HESKETH HOUSE NEWSLETTER 19 JANUARY 2024
A note from the Head…
Music Theory Examinations
Congratulations to all of the Year 6 girls who have taken the Senior School Entrance Examination this week, and most have also now had their interviews as well. The girls usually impress in these situations with their excellent oracy skills and many have even admitted to enjoying the experience! Well done.
Congratulations to Arwa Bhatia, Ayah Dawoud and Jena Ghauri, who all achieved a Distinction in their Step Music Theory Examinations. Well done!
Please could I remind you that all general queries and messages should be directed to the Hesketh House office juniorgirls@boltonschool.org.uk or 01204 434761. Please include your daughter’s name and form in any emails.
The Friends of Bolton School are considering holding a Foundation-wide daytime summer family event in June. There will be a meeting on Tuesday 23 January at 7.00pm in the Leverhulme Suite to discuss ideas for such an event. If you are interested in getting involved, please do come along. Such an event can only take place with the input of parents and volunteers from across the whole Foundation. If you are unable to come to the meeting but are still interested in getting involved with the planning, then please email bsbdpa@gmail.com and we can keep you updated.
Please do not email teaching staff with urgent messages, as they may not able to monitor emails throughout the day, and certainly wouldn’t pick these up if they were out of school for any reason. If in doubt, please contact the office; we will direct any emails to the appropriate teacher if necessary. The office email is always monitored throughout the day. Mrs C Laverick Severe Weather Arrangements The Severe Weather Arrangements were emailed to parents last term, a copy can be found here. The key points are that information will be posted on the front page of the school website (www.boltonschool.org), usually by 7.00am, and we would be grateful if parents would use the website as the first port of call. You will also be sent an email, and news often first appears on School X Accounts such as @Philip_Britton, @sfboltonschool, @BSPDJnrGirls. Individual Music Lessons If you are interested in your child taking up music lessons within school, please look through our Visiting Music Teachers brochure here for further details. If you have any questions about individual music lessons at school, please contact Mr Forgrieve, ikf@boltonschool.org.
Summer Festival – Planning Meeting Tuesday 23 January 7.00pm, Leverhulme Suite
Author Talk – Helen Rutter Tuesday 30 January Year 5 and Year 6 girls will meet author Helen Rutter, who will talk to them about her very popular books. Girls can pre-order signed copies of her books, and order forms have been given out in school, a copy is here. There is a deadline of Monday 22 January to guarantee a signed copy of your favourite! Organ Open Day Saturday 3 February, 2.00pm – 4.00pm On Saturday 3 February Bolton School will be holding an Organ Open Day. Audience members will be able to learn more about the organ, hear some wonderful performances from our organist Mr Murray and the students of Bolton School, and be able to get up close to the instruments. Anyone is welcome to attend, light refreshments will be provided and parking will be available in Dobson Road Quad. To book a space on the event and for further updates, please email Miss Archer at ija@boltonschool.org.uk.
HESKETH HOUSE NEWSLETTER 19 JANUARY 2024
Hesketh House Music Festival Monday 5 February and Tuesday 6 February We will be holding our annual Music Festival prior to half term, with the piano classes on Monday 5 February and other instrumental and ensemble groups on Tuesday 6 February. Parents will be able to come in to watch the sessions their child is taking part in if they wish; we will confirm timings in the next couple of weeks, once we have a clearer picture of the numbers involved. Letters have been given out to interested girls, a copy is here. External adjudicators will award certificates and placings in each category, and give individual feedback on all of the performances. We will be inviting the award winners in each category to perform in a Celebratory Concert on the evening of Thursday 7 March. More details will be given nearer the time.
Social Media – X Please follow us @BSPDJnrGirls, @BSPDMFL and @BoltonSch Patterdale Hall Trips – Summer Term 2024 The dates of our visits are as follows: Year 3 Tuesday 7 May – Wednesday 8 May Year 4 Monday 13 May – Wednesday 15 May Year 5 Wednesday 15 May – Friday 17 May Year 6 Monday 22 April – Friday 26 April All pupils are expected to take part in these trips.
Meet Mr Britton, Head of Foundation Wednesday 14 February, 2.30pm – 4.00pm After the success of the September coffee morning I hosted for parents last year, we will be having a tea, coffee and biscuits afternoon on Wednesday 14 February from 2.30pm to 4.00pm in the Boys’ Division dining room. Parents from all parts of the Foundation are welcome and it may especially suit those waiting for Primary Division pupils in cars at that time. I will say a few words around 3.00pm. We will share more detailed arrangements nearer the time. Kidzone Half Term Holiday Club The programme of activities and booking information can be found here. BSSL February Sports Camp BSS Leisure are also running activities during the half term holiday, more information is here.
There will be an Information Evening on Thursday 14 March when we will be giving pupils and parents more details about what to expect. We would particularly recommend that you attend if your child has not been to Patterdale Hall before. School Uniform Shop Opening Hours Monday 12.30pm – 5.30pm Tuesday 12.30pm – 5.30pm Wednesday Closed Thursday Closed Friday 12.30pm – 5.30pm Saturday 9.30am – 12.30pm Sunday Closed Lunch Menu The lunch menu for next week can be found here.
HESKETH HOUSE NEWSLETTER 19 JANUARY 2024
Tub2Pub Recycling Scheme
Volunteers Needed!
Calling all chocoholics! Please don’t throw your plastic chocolate tubs away after your Christmas indulgences, instead you can send them to school. These will be passed on to a local Greene King pub at the end of the month as part of the Tub2Pub recycling scheme, which also raises money for Macmillan Cancer Support. More information can be found at http://www.tub2pub.co.uk/tub2pub. Thank you!
We have been asked to let you know about Coram Beanstalk, a national children’s charity celebrating 50 years of supporting children to become confident, independent readers. Coram Beanstalk sees a future where every child is a reader and are urgently looking for volunteers in Bolton and throughout the Greater Manchester area. Their reading helpers provide consistent, one-to-one, support to children in primary schools. They train their volunteers to do far more than 'listen to children read'. They help children who are falling behind and who may be missing the wider support they need, to catch up, to improve their reading ability, enjoyment and confidence. If you wish to volunteer or find out further information, please email admin@corambeanstalk.org.uk.
NSPCC Game Safe Festival The Game Safe Festival is a global first of its kind; a chance to celebrate gaming and encourage parents, professionals who work with children and the gaming community to join us in our mission to create a safer online world for children. To find out more about this event, which will run from 5 to 11 February, go to the NSPCC website here. Safer Internet Day We regularly discuss online safety in school, but it is also important that parents feel well informed on the subject. This year, Safer Internet Day is on Tuesday 6 February and is a great opportunity to focus on online safety with your child, whatever their age. This year’s theme is all about change and influence online and there are a range of pages to help you talk about these issues and ideas with your child, no matter how much time you have and in an age-appropriate way. More information can be found by visiting their website here.
We would also make you aware of a volunteering opportunity to support The Royal British Legion and The Poppy Appeal this year. Unfortunately, Bolton has faced a shortage of volunteers in recent years, making it challenging to access poppies and contribute effectively. If you are interested in helping this worthy cause, please contact Steve Conneely, the Poppy Appeal Manager for Merseyside and West Lancashire, via e-mail at SConneely@britishlegion.org.uk. The fundraising period runs from Thursday 24 October until Saturday 9 November, with Remembrance Sunday on 10 November. SPORT REPORT
Related to this, we would also bring to your attention concerns regarding Roblox, which many children play. The target age for Roblox is infants and juniors but when they are gaming online, they can be contacted by anyone, which clearly is a risk. If your child is playing this game, please do supervise them closely.
Boardman Bears Lacrosse Club Several of our girls already play for Boardman Bears, and they are looking to recruit more players between the ages of 8 – 13. If you are interested, more information can be found here.
HESKETH HOUSE NEWSLETTER 19 JANUARY 2024
Water Polo Festival Saturday 13 January Players Charlotte Buchanan Charlotte McCarren Jessica Shannon Amelia Tickle Izzy Owen Aoife Riley Darcey Tomlinson
Our Year 6 water polo players joined forces with the boys from Park Road to take place in a festival, hosted by the City of Manchester Water Polo Club. They enjoyed lots of games, playing against water polo clubs from across the region and the improvement in skills across the day was great to see. Thank you to Mr Winstanley who coached both teams throughout this tournament and well done to all players! You can view a selection of official photographs from the event in the gallery here: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjBaKky DATES FOR YOUR DIARY
Tuesday 23 January Thursday 25 January Monday 29 January Tuesday 30 January Monday 5 February Tuesday 6 February
Ski Trip Information Evening AJIS Indoor Sportshall Competition Y4 Netball v Kings Macclesfield TBC Y5, Y6 Author Talk Helen Rutter – pm Music Festival – Piano Music Festival – Instrumental
Wednesday 7 February Friday 9 February Wednesday 14 February Thursday 15 February Monday 19 February Tuesday 27 February Monday 4 March Wednesday 6 March Thursday 7 March Tuesday 12 March Wednesday 13 March Thursday 14 March Friday 15 March Tuesday 19 March Wednesday 20 March Thursday 21 March Monday 25 March Tuesday 26 March Wednesday 27 March
Y4 Roman Visitor Y5 Netball v Manchester High (A) Y6 AJIS Football PA Movie Night 4.15pm – 6.00pm MFL Day HALF TERM SPRING TERM RESUMES Y6 AJIS Hockey TBC Book Fair this week Y4 Bridgewater Hall Trip World Book Day Celebratory Concert 7.00pm, Arts Centre AJIS Music Festival Parent Consultations (1/2) In-Person Y5, Y6 Young Shakespeare – am Parent Consultations (2/2) Online Y3 Trip to Brockholes Y5 AJIS Netball Patterdale Hall Meeting 7.00pm Comic Relief Red Nose Day Y6 AJIS Netball Dance Festival (Dance Club) Y5 Viking Visitor Y5 Architecture Workshop House Day Y3, Y4 Easter Bingo – 1pm House Netball – pm Y5, Y6 Easter Bingo – 1pm END OF TERM
Summer Term 2024 Start of Term – Tuesday 16 April Bank Holiday – Monday 6 May Half Term – Monday 27 May to Friday 31 May End of Term – Friday 5 July