Welcome!

Welcome back to the Spring Term - we wish you all a very Happy and Healthy New Year and hope that you all had a relaxing and enjoyable Christmas - despite the cold weather!

We will have a number of activities and events happening throughout the Spring term, details of which will be forwarded in due course. The first events are trips to the Toy and Waterfront museums at Scaplens Court for Lulworth, Studland and Tyneham classes on 11th and 12th January.

The first Family SEAL meeting will be held on the afternoon of Tuesday 12th January if you would llike more information regarding Family SEAL then please call in and speak to either Mrs Critchell, Mrs White or Mr Battishill.

In the meantime our school term dates for the remainder of the academic year are as follows:

Staff Training Day	Friday 12th February
Half-Term	Monday 15th - Friday 19th February inc
Easter Holiday	Friday 2nd - Friday 16th February inc
May Day Bank Holiday	Monday 3rd May
Half Term	Monday 31st May - Friday 4th June
Staff Training Day	Monday 7th June
End of Summer Term	Friday 23rd July

Internet Safety

Workshops were held today for parents and all children regarding internet safety. Dorset Police, who run the course, have advised that they would be happy to run the course for parents one evening. If you would be interested in attending, then please contact either Mrs Rachael Brown, or the school office so that we can judge numbers. Thank you!

Management of Medicines in School

We have recently reviewed the above Policy and a letter has been sent out to all parents today (13th January) explaining the new procedures in place. To read a copy of this letter click here

OFSTED

We have now received our full Inspection report, which will be available to view online at www.ofsted.gov.uk from 1st December - copies have gone out to all families but further copies are available on request from the Office.

We are very pleased with the report which shows that we have continued to make progress - by building on the positives of our previous inspection in 2006. As you will see, we have been marked 'Outstanding' on 9 judgements (compared with 3 in the last inspection) and 'Good' for the remainder.

We have recently had to reiterate our request to parents and visitors that dogs are not bought onto the school premises, nor tied up on the outside perimeter fencing. We trust that you can understand that the health and well-being of the children both in School and at Ragamuffins make this decision necessary.

We can now offer all children hot school meals at lunchtime at a cost of £2.10 per day. This scheme has been running since September and is proving very popular - please contact the Office if you need any information.

We have recently sent home to all the children copies of our Home School Agreement, and ICT Permission Slip and a Travel to School information form. We would be grateful if these could all be returned to the Office so that we can keep our records up-to-date.

Breakfast/After School Club

Our Breakfast and After School Club (COBRAS) continue to run in conjunction with Ragamuffins. The breakfast club operates from Monday - Wednesday and COBRAS Mondays - Thursdays, with various session times to cater for all needs! If you require any information about any session time/cost/availability please contact either the Supervisor, Mandy Kennard on 07774 574457 or the Office on 01929 471334.

If you would like to read a copy of our latest Newsletter please click here

Child Protection

In line with current legislation and our commitment to helping parents and carers understand the school's responsibility for the welfare of all pupils, we have recently sent home a copy of our current Safeguarding Policy for your information. This Policy, which appears below, has been adopted by our Governing Body and is adhered to by all members of staff and any other outside agencies who may work with the children whilst they are in school.

Our Designated Senior Person for Child Protection is the Head Teacher, Mr S Battishill and the Deputy Designated Senior Person is Mrs D Tibbey, who can be approached in the absence of the Head Teacher.

SAFEGUARDING POLICY FOR BERE REGIS SCHOOL

Bere Regis school recognises that the welfare of the child is paramount and takes seriously its responsiblity to safeguard and promote the welfare of the children and young people in its care.

An agreed definition of safeguarding is 'All agencies take all reasonable measures to ensure that the risks of harm to children's welfare are minimised. Where there are concerns, all agencies take action to address those concerns, working to agreed local policies and procedures in full partnership with other local agencies' - Joint Chief Inspectors' Report 2002.

Promoting welfare involves 'creating opportunities to enable children to have optimum life chances in adulthood' - Framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and their Families (Government guidance 2000).

The Governing Body will act in accordance with Section 175 (or Section 157 for Independent Schools) of the Education Act 2002 and the supporting statutory guidance 'Safeguarding Children and Safer Recruitment in Education'(2006) to safeguard and promote the welfare of children in this school.

All children have the right to be safeguarded from harm or exploitation whatever their

race, religion, first language or ethnicity
gender or sexuality
age
health or disability
political or immigration status

Governors, staff and volunteers in this school understand the importance of working in partnership with children, their parents/carers and other agencies in order to promote children's welfare.

The purpose of this policy is to:

afford protection for the pupils at Bere Regis School
enable staff and volunteers to safeguard and promote the welfare of children
promote a culture which makes this school a safer place to learn.

This policy applies to the headteacher, all staff (including supply and peripatetic staff), volunteers, governors or anyone working on behalf of Bere Regis School.

We will endeavour to safeguard children and young people by

valuing them, listening to and respecting them
involving them in decisions which affect them
making sure all staff and volunteers are aware of and are committed to the safeguarding policy and child protection procedures
sharing information about concerns with agencies who need to know, and involving children and their parents/carers appropriate
recruiting staff and volunteers safely, ensuring all necessary checks are made
adopting a code of conduct for all staff and volunteers
providing effective management through induction, support and training.
ensuring staff and volunteers understand about 'whistle blowing'
dealing appropriately with allegations/concerns about staff or volunteers, in accordance with Government guidance.

The school DESIGNATED SENIOR PERSON for Child Protection is

MR S BATTISHILL (HT)

The school DEPUTY DESIGNATED SENIOR PERSON for Child Protection is

MRS D TIBBEY (DHT)

Holiday Activities in Dorset

We have been advised that there is a free information website for parents which provides details of many events in Dorset during school holiday times. The website address is www.kidsoffschool-dorset.com.

INTERNET SAFETY

We have been in contact with the Police regarding the above - to read a letter with regard to children's safety on the internet, together with contact addresses if you have any concerns, please click here.

SCHOOL PROFILE

Our School Profile for 2008 - 2009 is available to read by clicking here.

POLICIES

Our current Behaviour and Discipline Policy is now available. If you wish to read this, please click here.

Our Disability Discrimination Policy, covering accessbility is available. If you wish to read this, please click here