We hope that everyone has enjoyed the summer and we are looking forward to coming back to school on Tuesday. Our first Weekly Message of the year has been sent prior to the start of term, to remind everyone of the arrangements for the first day. We will also send a Headteacher update next week with other information for the Autumn term.
News over the summer
On Thursday 22 August we welcomed our former Year 11 students and their parents/ carers into school to collect their GCSE Results. This was a real celebration and it was wonderful to see so many smiling faces opening their results envelopes. We are delighted to report that the ‘Class of 2024’ achieved excellent GCSE and vocational results. The students worked incredibly hard, supported by our dedicated team of staff and strong home-school partnership. Full details of the results, can be found here: https://www.thehambleschool.co.uk/examination-results/
During the week beginning 19 August, some of our new Year 7 students joined us for Summer School. This was an excellent opportunity for the children to explore the school and complete some transition activities. Thank you to the staff who gave up their time to do this.
Tuesday 3 September – First day back for students
Please note that Monday 2 September is an INSED Day and the school is closed to students.
Students in all year groups return to school on Tuesday 3 September and must be in their tutor rooms (or the main hall for Year 7) by 08:30am. Year 7 tutors will meet their tutees in the main hall and escort them to their tutor rooms. We will also have staff on the gate to help students.
All other students should know where they are going and use the tutor group information sent out before the summer. Please look at our website or the picture below if you are unsure: https://www.thehambleschool.co.uk/pastoral-care/
Click the image for a larger view…
On Tuesday during tutor time, paper copies of timetables and planners will be handed out. We will also check uniform and equipment. Students will go to normal lessons from 09:00am.
Tuesday 3 September will be Week 1.
Transition – Year 7
We hope your child is excited to be joining us on Tuesday. Mr Bateman (Progress Leader), tutors and Transition Prefects are looking forward to meeting Year 7s in the main school hall at 8:30am. A reminder that if you have any questions between now and Tuesday, you can email intake2024@thehambleschool.co.uk
You can also find information and videos on our dedicated Transition Webpage – https://www.thehambleschool.co.uk/transition-2024-2029/
Don’t forget to complete the Transition Challenge at the weekend, if you have not already done this.
Uniform Expectations
In preparation for the start of term, we would ask that all parents/ carers double check the uniform and equipment expectations which were distributed last term. They are also available on the school website: https://www.thehambleschool.co.uk/uniform/
On this page you will also find information on which shoes are acceptable. This term we will have a particular focus on the length of skirts and ties. Please note that skirts must be Thornton style and knee length. Ties must be clip on.
You will also be aware that in July we communicated the new PE Kit rules. If your child wishes to wear shorts, these must be plain black or navy blue (a small logo is acceptable) loose style and thigh length. Cycling shorts or tight shorts are no longer permitted. Please do not worry about bringing your PE Kit on the first day. However, once you have your timetable on Tuesday, you will be expected to bring it on your PE day moving forward.
We have been made aware that there is a useful school uniform swap shop on Facebook if you need any uniform: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2170590283063394/?_rdr
Equipment
Students are required to bring the following equipment to school every day:
- Plain school bag (ideally a rucksack) which is large enough to carry books, equipment and PE kit.
- X2 Pens (black or blue)
- Pencil
- Coloured pens
- Eraser
- Glue Stick
- Green pen
- Purple pen
- Highlighter
- Pair of compasses
- Protractor
- Ruler
- Sharpener
- Water bottle
- Students also need a scientific calculator for use in Science and Maths. You can purchase the correct version (Casio CLASSWIZ fx-83GTX) on the school SCOPAY system and students can collect it from the Finance Office on the first day of term.
Tutors will check this in the morning. We want students to be learning from the start of every lesson – If a child does not have a pen, this means that the teacher has to hand out equipment which delays the start of lessons. From Tuesday tutors will issue students with a pen if they do not have one – You will then be notified on Class Charts and charged 20p per pen issued.
School planners will be issued to every child on Tuesday and students must bring these to school every day. Please do go through this with your son/ daughter and sign the Home-School Agreement on page 15. This needs to be completed by Monday 9 September. Your child and your child’s tutor will complete page 16 over the next week. If your son/ daughter loses their planner, they will need to buy a new one and these are available on SCOPAY.
Rewards
Rewards, positive recognition and celebrating success are important aspects of school life at The Hamble School.
The purpose of our rewards system is to:
- Give students recognition for their efforts throughout the year
- Make them feel valued
- Build confidence
- Motivate them to achieve
Rewards points are issued by staff in the following categories:
- Positive attitude to learning, effort in classwork and homework, contributions in lessons
- Excellent homework
- Contributions to the community, extra-curricular club attendance and social responsibility
- Positive contributions to the tutor group
- House Event participation
- Attending intervention (Year 11)
Further details of our reward system are available on the website: https://www.thehambleschool.co.uk/rewards-recognition/ and you can see how many points your child has gained each day on Class Charts. We will send out a reminder of Class Charts logins (and issue them for Year 7) next week.
Rules
All students at The Hamble School are expected to follow our school rules of ‘Ready, Respectful, Safe’ – Further details of these rules will be available in your child’s planner (to be issued on Tuesday) and on our website: https://www.thehambleschool.co.uk/ready-respectful-safe/
If a child does not follow these rules, they will be given negative points. Any child who receives -2 in a day is expected to stay for a next day after school detention for 30 minutes. We hope that this will not happen to your son/ daughter, however, if a detention is issued, you will be notified on Class Charts.
Food and Drink
Our canteen in the main hall serves food/ drink before school, at break time and lunch time. In addition, the catering pods are available at break and lunch time serving a range of different options from sandwiches to a selection of hot food. Menus and price lists can be found on our website: https://www.thehambleschool.co.uk/food-and-drink/
Curriculum Evenings
We believe that it is important that parents/ carers have the information available to support their children with academic studies. Mr Wood (Assistant Headteacher) and Mrs Valleley (Deputy Headteacher) will be hosting Curriculum Evenings for every year group over the next few weeks. The dates are listed below. Each evening starts at 5:30pm in the Main School Hall and students are welcome to attend with their parents/ carers:
- Year 7 – Monday 9 September
- Year 8 – Monday 23 September
- Year 9 – Monday 16 September
- Year 10 – Tuesday 17 September
- Year 11 – Tuesday 10 September
Communication
The partnership between school and parents/ carers is very important and we believe that students achieve the best possible outcomes when we all work together as ‘Team Hamble’. If you have any questions or concerns, your first point of contact is your child’s tutor – Please contact them via general@thehambleschool.co.uk
Due to teaching commitments, tutors are unlikely to be available to take telephone calls or attend parent/ carer meetings (unless arranged in advance) during the school day.
Please do follow us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/thehambleschool/ or X https://x.com/thehambleschool where we regularly post news and reminders on both of these platforms. We are aware that there are parent/ carer groups on Facebook which are not run by the school but can be useful for reminders. We would respectfully ask that you contact the school in the first instance if you have a concern to give us the opportunity to address this before posting. We would also ask that you ensure students and staff are not named in groups to protect their privacy.
Data Collection – Parent Lite
Parents/ carers with students in Years 8-11 received an invite to register with Parent Lite today. This is an App we are using to allow parents/ carers to update student information and contact details. Please can we ask that you follow the instructions on the App and ensure that all information is complete for your son/ daughter by Tuesday 10 September. Year 7 parents/ carers will receive paper Data Collection sheets on the first day of term.
Sports Centre Parking
As communicated earlier in the week, the Sports Centre have informed us that they have introduced a new parking system over the summer holidays. This means that parents/ carers can now wait for a maximum of 10 minutes in a parking bay. After this time, a fine of up to £100 will be issued for going over the permitted waiting time. Please be advised that this is not our decision and if you wish to discuss this further then you will need to contact the Sports Centre directly: https://www.everyoneactive.com/centre/hamble-sports-complex/
We hope you have a wonderful last few days of the holiday and can’t wait to see everyone on Tuesday. Please do email general@thehambleschool.co.uk if you have any questions; this will be monitored between now and Tuesday by our Office Manager and Deputy Headteacher. We will write to you again with further information about this academic year next week.
