Dear Marlborough families,
Deck the halls! Christmas has arrived at Marlborough, concert rehearsals are underway, the decorations are up and the glitter is out!
December is always an incredibly busy month in school with concerts to rehearse and perform, Christmas parties and celebrations to attend and of course learning carrying on in lessons. I very much look forward to welcoming our Marlborough families to our many Christmas events over the next few weeks.
During this month of reflection I would just like to extend a personal thank you to all of Marlborough families and friends who have supported the school so far this academic year. Without all of your support the school would not be such an amazing and vibrant place.
I hope you all enjoy the festive break and take time to switch off with your loved ones. To that end I would just like to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year – Nadolig Llawen a Blwyddyn Newydd Dda! I look forward to welcoming you back in 2020.
CHRISTMAS EVENTS
Christmas Concerts
The Christmas concert season will be upon us before we know it! Below are the dates and times for all of the concerts.
Foundation Phase
The concerts take place in the Foundation Phase Hall. Tickets have been issued to families. Entry is ticket only to ensure that numbers in the hall are within the safe fire regulation limits.
| Year 2 | Monday 9th December – 2:00 p.m.
Tuesday 10th December – 9:30 a.m. |
| Year 1 | Tuesday 10th December – 2.00 p.m.
Thursday 12th December – 9:30 a.m. |
| Reception | Thursday 12th December – 2:00 p.m.
Friday 13th December – 9:30 a.m. |
| Nursery | Wednesday 11th December – 9:30 a.m.
Wednesday 11th December – 2:00 p.m. |
Key Stage 2
Each year group will perform a Christmas Concert at Albany Baptist Church.
| Year 3 | Monday 9th December – 6:00 p.m. |
| Year 6 | Tuesday 10th December – 6:00 p.m. |
| Year 4 | Wednesday 11th December – 6:00 p.m. |
| Year 5 | Thursday 12th December – 6:00 p.m. |
Christmas Charity
This year our nominated charity is Marlborough PTA Community. We do not charge entry to any of the Christmas concerts or events, however, there will be collection buckets for donations.
Christmas Jumper Day
We will be holding our Christmas jumper day on Friday 13th December.
Winter Lantern Parade
As a celebration of and grand finale to our whole-school topic of ‘Is There Hope Without Light?’, we are asking our wonderful Marlborough children to make a lantern at home and bring it into school on Wednesday 18th December. The children will have an opportunity to show their lanterns in class and share how they were made, before taking part in our very own festival of light – a lantern parade around the school grounds and Waterloo Gardens at 3.45. You all made such an outstanding effort with the poppies, that we can’t wait to see what you come up with!
Christmas holiday dates
School closes for the Christmas holidays at 3:30 p.m. on Friday 20th December and re-opens to pupils for the Spring Term on Monday 6th January 2020.
Donations to Crisis (in lieu of Christmas cards)
This year we would like to offer our Marlborough staff, children and families an alternative to sending Christmas cards if you wish.
Thousands of people will be without a home this Christmas and are in urgent need of the unique package of support that Crisis at Christmas offers. So this year instead of sending a Christmas card your child may make a small donation to this worthwhile charity.
https://www.crisis.org.uk/get-involved/reserve-a-place-at-crisis-at-christmas
Just £28.87 can reserve a place for someone this Christmas and introduce them to the education, training and support to help end their homelessness for good through Crisis’ year-round services.
Children can still bring in a lovely Christmas message for their classmates to add to a Christmas card in each the classroom or you could join Marlborough staff in tweeting your message #loveisallaround and copy in @marlboroughpri.
How many people could our Marlborough community help this year?
School Closure for Inclement Weather
With winter upon us I felt it prudent to issue a reminder of our inclement weather procedures (fingers crossed we won’t need them!).
The Marlborough team will do its very utmost to ensure that the school remains open and there is no disruption to the education of the pupils. In the very rare event that the school has to close, we will inform parents by the following means:
• The school website
• School text message and email
• Cardiff Council website – https://www.cardiff.gov.uk/ENG/resident/Schools-and-learning/Schools/Is-my-school-open/Pages/Is-my-school-open.aspx
Reception Applications for September 2020
Please note Monday 13th January 2020 is the final date for applications for Reception children for September 2020. All applications MUST be made online.
Staff News – Miss Haskell
Miss Kay Haskell will be retiring from Marlborough at the end of this term. Miss Haskell has worked at Marlborough for a remarkable 37 years. By my calculations that is over 1,000 pupils she has taught during her time here. In addition, her coaching of the school netball and athletics team has seen them pick up every award going locally and nationally and feared by all who had to compete against them. The time has come for her to put her whistle into storage and enjoy a well-deserved retirement.