2nd December 2022

Weekly Update 02/12/2022

Dear Parents/Carers,

At NUSA this week:

This week we held a Winter Wonderland celebration to raise money for our Prom Committee. This involved the students coming to school in non-school uniform and being able to attend the various stalls set up by Year 11 over break and lunch time. Our Year 11 students made us so proud and we were really grateful to all of our students who donated.  

Just a reminder that over the next few weeks, we will be reducing our sales of water bottles in the canteen. The cost of water bottles have increased significantly and it is far better value for our students to have a desert with their meal, rather than a drink of water that they can get for free from our water stations. Please encourage your child to bring a water bottle in to school each day.

Coming up at NUSA:

On Thursday 8th December, it is Christmas Jumper day for Save the Children. We know that money is tight for people at present, therefore, we will not fundraise, however, students can wear a Christmas jumper over their school shirt if they wish.

On Monday 12th December we will be holding a ‘Steps to Success’ evening for all Year 11 students and Parents/carers. A separate letter has been sent to parents/carers of Year 11 students.

Christmas dinner – we will be holding our annual Christmas dinner on Wednesday 14th December 2022. This will be opportunity for students to purchase a Christmas dinner for lunch if they wish. All free school meal students will be entitled to a Christmas dinner as part of their free school meal allocation.

Christmas trips – we will be holding our annual Christmas trips on Thursday 15th December. Students have had letters about this already. Please note the deadline for payment is Friday 2nd December 2022.

On Friday 16th December, we will finish school for the Christmas holidays at 12pm. All students will leave the school site at 12pm. Any student who is entitled to Free School Meals will be able to pick up a lunch to take home should they wish.

All students will return to school at normal time on Monday 9th January 2023.

Uniform:

We are looking to review both our policy for jewellery and our skirts. We will be involving groups of students in this consultation and also asking for parents feedback in the New Year. We want to make sure that our policy is reflective of modern society, whilst maintaining consistency across our school. We are looking forward to making changes that will make our uniform even better.

Free School Meals over Christmas

 

Nottingham City are sending to us a voucher of £45 for each student (equal to £15/week), that are currently eligible for free school meals. This will cover the three week Christmas holiday.

 

For all of those that received free school meal vouchers for the October, you will receive another voucher for Huggg, to cover the break and will be sent to the same email address, you do not need to do anything else, relax. Completing the form again where you have received vouchers during October, will cause a delay in receiving vouchers, as it impacts the vouchers being processed. So please refrain from doing this.

 

For those that are eligible, that did not receive vouchers or that have questions, please read the below.

 

Q&A

 

I received vouchers for October 2022 from NUSA – should I still complete the form?

 

No, please do not apply again where you received vouchers for October Half Term, you will automatically receive them for Christmas 22. Reapplying will cause a delay in receiving your voucher(s). Rest assured, where you received them for October half term, you will be included automatically for Christmas 2022. Unless you have a child now at NUSA, that has joined year 7 for example. In this scenario you should complete the form, but just for the child you need to add.

 

My child is eligible for Free School Meals, but I did not receive them from NUSA over October, how do I receive them for Christmas 2022?

 

Please click here and complete the form. Ensure you input all of your information carefully.

 

If I need to complete the form, when must I do this by?

 

Midnight on Tuesday 6th December 2022

 

What is the value of the vouchers?

 

£15 per week, per eligible child.

 

I did not receive a voucher previously; can I receive my other vouchers now?

 

No, vouchers that were available for previous holidays have now expired. We only have vouchers relating to the upcoming break.

 

When will I receive the vouchers?

 

Vouchers will be issued before 12pm on Friday 16th December 2022.

Parent/Carer Connection group:

We will be looking to launch a parent/carer connection group in the New Year. This will involve parents/carers joining a working party that would meet, initially, half termly to discuss how our school can be even better and also discuss ideas for how we can work more closely with our community. This is an amazing opportunity to be a part of the future of your child’s school. If you are interested in joining the group, please contact me via email on ehoward@nusa.org.uk and I will send more details.

Free Courses for Parents/Carers:

The website link below offers free courses for people aged 19 or over. There are some great courses available and the fact that they are free is a real bonus.

Skills for Life

Safeguarding corner:

A few students have been choosing to go on to the roundabout on Bracebridge after school. I understand there may not be many places for students to congregate with friends, but the roundabout is most certainly not ideal. Some students have ran in to the road and this week, a student was very close to being hit by a car. We are, of course, on duty after school, but this duty does not extend for a long period of time beyond the school day. Therefore, can I ask that you speak with your child if you believe they are hanging around after school, and remind them of the need to be safe on the roads and respectful of our community. We will also do the same.

If your child is concerned about not having much to do after school, the good news is we will be launching our next round of enrichment activities for the New Year, so they are more than welcome to stay behind after school to attend those. More details to follow.

Have a lovely weekend,

Emma Howard