Newsletter

Healthy School Award

I am delighted to share with you that in July 2025 just as we broke up at the end of the school year that we were awarded the Silver Healthy Schools London Award. This was approved by the Barnet Quality Assurance Group. As we had done lots of work for our Bronze Award on healthy eating and healthy activity, the focus of our work for this award we decided would be around mental health and wellbeing. Feedback on our application was: “Holly Park is clearly a school that cares about the mental wellbeing of the pupils. They have chosen well-considered actions that will hopefully help to build whole-school resilience. One outcome that was particularly interesting to me was around reducing social isolation by asking pupils if they had someone to play with at breaktimes.” and “Well done on a clear and comprehensive action plan to address and improve emotional health and wellbeing. It’s good to see how this builds upon your previous work within the Resilient Schools programme. We look forward to seeing the impact of the planned actions in your Gold Case Study”

Meet Maisy

Hello everyone! My name is Maisy and I am very excited to be joining Holly Park. I have never been to school before but I hear that Holly Parkers are very kind and I cannot wait to make lots of new friends! I am 8 years old (I will be 9 in September) and am an English Cocker Spaniel. My favourite things are (in no particular order): eating, going for walks and being stroked.

I have my very own pet human called Ms Sampson (some of you may know her) and she will bring me to school with her – she’s even got me a special school uniform! I’ll be spending time with Mrs Puzey, Mrs Pelham and even Miss Michael too! I have heard all about your previous dog, Poppy, who I understand was very special to you all. I hope that I can follow in her paw-prints and also be a loyal, kind and caring Holly Barker.

See you soon, Maisy.

Attendance

Below are our attendance figures for the past three academic years:

  • HPS attendance from September 2024 to June 2025 was 95% National was 95%
  • HPS Attendance from September 2023 to June 2024 was 95% National was 94%
  • HPS Attendance from September 2022 to June 2023 was 94% National was 93%

Books

Thank you to all of the families who donated £7.99 last term to help us raise more money for books in school. I am delighted to tell you that the donations raised £1,853 extra money for books. Ms Sampson is thrilled to use this money to buy new books for the library.

Holly Park Playgroup

Our new Holly Park playgroup is about to open next week on Wednesday 17th September in the morning from 9am to 10.30am. The playgroup will be run by Miss Nichols and Mrs Puzey – supported from time to time by Miss Mornington. The playgroup is for 0-5 year olds who are not yet in school. There will be lots for babies and toddlers to do and a chance for parents and carers to come along and chat together. The playgroup will be open to our local community: parents, grandparents, carers, child minders, family friends and anyone living in our local community. There will be a very small weekly fee of £2. Do come along if you have a child of this age and please share the information with friends and family who live in the local area.

Looking for a Reception Place for September 2026?

If you or any of your family, friends or neighbours are looking for their child to start school in September 2026 then please come and join us on a tour to find out more. Call the school office to book your place on Thursday 25th September 1.30pm or Friday 10th October 10.45am

In The Know Programme – Reducing Waste

As part of our School Improvement Plan, we’re taking part in a waste awareness programme! We asked to be included in this project and had to apply. We were one of two Barnet schools who were chosen to be part of the project. This year our school is excited to be taking part in the North London Waste Authority’s (NLWA) In the Know programme! NLWA is challenging primary schools across north London to take a deep-dive into their bins and try to lighten the load. The programme aims to establish a low-waste culture in the mindset of our school through education and hands-on activities. We will gain insights into waste behaviours at our school to see where we can become more sustainable.

Why are we taking part?

– Education for pupils, staff and the school community on tackling waste and reducing our carbon footprint

– Insights into our waste at school through pupil-led waste audits

– 5 days of hands-on, educational activities from the NLWA across the year

– Guidance on forming long-term strategies to prevent waste in the future

– Improvements to our services and bins to maximise our ability to reduce waste

What do you need to know? Our Eco Council will be working closely with NLWA to make changes around the school to tackle waste. If your child is taking part in the waste audit or further activities, we will send them home with a letter. To involve the whole school community in the programme, NLWA have some great advice for our PTA to help identify areas where waste can be reduced and assist in the planning of low-waste activities, such as uniform/clothes swaps and sustainable events. Look out for information from them coming soon!

The Start of the School Day

A reminder that the school gate closes at 8.55am so children should be at school by 8.55am. Thank you.

Holly Park Homework

Following consultation last year with parents, staff and pupils we decided to change our homework policy and offer in order to improve outcomes for pupils and to most effectively meet the need of our pupil cohort across the school. Our new homework is clear and will be consistent. It will be set weekly and builds on work done in class. The homework set in each year group is designed to have the greatest impact and is intended to support children to meet national expectations at each stage. Homework will be set each week using Google Classroom so that parents can see clearly what the weekly homework tasks are. Homework will be done either on paper (KS1), on TTRS (Y3 & Y4) or in a homework book (Y5 & Y6). It will no longer be uploaded to Google Classroom.

Based on parental feedback – we want to make sure that children at Holly Park know that we value homework, therefore, children at Holly Park will be rewarded each half term for doing their homework. Children in KS1 and Year 3 will receive house points for doing their homework. In KS2, at the end of each half term children who have done the majority of their homework that needs to be handed in each week will receive Golden Time. Golden Time will be done in year groups. Golden Time for homework will be 15 minutes and will be extra playtime, Amazon Climber, ball area etc supervised by one teacher

Children who have not done the vast majority of homework that needs to be handed in will not participate in Golden Time and will be supervised by the other teacher

Flu Immunisations for Pupils

Flu immunisations are being offered to all pupils in schools between Reception and Year 11. Parents can choose between having a nasal vaccine or an injection for their child. It is the responsibility of parents to sign their child up for this. Nurses come into school and carry out the immunisations. The whole process is organised by the NHS. Information has been emailed home.

Parent Feedback

Last year, across the year through emails, parent council and report comment feedback we have received many lovely positive comments about the school. Here are just some:

  • The joyfulness of the school – this is seen in the children, the adults and the architecture of the school buildings.
  • I like 2 form entry and I like the fact that classes get mixed up along the journey
  • The integrated day and the fact that KS1 children are not sitting at desks and it is more informal.
  • Love the nursery – my children were happy. Great interactions with staff.
  • The Y4 pyjama party will be a lifelong memory.
  • I am unable to put into words how grateful I am to the nursery staff for their support and charming personalities.
  • We want to thank and congratulate the school for their true dedication, hard work, love and support. It is a blessing to send our child to Holly Park.
  • We love the length of service of staff – the experience of staff – the stability of staff – the fact that everything is very well established at Holly Park
  • We like the location in terms of the fact that it wasn’t on a main road – like that it is tucked away and on a quieter road away from pollution
  • We like the curriculum on offer
  • We think the nurturing environment and the transitions between phases is excellent.
  • We are enormously grateful for the education our daughter is getting and the environment that she is able to enjoy.
  • We are seeing such positive progression in all aspects.
  • A wonderful start to school life.
  • My daughter speaks highly of her love for learning and her teachers. My son has had a most enjoyable year at Holly Park.
  • We like the fact there are 3 different playgrounds
  • The Headteacher is friendly and personable.
  • The SEND provision caters for all
  • The Reception team are fantastic in every way and set each child up with the key reading and writing skills as well as the personal skills they need to move onto the next stage and beyond. They are a real asset to Holly Park.
  • My child has had a happy year and I have been impressed with her learning.
  • I want to thank my child’s teacher for their kindness, honesty and support.
  • I always recommend my friends to bring their children to Holly Park.
  • The teachers and assistants are calm, patient and supportive and clearly have a strong team dynamic that can be felt amongst the students and parents.
  • We really enjoy the cultural diversity at the school and the recognition of it
  • We like the website and it helped us choose this school.
  • I found the process of admission and the info given very clear and useful and friendly. A smooth start as we joined part way through the school.
  • My child’s individuality is appreciated and she is recognised as a valued member of the class.
  • My child has had an amazing Reception year.
  • It has been lovely to see how my daughter has been doing with her creative endeavours.
  • The school provides my child with a nurturing environment to educate her in.
  • Holly Park is an excellent school academically and professionally.
  • The end of year report was a fair assessment of my son’s first year at the school.
  • My child’s report gave me a good insight into the year they have had. So much effort has gone into writing it – it was personal and detailed.
  • We want to thank the school for all the extra-curricular opportunities that have been offered to our son and that he could engage with. He continues to have very positive relationships with his peers and the teaching staff.
  • I am pleased that my son has been stretched and am grateful for the extra challenges that have been set.
  • We are grateful for the care taken by the fantastic teachers and support staff. • The staff have got to know my child inside and out and he has really benefitted from their support.
  • We are delighted that our child is demonstrating kindness, empathy and maturity. These qualities mean so much to us as parents and we are delighted that they are recognised and nurtured in school.
  • Our son has many positive things to say about his year and his teacher. He is very ready to move on to the juniors.

Harvest Festival Advance Notice

We will be holding our Harvest assembly on Wednesday 15th October for Food Bank Aid. This year they have made a special request. They would like JUST donations of breakfast cereals. This is part of their breakfast champions campaign. As cereal is a key feature of Harvest, this is the theme of the Harvest collection this term. This is a new initiative to help ensure that no child or adult in North London has to start their day hungry. I am letting you know with advance notice in case when you are doing your weekly shop over the next month that you might want to buy a breakfast cereal from time to time and put it away ready for our collection.

Attendance

Whole school attendance for the last week was 94% Well done to Y2 Elm Class with the best attendance at 100 %.

Dates

Friday 12th September INSET DAY

Wednesday 17th September Playgroup begins 9am

Thursday 18th September Meeting for Nursery & Reception parents – the curriculum 9am & 1pm

Friday 19th September Full day for all Reception children

Wednesday 24th September Y5 to Cuffley Camp

Friday 26th September Reception phonics meeting for parents 9am

Monday 29th September Y6 to Norfolk Lakes

Thursday 2nd October Meeting for all parents: SEND in mainstream schools

Friday 3rd October Y1 phonics meeting for parents at 9am

Monday 13th October Walk to school week

Wednesday 15th October Harvest Festival

Friday 17th October Just One Tree Day

Monday 20th October Y6 National Assessment meeting for parents at 9am

Friday 24th October Be Bright Be Seen Day

HALF TERM

Monday 3rd November Parents in Class to Read Together 8.45-9.15am

Monday 3rd November Notice for consultations Years 1-6

Tuesday 4th November Meeting for all parents: Maths

Friday 7th November Cultural Day

Monday 10th November Anti-Bullying Week

Wednesday 12th November KS2 Book Look 3.30-5.30pm

Thursday 13th November Individual Photograph Day

Thursday 13th November KS1 Book Look 3.30-5.30pm

There is facility to translate this newsletter and the whole school website at the bottom of the website home page.

This week’s newsletter: Newsletter 11.9.25

Introduction letter – September 2025