

Governors do not get involved in the day-to-day operational running of the school. This is a voluntary role so governors are not paid.

At Holly Park the governing body is made up of parents with children at the school; people representing the local community and Local Authority and some school staff.

Why be a governor?

School governors make a valuable contribution to our children’s education, opportunities and futures.

Being a school governor gives us the chance to make a real difference to young people as well as giving something back to your local community and developing our own skills.

School governors are the largest volunteer force in the country – there are over a quarter of a million in England.

Who can be a parent governor?

Any parent with a child currently at Holly Park can put themselves forward to be a governor.

How long is the term of office? A term lasts four years.

How much time does it take? At the start of every term there are committee meetings (7.45am). There are learning walks every month (9am – 10am) focussing on a particular aspect of the school – these give a fascinating insight into the life of the school. At the end of every term there is one full governing body meeting and some training (evening 6.30pm – 9pm) lasting just over two hours which brings together the work of the committees.

I work full-time so how could I fit it in? Most of the current governors work full-time. Some employers give time off for school governors and most recognise that being a governor is a positive experience for their staff. Also, most committee meetings are held early in the morning and aim to finish by 9am and the full governing body meeting is held (once per term) in the evening. Obviously learning walks are held during the school day, usually at 9am – it is recognised that not all governors can attend every one of these, but they do provide some of the most interesting aspects of the role.

Do I have to do a lot of reading? There is some reading to do – usually minutes of meetings and some policies but you get plenty of time to read them at home. There is a termly Headteacher report ahead of the full governing body meeting.

English is not my first language – will this make it difficult for me? Whilst we can’t translate documents (because of cost), not having English as your first language should not be an obstacle. We are very interested to learn from your experience and perspective; language will not be a barrier to this.

What would I get out of it? It is really interesting to find out more about how the school functions and about education in general. There are also training courses which are good for your personal development.

What training and support is available? There is no requirement for you to have any specific training. However, Holly Park has our own induction process to help you. Also, the London Borough of Barnet provides plenty of training and support for new governors which we encourage governors to attend.

What is the process for election? Firstly, request a nomination form and fill in your nomination and please don’t forget to submit it in time! If we have more applicants than needed, there will be an election amongst the entire parent community. Nominees will write a short statement about themselves. Those elected by the most votes will be appointed a governor as soon as possible after the votes have been counted and ratified by Barnet.

Who can I contact if I would like more information? If you think that the role might be something you would like to do, but you feel you don’t have enough information, you can contact any of the following people to discuss. • The Head Teacher • The Chair of the Governing Body. • Any of the current parent governor

And finally … we asked previous parent Governors to share their views. Here is a selection of their answers:

What is the best bit of being a governor? • Staying connected with the school and local community and gaining a deeper understanding of education. • Feeling like I’m making a difference and supporting the school to be the best it can be for all the children who attend. • Being part of a community of people who have a common goal of wanting the school to be the best it can be. • The governors at Holly Park are a great team who work well with the staff. The real joy comes from our shared sense of purpose and knowledge that we are having a positive impact of the school lives of hundreds of children. • The learning walks which are onsite and usually included a part where we got to ask the children what they thought about it all. • Seeing how well the school provided for its students and manages limited resources.

What would you say to any parent who is considering becoming a parent governor at Holly Park? • Go for it! It’s a lot more interesting and less arduous than you would expect. • It’s a rewarding role and you would be joining a friendly, supportive team of people. We all have different skills to offer and all learn new skills in the process too. • It’s definitely a worthwhile experience and good for anyone who cares about the school. • Do it. It’s very easy to think that you have all the answers, but in order to really do that you need to understand the problems.